Visiting Lhasa city is like finding a ghost in a closet full of living beings. It is at once an ancient seat of tradition that lives in the shadow of progressive communist changes. Throughout the city and beyond there is indelible Tibetan ethos mixed with the artifice of Chinese manufacture. The imperialist occupier would like
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Tibet: Lhasa – Potala Palace
The Potala Palace is the former home and seat of government for the Buddhist leader Dalai Lama. He was chased out of Tibet when the Chinese invaded Tibet in 1959 and took over the country. Since then the Potala Palace has not been used for government or religious functions. The Chinese have designated it as
Tibet Faces
The faces of Tibet are diverse in appearance and in lifestyle. From hip city teens to rugged farmers to aged monks and wandering tourists, the variety is panoramic. There is wonder, humor, puzzlement and more than a little hidden resentment at living under an occupying and repressive communist system over which they have no control.
Mount Everest Photo Gallery
Mountains are generally measured from sea level, in which case Mount Everest (29,028 feet; 8,848 meters) is the highest. Hawaii’s Mauna Kea, though, rises an astonishing 33,476 feet (10,203 meters) from the depths of the Pacific Ocean floor. Measuring from base to peak, Mauna Kea is the tallest mountain on earth, of which only about
Gay Life Beijing, China
Gay Life in Beijing, China: Shiny Windows and Shadow Lives China has a population estimated at 1.3 billion people. A conservative estimate of 5% makes for 65 million LGBT citizens. But one would never know it given the invisibility of the community there. October 2013 By Richard Ammon GlobalGayz.com (Note: this story is only
A hidden issue: What Thai deaf gays now face
From: Prachatai English (http://www.prachatai.com/english) September 23, 2013 By Takato Mitsunaga Chaiwat Limprasertying, 33, knew he was gay when he was 12 years old, when he found himself different from others. But he is used to being different. He was born deaf. He couldn’t tell anybody about being gay at that time. “It was like being
Gay Pakistan 2013
Here is a balanced and intelligent report about gay life in urban Pakistan today. Too often the news from Pakistan is about political and social violence, but behind the headlines and hysteria are many quiet lives going about their affairs with hardly any notice, including homosexual affections and love. Gay Pakistan: Where sex is
Gay Life in South Korea: Complicated
The Complicated Lives of Gay Men in South Korea: “The main issue of being a gay man in South Korea was how to find a boyfriend and a gay community, the two things that create the basis for a gay life. People do not come out due to their emotional closeness to their families. According
Gay Life in Pakistan–Quiet and Comfortable
Pakistani gay says life easier at home than in USA; culture helps mask same-sex affection Qasim and his partner Ali are in love and live together. They talk about going abroad to marry, but the only weddings they attend in Pakistan are arranged unions between their gay friends and unsuspecting women. Despite that, “it’s
Gay Life in Tibet–The Undercover Life of a Proud Gay Man
Lesbian couple Katie Cook and Maggie Young are traveling the world meeting LGBT people. Here they meet Jetsan in Lhasa, Tibet, who has found he is not alone. By Katie Cook and Maggie Young Sapphic Nomads.com 31 March 2013 Re-posted from Sapphic Nomads-Tibet Finding gay Tibetans turned out to be as we expected –
Siem Reap Cambodia, a Small Gay Haven
By Ancient Ruins, a Gay Haven in Siem Reap, Cambodia (from New York Times) It was 10 p.m. in Siem Reap, and while most tourists were tucked in after a long, hot day exploring the temples of Angkor, things were just getting going at a bar called Linga. Pairs of European men in their 30s
LGBT Life in Mongolia
Mongolia: Tales of a Dusty City, Friendly Nomads and a Few LGBT Natives In 2012 Katie Cook and Maggie Young, photo right, went on a year-long journey to discover the range of LGBT experiences of people we meet around the world. Along the way, they sought out, met with, and interviewed native LGBT folks. In
Interview With a Singapore Lesbian
Our Lesbian Sisters in Singapore An interview with a leading lesbian rights activist in Singapore, Jean Chong of lesbian group Sayoni 09 January 2013 Gay Star News The LGBT rights movement in Singapore has been mainly dominated by gay men, but Gay Star News met Jean Chong of lesbian group Sayoni and discovered that sisters
High Court Decriminalizes Then Recriminalizes Then Legitimizes Homosexuality
The Delhi high court’s decision in 2009 legalizing consensual homosexual acts was a powerful example of judicial wisdom. However, in 2013 that decision was set aside when two Supreme Court justices (out of 29) ruled otherwise. Countless legal professionals and India’s LGBT community were appalled. Five years later in 2018 the full Supreme Court reversed
Gay Sri Lanka
Being Fearful and Boldly Gay in Sri Lanka Sri Lanka is thankfully no longer a war torn culture. During and after the conflict the country has offered modest convenience to lesbigay citizens thanks to the activism of a courageous few. To be sure many LGBT citizens live in closeted misery but more recently voices of
Bangkok City Photos, November 2012
Bangkok city is like no other with its complex mix of modern skyscrapers, super-engineered SkyTain (and subway) and many exotic old world Buddhist temples and adoration of the King. Up-scale life is abundantly visible in the countless Mercedes cars (and an occasional Rolls Royce) and 5-star high-rise luxury condo towers. Low-scale life is visible in
Thailand Food Feast (photo essay)
It’s hard to imagine anywhere in the world a city with more food offerings than Bangkok, Thailand. Street kitchens by the thousands, tiny pantries, hole-in-the-wall eateries, open air market food stalls, fast food chains, 7-11 stores snacks, elegant 5-star restaurants–open day and night, many until midnight, fewer all night with customers eating plates of rice,
Brunei Photo Gallery
Brunei became a British protectorate in 1888, receiving a governor in 1906. In the years after the Japanese wartime occupation during World War II, it formalised a constitution and fought an armed rebellion. Brunei regained its independence from the United Kingdom on 1 January 1984. Economic growth during the 1970s and 1990s, averaging 56% from
Bhutan Photo Gallery
Bhutan’s landscape ranges from subtropical plains in the south to the sub-alpine Himalayan heights in the north, with some peaks exceeding 7,000 metres (23,000 ft). The state religion is Vajrayana Buddhism, and the population of 691,141 is predominantly Buddhist, with Hinduism the second-largest religion. The capital and largest city is Thimphu. In 2008, Bhutan made the
Gay Bhutan: How gay are Bhutanese gays?
Homosexuality is graded as a petty misdemeanor; no one has ever been prosecuted for the act but it’s still taboo. Still a Taboo Homosexuality is still a taboo topic in modern Bhutan. Whenever there is talk of the subject most people ask, “Are there gays in Bhutan?” Many Bhutanese people have puzzled looks on
Azerbaijan Photo Gallery
Azerbaijan has an ancient and historic cultural heritage, including the distinction of being the first Muslim-majority country to have operas, theater and plays. The Azerbaijan Democratic Republic was established in 1918, but was incorporated into the Soviet Union in 1920.Azerbaijan regained independence in 1991. Google Image Gallery for Azerbaijan Gay Azerbaijan Story
Armenia Photo Gallery
Armenia is the only country remaining from 3,000 year old maps of Anatolia. It became the world’s first Christian country more than 1,700 years ago in 301 AD, and has a large Diaspora all over the world. As a former Soviet republic lying in the Caucasus region, straddling Asia and Europe, Armenia has an ancient
Gay Life in Turkmenistan
Introduction “You will not find any gay bars or clubs in Ashgabat (‘City of Love’), the capital city of Turkmenistan, despite a population of about one million people; homosexuality is illegal in Turkmenistan.” That is the welcoming message to gays from this rural and desolate country on the Caspian Sea in western Asia. The LGBT
Gay Life in Uzbekistan
Introduction A visit to Uzbekistan is a lesson in retrograde human rights policies. The level of respect for freedom of press and expression is very low. The country is politically a police state filled with the usual paranoia, repression, corruption and strong-arm enforcement of socialist ideologies that bring more suffering to people than progress. Needless