Sunday, January 20, 2008

The guys in Atacama

Valle de la Luna near San Pedro de Atacama"Do you think those two guys over there are gay?" I ask boyfriend number 2 while we're having dinner one night at our hotel in the Atacama desert, while on holiday in Chile recently.

Boyfriend number 2 looks round and shrugs.

"Could be," he replies in a disinterested kind of way, "but I'm not sure."

The two guys in question are probably around 30 years old and look very northern European, possibly German, Dutch or Scandinavian. They also sitting on their own, both dressed in white or very light coloured clothes, and without any female companions! It's the most expensive hotel in the region and straight guys their age would normally stay somewhere cheaper with their wives or girlfriends, either saving money so they can start a family one day or because they've already got kids. But with two incomes and no thoughts of kids, gay couples often have more disposable income.

"Actually GB, I think those two guys are gay," says boyfriend number 2 the following night over dinner, nodding to where they're both sitting. Again, they're both similarly dressed, in white and light colours.

"There's something about their attitude," he continues, "and I also spotted the one on the left there sunning himself by the pool this afternoon in very tight trunks :-), definitely gay!"

"So what did you think of him in trunks?" I ask lecherously.

"OK, I admit, I did check him out but he wasn't that big!" he says looking mildly disappointed, "but maybe he's a grower :-)."

Looking over to where they're sitting, I find it amazing how little attention the two of them are paying to anyone else in the room. They're totally focused on each other, playing backgammon while eating their dinner. Very sweet, but perhaps a bit too intense? Their behaviour suggests to me that they've only been boyfriends for a relatively short period of time.

In any case, I'm always happy to see other gay couples staying at the same hotel as me when I'm on holiday. The more visible we all are, the more normal it is to be gay, and the easier it is for closeted gay guys to come out. But since it is relatively rare that I spot other gay couples at the hotels I stay at, it was a pity that on this occasion the guys were so wrapped up with each other. I enjoy socialising and making new friends, and with the other residents of the hotel being both straight and older than ourselves, chatting to some other gay guys would have been very welcome!

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

I love seeing 2 gay guys on vacation too! I can still remember when I went to Turkey when i was 15 (I was still in the closet) a pair of guys were having fun in the water (splashing hugging whatever). It was like I had an epiphany that maybe I will actually find someone for me someday.
Now I just regret I didn't go and flirt with them :D

Superchilled said...

I agree it's good fun to meet like minded people when traveling. Similarly for myself and The Frenchman, we tend to find that mostly we don't meet gay guys traveling where we go, but it can be very rewarding when we do. I currently have 2 friends traveling independently in Chile - seems it's the place to be right now!

Humming Bird in Hyde said...

So GB, is it the case then that the older you get in a relationship the less 'intense' you look at each other?

You must post some pictures of your holiday to Chile sometime. xx

sageweb said...

I have no idea how I got here. But I could hit the back button and find out..too lazy. So I love seeing gay people while on vacation. Especially if they are interested in seeing me. Then it makes it all good.

GB said...

Well HBH, I reckon serious relationships (gay or straight) usually go through a 'honeymoon' period at the start, which is very intense. Things tend to settle down, though, as the relationship matures.

Anyway, I'll try and post some pics from Chile in due course :-). I may even post a pic in which I'm visible!

GB xxx

M. Knoester said...

I love that too.

But then I'm blessed to spend a lot of time with my best friend and his boyfriend and I love that the can be so openly together even at home.