I often think of myself as a tourist who hates tourists.

Recently I was talking with my partner about self-hating LGBT people. He started making fun of me: If self-hating gays are so mixed up, then why have you built your whole business around tourists who hate tourists? You’re just as bad as they are! You’re a self-hating tourist!

Can we hate tourists without hating what we see in the mirror?

Well, it’s not the same thing. Here’s the difference:

A self-hating gay man has a problem with LGBT people, as a rule. The only way to be okay with himself is to be the exception to the rule. So you’ll hear him say he’s not the typical gay man, express general disapproval of the LGBT community, and otherwise portray himself as that exception.

But when I call myself a tourist who hates tourists, it’s not that I see something intrinsically wrong with tourists.

Here’s the thing: I travel because I want to experience a foreign country. The best part is seeing the life and rhythm of a new place. I’m there to soak in all the sights and sounds. I’m there to taste the foods – whether that’s a fruit market, a fancy restaurant or street food. I’m there to notice the little cultural differences that show you you’re not in Kansas anymore.

If you’re after pure R&R, a beach resort may be the perfect choice for you. But if you want to experience your destination’s culture as authentically as possible, that doesn’t happen at the beach resort. It doesn’t happen on a huge tour bus or in a tourist trap. All those places are designed for tourists and cater to our supposed gringo tastes. That’s why the word touristy is “often used to suggest tawdriness or lack of authenticity.”

So when I say I hate tourists, it’s nothing personal. I’m perfectly happy being surrounded by tourists at the airport, before it’s time to experience my destination. And I’m perfectly happy traveling with a small number of other tourists, where our presence doesn’t completely eclipse the local character. I just don’t want to spend my trip stuck in a great big touristy bubble. I’m there for something more!

Matt in Mexico

Matt Smith is a guest blogger at Purple Roofs. He owns and operates Detour Travel, where he leads small groups to his favorite spots in Latin America. As Matt loves to say, “If our motto weren’t Small group tours with a twist, it would probably be Queer eye for the straight or LGBT traveler. Or Adventures in Latin America for tourists who hate tourists. Or maybe Eating there is half the fun! Hard to say.”

American Airlines First Class Non-Stop BUE/JFK  

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Another morning, another adventure. This morning, our latest adventure started with a visit to a beautiful local winery and villa, Tenuta Pandolfa.

Although it was a bit early, at ten in the morning, for wine, we took a walk through the manicured grounds – and it was everything you’d imagine an Italian villa would be.

Bright green lines of vines stretched up the hill like living strings of garland, while Italian pine trees lined the drive up to the main house.

The villa, a peach-colored confection of grand staircases and balconies, looks out over the vineyards, surrounded by “le colline” (hills) that fade softly into the distance.

Moving on from here, we reached our destination for the day minutes later, the village of Predappio: the birthplace (and final resting place) of the Italian dictator, Benito Mussolini.

Predappio was ground zero for the facist style of architecture, big and bold, showcasing showing the power of the state.

First stop, the cemitary that holds the tomb of Mussolini. It’s a villsge of tombs, little houses for the dead – but the tomb of Mussolini looms over all at one end, with a beautiful old church at the other. It’s a quiet, serene place, with family members bringing and tending to flowers for the dead, set among the beautiful hills of Emilia Romagna.

A wide pathway leas up to the Mussolini Family Tomb. A sign in the doorway says “silenzio” – silence out of respect for the dead.

A short flight of stairs takes you down to where Benito Mussolini himself is interred, along with other members of his family. We were intrigued by the fact that there were numerous sheaves of wheat wrapped in Italian colors left freshly on the tomb, as well as many fresh flowers around the tomb.

Marco and Fabry told us that the fascisti (fascists) who still believe Maussolini was a just man bring the flowers and maintain the tomb. It’s sad to see that here, like at home, there are so many willfully misguided souls.

We also visited the church – just one more beautiful church in Italy.

After the cemetery, we drove up to the higher village – Predappio is divided in two parts, Predappio Alta (the older village on the hill) and Predappio Bassa, most of which was built in Mussolini’s time. In Predappio Alta, there’s a small “rocca” (fortress) that we visited, up a long flight of stairs from the village… unfortunately, it was closed to visitors today.

The village itself is cute, but there’s not much there.

We returned to the lower village to walk around a bit and explore the fascist architecture. Although Mussolini was a dictator and did some terrible things to Italy and the Italians, our friends assured us that he did have some good ideas – that everyone in Italy should own a home; that each village should have all the services the citizens needed, etc – but he implemented them in an ugly way.

We started at the town hall, where Marco introduced us to a few friends. In typical Italian fashion, they weren’t ready for tourists, but managed to scrounge up a few brochures for us about the town.

The whole centro storico is called the Museo Urbano (Urban Museum) because it showcases the modernist architecture of Mussolini’s Italy – his ideas about how an Italian town should look and function.

The town hall is in a beautiful building “si chiama” (called) the Palazzo Varano, overlooks the central square with a beautiful small garden in front. Although very old, it was also the Mussolini family residence for twenty years at the end of the 19th century.

Below the Town Hall is the Basilica of San Antonio – opened in 1934, it was designed by an architect named Cesare Bazzani, and features a simple architecture in the fascist style. There’s a beautiful series of bronze panels outside, as well as a trio of stained glass windows by the same artist inside.

Walking down the main street from the Piazza, you’ll see a few other examples of fascist architecture, including the hospital on the piazza, and an elementary school with three heroes of Italian culture – Dante for literature, DaVinci for science and art, and Michelangelo for art.

Not far up the street from here, you’ll also find the last stop on our Mussolini history tour – the house where he was born and lived briefly as a child. t’s a cute little stone house, and you have to think that he sat up here on the hill at some point, looking down at the little valley below, and imagined what it would look like when he built his perfect little city.

One last stop – we found a local mercato – a market selling fresh produce – on a corner in the heart of Predappio, and bought one of the most delicious cantelopes I’ve ever had.

The proprietor asked if we were American – I think we must have it written across our foreheads – ans he seemed genuinely pleased to see us.

We’ve now stood in front of the tombs of two of the most powerful men in Italy – Caesar and Mussolini. What an amazing history this country has.

You can find more information about Predappio here.

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Last night, we had the good fortune to have dinner with our friend Fabry’s family. His mother’s home, where she lived until she passed away last year, is in the neighboring town of Cesena, about 20 minutes from our friends’ apartment in Forli.

Every Sunday afternoon, Fabry and his three sisters get together at their mother’s home for coffee, a few sweets, and to catch up on each others’ lives. This time, they arranged a family get-together in our honor.

We arrived, after a day exploring San Leo and San Marino, at a modest-looking home on a quiet street in Cesena. As we entered, Fabry’s three sisters were there to greet us, with big Italian hugs and kisses.

Fabry gave us a little tour, including the beautiful kitchen, where his mother used to prepare meals for him, and the room that was once her bedroom, now repainted and filled with photos of the family, with Fabry’s mother and father together in an honored place.

It’s in this room that the siblings gather every Sunday to chit-chat, with the photos – and spirit – of their beloved mother around them.

And here they had a little surprise – three tables decorated in red, white, and blue, with flowers to match, in honor of their American guests!

We sat down at the center of the table and watched the life of the family swirl around us as sons and daughters, husbands and wives, and three adorable little nephews arrived. The children punctuated the atmosphere with laughter and the occasional unprovoked shout, brining everyone to attention.

Dinner was simple but delicious – 11 pizzas for 15 people – and there was only one left at the end!

Afterwards, there were sweets prepared by the family – and o mio dio, were they delicious – cookies, something like fudge, and a flat “torta” – sort of a pie, but more like what we’d call a tart.

It was a pleasure just sitting and conversing with the members of Fabry’s family. They talked a little more slowly than usual for us, but we were able to grasp most of it, and to engage in an enjoyable conversation all night.

One of our favorite moments was just watching Fabry sit and talk with one of his sisters. Their connection was palpable, and it was a beautiful thing to see.

Like most Italian families, the Montanaris are loud, gregarious, even playfully aggressive at times, and it was an honor and a privilege to spend an evening with them.

We hope they invite us again the next time we’re in town.

‘Geocaching is a high-tech treasure hunting game played throughout the world by adventure seekers equipped with GPS devices. The basic idea is to locate hidden containers, called geocaches, outdoors and then share your experiences online. Geocaching is enjoyed by people, from all age groups, with a strong sense of community and support for the environment.  Geocaching.com is the headquarters for the activity”

Did you know that Geocaching started in Oregon?  A little history lesson, the full version can be read on the Geocaching.com history page from where I’ve gotten this information.

“Geocaching is a high-tech treasure hunting game played throughout the world by adventure seekers equipped with GPS devices. The basic idea is to locate hidden containers, called geocaches, outdoors and then share your experiences online. Geocaching is enjoyed by people from all age groups, with a strong sense of community and support for the environment.  Geocaching.com is the headquarters for the activity”  On this site you can read the history of Geocaching.

* On May 2, 2000, at approximately midnight, eastern savings time, the great blue switch* controlling selective availability was pressed. Twenty-four satellites around the globe processed their new orders, and instantly the accuracy of GPS technology improved tenfold. Tens of thousands of GPS receivers around the world had an instant upgrade. Now, anyone could “precisely pinpoint their location or the location of items (such as game) left behind for later recovery.” How right they were.

* On May 3 a GPS enthusiast, Dave Ulmer, computer consultant, wanted to test the accuracy by hiding a navigational target in the woods. He called the idea the “Great American GPS Stash Hunt” and posted it in an internet GPS users’ group. The idea was simple: Hide a container out in the woods and note the coordinates with a GPS unit.  On May 3rd he placed his own container, a black bucket, in the woods near Beavercreek, Oregon, near Portland.

* Within three days, two different readers read about his stash on the Internet, used their own GPS receivers to find the container, and shared their experiences online.  Like many new and innovative ideas on the Internet, the concept spread quickly – but this one required leaving your computer to participate.

* Within the first month, Mike Teague, the first person to find Ulmer’s stash, began gathering the online posts of coordinates around the world and documenting them on his personal home page. The “GPS Stash Hunt” mailing list was created to discuss the emerging activity.

* Geocaching.com was released to the stash-hunting community on September 2, 2000. At the time the site was launched there were 75 known caches in the world.  There are now over 1.5 million caches around the world, in only 12 years.’

This is certainly the condensed version.  Visit Geocaching.com history for the full story.  I checked to see if the Original Cache was still available, but alas, it has been archived and the Un-Original Stash placed in it’s honor.  The links will take you to their listing on Geocaching.com but if you are not logged in I’m not sure if you will be able to view.

When I first moved to Parkdale in ’03 there were only about 20 in the Hood River Valley.  Now there are well over 200, taking you up into the Mt Hood National Forest and the Columbia River Gorge.  Last Sunday we went into the Gorge and found 7 in only about 2 hours all the while visiting sites we had yet to explore.

Be it in summer or winter, challenging or relaxing: everyone will find their own personal pleasure. The low mountain range with its varied landscape – the largest one in Germany – accounts for about two thirds of the 11,000 square kilometres Black Forest region, which lies to the east of the Rhine and frames the Upper Rhine Valley together with its French sister, the Vosges Mountains.

The unbelievable variety cannot be experienced just in one day. After all, after having just arrived in one location the desire to stay for a while and just take it all in quickly arises. But no matter where you put down your suitcase – you will encounter a wide range of contrasts: clear mountain peaks at altitudes of up to 1,500 metres, such as those of the Belchen or the Feldberg, take turns with shady pine forests, perfumed by resin and crossed by murmuring brooks.

Full Story from Edge Boston

Click here for gay travel resources in Germany.

Come stay with us at the Churchill Hotel in Washington, DC, a historic landmark hotel close to Dupont Circle. Originally built in 1906 as an upscale, Beaux Arts apartment building, the Churchill is now an elegant European-style boutique hotel offering a full menu of modern amenities, while maintaining the historic charm of the original building.

Business and leisure travelers will enjoy our attention to every detail, from nightly turndown service and upscale on-site dining to our twenty-four hour room service and relaxing in-room massages.

Come back to the hotel after a day of work or play in Washington, DC, and enjoy an evening of luxury and elegance.

See the Churchill Expanded Listing on Purple Roofs Here

Gay Friendly Bed and Breakfasts, Hotels, and Vacation Rentals in Washington, DC

We ran into the oft-shirtless Davey Wavey at the most unlikely of places: the Golden Triangle region in Asia, where Thailand, Laos and Burma meet. Davey spent a couple of nights at the Four Seasons Golden Triangle reporting for GayTravel.com. The resort’s tents, or should we say safari-themed luxury condos, rest high in the mountain and are isolated by several feet of jungle: The only way guests can reach the Four Seasons is by cruising across a river in a speed boat.

The camp is home to four elephants, and guests get the opportunity to get up close and personal with the gentle giants by riding them through the terrain, feeding them tons of bananas and bathing them in the river.

Full Story from Gay Cities

Click here for gay travel resources.

What makes Cape Town so appealing is the combination of a well-developed infrastructure, amazing climate and natural beauty. Several popular tourist attractions are located in “The Mother City,” including Table Mountain National Park and Boulders Beach. Whether you enjoy gazing at bronzed hotties on the beach, crave an ideal wine tasting experience or have a penchant for adventure and want to bungee jump or shark-cage dive, you’ll love this city!

Cape Town has a lot to offer LGBT travelers. There are gay beaches, gayborhoods and several LGBT-friendly hotels and businesses. Tourism is a major industry and many business-owners are happy to accept the coveted pink dollar.

Full Story from GayTravel.com

Click here for gay travel resources in Cape Town.