Being gay, I believe is  a matter of  personal preference. However this issue can be quite contentious  as most  people   have strong  views  about an individual’s  choice to be gay. Even in my own family (which does happen to have gay members) this topic is hotly debated as some of my family members just cannot seem to accept it as a matter of individual choice.

Members of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) community can be found in almost every part of the world but while some cities seem to accept this community easily there are others that do not due to religious and other beliefs. Members of  the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender   community in several global cities organize and stage annual events which celebrate the community and also highlight the various challenges that it faces. These annual events which are popularly known as ‘Gay Prides’ often feature theater, music, debate, art and entertainment events that are staged in order to raise awareness of the discrimination and  the  difficulties the members of the LGBT community face around the world.

Gay Prides in several cities like London, New York and Berlin take place in the last week of June. The origin of these prides   can be traced back to an incident known as the Stonewall Riots which took place in June 1968 in the Greenwich Village area of New York. During this era, police personnel in New York City and in other parts of the US used to raid bars where members of the gay and lesbian community were known to hang out. The police used to raid these bars on the pretext of liquor law violations but their main targets were gays and lesbians who were often locked up on flimsy charges. The names of those who were arrested then used to be published in newspapers and they used to then be subsequently fired from their jobs or discriminated against.

On the night of 28th June 1969, when the police raided the Stonewall Inn in New York City’s Greenwich Village, the members of the gay community rose up and fought a pitched battle with the police. This incident has come to be known as the Stonewall Rebellion or the Stonewall Riots which the inspiration for these colorful, raucous pride celebrations which include parades, dances, walking tours and exhibitions all of which celebrate the LGBT liberation movement.

New York Pride March

New York’s annual pride march usually takes place over the last weekend in June and features a parade with floats, music, dancing and much glamor. This pride march is not simply a parade but a march which highlights the issues facing the community which is still struggling to achieve equality in all aspects of life. The annual pride march usually kicks off at noon at 5th Avenue and 52nd street in Manhattan and heads down to 5th Avenue and Eighth Street before continuing on to Greenwich Village where it ends at Christopher and Greenwich streets, which is the location of the famous Stonewall inn. This march usually is the culminating event of a week that features several ‘gay ‘events.

Pride London

Pride London is London’s annual gay celebration which aims to promote equality and diversity through the various events of the Pride Festival. This Pride Festival is usually held from mid June until the first weekend in July. It aims to promote understanding and cooperation as it endeavors to educate the people about the discrimination faced by the LGBT community. London’s Pride festival also features a parade which takes place on the last weekend and it is witnessed by over 500,000 people as it passes through the streets of Central London. This parade usually kicks off at Baker Street at midday and travels down the tourist Mecca of Oxford Street before it moves onto Regent Street and Piccadilly to its final destination at Trafalgar square where a party atmosphere prevails with stalls and stage performers.

San Francisco Pride Celebrations

The Californian city of San Francisco hosts one of the largest gay festivals in USA. This event is usually end over the last weekend of June and is packed with a wide variety of exhibitors, famous artists, music performances, dance stages and much more. This festival is usually held in the Civic Center of downtown San Francisco.

Berlin – Christopher Street Day Parade

The German City of Berlin also has its “Gay Pride Week” at the end of June. This festival features gay football tournament, music concerts, dance parties and the Christopher Street Day Parade which travels through the city streets and culminates in a rally at the Siegessäule

Amsterdam Gay Pride

The Amsterdam Gay Pride is one of the most colorful and fun filled of all gay prides. It is usually held in late July and it features tons of fun events like street parties and parties at the biggest gay clubs. However the highlight of the Amsterdam Gay Pride weekend is the Canal Parade which features 75 beautifully decorated boats that float  in a parade formation on the Prinsengracht and Amstel rivers. The Amsterdam Gay Pride is typically watched by 350,000 spectators every year.

Buenos Aires Gay  Pride

The port city of Buenos Aires hosts its Gay Pride in the first weekend in November every year. This Gay Pride commemorates the formation of the Gay community in Buenos Aires. This formation dates back to 1969. Buenos Aires’s first Gay Pride was held in 1992 and today it features a parade that features drag queens and elaborately decorated floats. This parade proceeds from the Plaza de Mayo to Plaza Congreso and highlights the challenges that face the Buenos Aires Gay community.

Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras

Sydney holds its two week long Gay Pride during the month of February and this event tends  to coincide with the other Mardi Gras celebrations around the world. This festival usually features three main events Fair Day, Parade and Party along with many other events like dance parties and music performance by local and international artists. Sydney’s Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras is  considered to one of the most important events of its annual event calendar.

Posted in Festival, World

Summertime in the USA is celebrated with a plethora of cultural and sporting events. In order to enjoy the warm sunny weather, most of these events are held outdoors so that both attendees and participants can enjoy the great weather that seems to make everybody happy. Among the many summertime events that feature on the event calendars of various American cities are music festivals. Summertime Music festivals which tend to celebrate holidays like the Fourth of July, Labor Day or native North American cultural are highly anticipated summer events that often feature big name artists. Such is the popularity of these festivals that tickets for many of these music festivals sell out on the very day that they go on sale.

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Posted in Festival, Music, North America

Food lovers all over the world tend to agree that French food is perhaps the best cuisine in the world. The French themselves tend to believe this wholeheartedly as they think that their many culinary delights are indeed superior to those that are offered by other global cuisines. It’s no surprise then that French restaurants and French Chefs are regarded quite highly in culinary spheres, as they are sought after by good food lovers everywhere. Unfortunately, British cuisine, which tends to suffer from quite a stodgy image doesn’t enjoy this same appeal, as many people dismiss it as being awful and lacking in flavor. I happen to travel to England quite a lot as my better half’s family resides there and over my many visits across the pond, I have grown to know, love and enjoy the many oddly named but quintessentially British foods which are in fact quite delicious.

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Posted in Europe, Food, Travel Ideas

Air travel in recent times has become quite commonplace thanks to the advent of the low cost carriers or the budget carriers. These carriers have made airline travel accessible and affordable to a larger number of people than before. As a result, more people seem to be getting on a plane nowadays.

I still remember the times when my grandmother used to talk about how incredibly special air travel was in the 1950’s when it was the domain of the privileged few. During those times, people used to dress up elaborately for their journeys and formal attire aboard for a journey by air was the accepted norm. However, over the years as air travel has become increasingly popular, all this has changed. Moreover, air travel has also become way more stressful in a post 9/11 world where travelers are subjected to numerous checks and searches even before they board an aircraft.

I do tend to travel a fair bit, but my aircraft journeys tend to stress me out immensely as I am always worrying about seemingly trivial stuff like the weight of my checked baggage (no laughing matter in this age of huge airline fees for slightly overweight luggage) and the location of my seat on the aircraft (I am quite tall and always want an exit row seat but this is not always possible and nowadays I have to usually cough up extra for this so-called privilege). Added to these pet peeves are other irritations which arise due to the seemingly annoying behavior of some of my fellow passengers. I’m sure even you have experienced some of these situations on your own journeys and can easily identify with the types of annoying behavior listed below.

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Posted in Travel Ideas, World

The city of Chicago has been making news headlines in recent times. The reason for its new found fame is its association with the current President of the USA, President Barack Obama. President Obama, who is the first African-American to hold this post, spent many years working and teaching in the city of Chicago which is also known as the Windy City. He was based in Chicago during the three terms that he served as an Illinois Senator and continued to live and work there until he was elected to the post of the US President in November 2008. This monumental event evoked much interest all over the world so much so that sightseeing tours in Chicago now concentrate on sites that are  associated with the President as people are intensely curious about this 44th President of the USA. Many of the sites that these tours visit also include the various Chicago restaurants that were frequented by the President when he lived there.

In fact, this large Midwestern city has long been associated with great foods. Certain popular treats like Italian beef (roast beef) and the Deep Dish Pizza were actually invented in Chicago. Other famous Chicago foods include the Chicago style hot dog which is a boiled or steamed all beef hot dog that was invented in Chicago during the depression era at its famous Maxwell Street Market, Polish Sandwiches, Chicago Steaks and Chicago style Barbecue foods.

If you have only heard of Chicago’s rich culinary heritage and have always wanted to sample these mouthwatering delights, you should perhaps plan to attend the upcoming Taste of Chicago 2009. Taste of Chicago is one of the biggest annual events in Chicago and the world’s largest outdoor food festival which has been known to attract more than six million people every year. This year this foodie extravaganza is to be held from Friday 26th June to Sunday, 5th July.

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Posted in Festival, Food, North America