Quote from the ‘Antwerp Pride’ website: www.antwerppride.com (check out event promo video 1, video 2)
“The city of Antwerp, clubs, cafés, fetish bars, erotic shops, bookshops, museums, LGBT organisations welcome you and your friends to Antwerp for the second edition of Antwerp Pride. Join ten thousands of visitors for an unforgettable pride weekend in Europe’s gay harbour, Antwerp. The combined forces of the large gay community and the support of the city of Antwerp will ensure another exciting edition.” Europe’s gay harbour? Someone must be joking. (But even the Russians in the Ukraine covered it]
OK, take two, now without the “we just love an influx of 30,000 cash-spending tourists, and we would bend over backwards to attract them, even if they came from Uranus” PR: ‘Antwerp Pride 2009 is a yearly gay event that focuses on its highlight, Navigaytion 2009, a commercial “drunken queens showing off on ten riverboats” event surrounded by numerous huge parties, an open air fetish & leather-scene show and countless activities where gay emancipation has long been replaced by cashing-in on the influx of gay tourists.
If you care for my 2008 Navigaytion pictures and video, feel free to check them out. Just added: some 2009 shots
[Update June 27, 10 pm: I just returned from Navigaytion, having taken 300 shots from the elevated riverbanks. Blazing sunshine, friendly & wild, be it with much less visitors. I was overcome by a "I've seen this too many times" feeling: people enjoying the culture of unadulterated narcissism in open air. The crowded was mixed (though +90% gay) with a yearly 'let's peek at this weird gay zoo" part where a large crowd of tourists and locals gazed at (and photographed) the Navigaytion crowd from the elevated riverside terraces. At times, it became funny, though slightly embarrassing. Anyway, Navigaytion 2009 turned out to be a predictable, perfect carbon-copy of its 2008 edition. "]</
This blog is not affiliated with or endorsed by the city of Antwerp, Belgium.
it will all be like in 2008
[Blog author: "Presumably Brabo. With the focus on Navigaytion, they will repeat a tried formula. But for many locals, it's just another weekend. I will try to post shots from the fringe of this event. No promises though, there's more to life than dancing"]
Comment by Brabo — June 22, 2009 @ 10:24 am |
Hmm…I seem to recall this indignation from you last year too.
“and we would bend over backwards to attract them,” – Please, please tell me that pun was intended?
[Blog author: "so glad someone finally noticed
It's a true pleasure realizing I have one reader who can recall my lines from a year ago! "]
Comment by Mr. Nighttime — June 23, 2009 @ 4:03 pm |
We have Pride Week in Toronto, a HUGE tourist draw for “Canada’s premier arts and cultural festival”, culminating in a MASSIVE, money-making Parade on Sunday. Hundreds of thousands attend. I’m guessing you would hate it. It’s not one of my favourites. Next year will be the 30th so I imagine it will only get bigger and noisier. Check out http://www.pridetoronto.com if you care.
[Blog author: "Thanks for the link Violet. While I'm actually very tolerant, I dislike cities who are dishonest about their prides. It's perfectly fine to have some wild fun and make a profit, but selling it as a "emancipatory" event has become quite a joke locally. I wish all the Antwerp Pride visitors lots of sunshine during their noisy boat trip, but please, don't come peeing in my home entrance when returning from your nightly afterparty. "]
Comment by VioletSky — June 25, 2009 @ 2:17 am |