Montreal Pride weekend August 11- 15

[eeyore]

This was an event weekend in Montreal, Gay Pride, so the village was full of beautiful boys everywhere. Lots of energy on Ste. Catherine Street which is a traffic free pedestrian zone for the summer. Saturday was the Community Day street festival featuring lots of fun activities including the gay mens chorus and line dancing. Sunday was parade day on Rene Levesque. This is always a good parade but I was disappointed that none of the bars participated with floats this year. Nothing from Stock, Campus, Unity, Sky Bar like in some previous years.Those were some hot floats. Still a lot of fun with hot boys everywhere.

 

I really have no changes since my last report except to add that I had an even better time at the Campus (3-9 shift) and JP's than on my last visit. Below is a brief recap.

 

Campus - I had a pleasant time there as usual during the afternoon 3-9 shift. I definitely overdosed this trip and danced with so many boys over the weekend that things are still a magical blur. I did so many dances because I was having such pleasant experiences with all of the boys I met. They were friendly, personable and good hosts. Most were eager to share a beverage and conversation/mild flirting in the bar without being in a big rush to get you in the back. Some of the names I remember are Remie (defined smooth swimmer's build; tall), Pablo (Dominican Republic, black, smooth, semi-twink), Anthony (smooth twink), Alehandro (sp? pure twink, usually serves drinks but dances on Sundays and sometimes a few other days), Pascal (beautiful smooth defined twink but his dancing schedule is not regular - definitely worth spending time with), Diego (Latino), and more - all very pleasant experiences. There was a wide assortment of boys from pure twink, semi- twink, in-be-twink, boy-next-door, swimmer's build, all the way up to gym bods. So you should have no problem finding a body type to your liking. All were honest about the song counts in the back, although I find it definitely helps to clearly specify how many songs you want to do beforehand. You can always continue with more if things are getting really hot.

 

JP's - The only downside is the fact that women patrons are allowed. Typically the crowd was a fifty-fifty mix, but the dancers were clearly mingling more with the men. Every dancer I spoke with confirmed that they prefer the male customers over the women since they are more respectful and pay/tip better. As was the case at the Campus, there was an excellent cross-section of boys ranging from pure twink to gym bod. I had an excellent time with Scot who has a flawlessly defined gym bod. He was very friendly and personable outside and inside the booth. Also had a great time with Jimmy (twink). He's very sweet and gentle and not in a rush to get you to the dance booth. Scot was the same way. The dance booths are upstairs and very private but they still could use a good vacuuming and general sprucing up. A separate slow song dance track is played upstairs and the songs were reasonable in length. Normally I can tune out the the women but for some reason they seemed to be getting more on my nerves this trip (read obnoxious and loud). If you can get pass this you can have a really good time with the boys. They definitely prefer your business. There is also an outdoor patio upstairs that is open to patrons. I went there for a quick look-see and break. I supposed you could take a dancer up there for some chat/drink time but I didn't do that.

 

Stock Bar - I didn't spend too much time there since I was enjoying JPs and Campus so much. This was an event weekend so the place was basically wall-to-wall people on Friday and Saturday. The boys were mainly big gym bod muscle types which is the typical venue for stock. I did have dances with two Muscled Latinos who unfortunately are not Stock regulars. One, Christopher, was from Atlanta and dances at Swinging Richards; the other from Miami, he dances at twist. They were both up here for the event week.

 

Taboo - still closed. There were some new rumors floating around the dancers at Campus that it may indeed reopen at some point, but it's was all third party hearsay/conjecture. I have no hard news on this.

 

When you are not chasing boys you should try to get over to Parc Jean Drapeau. Parc Jean-Drapeau is situated to the east of downtown Montreal in the Saint Lawrence River. It comprises two islands, Saint Helen's Island and the artificial island Île Notre-Dame. The islands were the site of the Expo 67 World's Fair. Île Notre-Dame was constructed for the exposition. The Montreal Casino, the Beach, the Olympic Basin, the Floralies Gardens and the pavillon of Canada are also located on the island. On Friday the weather was perfect and I went for a bike ride around the islands. From downtown Montreal you can take the Metro. Take the yellow line that originates at Berri-UQAM and get off at the first station (Jean Drapeau). From there you have several options. You can just have a pleasant walk around that part of the park if you want. The Biosphere is a just a short walk from the metro. If you are more ambitious you can rent a Bixi bike (https://montreal.bixi.com/) and bike around the entire park/islands. There is a Bixi stand right near the metro. You just swipe your card, grab a bike and go. There are dedicated bike paths all around and through the islands so you don't have to worry about vehicle traffic. Also, the ride out to and around Ile Notre-Dame is completely level. I'm certainly no athlete but I found the ride quite easy. The bike paths have gardens and other attractions all along the way. There is a man made beach on Ile Notre-Dame. If you don't want to bike to the beach you can take the bus from the metro. The busses(route 167 bus) make a circuit around the island and there is a stop at the beach. Alternatively you can drop your bike at the bixi station at the beach and take the bus back to the metro or vice versa. The entry fee to the beach is $8 CAD.

 

Here are some videos I shot of the community day street festival on Saint Catherine's street on Saturday.

 

[Karl-G]

Thank you for the detailed, colorful, and interesting report on Montreal last week.

The bike ride sounds like a lot of fun. I have walked all that area, and riding around

would be easier. The casino is fun to walk through and has several restaurants and

bars; it is one of those world's-fair-buildings with lots of levels and angles.

The gardens are very nice when the flowers are in bloom.

[+ newatthis]

Great report; thanks!

[Irtwo]

I wonder what the story is behind these bars not wanting to participate with floats in the parade. Is the parade not as big as deal in Montreal as in NY?

[eeyore]

Here's a photo of the beach. Casino de Montreal in the background. Bike trails go around the beach and the island. Beautiful place to bring a picnic lunch. There is sandwich and beverage shop is at the beach and also near the Metro.

 

http://www.maleescortreview.com/forum/uploads/monthly_08_2011/post-106634-000283800%201313691370.jpg

 

The beach also has other attractive features:

 

http://www.maleescortreview.com/forum/uploads/monthly_08_2011/post-106634-096163200%201313691383.jpg

[eeyore]

Bixi bikes. There are two stands at Parc Jean Drapeau. One near the metro and the other next to the beach. Go to http://www.bixi.com.

This photo was taken at the old port a while ago.

http://www.maleescortreview.com/forum/uploads/monthly_08_2010/post-106634-12829306325033.jpg

[zeferrelli]

thanks

[jerryskater]

Sorry I missed you eeyore. My partner and I were in Montreal the same weekend. I agree that Campus from 3 to 9 had something for everyone if you're not into really big muscles. Anthony is a smooth twink pretty good in the back room. Also enjoyed Zoah (sp?) very thin and for me very hugable. Frankie a very sensual bigger guy who could play me like a violin was fun too. And lots of other eye candy. Better than I remember it the last couple of years.

 

We stuck to the village for eating even though I'm sure there are better restaurants. BYOB at Steak Frite and Mazzos. Both are OK not great.

 

Ste. Catherine street was very lively and fun to people watch during lunch and dinner. We usually visit over the 4th of July but I think we'll change to Gay Pride or Diverse Cite weekend because the atmosphere was great. The only downer of course is the exchange rate.

[+ newatthis]

...The only downer of course is the exchange rate.

Well, it's better than it was a few months ago...

[eeyore]

Sorry I missed you eeyore. My partner and I were in Montreal the same weekend. I agree that Campus from 3 to 9 had something for everyone if you're not into really big muscles. Anthony is a smooth twink pretty good in the back room. Also enjoyed Zoah (sp?) very thin and for me very hugable. Frankie a very sensual bigger guy who could play me like a violin was fun too. And lots of other eye candy. Better than I remember it the last couple of years.

 

We stuck to the village for eating even though I'm sure there are better restaurants. BYOB at Steak Frite and Mazzos. Both are OK not great.

 

Ste. Catherine street was very lively and fun to people watch during lunch and dinner. We usually visit over the 4th of July but I think we'll change to Gay Pride or Diverse Cite weekend because the atmosphere was great. The only downer of course is the exchange rate.

I'm sorry we didn't connect. Drop me a line here whenever you are planning your next trip. It's a relatively easy drive for me. I also had a good time with Frankie! He's very passionate and sensual.

[eeyore]

Here's some highlights of the parade I shot with my iPhone if anyone is interested. You'll notice the absence of any hot bar boy floats. That's because there weren't any.

[video=youtube;CTcIzyWQmfE]

[EZEtoGRU]

Yes, great report. Thanks.

 

Seems like more and more people are returning to Montreal this summer in spite of the exchange rate.