The excellent film "Milk" (I highly recommend it to everyone) inspired us to visit the world-famous Castro district.
For every, uh... gay person, there seem to be five tourists. There are some wonderful characters around, definitely worth photographing, but I didn’t dare do it. First, it just felt awkward. Second, every other gay guy seems to be a huge bruiser. Better not mess with them. Gyms and sports nutrition stores are everywhere. It feels less like a gay neighborhood and more like Lyubertsy circa 1989 (a Moscow suburb stereotypically associated with tough, muscular street guys). The only difference is that the locals’ pants are a bit tighter.
The only thing more popular than fitness clubs is dog food stores. They’re absolutely everywhere. As if every fashionable gay man is supposed to walk around with a little dog. Or better yet, two.
That’s why there’s a bowl of water at the entrance to most stores—so the gay little dogs can quench their thirst while their owners linger by the window display. Maybe they’ll spot a boa, a new whip, or some other household essential while they’re at it. But overall, it’s just an ordinary neighborhood. If you’re not overly fixated on gay/anti-gay issues, you can easily walk straight through it and hardly notice anything unusual.
Places