I was recently on a sponsored trip to Brighton, England where I had the chance to meet the director of the Pride Brighton & Hove annual festival.

Brighton has an extensive LGBT history and their annual Pride is one of the biggest three in Great Britain. Last year’s Pride Brighton was the first year it wasn’t free and this year, under new management yet again, the Pride will again be a pay-for event. But from my brief discussion with the director it seems Pride Brighton will be managed in a way that better supports the local community.

Pride Brighton 2012 is on Saturday, 1st September. Later than usual because of the Olympics.

The theme for this year’s Pride is “United Colours of Pride.” Though the 2012 Brighton Pride doesn’t yet have a website, more details as they’re released (including ticket information) will be announced on twitter and facebook.

This week’s The Economist has an article about Islam and homosexuality in it. It’s something I’m pretty interested in, least of which because I just returned from a holiday in Jordan (where I found this awesome, gay-friendly bar). There’s a really interesting chart in the article about male homosexuality, where it’s legal (only Turkey and Jordan, and not specifically illegal in Egypt and Iraq). And yet in all the countries, gays are still prosecuted by other means. In at least three Islamic countries homosexuality is actually punishable by death. Death.

Check out the article online here: Islam and homosexuality: Straight but narrow. It’s an interesting read and nice to see how the internet is continuing to change things…often for the better. And yet, even where it may seem relatively safe to be gay, things like this still happen:

Where laws are gentler, authorities find other ways to crack down. In the Jordanian capital, Amman, several gay hangouts have been raided or closed on bogus charges, such as serving alcohol illegally. Even where homosexuality is legal (as in Turkey), official censure can be fierce. A former minister for women’s affairs, Aliye Kavaf, called it “a disease”; the interior minister, Idris Naim Sahin, cited it (along with Zoroastrianism and eating pork) as an example of “dishonour, immorality and inhuman situations”.

Read the article here: http://www.economist.com/node/21546002

A friend just sent this to me. I’m not sure if it’s new or old, but it translates to the following:

“In Bogotá, one can be gay…”

Public Policy for Equality of Rights of Lesbians, Gays, Bisexuals and Transgender

It seems to be from the local Colombian organization for gay rights, marriage equality yadda yadda yadda. I find it interesting that Colombia voted to extend marriage rights to same-sex couples last summer (though the ruling doesn’t go into effect until 2013) while many of its other Latin American neighbors (and bigger friends to the north—I’m looking at you, America) are still lagging behind.

Le sigh. But at least public service ads like these exist.

Just a quick update with some photos from the Fashion Rock Night in Berlin. Hot indie guys inside the club. An unpretentious crowd even though everyone looked like they’d tried especially hard to pull off the “rocker chic” look. There were just a small handful of models (six or eight by my count). The best views weren’t necessarily of the clothes and the models, but the hot indie boys & girls in the crowd. Most people were rocking out to the live music with plenty of people in the crowd dancing. Just a typical night out in a club in Berlin, this time with relatively attractive models parading between the club-goers.

Read a bit more of the event over on travelsofadam. Photos here: Continue reading →

I just returned from a trip to Amman, Jordan. I’ve flown through the Queen Alia Airport a few times but this was the first trip in Jordan that I’d actually have some time to explore the country. Considering that Amman is the country’s biggest city, I made it my mission to find what (if any) gay nightlife that I could. And as luck would have it, I learned the city has at least one bar, which some have called a gay bar in Amman. Not too shabby!

On my second night in town, I made my way down to Rainbow Street (appropriately named, no?) to Books@Cafe. The bar wasn’t actually so gay on the outside, in fact you just enter through a bookstore (with lots of books & magazines in English). Upstairs, there’s a restaurant/balcony with a lot of shisha in the front, and a trendy bar in the back. On the day I visited, there were quite a few cute guys hanging out around the bar. It’s not technically a gay bar in Amman, but is largely considered a place where everyone can feel safe and comfortable.

Books@Cafe isn’t just for gay locals and the gay expats in Amman, either. It’s just a great bar and restaurant with a friendly atmosphere. It’s not something you might expect to find in a Middle Eastern country, but if Amman is just one thing, it’s a surprising city.

Looking for more gay travel info on Amman? Try these:

hipsters-travel-better — Hipsters travel better.

I’m the newest guest blogger for gaytravel.com! You can check out my bi-weekly column on their blog. Check out my introduction and my first post (HIPSTERS TRAVEL BETTER) on their site. Hopefully this is the start of more online (and eventually offline) endeavors…. I have so many ideas and plans for the future, but it’s always so hard to get the ball rolling. Maybe with a bit more exposure, something will finally come through. Here’s to the future!

I was just traveling around Germany for a bit, and seeing as how Berlin has such a big gay scene (ie, Berghain), I guess I thought the other cities I’d be visiting would have some serious gay nightlife as well. Turns out, that wasn’t so much the case.

Admittedly, I was in some pretty small German towns and missed out on most major German cities. And in actuality, Germany’s most notorious scene for gay life is in Cologne which wasn’t on my itinerary for this trip. But maybe because I’d just been in Dallas, Texas (where there is actually some gay nightlife), I thought I surely must be able to find it in Germany easy enough.

Problem is: I didn’t do any research beforehand. So that meant I was totally reliant upon asking other people or what I could scrounge up on my iPhone. And in a truly hipster style, I did a terrible job! The only app I had that may have been helpful was FourSquare, and searching for “gay bars” within a 10km radius of my current location continually brought up nothing. Nada!

Looking back, it would’ve actually made more sense to just Google “gay bars in Lübeck” (for example). I was a little too reliant on modern technology (and my limited iPhone apps). And if I had just googled for what I was looking for, I would’ve found it. Life lesson learned.

I’m hardly a country music fan and not much of a pop fan, either, but I recently saw a 60 minutes interview about Taylor Swift. Apparently all it takes for me to check out a musician is a 60 minutes interview.

Anyways, I saw this video from Taylor Swift for her song “Mean” and my interest peaked. It was nice to see a hint that it’s okay to be gay as a teenager. In the video, there’s a boy reading a fashion magazine in a lockeroom, obviously being “bullied” by some other dudes. It’s a pretty stereotypical, overt hint: well-dressed boy in a purple sweater reading a fashion magazine? - but the sentiment is nice.

Since it’s December, most people have charity on their minds. Below are some LGBT nonprofits or organizations that I think are providing a valuable and worthy service. If I can be so bold as to make one suggestion for your holiday charity, please do not donate to the Salvation Army. Read why you shouldn’t donate to the Salvation Army Bell Ringers here. Go ahead and click that link—it’s something not enough people are aware of.

Instead, consider one of these LGBT organizations: Continue reading →

Everyone enjoys ratting on the airlines (even celebrities), but it’s also good to point out when they do things right. And when it comes to gay rights and LGBT equality, many airlines are leading the way.

The Human Rights Council recently released their 2012 Corporate Equality Index, and as Examiner.com reports, the travel industry (at least in the United States) continues to lead in gay equality.

The top-ranking U.S. airlines for LGBT equality:

Alaska Air Group Inc. (Alaska Airlines/Horizon Air): 90
AMR Corp. (American Airlines): 100
Delta Air Lines: 90
JetBlue Airways Group: 90
Southwest Airlines Co.: 90
United Continental Holdings Inc.: 100
US Airways Group: 85
Virgin America: 90

Note that United Airlines received a 100 rating. Not sure whether to take that with a grain of salt, or if this little Thanksgiving incidence was just a fluke. Read: United Airlines Manager Faces Gay Slur Claim From San Diego Couple

About the Corporate Equality Index:

The annual index provides an in-depth analysis and rating of large U.S. employers and their policies and practices regarding lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees. It includes a list of the Best Places to Work. View past CEIs or more information on the HRC website: Corporate Equality Index 2012

View the 2012 CEI below:

On a personal note, I’ve always been a fan of airports & airlines. Probably stems from growing up so close to an airport. Literally and figuratively.

My Gay Travel Guide

hand-picked gay travel info, stories & tips

Brighton Gay Pride announces 2012 theme

Islam and homosexuality - article in the Economist

In Bogota, one can be gay…

Photos from Fashion Rock Berlin

The best bar in Amman

I’m the newest guest blogger on Gay Travel

How to not find gay bars while traveling

Taylor Swift video hints at bullying

Travel Bloggers Give Back: LGBT nonprofits #TBGB

Airlines do at least one thing right: LGBT equality

The top-ranking U.S. airlines for LGBT equality:

About the Corporate Equality Index: