The 7: Cape Town

Story and photo courtesy of Gareth Dallas.

1. A trip to Cape Town is not complete without going up Table Mountain and the cable car is still (since 1929) the quickest and easiest way of doing so. Table Mountain is world renowned, standing at its highest point 1,085 meters above sea level, the views and scenery up there is nothing less than sensational. Another remarkable factor about Table Mountain is the extraordinary floral biodiversity. Table Mountain alone has more species of plants that can be seen on it that the entire British Isles, more than 1,500 species.

2. Spier Wine Farm stands on the banks of the Eerste River in the heart of the Stellenbosch wine region. It is a haven for tourists yet it also has a deep set cultural and historical background dating back to 1692 and has the oldest wine cellar in South Africa.

3. No visit to Cape Town can be complete without also going to the V&A Waterfront. A significant portion of the historic harbor quays has been redeveloped and restored. Many Victorian buildings now serve as restaurants, hotels, and offices. The magnificent shopping centre, the V&A Waterfront, is the home of some of 400 shops, jewellers, boutiques, designer labels and restaurants.

4. From 1959 right up to the mid 1990s Robben Island was used as a prison and housed over three thousand men who were held as political prisoners; its most famous resident being Nelson Mandela who was imprisoned for a total of 18 years here. The island is now a museum and World Heritage Site, and regular tours depart from the Nelson Mandela Gateway, located at the Old Clock Tower at the V&A Waterfront.

5. Cafe Manhattan is a Cape Town icon. Well known and respected in the gay world, it has great drinks and is an ideal spot for a bite to eat before a night on the town.

6. [ab]OUT A really relaxed and informal drinking club that gets gay men together on a weekly basis to network and socialize.

7.  Clifton 3rd Beach is where all the gay boys hang out in summer. This is body beautiful heaven. 

Click on the gay-owned Capetown Info (CapetownInfo.co.za) for all your Cape Town planning needs.

A Savvy Navigator for South Africa

Photo: Courtesy Getty

A 10-day trip to South Africa can be a daunting adventure to plan well. Tack on looking for gay nightlife, day trips to the country's famed vineyards, and a few days escape to Zambia's thundering Victoria Falls and well...you'll be a travel expert by the time you get home!

If, however, you'd rather let a tried-and-true gay traveller take over the heavy lifting, there are a bunch of gay tour operators out there with great Africa packages. Created and run by Jeffrey Ward, who earned his travel expert stripes as an executive at gay-friendly American Airlines, the Savvy Navigator has put together a fun-looking trip for this May (and other in November).

Centering around Cape Town with an optional four-day add-on to Victoria Falls, Savvy Navigator specializes in small groups (no more than 12) and intimate luxury experiences. More than other gay tour operators to the area, Savvy Navigator will focus as much on culinary and cultural luxury as on, say, trips to vineyards and a safari -- both of which are included, too.

The trip starts at $5,995 for 10 days, plus $1,995 for the Zambian add-on. Airfare is included in and out of South Africa with a few restrictions. (Contact Savvy Navigator directly with questions.) Of course, you'll have to reach deep in these uncertain economic times, but with Ward at the helm, there doesn't seem to be any doubt you'll have an experience worth every penny.

For more on Cape Town, safaris and vineyards, check out the day-by-day account Justin Ocean wrote for Out Traveler here.

Men-Only African Safari

Images Courtesy Wild Rainbow African Safaris
Story by Joseph Alexiou

What could be more thrilling and beautiful then a twelve day safari in the wilds of Zambia?

Wild Rainbow African Safaris, a gay-marketed company in East Africa, holds several fantastic safaris a year, and their upcoming trip to Zambia, from August 18-29, will be a men-only trip. They also organize private, custom made safari experiences

The trip consists of game walks, great hiking and spectacular canoeing along the Zambezi river. At night, guests sleep in luxury lodges or tents, depending on which of the four locations the trip has arrived in. They promise wildlife sightings such as colorful birds of over 400 species, as well as elephants, leopards, water buffalo, hippos, lions, and giraffes, to name a few.

Days of game walks, during which you can explore many protected camps and the Zambian National Park (one of the most highly-regarded game reserves on the continent), and nights under the Southern Hemisphere stars are opportunities to make lifelong memories and connections.

While the price of a safari is a bit hefty (over $7000 per person), the experience of safe firsthand interaction with the African wild (and all of the photos you'll take!) will linger far longer than the pricetag.

World AIDS Day 2008

Photos: Courtesy World Aids Day

Story by Olga Bas

Today, December 1st 2008 marks the 20th Anniversary of World AIDS Day. It's the day for individuals and organizations from all around the world to join together in the fight against the AIDS epidemic. Each country, each city chooses its own unique way to commemorate the day and here we have only a taste of the global events that will take place over the next two weeks.

In Montreal, Canada, the United Against AIDS Concert will be the main event. Presented by Aldo Fights AIDS in support of UNICEF and Unite for Children, the concert is to take place on November 28th at the Bell Center. Among the big names, Avril Lavigne and Sarah McLachlan (both Canadian natives) will be performing and the event will be hosted by Ben Mulroney. South of the border in New York City the Housing Works initiative is preparing for its 14th annual "Reading of the Names" Vigil. Starting midnight December 1st in City Hall Park, volunteers in groups of five will read out names of those who have lost their lives to the disease. Lasting 24 hours, the Vigil will do its part in the battle against AIDS and apathy.

The citizens of Brussels, Belgium will begin the day with classical recitals, jazz concerts and performances from some of Belgium's favorite artists at the Place de la Monnaie. As the day progresses hundreds of marchers will take to the streets accompanied by drum beats, torches and a huge red ribbon -- the international symbol of AIDS awareness. In London, England the Diversity Chamber Choir and the London Gay Symphony Orchestra will be performing Mozart's "Requiem" at St. Martin's in the Field. The event will act as a fundraiser for The Food Chain, a charity that provides hot meals to those living with HIV in London.

In Africa, undoubtedly one of the places hit hardest by the epidemic, Cape Town will be marking World AIDS Day 2008 with a celebration at St. George's Cathedral featuring educational videos, stalls and on-site HIV testing. There will be a service at 1pm with Archbishop Thabo Makgoba speaking and author Clive Fox will share his story.

Out Traveling on XM Radio

Photo: Jason Frank Rothenberg

Appearing recently on XM Radio's The Agenda, our Editor in Chief, Ed Salvato, discussed our just released Winter Issue, which is partially online here!

Download or listen here as Ed clarifies the finer points of staying in an Ice Hotel -- do you sleep on ice? -- points out our special sweepstakes with Qantas for a free flight to Australia, what's really going on with Gus Van Sant's upcoming Harvey Milk film, South Africa's queer culture, and whether it's possible to spend 21 hours on an airplane with Kathy Griffith.

If you missed Kathy's appearance on Air New Zealand's Pink Flight to Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras this past year, don't worry -- rumor has it that it will become an annual extravaganza. Plus, following next year's Mardi Gras, Small World Journeys is organizing an LGBT Eco-Tour of Australia including white-water rafting, Great Barrier Reef sailing and scuba diving, and rainforest hikes.

The trend towards gay-friendly Eco-Tours will also be coming up again soon for Out Traveler as the focus of our upcoming Spring Issue. Don't miss it!

Download Our LGBT World Maps!

Every issue, our LGBT world maps concisely break down a different world region by current LGBT rights progress and social reception. For Out Travelers, they not only provide a great way to get in touch with countries on our itineraries, but also inspire us to visit and learn more about new places and cultures.

A new regular feature here on GPS and on our Facebook home, we'll be posting these maps for Out Travelers to download, share and use for free!

Click on these links to download the readable PDFs of the Islamic World (Fall 2007 issue), the  Pacific (Winter 2008 issue), Latin America (Spring 2008 issue), the Orthodox World (Summer 2008 issue), Asia (Fall 2008), and Sub-Saharan Africa (Winter 2008).

In Depth: Cape Town

Earlier this year our Editor-at-Large, Justin Ocean, undertook a fabulous and in-depth trip to South Africa  -- which became one of this issue's stunning feature stories.

As is our wont here at Out Traveler, we asked Justin if he would do some live blogging for us while he was on the road. Between safari-ing with cute rangers, rhinos blocking air traffic, multi-cultural nightclubbing in Cape Town, Macy Gray-belting drag queens, and pining for pinotage at the vineyards, there was enough material for a book!

Luckily, all of Justin's fun, useful and fresh in-the-moment travel advice is archived day-by-day here!

Discriminatory U.S. Ban Ended on HIV+ Travelers

Photos: Getty Images
Story by Joseph Alexiou

On Wednesday July 30th, HIV positive travelers worldwide celebrated President Bush’s signing of an important piece of legislation, PEPFAR, or the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief. PEPFAR will authorize $50 billion dollars over the next five years to various domestic and international HIV and AIDS causes.

• This plan is especially relevant to travelers as it immediately repeals the United State’s discriminatory laws that barred HIV-positive visitors and immigrants from entering the country.

Previously, a known HIV-positive traveler could only enter the country through a short-term travel waiver that was no easy feat to obtain, to put it lightly. In 2007, working in conjunction with the Human Rights Campaign, who led the fight against the laws, Senators John Kerry and Gordon Smith as well as Representative Barbara Lee introduced the HIV Non-Discrimination in Travel and Immigration Act in their respective houses of Congress. Their introductions of this act paved the way for the repeal on July 30th. 

On the day of the victory, HRC President Joe Solmonese praised the legislators who aided in the cause of removing the ban which “perform[ed] no public service, [was] unnecessary and ineffective.”

He then made the formal request that US Secretary of Health and Human Services Michael Leavitt to remove any “remaining regulatory barriers to HIV-positive visitors and immigrants.”

Click here for the HRC's coverage of this story.

South Africa — Pining for Pinotage

Story and Photos by Justin Ocean

“A week-long exploration into the luxe queer side of the Rainbow Nation.”

Day 7, Franschhoek Winelands

Rested and recovered from my nights at La Cabrière Country House, it’s wine time! Floors van der Wateren, equal parts guide, historian and wine expert (and soon to tour company owner, he admits), leads my swath through farm after verdant farm in a two-day tasting spree I’m still trying to wrap my head around. With a warmer, longer growing season that’s quickly becoming even more productive thanks to global climate change, South African wines pack a higher alcohol content and each exceptional taste of Pinotage (a hardy South African varietal created in 1925 by combining Pinot Noir and Hermitage vines into a robust red) and Sauvignon Blanc (the region is renowned for its whites) has a tendency to sneak up. Brandies and sweet wines and, surprisingly, olive oils for the AA crowd are also tops, as is the local bubbly, denoted Methode Cap Classique to indicate the same in-bottle fermentation process as champagne.

Outside of individual bottles — I still can’t get the crisp Pierre Jourdan MCC and bold and peppery though truffle-undertoned Reserve Syrah from Seidelberg out of my head — vineyard highlights include the homegrown archeological and social history Museum van de Caab (“of the Cape”) at the Solms-Delta estate.

Tales of Khoisan tribesman, slave workers and contemporary oral histories engage with artifacts to create a holistic history of the region. Meanwhile 50-percent of the estate’s profits benefit a local trust that aims alleviate the persistent historical inequities and semi-feudal society of the vineyards through cultural and fiscal empowerment. Their sweet-then-dry Solms Koloni, a Riesling and Muscat blend that’s desiccated on the vine and matured in oak, is a feat of forward-thinking ingenuity, too!

South Africa — A Room with a View

Story and Photos by Justin Ocean

“A week-long exploration into the luxe queer side of the Rainbow Nation.”

Day 6, Cape Town to Franschhoek Winelands

Waking up after a weekend of warrioring through Cape Town’s laid back yet hectic nightlife can be rough. But with blue skies and balmy weather, strong coffee at a generous breakfast, plus the The Glen Hotel’s private spa (steamroom, sauna and whirlpool) to soak it all away, recovery is an easy proposition. That, and I’ve got two days of hair o’ the dog on the horizon as I make my transfer to the Cape Winelands for a sedate wind down to my South African adventure.

Less than an hour’s drive away (a mere 85km, about 52miles, from downtown) the sleepy town of Franschhoek makes an ideal base to explore the sprawling valleys and vineyards of the winelands. Escaping religious persecution, French Huguenots arrived in 1688 and settled in what was then known as Olifantshoek (“Elephants Corner”), due to the herds of elephants that used the lush valley as a birthing ground (baboons still populate the hills today), and brought the secrets and skill of winemaking with them.