Noticing Norway

Norwegian finance minister and chairwoman of the Socialist Left party Kristin Halvorsen outside the House of Parliament in Oslo on June 11, 2008, where she celebrated the passing of a new law awarding equal rights to same sex partnerships as those enjoyed by heterosexual marriages.
Photos in order: Getty Images; Terje Rakke/Nordic life/Innovation Norway

With the ethernet all abuzz with California marriage fever, few took notice of Norway when, five days before the California court ruling went into effect, the Scandinavian nation joined South Africa, Netherlands, Spain, Belgium and Canada in becoming the world's sixth country to grant same-sex couples full marriage rights.

Although civil unions have been available since 1993, the new gender-neutral version of marriage which was proposed and passed on June 11th includes much needed amendments -- brining adoption and insemination rights up to par with heterosexual marriages, for example.

On a travel note, this constitutional monarchy and her famous fjords are a fabulous antidote to the humid summer blues. In the land of the Midnight Sun, summer temperatures hover in the high 60s and you can expect around 20 hours of sunlight every day.

Proudly falling for New York City

Photo: Getty Images

Seemingly in honor of Gay Pride, New York unveiled its first grand public art project since Christo and Jean-Claude draped Central Park in orange banners for The Gates in 2005. The Waterfalls, by Olafur Eliasson, are so much more stunning in person. A really nice way of seeing them is via an unofficial tour by NY Water Taxi, $25 per person.

To mark this noteworthy occasion, we've rounded up some of our best recent New York City coverage so you can plan the perfect visit. Heading here for Pride? It's still not too late to book the deals included in our NYC Pride travel round up.

Traveling with Fido? Well, you'll want to consult our insider guide to gay- and dog-friendly New York.

Not sure which area in which to stay or where to walk around once you're here? Read through our comprehensive analysis of gay-friendly New York City neighborhoods. One especially happening part of town these days is Hell's kitchen. Click here to find out why this blazing hot 'hood is so damn cool. For overall trip-planning information -- where to stay, eat, play, meet and much more -- download our recently updated NYC Travel Guide.

Did you know that NYC is chock full of fascinating gay history going back hundreds of years? An article on the roaring '20s and '30s in the city that appeared in our spring 2008 issue highlighted just one important period in our collective LGBT past. There was a hugely energetic gay scene in different parts of the city, including Harlem. Pansy Balls (yes, that's the name) attracted many thousands of revelers to what were essentially early circuit parties.

Our research uncovered a rich trove of similar gay history in culture throughout New York over the last several centuries. So much so that we decided to publish a book of our findings! Read all about it in our new Out Traveler New York City guidebook.

Finally, the Big Apple's official tourism office recently launched its gay-specific micro-site. Click here to get the official take on gay New York. (It's hipper than you might guess!)

GuidePost: Key West

Illustration: Scott McPherson; Photo: Getty Images

Ah, Key West. There's been quite a furor in recent years over whether this tiny resort town dangling at the southern tip of Florida is really gay anymore. To all the haters out there, we say, "Get over yourselves."  For lovers of lush landscape, mango-hued sunsets, and the comfort of cuddling with a same-sex partner around a guesthouse pool, Key West is still tops for gay friendliness in the tropics. It's less about rainbow flag-waving and more about integration, less all-night clubbing and more lazy afternoons.

Our updated Key West guide has the inside scoop on gay sunset sails, women-only dolphin-watching charters, Sunday T-dances, and the queerest guesthouses on the island. We'll also steer you to the best ice cream on Duval Street, a popular créperie, and the home of the decadent Lobster Mango Tango -- because loving good food has nothing to do with orientation. We hope you'll be as inspired by Key West as gay playwright Tennessee Williams, who shaped A Streetcar Named Desire during one of his stays.

Key West: Introduction || Stay || Eat || Play/Meet || See/Do

Gay Days and Nights Las Vegas

Photos in order: Getty Images (1); Courtesy Companies (2)
Story by McCarton Ackerman

It’s no secret that we love Las Vegas; a 2006 study by the Travel Industry Association ranked Vegas as a top ten US destination for gay travelers. Now the city is rolling out the rainbow carpet by hosting the second annual Gay Days and Nights celebration from July 3rd-6th, a smorgasbord of events that range from day trips and tours, to fabulous entertainment and parties.

Thanks Babs The Day Tripper offers LGBT excursions like a tour of the city’s colorful past with a gay and lesbian historian. If I had to pick one of her tours though, I’d head off for the day trip to the Hoover Dam aboard a pink SUV.

Even if you’ve seen Cirque Du Soleil, we’re pretty sure you haven’t had VIP access to the show at events throughout the week and the chance to mingle with cast members after.

Risque and Krave are hosting parties that let you meet other travelers before dancing the night away with them, while Betty’s Outrageous Adventures is throwing a wild July 4th bash for the ladies.

If you haven’t spotted your dream guy during the celebration, head over to the Mr. Gay Competition at Krave. Attractive guys who are educated and do charity work, and look great in a swimsuit? Viva Las Vegas!

Flying Nudists

Note: Photo is not of nude para-sailing.
Photos: Getty Images

The naked joy and easy-going vibes that true nudists bring to their gatherings is infectious; they just seem to have so much more fun sans shorts than their compatriots at the clothed club. And if you ask them about it, they can get pretty convincingly enthused about it too!

No one knows this better, of course, than the men of the cheekily named Bone Island Bare It All Week, which will be bringing Key West back to her bare essentials again this year from July 18 to 20th.

Kicking off on the naughty side with a nude party and "grower contest" -- we won't explain that one -- the rest of the weekend lounges through a nude picnic, nude restaurant dining, nude water volleyball, and nude snorkeling. If you don't mind some tail-wind, you can also try nude para-sailing.

NYC Pride Specials!

Photos in order: Getty Images (1); Courtesy Hotels (2)
Story by Brandon Miller

With over a million people expected to attend NYC's Pride on June 27 this year, there’s no doubt the city will once again experience an influx of visitors. If you're on your way to the Big Apple and you've yet to book accommodations, here are a few suggestions of places to keep your luggage while you party the night away in N.Y.C.

Kimpton's 70 Park Avenue hotel, located in the Murray Hill neighborhood of Midtown Manhattan, is offering the "Propose on Pride" package. Starting at $249 a night, the package includes deluxe accommodations, breakfast in bed, a rainbow flag, disposable camera and a map of the parade route and local hot spots.

The Muse, another Kimpton hotel, has no NYC Pride-specific deals, but you can still take advantage of Kimpton's "Summer of Pride" special, available on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.

Another option for those visiting New York City this June – or any time before the end of September – is W Hotels "Pride 365" package. Perks include a one-year GLAAD membership, a one-year subscription to our fabulous sister publication Out magazine, and other goodies.. As if you need any further incentive, along with Out, you'll also receive the Out Traveler in your mailbox. Does it get any better than that?

Book at any of W Hotels' five N.Y.C. locations and don't forget to check out their float in the Pride Day March! Find even more information on the program in our interview with W Hotels President Ross Klein.

And if the recent California same-sex marriage decision has you itching to show your pride in the form of a nuptial, check out this comment on the Hyatt's two new LGBT wedding promotions.

True Colors in Atlantic City, New Jersey

Photo: Getty Images
Story by Jeff Guaracino

There isn't much that's gay about Atlantic City, New Jersey, at least not until Cyndi Lauper comes to the casino on the beach town with her friends Rosie O’Donnell, the B-52s, Deborah Cox and Kate DeLuna for her True Color’s Tour, Back for More in 2008 at the billion-dollar Borgata Casino and Spa.

This five-hour mega-concert showcased many of Cyndi’s new tracks off her just-released album, Bring Ya To The Brink and Rosie even surprised the audience by singing back-up to Cyndi’s new song, “Rocking Chair.” Later in Cyndi’s set, Rosie fulfilled her self-proclaimed childhood dream of playing drums for a rock star.

The True Colors Tour experience was certainly a family affair. About 1,000 gay and lesbian people converged in Atlantic City for the concert. Cyndi and Rosie even brought their children who made appearances on stage. The tour, sponsored by American Airlines, benefits the Human Rights Campaign and PFLAG.

There are no gay bars in Atlantic City but The Borgata threw a fantastic post-concert party, the True Colors Mixx, hosted by Carson Kressley with music by Brett Hendrickson and a special set by Lady Miss Kier from Dee-light. Deborah Cox and the B52s partied until around 3 a.m.

This month, the Borgata is also opening a brand new signature hotel, The Water Club, which feels more like a boutique hotel with nightly turn-down service and an eye for luxury. While the hotel is still working out the kinks, the staff is perfectly well-trained for gay guests and worth a visit this summer.

Berlin Culture

Story and Photos by Nikko Lencek-Inagaki

My boyfriend and I didn't know this coming to Berlin, but during summer the sun doesn't set until 10pm or so, rising with full chorus of birdsong at around 3am. This may be deeply confusing when exiting a club, but certainly does not deter anyone from going and staying out.

Last night, for example, caught up thumping to Euro techno-trash knee-deep in queer Berlin's young, beautiful and restless -- although particularly suave -- at the weekly Berlin Hilton, we stepped out for a breather around 3:30am and, blinded by sunlight, spun heel and ducked back inside to await proper morning-time, which is what most everyone else did, too. I love Wednesdays.

Otherwise, it has been a low-key, cultural activities day. Learning from past mistakes, we took our bikes around the city, stopping at a mostly worthwhile Wolfgang Tillmans exhibit (through Aug. 24th, 2008) at the cavernous former train station-cum-artspace, the Hamburger Bahnhoff; the newly minted concrete/video memorial to the persecution of LGBT people by the Nazi party during WWII, which was unveiled on May 27th this year and is located in the massive Tiergarten across from the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe.

Finally, we ended up back in the Kreuzberg area at a gem called Stand Up Opera. Well- and professionally-trained young opera singers literally stunned the audience with their voices, singing from barely yards away and making us erupt in laughter with the burlesque-y 'liberties' they took with their favorite arias and duets.

This morning, Café Farben (Lübbener Strasse and Gürlizter Strasse) has been key to recovering from yesterday, providing breezy outdoor areas, deliciously fresh and massive vegetarian salads, and cup after cup of good strong coffee. Farben is well-populated by young professionals, which is odd because it is noon on a Thursday and writing this seems to be the most work anyone here is doing!

Beijing Size Queens

Photos: Getty Images
Story by Aaron Hicklin

The first thing I notice in Beijing is the smog. At 6am, walking to Tianamen Square the air is yellow and soupy, throwing a gauze over the sun that never quite manages to lift. How the Olympic athletes will handle it in August is anyone’s guess. Each day in Beijing feels like a month smoking unfiltered cigarettes; it should come with a health warning.

The second thing I notice is the scale. Standing in the vast, brutal space of Tianamen Square is to realize what Chairman Mao had in common with the emperors that preceded him: ego, hubris, and probably a very small penis. Doubtless he’d have executed the persistent woman who follows around the square hawking her cheap Chairman Mao watches. I bought two, feeling smug about knocking her down to less than half the asking price.

Only later do I realize that I should have halved that figure again to get close to the going rates in the Pearl Market, the city’s greatest repository of cheap Chinese tat. I picked up a fake silk scarf, a knock-of Swiss Army murse, and sundry other knickknacks that I briefly, regrettably, believed I couldn’t live without. Those fake mahogany tea measuring spoons with the carved bunny on the handle? Priceless.

But hurry—places like the Pearl Market may not be around for much longer as Beijing transforms before our eyes. To drive past its staggering Olympic village, a showcase of the world’s greatest architects is to realize that the center of power is shifting irrevocably from Washington to China.

The new Beijing airport, alone, puts the U.S. to shame. It was designed, like everything else in this city, by size queens, but it’s also clean, intuitive, and a joy to behold.

One thing that is definitely not a joy: Beijing’s gay scene. For a city of 17 million, gay men and women are shockingly underserved. Late at night I found myself at Destination, the sole gay club in the city, and a depressing reminder that not everything in Beijing is progressing at the same speed.

--From Out's Editor-in-Chief, Aaron Hicklin

Berlin On Foot

From top to bottom: Treptower Park; Berlin metro station; the Jewish Museum (3)
Story and Photos by Nikko Lencek-Inagaki

About eight times the size of Paris, it's not a terribly good idea to try getting around Berlin entirely on foot. Since my boyfriend and I arrived a few days ago, however, we've not only discovered the stellar metro system and intricate, yet intuitive bus lines, but also the bike rental shops populating most corners.

At 7-10 Euro a day or 50 Euro a week, your feet will thank you. If it's more your speed, week metro/bus passes are also available at most counters and run about 27 Euro each -- a steal with a ticket each way costing around 2 Euro.

But to be fair, we've also covered a lot of ground on foot over the last few days.

We walked to the labyrinthine Jewish Museum, for example, which is worth a visit just for its sculptural art value let alone the well-designed exhibits. It was designed by Daniel Libeskind, whose plan for the new World Trade Center in New York won the competition in 2003.

Also on foot, we traversed Treptower Soviet War Memorial Park, which is a monument to, well, monumental Socialist Realist architecture and the 80,000 Soviet soldiers who fell at the 1945 Battle of Berlin.

Yesterday morning, we meandered through the bi-weekly Turkish market (Tue. and Fri.) on Maybachufer Strasse in Kreuzberg. Heaping piles of fresh tomatoes, aubergines, cured olives and cheeses crowded next to bargain apparel -- not worth it -- as old, sharp-eyed women haggled and confused, gesturing tourists guessed prices in a complex trial-and-error of holding up different numbers of fingers.

I found some mediocre fried plantains and purchased a deep bag of still-unidentified mixed spices (1.50 Euro) by pointing at my aubergines and yelling "Grill!"

That evening, while BBQ-ing them together at the edge of a bomb crater in Görlitzer Park -- once a train station in West Berlin -- surrounded by rastafari, well-heeled women with strollers, and young folk toasting the sun set at 10:00pm, I made a note to thank the spice vendor for making the most of my cost-effective dinner -- and wondered how best to walk a grill home across town.

We rounded out the night at Barbie Deinhoff's, a local Kreuzberg gay bar that was more happening than any other bar I've ever been to on a Tuesday at 2am. Someone was getting a haircut in one corner (10 Euro plus tips) while a sprightly 30-something Asian man in a full-body leopard suit swung from the ceiling. Tomorrow, we're off to Sabotage 4, the monthly party put on by QueerTechnoBerlin.