numazu Posted 7 hours ago Posted 7 hours ago Hey guys, I’m back to writing trip reports—at least this one time. For those unfamiliar, my writing style is different, so if the majority isn’t receptive, I’d be more than happy to delete this post. I just wanted to write this trip report about my first time visiting Thermas Sauna in Barcelona. For those who know me, even just here, it might be a surprise that I haven’t been to Thermas before this trip. I’m frankly surprised myself, as I’ve been to Barcelona six times before for “normal” gay activities, as well as to get on a cruise ship two of those times. Those other trips were (sadly?) rent-boy free and were either with my boyfriend at the time or with friends, and I just used Grindr with some success. I finally decided to make a Thermas run because I had a weeklong work trip to a city in Europe that wasn’t exactly a hotbed of gay/rent-boy activity. I figured that going to Thermas before would help me get this horny energy out of my system. Even if it’s only for two nights, it’ll give me a chance to deal with some jet lag and rest before the work trip, at the very least. Night 1: Am I in Brazil? Well, my first night was off to an ominous start, with my flight delayed by 5 hours, meaning my 2 PM arrival became 7:20 PM. I’d heard the best time to visit Thermas is between 4 PM and 8 PM, when most of the boys are there. With my delay, I’d likely arrive after those prime rent-boy hours. Still, hope springs eternal, and the chance to discover something new—after probably more than 50 trips to Brazil—had me excited. I’ve always had luck in Barcelona, whether it’s on Grindr or with a boyfriend, so a sauna visit should be a positive experience too. And since this is a Friday night, I am hoping that the weekend will bring in the numbers. After almost a 20-minute wait in line at immigration, where I spent a total of 15 seconds with an officer (no words exchanged), I finally reached baggage claim. Another potential wait: the baggage claim in Barcelona airport show an estimated time for when bags will arrive, and mine said it would be another 30 minutes. At this point, it was 8:40 PM, so I sat down on one of the benches and opened Grindr, since there wasn’t much else to do. Opening Grindr at an airport is always a futile endeavor. You usually get guys transiting through, so there’s no real chance of a meaningful connection. Sure, I’ve talked to guys before who were interested in meeting at their or my gate, but after 15+ hours of travel, I prefer to wait and get a shower at my hotel before heading to the sauna. I started chatting with a couple of guys who seemed interesting and responded to a few pings. Then I received a message from a photo-less guy with promising stats. His status said “for right now,” so I figured, why not answer? Oh no, I’ve been spotted. And just as I finished reading that, the bags started arriving on the belt. And as luck would have it, my bags were among the first to come out. Should I respond? Should I get my bags? He clearly knows where I am. I quickly grabbed my bags and checked the time: it was 9:05 PM. A quick calculation meant I’d be in my hotel room by 9:30 PM, take a quick shower, and could still be at the sauna before 10 PM. Maybe there would still be some guys there? Or should I wait for this guy who’s semi-stalking me? What would you have done? The uncertainty of not knowing if this guy was my type, combined with how gross I probably looked after hours of transcontinental travel from the USA to Europe, made the idea of meeting this guy less appealing. But maybe it would still be a dud and the sauna would be empty at this hour. I took my chances. I bee-lined to the “Nada que declarar” door and was through quickly. I hit up an ING Bank ATM by the arrivals gate and got 300 euros for the sauna. Just to be polite, I replied to my Grindr stalker, letting him know I had already exited baggage claim. After that no more messages from Señor Stalker. The Uber ride to my hotel was 40 bucks, and within 5 minutes, I was on my way. As expected, Grindr pings kept coming through on the way to the hotel. This was the Barcelona I knew. It should be a good trip. For the hotel, I chose the safe bet: Axel Two Barcelona, an advertised gay hotel. I’d stayed there once before with a boyfriend, and the hotel was a 6-minute walk to the sauna. It was a bit more expensive than closer hotels, but I figured, at least for this trip, tried and true would work. I checked in with two friendly receptionists, both gay, who were efficient and had me up to my room in under 5 minutes. I checked Grindr again and saw the same two reception guys now in my feed. Of course they were there. I wondered if I could message them on Grindr if I had a problem with my room or needed room service. A quick but thorough shower got me out the door just before 10 PM. I pulled up Google Maps to plot my route to the sauna, then set off for the brief 6 minute walk. Early spring in Barcelona made it a very comfortable walk in just a light jacket. I must admit, I was excited, but also a little nervous. This would be the first time I was going to a boy sauna/bar outside Brazil since 2019, when I last went to Gigolo Erotic House in Bogotá. When I reached the street where the sauna was supposed to be, I didn’t see any signage at first—probably because I was so eager to get to the location I wasn’t paying attention to my surroundings. I stopped when I passed an ATM, reversed course, and looked more closely at the doors and signs. As I headed back, I see an open door to a room with some stacked towels on a table and two attractive-ish boys talking rapidly in Spanish. The more muscular one noticed me and shouted “la puerta,” pointing to his right. Thanks for the assist! He turned out to be the bartender at the sauna. Anyway, I found the main door to the sauna and saw the receptionist through the window. He gave me a quick once-over, buzzed me in, and motioned for me to open the door and let myself in. He quickly asked for the entrance fee (24 euros?), which I paid with a quick swipe of Apple Pay. Then he asked me something else in Spanish, and luckily, I caught the tail-end of it, which I understood as “zapatillas.” He was asking if I needed slippers, and I gave my most authoritative “Sí!” He then asked me something else, which I assumed was to ask for my size, so I told him in Spanish, guessing my European shoe size which i knew was close to the Brazilian shoe size, which I knew fairly well. I understand Spanish pretty well and speak it at an intermediate level, but as with Portuguese, it always takes me half a day of hearing and speaking it to get back into it, especially after a long stay in the mono-lingual USA. Plus, I was tired. Plus I was horny. The receptionist handed me a locker key, similar to the system in Brazil, and pointed me toward the locker room, which was directly ahead. From where I stood, I could see five people: three of them were obviously boys—2 Latino-looking, fit with abs, and one muscular white tall guy. The other two were clients, just heading into the locker room. Oh good, there were still people here at 10:20 PM on a Friday night. I found my locker and saw three clients changing into their street clothes. I hoped this wasn’t a sign that people were leaving in droves. There were two towels in the locker. I took off all my clothes, put them in the locker, and wrapped a towel around my waist. I made sure I had my 300 euros so I could pay, grabbed my cellphone out of habit, and locked the locker. I stepped out of the locker room and looked around. Where do I go? One of the boys sitting on a ledge in the center of the reception area pointed to the dark room, which, upon closer inspection, had stairs leading further down. “Abajo,” he said, pointing down. He instantly clocked me as a newbie. He rose and went down the stairs, so I followed. The floor below was a dimly lit area, with some people milling about in towels. The boy continued further down to another lower level, and I followed him. After a short narrow corridor, the space opened up. I saw a jacuzzi, a pool, and a bar area. I counted five people sitting at the bar. This was promising. I plopped down in a vacant seat. The boy who had guided me down wasn’t really a “boy.” He was a full-grown man—probably in his 30s, with fairly big build but not overly gymmed out body and white-adjacent, possibly Arab, looks. He rattled off the usual Spanish introductions: “Where are you from?” “When did you arrive?” and “Is this your first time here at the sauna?” And then at the corner of my eye, a tall fit bearded guy appeared. I was still talking to my man-guide when I heard a familiar voice. “Numazu, what are you doing here?” in English. I recognized who it was even before I took a good look at the guy. It was indeed a familiar friendly face. It was this boy from Brazil who I first met in 2020. To be honest, he was not just any boy. He is an ex-”boyfriend”, and we “dated” for a good part of the pandemic in 2020-2021, just right after Brazil opened up after its lockdown. My man-guide slowly backed away, sensing a shift in my focus. The Brazilian, who I will call Pedro, got really close to me and stared at my face. He was clearly thinking, probably with a mix of surprise that he saw me here, but also on how to approach me. After a beat, he hugged me, and then again another tighter hug. He then kissed me, tentative at first, and then deeply after he knew he could. And then, out of old habit, he scooped me up and lifted me for one of those body hugs he used to give me when we were together. Pedro sat next to me, clearly excited that I was there. “This is why you suddenly disappeared,” I said, as there was a time two years ago that Pedro frequented Lagoa in Sao Paulo almost every day. We were pretty civil at that point after a crappy break up, and the relationship had been over for 3 years, and all the reasons why we broke up were just a distant memory, and we were just friends. And then one day I stopped seeing him at Lagoa. I didn’t even worry about it, it's just one of those things that happen in the background that you realize for half a second but never think about until you forget it eventually, only to resurface and make sense at this moment. We got caught up on our lives. His main thing was that the Brazil sauna scene was not giving him the resources he needed to survive. He decided to try Europe with a client helping him to get there. He quickly found a good life for him, traveling all over Europe, using Barcelona as his base, and Zurich as well, and traveling with clients who met him in the saunas back to those client’s home towns. He said he has never seen this much money in his life, and he has saved a tidy sum just living this life. Europe has been kind to him. Just to give a description. Pedro is in his late 20s or early 30s. Tall and bearded, has a lean muscular body that has almost zero fat. He has a sweet face, and I know he kisses very passionately, though he does dole his kisses out pretty judiciously to those who can pay for it. But being Brazilian, his show stopper is his cock. Let’s just say it is long and thick, more than a mouthful, and a challenge to all but the seasoned ones among us. I got interested in him because he was a sex maniac, but I “dated” him because deep down he is a pussycat. My man guide was still close by, probably trying to listen to our conversation, which was a mix of Portuguese, English and Spanish. I nodded to the man-guide and he asked me if I was Brazilian. Pedro quickly interjected and proclaimed that, almost proudly, that I was his ex-boyfriend. I told man-guide I was American, but Brazil was a second home. There was another handsome boy seated close by, who was built like Pedro but with more Arab looks. Later I would find out that he was from Morocco. I would eventually see 5 more boys still in the sauna who were actively looking as well through the course of this night. So clearly I had options, even at this hour. I ordered a Jack and diet. Pedro ordered a vodka red bull. I was surprised. He used to not drink but now he clearly does. “Europe has changed me, and I can show you how much if you let me.” I reminded him “You used to be different before you met me, so I changed you too.” Which was true. I met Pedro at the Sauna Boa Vista in Recife. Back then he was just this naive kid who was dirt poor, who slept on the beach, and has never left Recife. Me, being the great corruptor that I am, introduced him to Rio de Janeiro, and then Sao Paulo, and he got a taste of city life and ways, and more money than he had ever seen in his life up to that point. And look at him now. Next up: my time with Pedro, and two other boys. Spoiler Alert: I left the sauna at 2:30 AM. PeterRS, bkkmfj2648 and Creditisdue 3 Quote
Keithambrose Posted 3 hours ago Posted 3 hours ago 4 hours ago, numazu said: Hey guys, I’m back to writing trip reports—at least this one time. For those unfamiliar, my writing style is different, so if the majority isn’t receptive, I’d be more than happy to delete this post. I just wanted to write this trip report about my first time visiting Thermas Sauna in Barcelona. For those who know me, even just here, it might be a surprise that I haven’t been to Thermas before this trip. I’m frankly surprised myself, as I’ve been to Barcelona six times before for “normal” gay activities, as well as to get on a cruise ship two of those times. Those other trips were (sadly?) rent-boy free and were either with my boyfriend at the time or with friends, and I just used Grindr with some success. I finally decided to make a Thermas run because I had a weeklong work trip to a city in Europe that wasn’t exactly a hotbed of gay/rent-boy activity. I figured that going to Thermas before would help me get this horny energy out of my system. Even if it’s only for two nights, it’ll give me a chance to deal with some jet lag and rest before the work trip, at the very least. Night 1: Am I in Brazil? Well, my first night was off to an ominous start, with my flight delayed by 5 hours, meaning my 2 PM arrival became 7:20 PM. I’d heard the best time to visit Thermas is between 4 PM and 8 PM, when most of the boys are there. With my delay, I’d likely arrive after those prime rent-boy hours. Still, hope springs eternal, and the chance to discover something new—after probably more than 50 trips to Brazil—had me excited. I’ve always had luck in Barcelona, whether it’s on Grindr or with a boyfriend, so a sauna visit should be a positive experience too. And since this is a Friday night, I am hoping that the weekend will bring in the numbers. After almost a 20-minute wait in line at immigration, where I spent a total of 15 seconds with an officer (no words exchanged), I finally reached baggage claim. Another potential wait: the baggage claim in Barcelona airport show an estimated time for when bags will arrive, and mine said it would be another 30 minutes. At this point, it was 8:40 PM, so I sat down on one of the benches and opened Grindr, since there wasn’t much else to do. Opening Grindr at an airport is always a futile endeavor. You usually get guys transiting through, so there’s no real chance of a meaningful connection. Sure, I’ve talked to guys before who were interested in meeting at their or my gate, but after 15+ hours of travel, I prefer to wait and get a shower at my hotel before heading to the sauna. I started chatting with a couple of guys who seemed interesting and responded to a few pings. Then I received a message from a photo-less guy with promising stats. His status said “for right now,” so I figured, why not answer? Oh no, I’ve been spotted. And just as I finished reading that, the bags started arriving on the belt. And as luck would have it, my bags were among the first to come out. Should I respond? Should I get my bags? He clearly knows where I am. I quickly grabbed my bags and checked the time: it was 9:05 PM. A quick calculation meant I’d be in my hotel room by 9:30 PM, take a quick shower, and could still be at the sauna before 10 PM. Maybe there would still be some guys there? Or should I wait for this guy who’s semi-stalking me? What would you have done? The uncertainty of not knowing if this guy was my type, combined with how gross I probably looked after hours of transcontinental travel from the USA to Europe, made the idea of meeting this guy less appealing. But maybe it would still be a dud and the sauna would be empty at this hour. I took my chances. I bee-lined to the “Nada que declarar” door and was through quickly. I hit up an ING Bank ATM by the arrivals gate and got 300 euros for the sauna. Just to be polite, I replied to my Grindr stalker, letting him know I had already exited baggage claim. After that no more messages from Señor Stalker. The Uber ride to my hotel was 40 bucks, and within 5 minutes, I was on my way. As expected, Grindr pings kept coming through on the way to the hotel. This was the Barcelona I knew. It should be a good trip. For the hotel, I chose the safe bet: Axel Two Barcelona, an advertised gay hotel. I’d stayed there once before with a boyfriend, and the hotel was a 6-minute walk to the sauna. It was a bit more expensive than closer hotels, but I figured, at least for this trip, tried and true would work. I checked in with two friendly receptionists, both gay, who were efficient and had me up to my room in under 5 minutes. I checked Grindr again and saw the same two reception guys now in my feed. Of course they were there. I wondered if I could message them on Grindr if I had a problem with my room or needed room service. A quick but thorough shower got me out the door just before 10 PM. I pulled up Google Maps to plot my route to the sauna, then set off for the brief 6 minute walk. Early spring in Barcelona made it a very comfortable walk in just a light jacket. I must admit, I was excited, but also a little nervous. This would be the first time I was going to a boy sauna/bar outside Brazil since 2019, when I last went to Gigolo Erotic House in Bogotá. When I reached the street where the sauna was supposed to be, I didn’t see any signage at first—probably because I was so eager to get to the location I wasn’t paying attention to my surroundings. I stopped when I passed an ATM, reversed course, and looked more closely at the doors and signs. As I headed back, I see an open door to a room with some stacked towels on a table and two attractive-ish boys talking rapidly in Spanish. The more muscular one noticed me and shouted “la puerta,” pointing to his right. Thanks for the assist! He turned out to be the bartender at the sauna. Anyway, I found the main door to the sauna and saw the receptionist through the window. He gave me a quick once-over, buzzed me in, and motioned for me to open the door and let myself in. He quickly asked for the entrance fee (24 euros?), which I paid with a quick swipe of Apple Pay. Then he asked me something else in Spanish, and luckily, I caught the tail-end of it, which I understood as “zapatillas.” He was asking if I needed slippers, and I gave my most authoritative “Sí!” He then asked me something else, which I assumed was to ask for my size, so I told him in Spanish, guessing my European shoe size which i knew was close to the Brazilian shoe size, which I knew fairly well. I understand Spanish pretty well and speak it at an intermediate level, but as with Portuguese, it always takes me half a day of hearing and speaking it to get back into it, especially after a long stay in the mono-lingual USA. Plus, I was tired. Plus I was horny. The receptionist handed me a locker key, similar to the system in Brazil, and pointed me toward the locker room, which was directly ahead. From where I stood, I could see five people: three of them were obviously boys—2 Latino-looking, fit with abs, and one muscular white tall guy. The other two were clients, just heading into the locker room. Oh good, there were still people here at 10:20 PM on a Friday night. I found my locker and saw three clients changing into their street clothes. I hoped this wasn’t a sign that people were leaving in droves. There were two towels in the locker. I took off all my clothes, put them in the locker, and wrapped a towel around my waist. I made sure I had my 300 euros so I could pay, grabbed my cellphone out of habit, and locked the locker. I stepped out of the locker room and looked around. Where do I go? One of the boys sitting on a ledge in the center of the reception area pointed to the dark room, which, upon closer inspection, had stairs leading further down. “Abajo,” he said, pointing down. He instantly clocked me as a newbie. He rose and went down the stairs, so I followed. The floor below was a dimly lit area, with some people milling about in towels. The boy continued further down to another lower level, and I followed him. After a short narrow corridor, the space opened up. I saw a jacuzzi, a pool, and a bar area. I counted five people sitting at the bar. This was promising. I plopped down in a vacant seat. The boy who had guided me down wasn’t really a “boy.” He was a full-grown man—probably in his 30s, with fairly big build but not overly gymmed out body and white-adjacent, possibly Arab, looks. He rattled off the usual Spanish introductions: “Where are you from?” “When did you arrive?” and “Is this your first time here at the sauna?” And then at the corner of my eye, a tall fit bearded guy appeared. I was still talking to my man-guide when I heard a familiar voice. “Numazu, what are you doing here?” in English. I recognized who it was even before I took a good look at the guy. It was indeed a familiar friendly face. It was this boy from Brazil who I first met in 2020. To be honest, he was not just any boy. He is an ex-”boyfriend”, and we “dated” for a good part of the pandemic in 2020-2021, just right after Brazil opened up after its lockdown. My man-guide slowly backed away, sensing a shift in my focus. The Brazilian, who I will call Pedro, got really close to me and stared at my face. He was clearly thinking, probably with a mix of surprise that he saw me here, but also on how to approach me. After a beat, he hugged me, and then again another tighter hug. He then kissed me, tentative at first, and then deeply after he knew he could. And then, out of old habit, he scooped me up and lifted me for one of those body hugs he used to give me when we were together. Pedro sat next to me, clearly excited that I was there. “This is why you suddenly disappeared,” I said, as there was a time two years ago that Pedro frequented Lagoa in Sao Paulo almost every day. We were pretty civil at that point after a crappy break up, and the relationship had been over for 3 years, and all the reasons why we broke up were just a distant memory, and we were just friends. And then one day I stopped seeing him at Lagoa. I didn’t even worry about it, it's just one of those things that happen in the background that you realize for half a second but never think about until you forget it eventually, only to resurface and make sense at this moment. We got caught up on our lives. His main thing was that the Brazil sauna scene was not giving him the resources he needed to survive. He decided to try Europe with a client helping him to get there. He quickly found a good life for him, traveling all over Europe, using Barcelona as his base, and Zurich as well, and traveling with clients who met him in the saunas back to those client’s home towns. He said he has never seen this much money in his life, and he has saved a tidy sum just living this life. Europe has been kind to him. Just to give a description. Pedro is in his late 20s or early 30s. Tall and bearded, has a lean muscular body that has almost zero fat. He has a sweet face, and I know he kisses very passionately, though he does dole his kisses out pretty judiciously to those who can pay for it. But being Brazilian, his show stopper is his cock. Let’s just say it is long and thick, more than a mouthful, and a challenge to all but the seasoned ones among us. I got interested in him because he was a sex maniac, but I “dated” him because deep down he is a pussycat. My man guide was still close by, probably trying to listen to our conversation, which was a mix of Portuguese, English and Spanish. I nodded to the man-guide and he asked me if I was Brazilian. Pedro quickly interjected and proclaimed that, almost proudly, that I was his ex-boyfriend. I told man-guide I was American, but Brazil was a second home. There was another handsome boy seated close by, who was built like Pedro but with more Arab looks. Later I would find out that he was from Morocco. I would eventually see 5 more boys still in the sauna who were actively looking as well through the course of this night. So clearly I had options, even at this hour. I ordered a Jack and diet. Pedro ordered a vodka red bull. I was surprised. He used to not drink but now he clearly does. “Europe has changed me, and I can show you how much if you let me.” I reminded him “You used to be different before you met me, so I changed you too.” Which was true. I met Pedro at the Sauna Boa Vista in Recife. Back then he was just this naive kid who was dirt poor, who slept on the beach, and has never left Recife. Me, being the great corruptor that I am, introduced him to Rio de Janeiro, and then Sao Paulo, and he got a taste of city life and ways, and more money than he had ever seen in his life up to that point. And look at him now. Next up: my time with Pedro, and two other boys. Spoiler Alert: I left the sauna at 2:30 AM. Good report! Quote
