MasculineCurves

Anchors Aweigh: The Gaultier Invasion of San Francisco

One of the highlights of my San Francisco trip was the Gaultier Sailor Boys giving out free pedicab bike rides and along with Le Male scent samples. Ingenious marketing ploy by Jean Paul Gaultier and left many a gay boy (like me) with a smile on my face. Above, my venture into “street videography” featuring the Gaultier Sailors and below a few iPhone stills.

scene at a busy airport

As seen at Washington Dulles.... Yep, I'm on a little trip... More to come...

a weekend at the King George

Does anyone know anything about The King George hotel on Mason Street in San Francisco? I'm headed to West Coast for a business trip in a couple weeks and decided to spend a weekend in San Francisco. This hotel is located in the Union Square district which is the heart of city. I like boutique hotels and I usually stay at The Powell or the Handlery while in Frisco, but decided to try something new. So I took my amex points and booked the King George. From the pictures it looks like it could be quite the... uhhmmm.... adventure....

The Out-of-towner

As I previously mentioned, this week I am 'back to the Bay Area.' I arrived in Oakland early this afternoon and will be in business meetings all day tomorrow. Then, I'll be in San Francisco the rest of the week for a little vacation. Unless the mood strikes me otherwise, I probably won't post much to the blog while I'm out here. But check back next week, as I'm sure to have tons of street photography to share.

ABOVE: The view of Tribune Tower from my hotel window.

Back to the Bay Area

I would be a shame to the blogging community if I didn't make an announcement every time I take a trip across town, let alone a trip across the country. Next week I'm headed to the Bay Area (June 10-14) to mix a little business with pleasure. Actually, the first leg of my trip will be all business in Oakland on the 10th and the 11th, but I'll be crossing the bridge for a little respite the remainder of the trip.

When I last visited San Francisco, about a year ago, I was just getting into street photography. Since then I've developed my street skills quite a bit, and with all the eccentricities and culture there it's the perfect city for the enthusiastic street photographer. So if you live in the Bay Area and you happen to see a short, light-skinned guy with curly hair and green eyes walking around with a Nikon D80, say "hi," because it's probably me.

San Francisco: Where the Brothas At?

I've just returned from vacationing in what is undeniably the most eclectic and liberal city in the  United States, San Francisco.  It's no secret that this city is a cultural melting pot boiling at extreme temperatures.  Because of this, exotic looking people are a dime a dozen here.  This is a place where you can catch the eye of a hot man on the street and not be certain whether he's mixed with Asian, Latino, Middle Eastern, or if he just has a really great tan.  Not that it matters, because his shear existence is proof that collaboration between cultures is a beautiful thing.

Along these lines, there was one thing about this fabulous city that left me with a bitter sweet taste in my mouth.  Where the brothas at? Y'all?   As a black man, I couldn't help but to notice the near absence of African- Americans in San Francisco. We are few and far among the sea of olive, tan, and brown skin tones walking the streets.  This begs several questions.   In a city where the average one-bedroom condo in a no thrills neighborhood is in the $600K to $700K price range, what is the true state of race relations in America? Does this country still deny us the opportunities to achieve the economic equality as our cultural counterparts? Many cultures (including Caucasians) in Americarely on networks of support systems to sustain an expected level in quality of life.  Have we established these support systems in our community?  I don't know.  This is all way too deep for me at this time.  I'm supposed to be on summer hiatus from this website.

Anyways, I did enjoy my trip.  Got to take tons of pics, including the one of the Golden Gate Bridge above.  And with thoughts of cultural integration on my mind I was inspired to embark on a new photo endeavor while I was there.  For now, I think I'm going to use "Walks of Life" as the project's working title.  What?  You say you want to see some of it?  It's still very much in the conceptual phase.  But, okay, here's a sneak peak.

Walks of Life: San Francisco 2007

Can you imagine stepping foot in another man's shoes, if only for a brief moment?  Would you even try?