davet

I don't know, man. The uncertainty, the guilt, and the ever-changing logistics and regulations would get to me if the virus doesn't. I just read an article about the frightening government facilities one might be sent to for quarantine in some countries. I had thought that, in the worst case scenario, I'd hole up in my hotel, but it appears hotels do not want to be known to have such a person and will expel you to the government places. And by guilt, I mean how would I feel morally superior to a Bolsonaro or a mask-burning Q-head deplorable again? Or maybe that's not a bad thing.

The Copacabana Palace is very comfortable, I'm sure (I did not go inside), but beware that it's in what has become probably the worst part of the Copacabana neighborhood.

Long ago, I chatted up a gorgeous muscle guy who was working the front desk at a sauna. He said he used to be a stripper and was calmly adamant that there were strict differences between strippers, go-go boys, and garotos. Because of that, and the non-receptivity of a few that I approached, I've generally stayed away from the strippers and go-go boys. Maybe I'll try harder next time.

@riobard - Where did you find this amazing, um, resource and does it purport to list all the strippers and go-go boys in Brazil? I would not mind tracking down a devastatingly gorgeous Japanese-Brazilian I saw dancing at the old Lagoa some 3-4 years ago. He looked like an anime/bishonen drawing - an almost unreal beauty.

Since it's Brazil, he could be packing a whole tuber.

At least it's not the "conjugal visit to a prison" that was luridly described in these pages. Invitation or no invitation!

120 at most (unless you're really in love and made the mistake of letting that on). 100 is frequently accepted, especially on busy nights, surprisingly. Because of the competition, the guys know that the customers have asked around and know what the market price is and won't be fooled. Add 20 as a tip and they will be touchingly appreciative. The most I ever paid was 200 (pre-covid going ask of 150 plus 50 tip), because this arabian god, uninvited, came for me. It was the end of the night and he apparently wasn't saving it for some girlfriend. I've had this happen a couple times toward the end of a shift.

I haven't seen a lot of drunkenness or unruly behavior. It strikes me as a sedate, friendly crowd. It's brightly lit, not shameful and shadowy like northern saunas. Any problems seem to be of the "misunderstanding" about fees type.

Havana is much rougher travel and lacks a lot of amenities. If one is American, it also requires extra logistical and financial planning due to the embargo. As for guys, I don't notice a huge difference in attitude. You can get passionate or mechanical or both in either city. Luck of the draw. In both cities, there's a good chance the guy will cum for/on you, delivering copious juice for no extra pay. They just like cumming, imagine that. That's the major difference between the Caribbean and Brazil.

I would say Olimpo was the best sauna outside of SP and RJ. Small but well-appointed, guys were of lower quantity but same big city quality, and basic cabines were free. I would like to go back and visit the more remote colonial towns of Minas Gerais.

I used to love exploring secondary cities, but they're really hit or miss. Bad day, bad weekend, bad time of year (or a late payment to the local police) and you can crap out. I've heard various rumors about places in Joao Pessoa, Maceio, Goiania, etc.

When I was there 3 years ago, I saw absolutely nothing going on at the Parque Central, or at the famed 23 & L corner, or on La Rampa (23 from L to the Malecon). However, there was a tiny park between the Rampa and Infanta where the boys now gathered to peddle their wares. It might be what shows up on Google Maps as Parque 25 y O. By about 10 pm, it was easy to find by wandering the area (police-state Havana is super safe) because that's the only crowd around. Pickings to my liking were slim. Saw lots of cute young gays at trendy bars and music venues, though. They seemed pretty open and out and nobody cared.

From a reliable recent report, most of the guys circulate both 117 and 202 as each has different happening days. The lack of tourists means there can be no more than one hopping place on each day. From the report in November: Weekends shockingly dead at both places (could be a fluke), Monday at 202, Tuesday at 117, Wednesday at 202. There was plenty of muscle to select from, though I don't know how it compares to happier times. Meio Mundo, I believe, has been extinct for a few years now.

Goiania is in my Top 5 of next places to check out in Brazil. But then I've been there many times so, overall, it's way down the list. I assume it would be big fat boring modern city, with some weird urban planning experiment, like Belo Horizonte. The colonial towns are a plus. I would tack Goias to any trip to adjacent Brasilia, which is an urban planning experiment so weird that everybody should experience it. As with Brasilia, I'd expect Goiania's garoto scene to be small and quiet but with the possibility of finding one or two unexpected gems. Sexual excitement benefits from gambler's excitement, which requires striking out now and then. Goias is cattle country so maybe one can find something close to the cornfed Iowa look?

I would happily be a brothel wingman to any sauna-curious muscle boy!

Trust me, I have wondered and wondered. Especially the traffic-directing cops. I think that's an assignment for trainees and cadets. Yow! In general, Colombians are very friendly and one gorgeous guy after another will exchange smiles and long looks with you on the street and on the bus. It might mean nothing, but it's sure more of an opening than you'd get from in most other countries.

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Sao Luis is indeed crumbling (tourists from the richer parts of Brazil seemed especially embarrassed by it) but I thought the city was unique and charming, given its French and I believe also Dutch history. The food is distinctive. The main local dish, rice with hibiscus leaves, dried shrimp, and sesame has an unexpected Southeast Asian ring to it. I remember a tourist from another part of Brazil exclaim in delight, "Crab farofa?!" Across the bay is Alcantara, a colonial town preserved in wax: It's how I imagine Rio might have looked when some seasick Portuguese lady gets off the boat to join her colonial family in the 1700s. The Lencois is a few hours to get to, but impressive. More impressive if I had allowed myself to be seduced by a cute but most likely straight backpack boy into joining an all-night hike. In case you don't know, sand dunes are basically hills to climb. Hundreds of them, without sleep, on the spur of the moment. I wasn't as young and adventurous anymore. In June, SL has one of the most Brazil's distinctive folklore festivals, Bumba Meu Boi. Alcantara has something around the same time, which holds several major saint's day holidays. When I was in SL about 10 years ago, there was one bar+boys in an old colonial house. It didn't have any better a selection than the newer place Numazu describes.

When you went, was it the same type of working garotos? I liked Fragata because it ranged from "average looking" to stunning muscle gods (yes, plenty of those at Fragata too). The average lookers sometimes sported the biggest cocks outside of a museum of natural history. What are the good days at Fragata?

Google Maps says this has been open and operating for a while. Any reports? What is the current talent offering and what are the good days?

Hi Numazu, Any sense of what the happening nights are at each place that opened? Or is everyone competing for the weekend now?

If you travel a lot, you probably know how hard it is to answer that question. The crime statistics for Brazil are unquestionably worse than for the U.S. or most of Asia. It's a numbers game and one does not know when his number will be up. I've never had a problem acting like a stereotypical tourist (camera, iphone, backpack, shorts). However, I was mugged in Salvador - the guy flashed what looked like a crude shank and demanded by daypack. That contained the last dedicated point-&-shoot camera I owned. I've used a smartphone for pictures ever since with no problem - until that phone got pickpocketed in a different Latin country! Just be careful and smart. Accept that you may have to offer electronic sacrifices to the travel gods (and the local economy). Be really careful on any beaches in Rio. The colonial touristy part of Salvador was the sketchiest place I've seen in Brazil. On the other hand, I constantly have to remind myself to be more scared in Sao Paulo: Though the city is big, loud, and messy, I don't think I've ever encountered anything that felt terribly menacing in SP. People there seem to have jobs and things to do other than rob tourists. The middle-class Rio neighborhoods of Flamenco, Gloria, and Botafogo similarly felt more safe than the touristy ones in Copacabana and Ipanema. The smaller cities and colonial towns were never a problem.

A boy I met on the train invited me to stay with his family in the medina of Fez. They apologized for not having hot water (it was August in Marrakesh, for X's sake) and their shower was a spigot right over the squat toilet. One would stand in flip-flops on the foot placements and the water went right down the toilet, giving it an extra clean out too, I suppose. I forgot about the soldier I met while we waited hours for a transfer in an Algerian desert town. He looked like John Kennedy Jr. How I regret not taking up his invitation to his family home in Algiers.

As I mentioned, I found some action in a hammam in Marrakesh. You have to be careful and discreet and have somewhere else safe to take it. The only open sex I found in a hammam was in Cairo. Marrakesh was over 20 years ago, Cairo about 10 years ago.