pauleiro

I totally agree. I wonder how the guy managed to spend a few hours inside this costume. That day, luckily for the guy, it was rather cold with rain from time to time.

Pointe 202 Carnaval monday New lockers for customers, new stage screens, multiple tv screens around the room are some of improvements at Pointe. Many customers and boys. A few new faces. It was a good evening in Pointe. March 7th is the 15th aniversary of Pointe until ... 5 am : buffet, RJ/SP strippers, ... worth going.

In blocos to which I assisted, there are many messages against Bolsonaro : Also some funny messages for example this one making fun of people thinking or even trying to demonstrate that earth is flat

Sunday. Gafieira Elite in Centro ... It used to be a very famous dancing place in the 1930s. It is still open and run by the same family. Do not be afraid by the aspect of the building or the very steep staircase to go to the 1st floor. The place is amazing. Live music, performed by a band of 8 musicians is great. It is normally a str8 place but every friday before carnaval and during the 5 days of Carnaval it is gay. Not (m)any tourists there of course ! I went there with a friend who made me discover the place. Entrance is at street level. Dancing at 1st floor and Mezzaninu is used as a back room. You can be naked there and have fun before going back dancing and drinking beer below ... Only drawback is that since it is very close to Sambodromo, it seems that uber pick up place in the area has to be the Sambodromo. We had to walk back in Center at 3 am. Luckily, there were still many people and police in the streets. The manager advised us not to walk holding our phone in our hand though ... Pic above is hetero party from FB Elite site. An even bigger party is planned Tuesday Feb 25th.

117 : Lots of boys and customers. Regulars plus some new faces. No stunning boy in the new faces for me. Shows with Drag Queens even crazier than usually. All prices are increased during carnaval. In restaurants, on the menu, a tape is simply put on usual prices and new prices, increased by at least 30 %, are indicated. Hopefully, they will remove tape by wednesday ... The carnavals in the street are amazing. They are everywhere. There are so many gorgeous men in Brazil. Most are bare chested, often wearing only a short skirt. Lots of eye candy ! It is same as Ipanema beach on sunday, except that it is in the whole city and day and night during 5 days ... Sex symbols are everywhere (but real thing is better).

Yes. In front of metro

Os amigos da onça. The friends of jaguar. Flamengo beach

Carnaval in Rio is really amazing ... I did not realize that there are so many street events ("blocos"). The atmosphere is that of supporters after a soccer game in which their team won the game : jokes, drinks, fun ... but it is in the whole city and during 5 days ! And it is sexy as hell. Lots of good looking boys, wearing only a short skirt and having fun. Many blocos are gay or gay friendly (or is it the ones I went to ?). The bloco of Carmelitas started the ceremonies on friday at 1 pm in Santa Teresa. Saturday, starting at 7 am there was the bloco of amigos da onça (friends of jaguar) on the Flamengo beach. A very good one. Perfect for eye candy. Lots of young men (and women of course) in various stages of undress. Lots of drinks and so many beach vendors. Uninterrupted long line of men pissing in front of the sea or in front of Aterro ... Many couples deep tongue kissing everywhere. There are the couples who came together of course but also boys stopping in front of girls or boys they do not know but like and starting to deep tongue kissing as though the world was soon over. Mainly locals in Flamengo ie very few tourists only coming in small groups with a guide and grabbing their cameras as if they were sure to be robbed soon. 5 pm in Ipanema for Banda de Ipanema. A very famous group active since 50 years. Under rain at the beginning. Many many tourists there of course who attract a lot of pickpockets and boys from favelas. Extreme caution is needed there. Even when I came back at my olace in Botafogo was a local bloco ("pinta mas nao borra") in the streets !

Rio. Very hot. Since I met a friend in the afternoon, I went late to 117. Many boys but none new to my liking. 117 is having special shows for Carnaval. I expect new faces to be seen !

My first Carnaval in Brazil ! Prices of hotels are much higher than usually, particularly in Copacabana and Ipanema. I will he hosted in Botafogo, close to metro. Somes questions for the one who have already gone to Rio for Carnaval : - Where is it worth going (bars, samba, street events, ...) ? - Is it necessary to buy tickets for Sambadromo ? Where to be positionned ? - When are the best shows at Sambadromo ? Is the final show with the champions (on Saturday February 29th) the best ? - Any other tips ? Thks !

There were 200 flights weekly between Paris + Amsterdam and China !

I am scheduled to go to Brazil also for Carnaval and after and I do not plan to cancel anything. There is no more risks in Brazil than in US or in some countries in Europe where a few cases have already been detected : there were fewer flights between China and Brazil than between China and Europe (there were direct flights between Wuhan - where most of the cases were detected in China - and France for instance). About the original subject, the coronavirus is not a sexually transmitted disease but an air transmitted disease where transmission occurs for instance through droplets emitted when people cough. IMO, Authorities in Brazil will not declare specifically closure of public baths but might declare cancellation of all public festivities and public gatherings in order to avoid or to limit cross contamination. It is what happened in China where all New Year festivities were cancelled, then transit between Wuhan and other parts of China was stopped. I do not think that this will happen in Brazil in the short term (until end of February) and I do not think for instance that Carnaval festivities will be cancelled nor that in the short term saunas will be affected by epidemy. If there are already just a few cases in Brazil, I will avoid kissing. I had planned another trip to Brazil in May and wait a few weeks before confirming. The complete genome of the virus has already been identified by Chinese authorities and sent to pharmaceutucal laboratories worldwide and even though a vaccine is very unlikely to be available in the next 6 months, some medecines might be soon available to decrease the strenght of the coronavirus and limit its spreading.

Parque Central is indeed a cruising place mentionned in the list I posted above. It is full of tourists during the day and I did not check at night (I was in Vedado). I did not see a place "full of guys ln the hunt". As in Bano Quijote, differenciating boys who are on the hunt and boys who are waiting for someone or simply using wifi is not easy task !

You can try gayromeo or hunqz.

The trail going to Corcovado is well known for tourist attacks. These happen regularly. And it is not because the tourists are many (in the case below : 40 !) that attack will not happen ! To be avoided RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Three men, armed with a pistol and two knives, robbed approximately forty tourists hiking the trail that connects Parque Lage and the Corcovado mountain in Zona Sul (South Zone) of Rio de Janeiro on Thursday morning, January 4th, 2020. "A man came at us with a knife and when we turned, behind us there was another, also with a knife. And he took our phone, wallet, cameras, everything," Swiss tourists identified only as Patrick told online news outlet G1.

It is true that there are much more black guys in Salvador than in the rest of the country but there are much less boys in Salvador saunas than in Rio saunas. From my experience last December (see report on BT), in absolute numbers there were not more black guys in Salvador saunas than in Rio saunas. It is different on Grindr since it is an image of the local population and there are many gay guys as in Rio and a large proportion of black guys. For a first trip of only 8 days, I think it is good to stay in Rio : there are 3 saunas (including Lions where there are some black guys from favelas but more the twink type) and there are a lot of things to do in Rio boywise and on a cultural standpoint.

In Manaus (as in Salvador, Porto Alegre or Belo Horizonte), the best shows in saunas are often on sundays which are very active days. If you plan to spend a weekend in these places, do plan to spend the nite of Sunday. In the program below, live sex show is on sundays (domingao).

In Cuba they say that the only things which are left to them by socialism are sex and music (and rhum) :-))

Tasso, I think this Marriott is a great choice, particularly if you can get it cheap. Going to Siqueira Campos is a 10 minutes walk : just go up Figueiredo de Magalhaes street until you cross Tonelero street. Pointe 202 is a 15 minutes walk from your hotel. On street Figueiredo, after the metro entrance and the police station, there is a commercial center which has entrances on both Figueiredo de Magalhaes and Siqueira Campos streets. You cross the commercial center and you are on the street of Pointe 202 (Siqueira Campos). Sauna is 1 block up the street. Walking to and from your hotel to Pointe is Ok, whatever the time. Safety did improve significantly IMHO in Copacabana. Usual safety rules to be observed (in particular not showing money nor using phone in the streets). As for 117, the best and quickest is to take metro to go there (to avoid trafic jams). The metro is sometimes terribly full at Siqueira Campos if you take it after 5 pm but it is only during 2 stations since many people get off at Botafogo to change line. To go back from 117, either uber or metro. Do not think of walking from your hotel to 117. It is rather long and uninteresting walk (5 to 6 miles) and you have to go under the tunnel joining Botafogo to Copacabana which is terrible : almost impossible to breathe inside it ! The boys in Rio will change you from the blond guys with blue eyes you are used to in Czech Republic ! Enjoy !

I do not think I will ever go to Cuba again. Compared to Brazil, meeting boys is very difficult. In addition, finding a bottom - and one who is not effeminate - is challenging. I was dreaming of Cuba 15 years ago where these "fiestas de 10 pesos" were taking place and you were taken by taxi to an outdoor orgy. Certainly risky but exciting ! Going to Havana and Cuba is worth : there are so many things to discover, apart from the boys. Go there if you want to be surprised : - music and people dancing everywhere - tourist guide whose main work is surgeon at emergencies at hospital - people collecting garbage while smoking huge cuban cigars - pay with the smallest coin in your wallet and be given many banknotes as a change - imagin that the ferry used to go from Havana to Regla was seajacked twice by people willing to flee Cuba and go all the way to Florida - have the door open for you at your bakery shop by a cute guy wearing black suit, tie and hat - go to a museum in the middle of nowhere and see a female agent with a super short skirt, 3 sizes smaller than it should be, and super sexy black stockings - see people throwing a bucket of water at midnight on Dec 31st to get rid of bad things of passed year - ceiling of your room 12 ft above your head

Cruising The major cruising sites are supposed to be : Praya del Chivo It is called Praya (beach) because it is close to the sea but has nothing to do with the beach Mi Cayito which is 20 km east. Praya del Chivo is just after the tunnel close to the Castillo del Morro. Going there is easy : take any bus taking the tunnel and stop at first bus stop just after what look like toll gates. Cross the road and take a small path following the beach. The beach is ugly, dirty but it is a cruising site which is active all day (and night but I was told that people were attacked during the nite). I went there once at noon (that day, 5 minutes after I arrived, a guy in his thirties came a few meters from me and started pissing (or rather taking his dick out for me to see) and another time around 5 pm. The guys on the beach are either fishing or cruising (if they have a fishing rod, they are fishermen ; if they have only their own "rod", they are cruising). From the number of condoms on the beach and taking into account that not that many cubans use condoms, it is clear that many people come here for various reasons : - it is very close to Havana Centro (to the contrary of Mi Cayito) and easy and quick to reach - no policemen (or only homosexual ones) - lots of bushes to have sex - lot of group sex - many students go there - normally no tourists and no sex for money (but it can be discussed of course - basic spanish needed). In Vedado, most of cruising occurs in specific areas around Calle 23 ("La Rampa") I did not see much during the day and most of cruising occurs at night. The supposed cruising sites are indicated on the map below. Bim Bom Heladeria = B B H At Malecon around avenida 23 and Infanta at night (and after midnight). Not that many guys were alone and cruising though (but I was in Cuba around year end and it may make a difference). Many gay guys around particularly during the week ends. A good way of starting discussion is by bringing a bottle of rhum and glasses or "ron in a box" and share. You will make friends rapidly ! Toke Cafe, close to Las Vegas = L V T Sit outside and close to the street. Perfect location : boys indeed come to discuss, and accept to be invited for a beer first and more. Arbolas Pabellon Cuba on Calle N = A P C This map may be old. I did not see any activity (in fact, I did not even see the "Arboles" (trees) and the park. It is supposed to be almost in front of Capri hotel. Bano Quijote (B Q) Small park close to Cine Yara. You cannot miss the statue of Don Quijote on his horse. During the day, there is supposedly action inside the restroom. You pay the old man on duty at the entrance (you guve him 0.1 CUC). From recent posts, there is indeed activity, not the days I went there at least during daytime. At night it is different. It is obviously a cruising place but the restroom is closed. So you need to find a place to go. It is not always easy to make the difference between the boys waiting for the bus, the boys who are in the park for the wifi and the boys cruising or hustling. Hospital Calixto Garcia (= H C G). This place is worth investigating in more depth at night (I did not find time to do so). There is a University nearby and a huge residence for students. The whole triangle on the map with the red crosses is where action is supposed to happen. Cruising on saturday around 10 pm with the Cafe Cantante nearby is certainly a good idea !To cruise efficiently or even pick up, are needed : lot of caution, some boldness, some language skills, lot of patience and above all : luck. Slang words useful for cruising Tú sí: I like you Cochero, a palacio: let us go Potajera: cruising place Pinguero: prostitute Cheo: heterosexual, who do not like gays Lo más grande: something anormally good, exceptionnal A la lucha: going out with the objective of making money through sex Buenos días: used if you do not like much someone Buenas tardes: used if you like someone Buenas noches: used if you like someone very much Hacerse la dura: para referirse a alguien que “se cree cosas” Fresa: For a situation means that everything is ok For a person, it means that the person is effeminate or that the person is gay Chocolate: means that someone is manly or hetero Yuma : foreigner or local mature man

Are you going there ?

Basic rules (obvious) No public sex, no porn and no obvious sollicitations. Keep secret what the boys are doing in private. Prior to travelling "interesting book to read is “Before Night Falls” by Reinaldo Arenas. It gives some insight into the Cuban Revolution and persecution that LGBT people faced in the 1960’s (forced labor camps). He also talks a lot about cruising and sex in Havana". Better to bring condoms and lube in sufficient quantity as it can be difficult to find locally. Insurance Travelers from US are covered by insurance the price of which is included in the price of the ticket. Visitors from Europe need to buy a specific insurance. Visa Gold card holders can obtain on line a document confirming they are duly insured. Change At arrival at airport outside the airport on the right. Change USD or Euros into CUC. Rate is 1 CUC = 1 USD. Many ATMs can be found in La Havana accepting Visa credit card. 1 CUC = 25 CUP = 25 MN (Moeda Nacional). Weather In December, the weather is cooler and not as good for the beach but it seems very nice in January but can be chilly & windy and many of the guys return to their provinces (Indeed in end of December - beginning of January, I did not see that many boys). Safety All visitors consider that it is really safe to be in the streets, even late at night, respecting common sense rules. I went back home in Vedado often very late at night (2 am) without any problem. The largest dangers might be car accidents and uneven pavements with many large holes and poor street lightning in many areas. I experienced only one problem with a rather agressive young drunk cuban in a shop. I spoke to people nearby and they managed the guy. Internet Wifi in Cuba is difficult. Buy wifi card to be used at wifi spots (many parks, hotels, ...). It can be bought at airport, at booths in the street, at hotels. Some Airbnb flats have wifi (you need to have a wifi card though, but you have permanent access to wifi in your apartment which is quite convenient). People (and yourself) are not permanently on line so exchange of messages can be long and tedious. Gay sites Gayromeo is available and (relatively) pretty much used. Grindr is blocked not because of Cuban government but because of US government. Better to meet guys at the bars or in the street, "but offline cruising can be also time consuming and require patience, language skills, and most important, luck" Where to stay (SolaceSoul) : "Get yourself an additional casa particular or arrange a room at a casa where the host doesn’t mind guests having Cuban “visitors” (check with the host in advance). You can also just wait until you get to Cuba and ask around — there are plenty of Cubans that are renting apartments and rooms as a side hustle, and many don’t mind if the foreigners have Cuban guests (with restrictions, usually they must present their ID and the name must be written in a book, by Cuban law). Cuban locals are restricted from visiting hotels. In addition (Meteorb) : "there are plenty of short time casa particulars nearby, 10 CUCs for one hour". "there are many sex motels around (actually just homes of local people). The guys all know at least a place to go. Some houses advertise in spanish "rooms to be rent by hour or by day" Places to visit If it is your first stay in La Havana, taking the red bus HavanaBusTour line T1 leaving from Parque Central in Centro Havana is certainly a good start. You can hop on hop off during a whole day and have a good view of major touristic sites. Out of beaten tracks is trying to better understand "Santeria". Santería, also known as Regla de Ocha, La Regla de Ifá, or Lucumí, is an Afro-American religion of Yoruba origin that developed in Cuba among West African descendants. Santería is a Spanish word that means the "worship of saints". Santería is influenced by and syncretized with Roman Catholicism. You can do so by going on the other side of the La Havana bay to museums in Regla and in Guanabacoa using the ferry or bus 15. Another Santeria museum is located in Central La Havana close to hotel Saratoga, in front of Parque de la Fraternidade (very close to Capitolio). Gay places to visit According to Whynotcuba : "There are a lot of places you can go to. If you want something more high end and expensive, I can recommend Cafe Cantante or Tablado (in the Gran Teatro de la Habana). It depends on the day of week, both of them its on Thursday. If you want to spend a bit less money you could go to Las Vegas. They have drag queen shows every day of the week. Drag queens are fun to talk to, some of them have the most masculine day jobs. There are a few private bars too, like XY (Thursdays there is a comedian there, lots of gay jokes), El Essencia and El Bar Pasillo. If you are really really low on funds go to the corner of Infanta and 23 close to Las Vegas. Saturdays and Sundays people go to Las Vegas." According to SolaceSoul : "At night I went out to the usual spots - Las Vegas (Tuesday, Thursday and Friday are when Imperio performs and the best nights), Karabali on Wednesday, Cafe Cantante on Saturday" + Cafe Cantante was really good as usual, it is probably the biggest gay party of the week. Lots of cute guys, a lot of transgender girls hang out there also". My personnal experience on Las Vegas was disappointing. On Friday nite for instance, I arrived at 10 pm (Las Vegas opens at 11 pm) and sat down in nearby Toke Cafe, outside and close to the street. Perfect location : boys indeed came to discuss with me, and I could invite to join me for a beer first whomever I had a good feeling with. I did not really like any of them and waited to be inside Las Vegas hoping to have a better choice inside. Wrong move ! Maybe because it was very beginning of January, but most of people inside were parties of 2 to 4. Single guys were just a few. A few came to me, immediately very friendly, putting their arms on my shoulder but none attracted me at all. I watched the crowd and spotted a cute guy in his 30s. I went close to him but he was a customer and not at all interested in me. I then spotted another one. Cute. Manly. Since it was extremely crowded, it took me some time to be close to him. When I arrived, a cuban was already speaking to him and they left soon after. :-(( Better to find someone outside of Las Vegas, pay his entry fee and drinks and enjoy the evening with someone you like, which I did the saturday. Gay night club Karabali on La Rampa only certains nights. Bilatin mentions there are drag shows and stripper shows. Night Club ?? on Thursday nights near Parque Central close to the Inglaterra Hotel Bar La Esencia (Calle B between 21 y 19, Vedado) (not visited) : various feasts on mondays including drag queen shows. Other days are gayfriendly with people dancing in this nice mansion on cuban musics. Opens at 6 pm for great cocktails. Bar Fresa y Chocolate and Cine Club Diferente on Calle 23 (intersection wih 12). Nice bar worth a visit. It is supposed to hold, once a month, one of the biggest regular gatherings of LGBTI Cubans and friends. I was told it was the second tuesday of each month and I went there that day. But dates have been changed and it seems it is now on sundays. The cine show movies tackling themes of sexual diversity—some quite polemic. Past screenings have included Outrage, Harvey Milk, ... The name comes from the movie Fresa y Chocolate (strawberry and chocolate) which was a cuban gay movie from the beginning of the 90s. Fashion Bar La Habana (not visited) San Juan de Dios, intersection with Aguacate, Habana Vieja Waiters are cute and bare chested. On saturdays it opens at 9 pm and later there is a show, a mixture of drag queen, erotic, sexy aerobics, ... Beach "When you go to Cuba, make sure to check out the sanddunes at Mi Cayito beach Saturday and Sundays are the best days to go. There is a trail that goes through the sanddunes, but you have to walk east a little ways from the main entrance to get to it". Mi Cayito in Boca Ciega has a gay flag next to the Cuban flag. It has about 10 km of beach. I also heard from someone that in Cayo Santa Maria a new hotel opened, just for gay tourism (from Whynotcuba). To go there : taxi (30 minute cab ride from Havana) or there is a cheaper option which is a tourist bus HabanaTourBus line 3 that leaves every 40 minutes from Parque Central in Old town. You must leave bus at last bus stop (Hotel Atlantico - bus stop number 6). Walk to the beach and then follow the beach on your right until Mi Cayito Boca Ciega which is indicated with a gay flag. It’s about a fifteen minute walk. At the beach there is a local restaurant, Las Palmitas, where you can get good cuban food and drinks at reasonable prices. Restaurant the following link can be useful : https://cubaexplorer.com/best-of-cuba/restaurants Prices Taxi from airport : 25 CUC To beach Mi Cayito Taxi :25 CUC - Bus HavanaTourBus T3 : 5 CUC. Cafe Cantante : 5 CUC Club Karabali : 2 CUC Las Vegas : All tables are reserved for people ordering bottle of alcohol (bottle of rum + 3 colas as mixers) : 25 CUC. Possible to pay 10 CUC as table fee (no bottle) + drinks to be paid. Service : average : 20/30 CUC. Can go down to 15 or even 10 and up to 40 and more (locals pay 5 to 20 CUC) . No discussion as in Brazil on what is going to be performed and for how much. Average monthly salary for Cuban is 25/30 CUC, with little variation according to job or education level. Casa Particular : 25/35 CUC per night Motel : 5-10 CUC for an hour Bottled water : 1.5 CUC / 1.5 l Wificard : 2 CUC one hour To be paid in CUP (= MN = Moeda Nacional) Bus : 1 CUP (or coin of 0.05 CUC) Ferry (to Regla) : 2 CUP In popular feasts, it is not easy to be sure if we talk of CUC or CUP. Sometimes price in CUP for cubans is the same as in CUC for foreigners (eg Museo de la Revolution : 8 CUP or 8 CUC). Sometimes it is different as in Teatro Nacional ... Cine Yara : 2 CUP (I was not sure if, as a foreigner, I could pay only 2 CUP so I gave my smallest bill in CUC ie 5 CUC. The lady at cashier looked desperate as it was corresponding to entrance fee of 60 persons, same as if you were paying entrance to cinema in Europe with a 500 Euros banknote ... So I gave my 2 CUP. No doubt my cheapest movie ever !

Risks of Grindr : What happened in Manaus recently. A group of 4 persons made contact with victims, have them come to a closed place, told after sex they were rentboys and threatened victims with arms if victims did not accept to give money, phone and threatened victims if they went to police ... Conclusion : Better to take someone you meet in a motel or to your place and not go to the boy s place. What happened in Manaus happened elsewhere in Brazil.

Street art ... Seen on a wall in Salvador (generally speaking, people in the Nordeste region of Brazil are more against Bolsonaro). (If military schools are so good, why is Bolso so stupid ?)