The Wheel and Axle

Drag and Dance

by on Jun.26, 2016, under My Life, Queer

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My friends and I haven’t gone clubbing in years. At the risk of sounding ancient, yes, it’s because nowadays we’ve decided we prefer a quiet night-out over coffee or a chatty night-in watching movies while drinking. This is not to say we never went clubbing; we were practically rooted to the concrete streets of Orosa back in the glory days of the now-dead Malate scene.

(Aaah, yes, New York Cafe… and Bed… and Mint… and Piggy’s… oooh-la-la… that very dark second floor dance area… mmm…)

Where was I?

Oh, yes. Talking about how we Titas of Manila now prefer the joys of not letting our ears bleed.

Pre-clubbing drinks at Moonshine

Pre-clubbing drinks at Moonshine

Of course, I’m not averse to ever going, so when a visitor from Indonesia flew in looking for the “scene,” I tagged along with some friends to bring him to O Bar in Ortigas.

I hadn’t been to the new O Bar, so it was nice to see it’s more spacious than the old ones in Ortigas and in Malate. Then again, how can you really tell when it became so jampacked that I wanted to summon a swarm of locusts on my way to the bathroom?

But that’s a good thing.

It means the gay scene is still alive and well and that, despite the proliferation of Grindr and the like, we still find ways to go out and have some fun as a community.

And besides, who could resist a fabulous and acrobatic drag show?

Or a classic Janet Jackson homage?

Guess who's Indonesian?

Guess who’s Indonesian?

Much has been said about how unfortunate and sad it is that the current generation of Filipino LGBTs never experienced Malate.

It’s true. There was an overwhelming sense of oneness in that scene because, despite the accusations of those who have no ounce of fun in their bones that such a scene was supposedly shallowness, being able to see that there were hundreds of others like you helped you realize that you were not alone, no matter which way you swung.

And it’s nice to know that somehow, somewhere, there still exist places in Manila that will allow the young ones – if they so choose – to mingle and socialize and see that there are many others in our community.

So yes, all things considered, it was definitely worth it to have my ears bleed again just to be reassured that there is still another haven for the community out here.

Now, Imma just gonna leave this one right here. Enjoy!

 

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