Gay Pride in Palm Springs

My husband, Dave, and I celebrated Gay Pride in Palm Springs on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday (November 4-6). They hold it in November because it's too damn hot in PS in June when most traditional pride celebrations are held. Many say that PS is one of the gayest cities in the country and I tend to believe it. It’s rumored that more than 50% of the permanent population of PS is gay. I certainly think it is one of the most democratic “gay” cities around. When you go to bars in PS, you see more older, retired gay men and women than you do in most cities but at the same time there is always a great mix of older and younger gay people celebrating together. It’s been a long time since I’ve been considered chicken but when I’m in PS bars, I feel like I’m one of the youngest guys there.

This was the second year that our friends Diane, Denise and Ellen invited us to stay at D&D’s condo (along with their Rottweiler, Bodie). The “girls” are always wonderfully attentive hosts and we always feel more like family than guests. Ellen always gives up her room for us and she sleeps on the sofa which really could sleep three people at once if needed. The girls all live in the bay area and drive down to PS; it takes almost 8 hours non-stop driving to get there. But they find their little home away from home relaxing and important.

We have another good friend that lives in PS – Eddie (aka Leopard Lady) who we had dinner with on Friday night. The girls had made reservations at Wang’s in the Desert, a very popular bar and restaurant. It’s been a long time since I’ve been in a bar where I had to grease my hips to get inside. But that night, it was jam-packed, loud and festive. Gay Pride in PS is very popular with a lot of the west coast gay crowd and this city was filled with visiting gays and lesbians; Wang’s was a popular destination.

Wang’s turned out to be a lovely restaurant with a modern Asian interior to go along with its Pan Asian cuisine. You could choose to eat inside or outside on their patio. It was a beautiful evening so we chose to eat al fresco. The drinks at Wang’s were large and tasty but despite everyone’s predictions, the food was rather humdrum except the jalapeño calamari which crackled with heat and flavor.

On Saturday night we decided to try Boscoso which is owned by the same people who own Wang's in the Desert. The owners used some of the same interior design elements in the dining room of Boscoso as they did in Wang's. The feel was quite warm and inviting; the bar reminded a couple of our friends of the first starship Enterprise -- backlighted shelving behind the bar with monotonal orange glasswear lined up row upon row. Again, the drinks were fun and plentiful, the staff helpful and courteous but again the food lacking in umph!

We met some wonderful new friends while we were there; Harold and Ron who own a condo in the same complex as Diane and Denise. Wonderful couple, although we only saw Ron for about two hours on Saturday night. We hope to see them both again.

I always try to buy a book on the history of the cities or other places that I visit. Palm Springs First Hundred Years is a good historical read but doesn't give you the dirt on the city like some of the other current histories.