Welcome to the land down under! It’s difficult to decide where to begin when talking about Australia. Of course there’s that quintessential image most of us have: A cowboy pulling up to a bar in the middle of the Outback, kangaroos hopping about and koalas in the trees. He darts inside for a quick Foster’s, which is Australia for beer (or so we’re told). In our image, however, that Cowboy is actually gay. He meets you inside and offers to “give you a ride” to the next town. You then hop into his big truck and drive off into the sunset. Well, I’m here to tell you that Australia is EXACTLY like that...well kinda!
GayDay Mate!
While the Outback does stretch into infinity and there are places in “Oz” where it’s possible to see the curvature of the Earth because the land is so barren and so flat. The people are quite like Californians. The food is quite like what we eat at home, and - miraculously - not everyone lives “in the bush.” The cities - Sydney and Melbourne - are world-class, the beaches are otherworldly, the people are lovely and the gay scene is one of the most vibrant in the World. Indeed, Gaystralia is all too fitting of a name.
While gay marriage is not legal, civil unions are and gay couples enjoy many of the rights and responsibilities of heterosexual couples. The pace of change is rapid. Gay adoption bills and the “move toward marriage” is apparent and gay-related crimes are all but nonexistent. This from a nation that has a very rough record of dealing with minorities - particularly aboriginals.
Oxford Street: The Center of the Action
Sydney’s Mardi Gras, which rocks the city for weeks, draws gays and lesbians the world over and is arguably the largest gay pride celebration in the World. The city’s famed “gayborhood,” which lines Oxford Street, is abuzz seven nights a week. The drag queens are the greatest in the World. Their almost nightly shows at venues like Stonewall (175 Oxford Street, Darlinghurst NSW) and Arq (16 Flinders Street, Darlinghurst NSW) draw hundreds of revelers who bask in such wonderment as “Going Gaga,” a 30-minute review of the reigning Queen of Pop.
You can’t miss it. Rainbow flags line the streets. Adoring gay couples wander lovingly down the road holding hands, gently kissing and even going for it - especially after midnight. The clothing stores are primarily of the underwear variety. The clubs are unmistakably gay. Drag queens are arriving looking almost too fabulous, all on their way to that evening’s performance.
This 24/7 international gay Mecca that may be - as far as I’m concerned - the gayest of the gayest gayborhoods in the World. Yes there’s Soho in London and the Village in New York. You’ve got West Hollywood in LA and The Castro in San Francisco. The world is full of sometimes charming and sometimes much less charming neighborhoods for the LGBT set.
The difference here, however, is that the cliental, the apartment residents, the shopkeepers, the restaurant owners and even the local bank logos are gay. In any other gayborhood there is this sense that you’re in a pocket of a much larger world but on Oxford Street in Sydney, the feeling is that the entire world - in every direction - is gay. Here, being straight is odd. Here, holding hands with someone of the opposite sex indicates a “gal pal.” Here, kissing someone of the opposite sex is simply assumed to be a “drunken error.” Where else in the world does gay feel entirely normal?
Rainbow flags fly year round and nearly a million homos converge on the city for Mardi Gras (one of the only gay pride parades in the world without a specifically gay name but with an entirely gay meaning). There are dozens - nearly 100 - gay bars, clubs, restaurants and hotels crammed right next to each, making gay “normal.” It’s a feeling you rarely get in the world at large when you’re gay. It’s a feeling that’s addictive, adoring, and appreciated. So what are you waiting for? Can you handle being “normal?”
For more information on the hottest LGBT destinations throughout the world, please visit www.gaytravel.com.