msclelovr

I would qualify that statement pretty heavily. I vacation each year in Cape Town in their Summer and have done so for many years. As an openly gay man, I’ve visited with my partner, and previously with boyfriends and before that as a single man. Being openly gay is certainly accepted in smart hotels, restaurants etc because of the economic importance of tourism. Also there is constitutional protection. Social acceptance is another matter, and you almost never see PDA. There has been a marked decline in venues or public spaces for gay sex over the last 15-18 years (no male brothels, no rentboys on the Sea Point promenade at night, fewer nudist beaches and cruising, only 1 gay bar surviving) and the rate of violent crime has increased steadily. As an older white man, my experience is that 2 gay white men may be viewed well for their spending power but locals have told me of the great difficulties 2 gay men or lesbians of colour will face and sometimes the violence that threatens their relationships. Of course, as a visitor on vacation, you will have a great time. It is a wonderful country with resilient people and magnificent landscape.

@xpaulo it even has a Facebook page https://m.facebook.com/thermas108oficial/

I agree. IME Venezuelan men are some of the most handsome men in Latin America.

I guess @Frenchy that you haven’t travelled much in Latin America? It’s utterly normal for high-end hotels to NOT allow short-term guests to visit hotel rooms. It’s a matter of security to keep you safe; if you take an unknown local to your room and he produces a knife and robs you, what would you do? If the hotel guest is polite and the local ‘friend’ is obviously educated and well-dressed, it might be allowed PROVIDED that the local offers his photo ID card to the hotel reception to be registered (and there might be an additional charge on the hotel bill). My general experience is mainly of Argentina and less so of Brazil, and I’ve been able to have smart well-dressed Argentines in my hotel room. But if I wanted to hook up with a guy I just met in a cafe or on the beach, I’d do what locals do: take him to a love-motel for some fun. These places are clean and do not discriminate against gay couples.

I’m intrigued by your comprehensive posts @Santiagodc. I’d be glad to learn what you think before I visit Greece again. Some years ago, I dated 2 Greek men, both university students in the UK, aged 22 and 24. Both were goodlooking and eager to please an older man like me. I also had a vacation in Athens where I hooked up with a versatile muscleboy the first night and he stayed with me for the rest of my trip. I’m an older man in decent shape but I’m top only. I enjoy dating muscleboys who like to bottom for me. I particularly rate a good cocksucker; someone who’s happy to suck me to completion and swallow my load. I’d really enjoy meeting those young men you describe as Do you have any insights into meeting and/or experience with guys in Greece who want to please and service an older man?

Let’s hope the newly combined site has plenty of participants. FWIW I never liked the boytoy name. And I never saw the point of the Porn forum with endless reposts of images already available online.

Very thoughtful posts @SolaceSoul. I congratulate you as I think others might not have been so considerate of the newbie’s plans.

It’s interesting to read about your situation in France @BiBottomBoy. I have 2 French friends so I knew of the detailed restrictions and the limited mobility you face. I’m in London where the lockdowns have been much more relaxed. Food shops and other shops deemed essential always stayed open, and there were no constraints on going out of doors. Mask-wearing is only compulsory inside shops. We just came out of a 2nd lockdown of 4 weeks. So the restaurants and bars have reopened generally. Many museums are open but entry is by timed ticket. Quite a few cinemas are open, and some theatres have announced they will reopen with reduced capacity.

Yes, @Lucky, there’s truly no comparison. I guess a lot of us, being unable to travel, are living vicariously through the exciting posts of @numazu

Very good question @tassojunior but I don’t know that anyone can answer…unless they have a friend or relative who’s ill and hospitalized currently in Brazil

I wish you well @Badboy81 but I think you are being wildly-optimistic. I love to travel overseas regularly and I can’t wait to resume doing so. But it will be almost miraculous if an effective vaccine is available in 2021. Of course, I don’t know your age and health: you may be young, energetic and in superlative good health. Nonetheless I can’t see how you will be safe in any sauna interactions while the virus is circulating.

When you say “there” @Kevie770 do you mean Brazil and which cities specifically would you visit?

AFAIK healthcare in an emergency in Europe has always been available to foreign visitors. But it has never been and is not generally free. In the EU, citizens and legal migrants are registered for and carry a European Heath Insurance Card. I have one myself; if for instance I need medical attention in Spain, I must produce the card to get free treatment. If I do not have it with me, I am presented with a bill; I can later claim a refund from the central authority. Some private hospitals in Spain not only require you to produce the card but also a credit card to pay the supplemental expenses that the State will not reimburse. In the UK, citizens and legal migrants benefit from the National Health Service (NHS) with all treatments and drugs being free. Foreigners were generally treated for free after an accident/emergency and a bill was sent later - the overwhelming majority of foreigners never paid. Also it became clear after some years that foreigners were visiting the UK specifically to get free treatment for their conditions - the resultant controversy led to a slogan that the NHS is not an InterNational Health Service. This has now caused hospitals to check first that you are entitled to use the free services.

I may have posted this on here before…I have an annual global travel policy with Allianz. It does cover Covid-19, but new such policies do not. And the new policies are costing approximately double the price I paid earlier. With no disrespect to what others have posted, I don’t see the “problem” as being the cost of whatever medical treatment is needed. With hospitals in Brazil being under such pressure, I would guess that it may be very difficult to access private treatment no matter what you can afford. Of course, this issue applies to other countries too. In South Africa, where first-world health care is available if you can pay, part of the private healthcare sector has been effectively nationalized (as the State-run healthcare system had too few ventilators). I will remain wary of travelling outside of the developed world (and its good healthcare systems) for some time, even if national governments open their borders.

Not so @tassojunior As of today, there are increased cases in Aragon and Navarre too. The surge in cases in Barcelona has been concentrated among people in their 20s as socialising resumed rapidly when the relaxations were made a few weeks ago. In Barcelona now, there is in essence a 2nd lockdown as you may only leave your house/apartment for essential reasons (that are specified); failure to obey carries large fines.

Here’s an interesting graphic on new cases of infection in various countries:

I don’t know where you live @wdrn50 but I think you will be exceptionally lucky to visit Spain in September. New cases of Covid-19 infection are rising rapidly in Spain, and various parts of Spain have some sort of lockdown in force.

Where did you stay in Kiev @funic? Did you meet guys by using Grindr?

@SolaceSoul is absolutely correct. I have had an annual policy for global travel, which is underwritten by Allianz for many years. I regard it as a great bargain for an insurance product. My policy expires at the end of the year and it does cover me for Covid-19 among other things. An old friend of mine has the same type of policy but his just expired: the renewed policy specifically excludes costs related to Covid-19, and the premium he has to pay for the policy has doubled.

The answer is much more complicated. I think I mentioned before that I have a home in Spain but I am in lockdown, tho I’m uptodate with the confinement measures. Residents of Barcelona are not allowed to go beyond the city limits currently. This also applies to residents of Madrid, as the two cities were hotspots for infection in Spain. As of last night, Spain’s borders will not reopen until July 1. The 14 day quarantine measure for arrivals will cease on that date. I understood that Switzerland will reopen its borders on June 15. I’m not clear on whether foreign nationals will have to show their (residence or work) permit to enter. Entry is only allowed through the airports of Geneva and Zurich mainly, and some flights into Basel.

@Buddy2 I’m not Jewish and do not speak Hebrew so I stand to be corrected, but I believe ‘goyim’ is the plural of ‘goy’ which means Gentile in Hebrew.

Astounding! Thanks for the detective work @TotallyOz This reminds me never to react when I read some strange or very provocative post: some people just like to be trolls.

Yes, this is a very real concern @Tomcal and @SoCal I’ve been surprised at how many appeals for donations I’ve received from successful and long-established restaurants in San Francisco and Los Angeles.

It’s a UK brand that‘s been around for a while. They have an interesting approach to marketing, giving the underwear out to improvident muscleboys with bulges and exhibitionist streaks (aka OnlyFans pages) Personally I don’t care for the quality and ‘feel’ of Box underwear. I find Emporio Armani has the best (softest) cotton underwear, and it survives the laundry well.

I am eagerly awaiting “Hollywood”, the new Ryan Murphy show on Netflix. It starts on May 1. It seems very promising with lots of male nudity and it features David Corenswet. He’s a man on whom I have a major-crush, and I believe that @TotallyOz is not immune to his charms.