davet

If one would like company with blond, smooth, frat/jock types, would it be better to go to Zurich or Prague?

I never would have thought there was so much beneath the surface. I assumed most people here just wanted information, though some seem to have more travel experience than others and some did more homework than others.

You are not there for a Latin lover experience or even an Omar Sharif lover. It's wham-bam-thank-you-sam. Aquarius only provides an uncomfortable massage table that you wouldn't want to spend much time on anyway. There is so much gay sex going on in any moslem culture but it's the don't-ask-don't-tell variety. And no, they don't bang you like a female. They bang you like a worthless meat object that exists solely for their penile stimulation. Excuse me while I jump in a cold shower.

No narrowing down. I want them all. I just came back from Rio a few weeks ago. New Meio Mundo is basically one-half of the rambling old Meio Mundo. Very cramped, mobility-challenged facility, only one poorly-placed shower, but the lockers are better. The talent is so-so. There were one or two I could have done when I was less of a gourmet as to such things but I left quickly for hopefully better hunting in the zona sul.

Based on my recent trip to Rio, you can still find something at 9 pm at 202 on Mon. and Wed. nights or 117 on Tue. and Fri. nights. But don't expect a cornucopia at that time, more like 1 definite and 1 maybe-if-you're-real-horny.

I just came back from Brazil a few weeks ago. Headlines: 1. Didn't bother going to 555, given how mediocre even Lagoa was. 2. Lagoa is just not like the sauna of yore in the old location. The horse-dicks are still there as well as many twinks and "veterans" (guys I passed up 5 or 10 years ago). But gone are the massive muscles and flawless beauties you want to suck face with for half an hour. Gone is the ambience of a horny frat house you can rampage through like a slutty cheerleader. On my two visits, I barely hooked up with one garoto each time. 3. But that doesn't by any means suggest that hot muscle sex in Sao Paulo is no longer happening. The scene has moved to the "tantric massage" houses, where I found bods to compare with the best from 20 years at old Lagoa. They are more expensive and less participatory, though participation seems to be upwardly negotiable along with fees. However, one guy at a massage house (250-350 R) does not cost much more than a sauna visit where you could find only one guy to your liking (150 + ~120 sauna entry & cabin). In return, you get a much nicer room, more time, and even something almost approaching a professional massage. 4. For nostalgia, I went to the old Lagoa site. Veterans here might remember this ritual: the shopping center with the metro stop, the Habib's for a pre- or post-snack, and what used to be the Citibank I withdrew garoto cash from. But the former happiest place on earth is now a construction site with another skinny condo tower going up. 5. Rio was better but also subdued. Will write more about that maybe later.

I never saw the Mr. Rio again anywhere. He turned out to be kind of sweet but he struck me first as not the brightest.

I'm confused. Who's Beautiful Creature?

We are missing the most important information: How beautiful is Beautiful Creature? With enough beauty, all things are possible and all challenges shall be met.

ANY more muscular types at Meio Mundo? I've only been there once, about 8 years ago. My fond memories are of the most stacked bodybuilder I'd ever had (said he was a Mr. Rio) and the most delicious blondish twink I'd ever eaten. Plus the hottest CLIENT I've seen in a sauna but he declined my invitation to join me in a cabin with my twink. The house was a rambling structure on 3-4 levels and several wings. Good times.

I once stayed in the Republica area. The Cines near Lgo do Arouche are sleazy and sketchy. They were mostly vacant when I went, and I did not see any young guys. There were always female or trans-female hookers plying the trade. These places are no different from such venues around the world. When in Brazil, I prefer the better experience of the saunas, which cannot be found anywhere else in the world. Republica was a major party scene at night, but quite AYOR. The hottest scene I saw was cops putting some street boys against the wall and frisking them. But that's a different fantasy.

There is no normal rate. It is what it is. You can do a cost-of-living or purchasing power parity comparison but that's only in broad strokes, with lots of inconsistencies. Even the famous "Big Mac Index," in my view, is distortive because what's low-brow fast food in the US is considered an exotic luxury in other countries. FYI, when the real was born, it was 1:1 with the dollar, so that was what's intended to be "normal." When I first went to Brazil, a few years later, the rate crashed to almost 3:1 with, shockingly, no inflation. Brazil was insanely cheap then. Foolish me paid 50R for os garotos when I later surmised the going rate was closer to 20-30R. Looking back now, why didn't I just move to Brazil for a couple years?!

I do not carry that much cash. Worried about cards not working? Bring multiple! I bring 2 ATM cards and 3 credit cards and maybe $200 in US cash. That's all the backup I've ever needed. I do not bring all of them when I'm going out and I split them in 2-3 locations in my luggage.

Brazil is a bus country. A non-stop bus from Rio to SP is 6 hours. Flying will require 1 hr. early arrival at the airport, 1 hr. flying, and 1 hr. to deplane and out of airport. I'm assuming that getting to and from the airport or the bus station is about the same, but the bus station is often in a more convenient location and could save another half-hour. So the bus only takes 2.5-3 more hours and does not have the stress of airports. Though you could show up right at departure time, I'd recommend getting to the station 15 minutes early at least: Brazilian bus stations are huge. Tiete (Sao Paulo) is the size of an airport but still easier to get through and no security lines.

Valparaiso is amazing. Exercise your legs because you'll be walking and climbing hills a lot, but you can also take easy excursions to the wineries nearby. The "Switzerland-in-South-America" extends over the Andes to the Chilean side. Some small towns had places selling kaffee und kuchen - plus volcanoes and hot springs. Chile is a naturist's country so do try to get out of the city. Near BA is San Antonio de Areco - not a big city by any means but, rather, a small town that retains some of its colonial layout and a lot of its gaucho culture. It has dude ranches (I stayed at a gorgeous one that has since been converted to a $700/night Relais and Chateau property) and the best empanadas I've ever eaten. Colonia del Sacramento is interesting too. It's a tiny place and requires a bit of planning with the ferry, which was hours behind schedule when I did it many years ago.

For any nationality, you'd probably have a better interaction with them in their home country. In Portugal, I imagine the Brazilians have to deal with hassles, law enforcement, and some racism. That wouldn't put you in the best mood, would it? To answer your question: Brazil, DR, Cuba, and Brazilians in Spain. I have never failed to find at least one monster meat per trip to Brazil. Never. Easily the 5 biggest and probably 9 out of 10 biggest were from Brazil. Mind you that these were big cocks attached to stunning bodies and faces too. There have been huge ones I passed up because the rest of the guy didn't appeal to me. Surprise smaller city: Belo Horizonte, which has a better sauna scene than Pto. Alegre, Salvador, or Curitiba.

The wait time on free cabine nights (Tuesday at 117, Wed. at 202) seems like bad business from the house, the boys, and the clients. The old Lagoa had so many nooks and crannies for quickies and the guys there were usually quite willing. At 117 and 202, however, I found neither opportunity nor receptiveness for such hanky panky. Is it house policy to discourage it? It takes away from their business but if their rooms are booked solid for 90 minutes, I'd think it'd be better to keep the clients and boys continuing to do their business one way or another.

Doesn't Chili Pepper also have a sex club? Is it perhaps TOO gay friendly (i.e., if you actually want to sleep without the thump-thump disco music of most sex clubs)?

What Brazil needs is a fitness camp with "training + sex"

That is about 1/3 of the waterworks I remember from 30 years ago.

The beaches are far away from the historical center, which is beautiful but changes block-by-block in terms of crime and danger. You cannot be close to both.

I've been to Aquarius on 2 trips. All the guys asked for lira. On my first trip some ten years ago, one guy asked for euros - 250! - and seemed relieved when I said no. He was the bartender and didn't seem enthused about the extra services. Last summer, Aquarius, like much of Istanbul, had all the right signs up but nobody was complying or enforcing. The establishment was officially in shut down but someone stood out front and if you looked like a potential customer, he would lead you through the lights-out front office and down into the bath. I thought the offering was mediocre but the guys were friendly and not pushy.

I met him but by the time I made up my mind to engage him, he was booked indefinitely by one client. I've fantasized about doing him together with Arturo/Felipe. I'll be happy to serve as mediator, therapist, or sex surrogate to help these two make up. Checking flight schedules now!

The one who got away will always be amazing, incredible, the best ever. Because he got away. Often in the last 10 minutes at the sauna, when one of us just has to go and can't stay for even a quicky. But then you see him again and reality doesn't necessarily live up to fantasy and longing. Once, as I was leaving Lagoa, a "just my type" was standing in a toilet stall and turned seductively at me. When I chanced to see him again a couple years later, alas, he wouldn't bottom. Then there was one gorgeous guy who turned out to be a complete dud in bed. After the experience, it struck me to search through my stash of dirty jpeg's and, lo and behold, there he was, one of my all-time internet faves. It didn't occur to me at the time that he was the same guy because reality was so different from the fantasy.

Gloria, Catete, Flamengo, Botafogo are much, much safer than Copacabana or even Ipanema. And they are very pleasant, interesting, walkable neighborhoods. In the touristy beach neighborhoods, you are walking around with a red flashing sign saying "I'm a tourist, probably a dumb one too, rob me."