Is it cool to be gay in Buenos Aires?

Gay Buenos Aires from Luka @ http://www.buenosairesstay.com:

Welcome to gay Buenos Aires Argentina! I am Luka Nola, a 28 year old gay New Zealander who has travelled the world at least three times and I am currently living and working in South America. I am working on a number of web-based travel and tourism projects and it has been my great privilege to spend the last twelve-months in Buenos Aires.

This section of Buenos Aires Stay鈥檚 website will fast become a gay Buenos Aires and gay Argentina directory and notice board (blog) with a difference 鈥?all our listings will be reviewed by our clients.

I am afraid that I have some way to go and the first directory pages will not be published until late January/February. To start the ball rolling, I have decided to give you a flavour of what you can expect and ask you to contact me personally should you want more personalised advice. I list some gay Buenos Aires establishments for your convenience. You will have to wait or contribute to find more gay Argentina reviews. Just creating lists will reproduce the rubbish I found when I arrived 鈥?your juicy reviews are what will make my pages scream Buenos Aires scene queen.

Gay Buenos Aires has surprised me. I expected a city that after hundreds of years of social, political and economic turmoil that might have seen better days. I thought many of the less appealing European attitudes and laws, which criminalised and discriminated against homosexuals, may have prevailed. I suppose my wild imaginings had created some sort of mental time capsule, mainly because many websites sell you 鈥榦ld Europe鈥?in South America. When I got to Buenos Aires, I was over old Europe (until next time of course).

Apart from the architecture and language, much of the airplay could not be further from the truth 鈥?Buenos Aires city is a modern metropolis in need of some tender loving care, but building for the XXI Century; moreover, Argentineans generally have a much more enlightened view of homosexuality and since the mid-part of the XIX century, homosexual acts have been decriminalised giving gays in Buenos Aires a get on with it you 鈥榩oofs鈥?declaration shouted from the balcony of the wonderfully presidential?! pink palace (casa Rosada).

My most pleasant surprise; I find Buenos Aires city the most welcoming gay destination in the world. It does not have the time-old gay infrastructures, ghettos and mass commercialisation of homosexuals as do more established gay capitals such as London or New York. I feel so at home here, in any part of the city, in any restaurant or any bar; being gay in Buenos Aires city does not become all consuming part of your life and being. In Buenos Aires, you are you first, and gay if someone can be bothered to ask. In summary, you will find the city has a metro-sexual nature, no gay ghetto and gay culture, which is not always evident, but extends city life.

This is a gay travel destination for those who want something entirely different. What I hope to do is give you a sense of what makes gay Buenos Aires so different and such an amazing city for inspired gay travel. There is so much general information about Buenos Aires on this website, so I am going to focus solely on creating the ultimate Buenos Gay Aires City Guide with the help of my clients and offer so below are links to other more general reviews written by our overly-gay-friendly team.

In my opinion, it is the portenos (people of Buenos Aires port -pronounced por-ten-yos) that make Buenos Aires a fantastic city for inspired gay travel - I find gay portenos more sophisticated, cultured and friendly than their peers I have met in many other cities throughout the world, and they are so hopelessly romantic. I never spend long in a bar feeling isolated, gay portenos make an effort, they are fun, witty, a touch too serious at times, and love to have a good time or set the world to rights with lively discussion. The alcohol, body and ageist culture that prevails in other cities is not so evident in Buenos Aires.

I have been told to keep my shallowness and appreciation of gay Argentine boys to a minimum on these pages, but I have to say it 鈥?there is also the 鈥榳ow-factor,鈥?I get married numerous times just toddling off for milk. I also have to add that my 鈥榞aydar鈥?has failed dismally since I arrived. Not all that is pretty, in touch with their more feminine feelings, gives you the time of day or seems to look at you longingly are gay Argentine boys! So be careful, retune that 鈥榞aydar鈥?for South America 鈥?remember that both men and women tend to kiss each other on one cheek when meeting鈥?that is all men, gay or straight, it confused the hell out of me for a while 鈥?so tune into South America and adjust that 鈥榞aydar.鈥?br>
What you will quickly notice is that gays of Argentina bash as much as the British whinge about Great Britain. When you talk to gays of Argentina many wish they could leave Argentina. They crave stories from our homes and cannot wait to travel and increase their knowledge of the world. You must understand that this is a country that has suffered significant social, political, and economic crisis and although things are better now than they have been for a very long time, people just seem to wait with certain inevitability for the next crash. This pessimism makes foreign lands a lot greener (we know the truth) to the young gays of Argentina. It can also make you wonderfully attractive.

My experience has taught me to beware those that befriend you quickly and tell you almost by the minute how careful you should to be of their own countrymen. Andrew sets you straight on this website, these people are running businesses within a re-emerging economy, and many feel like they have to profit now to weather the next crash, which history tells them is just around the corner. In 2001 professional classes ate in soup kitchens. If you throw your money around, some will happily take it. You have a responsibility to buy goods and services carefully.

I have never witnessed homophobia and the people I meet from all walks of life seem so disinterested in the 鈥榞ay boy label鈥?that your sexuality becomes a non-issue. So much so, I see many a gay boy arrive with all the characteristics of modern gay society- you know, the clean cut XXI century clone, self-conscious, consumed by homosexuality, on their second round of muscle juice and trying too hard- who after a few months in gay Buenos Aires find some individuality. You can really relax in Buenos Aires.

You may have already read the hype claiming 1 million plus gay Argentina visitors each year, you would have seen the tons of sites and articles on the web claiming that Gay Buenos Aires Argentina is now the leading gay travel destination in South America, and so my objective is to pack our of website with your queer views, but straight advice.

I urgently need your emails. Help me make this the best information portal for gay travel to gay Buenos Aires, and gay Argentina by emailing me and telling it like it is 鈥?I will publish those reviews, which are balanced and of interest to our readers our gay Buenos Aires pages 鈥?Luka@bastay.com.

Some quick facts:

鈥ay Buenos Aires is the capital city of Argentina
鈥he people of Argentina are known collectively as Argentinean or Argentine
鈥he people of Buenos Aires are known as portenos (people of the port)
鈥he language spoken is Spanish
鈥rgentina is the second biggest country in South America situated on the south Atlantic coast
鈥rgentina has a temperate climate,
鈥he country occupies a total area of 2,780,400 km2/1068,209 sq mi
鈥he currency is Peso. 1 (ARG$) = 100 Centavos
鈥he population of Argentina is 37, 500, 000, and over 7 live in the city of Buenos Aires and nearly 14 million in the province.
鈥he Religion is just over 90% Catholic
鈥omosexuality is not a criminal offence
鈥he constitution bans some forms of anti-gay discrimination
鈥he age of consent is 16 years
鈥ame sex civil unions have been legal since 2003

Please email me your reviews of gay Buenos Aires!

luka@bastay.com

it's not cool any where

Sure, just don't go to jail there, you might get violated. hmm, unless you wouldn't mind that.

It's ok for girls, but less so if you are a chap. From having lived there for a while (in Recoleta) it would appear that the people have a more traditional outlook on male/female r么les in society.

Although, a greater percentage of women now choose a career outside the home, some rules remain. A male friend casually mentioned that he had done the washing-up, rather than leaving it for his fianc茅e; a relative enquired as to whether or not it was a "dishonour" for a man to do the washing up in England.

Buenos Aires does cater for those who like their own sort, but perhaps best to keep it low-key. You might be perceived as threatening the status of the male race........ can't help how some people think eh? See what it's like when you get there.

I think it would be a hot, sticky business being bummed in BA...ugh, what a gross thought.