SolaceSoul

The best kinds of people are those who can work hard AND play hard, and leave their work at the office. Shop talk during sexy time or play time is a joy kill as well as a boner killer! I have met some of the most accomplished and interesting people in some of the — shall we say — “most unusual” places! And didn’t find out who they were or what they did sometimes until VERY late during out acquaintance with each other.

Alaska, my first visit to Brazil was Salvador as well. I went because for years, a friend of mine who is a tenured African-American Hidtory profesdor, would always regale his friends with his colorful tales about his experiences in the Bahia. I have never regretted this trip. I only wish so would’ve gone earlier.

Just to be clear, I’m 47. I don’t consider myself “independently wealthy” by US standards. If I felt that I could retire right now and live in the manner which I would like to, and just do something like write or blog or build homes with Habitat For Humanity, I certainly would do it. But I like my stuff (creature comforts). Regarding tourism while traveling, I rarely if ever do touristy things when I travel. Especially in recent years, I try my best, whenever possible and safe, to live like and engage with locals. One will find that in doing so — as Alaskabear also suggests — one’s financial costs will be greatly reduced. My personal politics have always made me despise being viewed as a colonialist, and I try to make my travel interactions reflect that as much as possible. That being said, it’s hard to ignore the attraction and benefits of the US dollar in the places that I most enjoy. And frankly, being a person of color from and in America, it’s always interesting to experience the kinds of privilege that we don’t get when we are in America — ESPECIALLY in the current US climate. It’s almost as if going to other countries for longer and longer periods of time has become a survival technique for me. So, no, it’s not just about “hoeing” or seeing tourist traps for some of us. Regarding boredom, I can easily get bored after just a week back in the States.

Why aren’t you taking the Metro subway? You’re close enough to a few stations, it is cheap, and it’s relatively safe, especially during the day.

You might want to: (1) Be a bit more specific about what kind of “gay touch” that you want. Nightclubs? Bars? Beaches? Cruising? Saunas? Pay boys? (2) Chill our dibce your trip isn’t until December. Ever heard of the term “bugaboo”?

BTW, the Bourbon Hotel is now closed down permanently.

Not to sound like a broken record (it seems like many of us often repeat the same stories for different posters), but one of my travel buddies is very overweight. He’s about 6’2” and I’d guess 360 - 385. He never has a problem finding pay boys and sauna boys whenever we travel. I am sure he pays a little more than me, baded on what I heard from gossipy garotos — but he doesn’t care and neither do I. The point is he enjoys himself. I do know that he would be happier at s smaller, healthier weight, but that’s his struggle, and we all have our demons. And my friend isn’t older. He is probably early 40s (being that size concerns me for him because I had another obese friend who died in his sleep when his heart stopped at the age of 41). Please note: my friend, like the above mentioned Paco, has money and he is willing to spend it on what he wants. Don’t be foolish, an obese poor (or stingy) person is not going to get the red carpet treatment with hot, younger, built guys — not even if they smile and laugh and are always the fat jolly life of the party (though it does help to be nice). Regarding old age, if you’re older and sexy, or older and monied, or preferably both — no problem. Denzel Washington is in his 60s. Sean Connery can probably still get it. Again, with the economics, if you’re old, fat and poor (or just stingy with the retirement check), don’t expect young hot garotos or trophy boys to be lining up for you.

I now live in Atlanta but my office is still based in Manhattan. Although I sure wouldn't mind being retired, alas, I’m not even semi-retired yet. But like you, mvan, I am established enough in my field of work and high enough on the hierarchal organizational chain to NOT have to request a few days off here and there and just settle for long weekend visits to our getaway place of choice. Also, in 2018, many of us can and do work or communicate with the office or clients remotely from anywhere in the world with just a high-speed internet connection. For some, it may be hard to understand that some people who are not fully retired are able to live like this — maybe that’s because that’s all they know. Personally, I didn’t make all of these gains and sacrifices just to wait until retirement age to have the kind of time off from the office that anyone in Europe would get. My first trip to Brazil was not Rio, not São Paulo — but Salvador da Bahia. And it was for nine days. What did I do for 9 days in Salvador? Any fucking thing I wanted! And sometimes, I chose to do nothing — which was exhilarating in its own sense. Even my friends who would join me from other parts of the USA wouldn’t stay any shorter than 6-7 days. i have never done a trip to Brazil that was less than that 9-day trip. My longest thus far has been 5 weeks. For me, anythibg ij Braxil is just not a weekend type of a trip. Maybe it’s another YMMV topic, or maybe it’s just a socioeconomic issue or issue of money, but if there are people who do fly to Brazil to do short stays in Rio, São Paulo, Salvador or any other Brazilian city, they certainly are not in my circle.

FYI: The new AT&T International Plan is $10 unlimited cellular, data, texts and calls to and from the USA for $10 a day, only for the days that you use it. So, if you only use WiFi one day and no cellular (keeping your phone on Airplane mode), then you won’t be charged $10 for that day.

BTW, I know that hotel. I stay one block away from it whenever I go to Salvador. I have never stayed there but I have been inside of it. It is very similar to the place where I stay. The location for what you are trying to do while there, the convenience and the price points are perfect. As long as visitors are allowed (check first because I don’t know), then you should have absolutely no complaints. If you do, then we are two completely different kinds of travelers.

You might not be aware, but many younger people internationally are now using CashApp and Venmo, which have options for receiving money instantly for between 1% - 3% of the transaction amount. The problem with these, like PayPal, Zelle or GooglePay, is that it requires a link to a valid bank account (debit, credit or otherwise) in order to send or receive. Many working boys in Latin America don’t have bank accounts. I have several trophy boys in Brazil and the DR who use CashApp or Venmo, but most are still stuck on Western Union transfers — which basically translates to being stuck on stupid.

Planetario and Fox are equally as good on different nights, and for different reasons. They are also 30 minutes apart by car, so plan accordingly. The two main non-garoto saunas, if you’re into that, are Paradiso and Rios.

The OP specifically asked for cities other than Salvador and Porto Alegre. Not to sound like a broken record (I posted this very same info before), but the two big(ger) rentboy saunas in Salvador are Planetario and Sauna Fox. Olympus is still around but is touch and go with substandard facilities, and never seems to have a big selection (of either garotos or clients). There is also a new sauna closer to the airport in Itapua called Clube 13 that has boys. I haven’t been there yet so I can’t provide any reviews.

Fernando is openly gay. He will do a night life tour (gay or straight) if you just ask. He will also do a sauna tour if you feel you need one. A bit of a heads up: Salvador gay nightlife isn’t Rio’s or São Paulo’s nightlife. There may be only one mainstream gay club or bar still in existence. If you’re not in the know with locals from the various hoods, your nighttime experience will probably be (and should be) restricted to mainstream well-traveled places.

Recife has 3, possibly 4, saunas with working boys: Blue Thermas, Sauna Progresso and Termas Boa Vista. The 4th is Termas 111, but I have not yet visited it, and I’m not so sure how well visited it is. I heard it is not well visited, by either clients or working boys. Fortaleza has 2 saunas with garotos: California and Dragon. Both are busy. Dragon is newer.

You tagged me and wrote that I, SolaceSoul, was referring to people of African descent who were not brought “here” (to the Western Hemisphere) through the slave trade, and also snidely commented that some “predble” [sic] academic investigations uncovered that African leaders directed it. I corrected you.

What are you referring to? The overwhelming majority of the people of African descent in the Western Hemisphere (that includes North, Central, South America and the Caribbean islands) are descendants of the African slaves. As for your deflecting snidely comment about African leaders “directing” the sale of African slaves to European and American slave traders, you certainly could use a class, or just a day-long visit to the Smithsonian Museum of African-American History.

That “hot” was self-proclaimed, BTW.

Did you know that you can hide your friends list or your posts from your friends in Facebook settings?

I have an associate (won’t call him a friend) who runs a “talent” agency similar to your old one, Oz. He says something similar about the popularity of the guys in his roster based on race — although as he deals with less of the “pretty boy” type and more “rugged”, Asians are probably less requested on his roster. However, he also says that the clients that do like the non-white guys on his roster seen to be the most loyal, the most reliable and the easiest for him and his roster to work with. Also, regarding clients’ ages, I have heard many working guys say exactly what Oz just said: that they prefer older clients because they’re easier to deal with and a lot less work than younger clients and/or clients who may consciously or subconsciously consider themselves “too sexy” to hire. I have also heard this same sentiment from guys who don’t consider selves working guys or escort but are just seeking mid- to long-term generous “sugar daddies” or “arrangements” — older is better because it’s less hassle.

He’s “blacker” than I am — and in the USA, I’m definitely considered black!

One major difference between Salvador and Recife: you can’t go into the water in Recife.

Cheap trips from US airports with great weather during Holiday season and hot boys (flight prices may vary): — Salvador, Brazil — Recife, Brazil — Santo Domingo, DR — Havana, Cuba

I have seen quite a few conversations about Asians not being preferred or shunned by many gay white men. To be frank, the conversations I have viewed are usually targeted toward the disinterest of gay white men in Asians, and not toward the disinterest of any other non-Asian group in Asians — and it’s usually from a gay Asian who is interested in white guys, but not others. Frankly, I have a difficult time mustering up sympathy for someone who can’t get a date because he doesn’t find certain available races or men with certain ethnic features (that are incidentally, also his own) attractive. Now, if available Asians aren’t even dating other available Asians, and he still can’t find a date, then I would view THAT as a sociological epidemic worth examining. Also, using the blanket term “Asian” to describe someone’s physical appearance can be very misleading. Pacific Islanders like Samoans and Polynesians (who often really turn me on), are quite often categorized as Asians, and IMHO look nothing like those of Chinese or Japanese origin. I am more attracted to bigger, more muscular, not boyish looking, darker-skinned men, so when I am seeking men, I tend to travel where my type is more likely to be (and available). But on the off chance that a mainland Asian fit that profile and was available to me, I would definitely get turned on. As for Asian clients of escorts, I didn’t realize that they were being turned away by (non-Asian) escorts en masse. I know there are some escorts out there who are either flat-out racist or are dumb enough to select their clients by whom they find physically attractive — there are more than enough of them that have an unwritten “no blacks” policy as well — but I would think that the vast majority of them are about that almighty dollar. I’m not very familiar with the scene in Colombia. But Brazil’s predominantly indigenous population is inland and way north. The saunas (like Tom mentioned) in Manaus, which is in Amazonas, has the largest percentage of self-identifying indigenous (Amerindian/ Native American) people of any major city in Brazil (38.5%). I can personally vouch for my visits to Fortaleza, in the north state of Ceara, having quite a few indigenous and indigenous-appearing garotos at the sauna — a few with very Native American deep reddish skin tones, unlike what would normally be seen in the Southern metropolitan coastal areas of Brazil. I did not hire escorts from ads or online, but you might want to try looking there as well. Belém is another suggestion, as it is a very large city (one million plus inhabitants) and is considered a gateway to the Amazon. If you already have experience in any of those cities, then I apologize in advance for the presumption of your ignorance. I will also add that there are plenty of escorts and GPs in the saunas along the big coastal cities that are indigenous-mixed (mestizo, pardo), and have the facial and other physical features to prove it.

This Is incorrect. Asians, although the most rapidly growing population, is 5.8% of the U.S. population. Black or African-Americans make up 13.6% — more than twice the population of Asians. The total population of Asians, when including Pacific Islanders, multiracial Asians and multinational Asians, was estimated at slightly over 21 million in 2016. There are 46.3 million African-Americans in the USA. https://www.nbcnews.com/news/amp/ncna597711