CHAT

Join us for our chat this evening! We will be discussing social issues in Jamaica regarding alternative lifestyles. We hope to here from people inside Jamaica and from those who have vacationed there. The chat begins at 6PM Central time. There are some coordinating local times posted in the chat box. To calculate the appropriate time for your area, just go to www.worldtimeserver.com and get the current time for Houston, Texas. That is a Central time zone.

Once we begin, you can keep track of how many people are chatting by refreshing your browser.

JAMAICA-HIGHLIGHTS

Here are some pics that highlight a typical vacation in Jamaica. Most people enjoy a stay in Ocho Rios so they can climb the Dunns River Falls. The Half Moon Hotel in MoBay is quite exclusive and you may want to stay in a bungalow with incredible views. River rafting is also a popular activity.

JAMAICAN FANTASY MEN

Oh, those Jamaican men! Those sun-kissed complexions, those heavy accents. People the world over are grateful for a particular Jamaican resource, the "bamboo." Our friends at RUDEJAM.COM have a plethora of pics and video clips for your admiration. It is, by far, the best site that features the men of Jamaica!

JAMAICA-Spanish Town

I'm an advocate for spending part of your vacation time off the beaten path. It's a way to experience the place as the locals do, as opposed to the usual tourist-oriented fare. Spanish Town, Jamaica is an interesting place to visit that the travel agents evidently don't know about. It can be described as "raw and unspoiled." It has places to hangout and play dominoes, a great open-air market, an outdoor museum and a nice beach that isn't flooded with tourists!

JAMAICA-PASTTIME

Most countries and cultures have their pasttimes. Sports, cookouts, etc. As baseball is to America, so cricket is to Jamaica. Jerk cook-offs and festivals are popular, like the large one held in Portland, Jamaica. Of course, fishing is done for leisure or for profit and the swimming hole in SavanahLamar is a great way to relax.

JAMAICA SITES

Some of the sites of interest in Jamaica are the University Of Kingston, the Appleton Estates (for rum tasting tours), Emancipation Park and Trident Castle (in Port Antonio).

JAMAICA-Images and Icons

This begins our week-long pictorial of Jamaica. When one thinks about Jamaica there are usually certain images that come to mind. For me, those images are dreads, Ganja and Ms. Grace Jones! We'll take a look at various images from the caribbean paradise where everthings "irie." Then, on Sunday we'll chat about issues that effect Jamaican citizens and vacationers.

FRIDAY FAVORITE 10

Possibly my most favorite hombre while visiting Santo Domingo has been named Domingo.
It has been said that "absence makes the heart grow fonder" and perhaps we tend to romanticize our experiences sometimes, but with Domingo the latter is not the case.


However, I have certainly missed him since that special vacation years ago when we met.
My friends and I were coming out of the airport. We were being escorted to our taxi by the Prieto Tours driver when I spotted this handsome guy staring. I smiled, then glanced back after a few paces and he was still looking so I motioned for him to come assist with my luggage.

We later found out that he actually lived in the mountains and just came to the airport that day to sightsee. Well, he was indeed our Godsend! Though he spoke no english and my spanish was limited at that time, I could make out that he was asking the driver where we were headed. He asked us if it was okay to tag along and we all agreed.

We had no idea this would turn out to be one of the best decisions we had made. One of my friends spoke the language fairly well, so we were able to converse on the drive to the hotel. Domingo proved to be very charming and had quite a sense of humor. Once at the hotel we had him to wait in the lobby, we were at the Hotel Melia, as we freshened up. We went for a walk and to eat, then asked him to meet us in the lobby the next day.

Can you believe he showed up BEFORE the scheduled time? This became the routine for the next several days as we all enjoyed Santo Domingo together. It was a time of discovery, as we were still relatively new to the scene and he had rarely come into the city from the mountains. He would never ask us for anything. He seemed to be having just as much of an adventure as we were and we were enjoying one anothers company.

Of course, we fed him and gave him pesos before sending him home every evening. He was extremely helpful while sightseeing, shopping, at the beach, etc. so he was definitely deserving.

At the end of our trip he wanted to join us for the ride to the airport. This proved to be a huge mistake. As we rode ever closer to the airport we all became quiet. Definitely not the lively bunch we had been all week. I had grown accustomed to that forlorn feeling at the end of a glorious vacation, but this was different. We had met a special guy that had endeared himself to all of us. Someone we had begun refering to as "our baby" or "our nino."

He insisted on carrying my bags into the building. Once inside I noticed that he was hanging his head. When I called his name for him to look up, he had tears falling down his face. Well, that did it! My tears immediately joined his on the tiled floor. We all came together for a group hug and expressed our gratitude. Before we left we gave him a very special token of our esteem that he could share with the family he hadn't seen much of for the past week.

He lit up in surprise, still teary-eyed, and watched as we made our way down the terminal to the gate. We haven't seen "our baby" since then, but needless to say we speak of him often and I continue to hope whenever I exit Los Americas Airport.

Donde esta Domingo?

FRIDAY FANTASY 24

The Man Of The Hour is Jukas. He's a 24 year-old Brazilian that believes "it's great being versatile."

MEN OF COLOR & CLUBBIN'

Mucho gracias to Men Of Color for the flattering shout out!! The blog review is simply fantastic and quite a challenge. LOL
I hope I can live up to the expectations of the readers. If you guys haven't done so, please check them out. Men Of Color is an attractive, informative and sexy site that's all about... (what else?)

The following pics were taken while clubbin' in Santo Domingo.

FRIDAY FANTASY 23

After I moved into my new home outside of Guayacanes I discovered the jets in my jacuzzi didn't work. I spent half the day waiting on the pool guy to show up, causing me to miss an appointment.

It was a hot and humid day so I noticed his t-shirt was clinging to his sculted torso when he finally arrived. He seemed to think I was sizing him up. "Mi apologia" he said huskily, his hand rubbing across those hard abs. Because I was still fuming from having missed my "date", I showed him where the jacuzzi was and went inside to start work on my dinner.

I hadn't given him another thought when, sometime later, I heard a splash outside. "He finally fixed it" I thought as I went to investigate. As I stepped outside, the water swirling in the small pool wasn't all I saw. He had removed his clothing, was now getting out of the pool and walking toward me.
He looked directly into my eyes and asked "Es muy bien, si?" As I assessed the scenario that had unfolded, I gave him a wicked grin and whispered..."perfect, absolutely perfect."

ALTERNATIVE CABARETE

If you take a flight into the Puerto Plata international airport or take the highway to this North Coast area, you will be just minutes from Cabarete and its suburb of Jardin Deportivo. It has beautiful coastline and beaches; quaint areas for dining and shopping; as well as some of the best water sports in the country.

























Fontleroy Hotels offers a resort area in Jardin Deportivo for gay travelers. It includes two hotels, one of which is all-inclusive, and a nightclub that attracts the local hotboys as well. The resort is about a five minute walk from the gay beach. You may want to include them in your next trip to the Dominican Republic.