Today the city of Dubai is one of the wealthiest and most modern anywhere, boasting the highest skyline in the Middle East including the two of the tallest hotels in the world, and soon, the tallest building in the world! We did a story a while back on DUBAI and the amazing (and beautiful) growth they are experiencing there.

Even though I would love to see it – as a gay person, it would be difficult to travel there I would think. There were some stories online recently that spoke about the  fifth Dubai Desert Rock Festival and all the issues with sex and drugs.

 

“We are here to celebrate rock music in all its hedonistic, sex-and-drugs-and-rock’n’roll glory,” wrote John Clarke in The Times.

“But this is also a Muslim state. There are breaks between sets for prayers. The audience and bands are advised not to remove their T-shirts or engage in ‘any public demonstrations of affection’. No ‘offensive hand gestures’ are permitted and crowdsurfers face immediate ejection. So not quite Iggy Pop country then.”

Apart from the hotels, there is only one public bar – inevitably, an Irish one – where visitors can drink. The rapidly growing number of expatriates have to apply for a licence to drink at home. Many don’t, and rely on contacts with The Heineken Man, as the importers are known.

But it doesn’t matter – as long as you don’t get caught or openly disrespect the laws!  Prostitution is rife but purveyed in hotel bars, not on the street.

Homosexuality is also illegal. Rob Harkavy, of gay travel company Respect Holidays says that he would refuse to take a booking to Dubai on principle.   If you know the “right” people and the right places in Dubai, there is plenty of gay life. Some of the gay spots in Dubai you can even read about in the Spartacus Directory. However, you can’t compare the gay life here in Dubai with that of Western Europe. Here, it’s almost all “underground” and there are risks involved.  –  Do we really want to vacation that way??

Many gay people do live in Dubai and, as long as you’re quiet and don’t draw attention to yourselves, you should be fine. Finding other gay people is, however, a big challenge. It can be a problem to find hotel allowing gay people to order one bedroom with one bad, or to rent some other Dubai property for their vacation. However there are many gay men & women there, and as long as they don’t flaunt it publicly everywhere you go, there is no problem whatsoever. –  In other words, keep the closet door closed tightly.

Drugs ARE NOT tolerated.  A  Swiss man imprisoned for ‘possession’ of three poppy seeds on his clothing after he ate a bread roll at Heathrow.  Among substances banned by Dubai are foods containing poppy seeds; melatonin, which is taken to ease the effects of jetlag; codeine, a common ingredient in pain relief medication, and any trace of drugs such as cannabis, however small.

So do many gay people go there?

Who has been there?

Would love to hear our readers feedback!

/images/39531-36457/200px_Manilow_pina_colada_publicity_still.jpeg” width=192 height=270>

PRAGUE is a beautiful, romantic, Gothic, baroque metropolis. But Prague is a double capital city these
days. It is also an epicenter of the billion-dollar worldwide gay porn industry. Some sources
estimate that a new gay porn film is made in the Czech Republic every three days!
Beautiful buildings and beautiful boys, what more could you want?!

WE ARE IN PRAGUE & PARIS THIS WEEK!!

And will hopefully come back with lots of pictures of beautiful boys! So we are re-running 2 popular stories we did on Prague, the gay porn business and male prostitution.

The porn industry really blossomed in the 1990s. Thanks to mastermind George Duroy of Bel Ami,
and the countries low wages and willing young men, an empire was launched. Duroy presented
the world with gorgeous, young, smooth, uncut Eastern European hotties and consumers ate it
up! Clean cut boys who barely spoke English, dropped their drawers and made sex seem so
innocent and sweet. GOLDMINE!.

Today the Czech Republic has became home to many porn producers. William Higgins, who was
known for the 1980’s California boys set up shop in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. And here’s
a twist, to protect the models privacy and enable them to continue their lives over there,
models get a nice lump of cash and the guarantee the movies and images will not be
distributed anywhere in Eastern Europe! So next time you go to Prague, you just may very
well see Lukas Ridgeston or Johan Paulik sitting next to you at the local pub –

don’t ask for an autograph, please.

/images/39531-36457/250px_Timhamiltonvid.jpeg”>  gay bars and dance clubs for a specific audience (like leather bars, rent boy bars, older audience, younger crowd). But, unfortunately, there has never been a Gay Pride in Prague until now. All gay accommodations are in the centre of Prague and some gay bars, clubs, saunas, restaurants are close to each place. For lots of useful information visit GAYGUIDE. Castles, museums, men, river cruises, parks, gardens, and men!

To Book a trip use the PRAGUE SAINTS BOOKING SERVICE!

/images/39531-36457/01841D1.jpeg” width=202 height=298>

I found this interesting article online about prostitution in Prague. – In the quiet and luxurious Vinohrady district, just outside the center of Prague, anyone can walk into certain  gay clubs and have their pick of male escorts. Prostitution is not illegal in the Czech Republic as long as the prostitute is at least 18.
 

(Actually I am told, “There are two bars in Prague where escorts are openly available and these are Escape and Temple.  Temple is on the fringes of the gay quarter but is actually in Zizkov, the district that neighbours Vinohrady.  Escape is down town. 
 
However these same escorts often go out to the other gay bars, particularly Valentino and Termix, sometimes with the clients that have picked them up in Escape or Temple or sometimes with their mates.  But I have heard stories of them then attempting to charge anyone who tries to pick them up in Valentino for example.” – So if you are NOT looking to pay, keep that in mind.)


In March of 2007, local authorities were constitutionally given the right to regulate this profession– consign it to specific areas.


Two different categories have arisen — there is the circle of elite escorts like Rocky who only serve a wealthy clientele. And then there are the others at the Main Train Station, a major hub of the Prague male sex tourism industry.



Rocky was interviewed by writer Soma Ghoshal and said, “I met the head prostitute a couple of years back at a club. He told me I had great potential, and I had no problem with it, so I started to make contacts and network with the wealthy throughout Europe. CEO’s, politicians, doctors — they’re husbands, have families, but just want to have some fun on the side,” he explained.

I couldn’t believe it. Rocky had started this as a business venture. After seeing his apartment, I realized that he was better off than most residents of Prague, but I wasn’t prepared for what I learned next.
The average monthly salary in Prague is 25,282 Kc ($1,383.87), according to a 2007 report from the Czech Statistical Office.

Rocky, and the boys that are enlisted on the top two websites for male escorts, make around 50,000 Kc a week ($120,000 annually). Statistically, this puts them at the wealthiest five percent of society. Some of the escorts do 3-5 tricks per day – and after a few years retire or are just plain worn out!


Matthew, a Czech head prostitute, is in charge of 20 or so male escorts. He hangs out in Club Valentino on Vinohradska most nights looking for anyone who may be interested in becoming a prostitute.

At first, Matthew made no mention of his profession. He seemed very reserved, very shy, but after awhile, he started talking about how he’s guided more than 100 young men get jobs. I asked him what he liked about his job.

“I’m helping so many people,” he said.

  


If you are thinking of visiting the Czech Republic, please see our friends at PRAGUE SAINTS. They are the leading  gay-run travel company providing accommodations and tour services for gay visitors to the Czech Republic.  They offer great rates on Prague hotels, beautiful apartments, private tours of Prague and the Czech Republic !