If Ali Gua Gua’s name sounds familiar, it may be because she’s been mentioned on this blog many times in various incarnations: DJ-about-town DJ Guagüis, one-woman electroclash act Afrodyke (a “autopiracy” cover of former collaborator Afrodite), and as the lead singer of our favorite queer cumbia punk band, the Kumbia Queers. If you like Ali Gua Gua’s later work, or if you just like tough-ass chicks with guitars, come see Ultrasonicas play their hits in a queer venue.

Ultrasonicas; Thursday, April 7, 2011, 11pm; Cabaretito Fusion, 77 Londres, Zona Rosa; 5511 1613, no cover for women

same-sex marriage = gay tourism = $$

Mexico City tourism minister Alejandro Rojas is planning for the increase in gay tourism that he says will result from the city’s recent decision to legalize same-sex marriage. Last Wednesday La Jornada reported that Rojas is looking forward to the influx of capital that will result from gay-marriage-related tourism and calls for greater tolerance from the city’s religious communities, suggesting that the Catholic Church has its own problems to deal with.  Rojas says that the city will be investing 100 million pesos into a new gay-friendly hotel in the Zona Rosa and will support the development of other businesses that cater to the GLBT market.

The article makes no bones about the economic motives involved, mentioning that increases in gay-tourism have been the natural result of legal gay marriage in other cities in the world, spawning gay-friendly “bridal” boutiques, wedding venues, beauty salons, and hotels. The author cites statistics claiming that 15% of global tourism is gay tourism. What do they call us again? D.I.N.K.’s: Dual Income, No Kids. So that‘s why we’re such a profitable subset of the population to tap into…

This all makes me wonder about the effectiveness, the limits, and the ethics of using gay spending power to open people’s minds about gay people and gay marriage, especially in the context of tourism from the “First World” to Mexico. Does politely taking the money of a white gay couple from north of the border translate into politely receiving your gay son’s boyfriend at a family dinner? And, as Anahí pointed out to me, the only gay people benefitting from this 100 million peso investment are those that can afford to stay at a luxury hotel in the Zona Rosa. I have always found Mexico City to be a very gay friendly city, but I say that as a white American who has never had to go to a local junior high school, hospital, or police precinct.

I hope that the passage of this same-sex marriage bill means that Rojas is correct, that Mexico City will become a truly “gay friendly” city, one in which all GLBT people can live and visit with safety, dignity, and joy.

Macha Mexico is very glad to announce the Second Trans Festival of Mexico City. Thanks to the efforts of the Trans community and some machas directly involved in the organization of this event, arts and politics will merge again for those interested in knowing more about trans population in Mexico City.

If you have the opportunity, don’t miss Roshell’s show. She is great, and she will be at the closing party. You can see the whole program by clicking here.

Second Trans Festival, from July 30th to August 1st; Centro Cultural Xavier Villaurrutia, Glorieta de Insurgente Local 11, Insurgentes Metro Station.

One of my favorite lesbian venues in Mexico City, Cabaretito VIP, has reopened after a long closure, bring back their lesbian night on Thursdays for us machas. Cabaretito VIP holds a special place in my heart; it was the location of the first dyke party I went to in Mexico City and was the home of Second Annual Festival Lesbico in November of 2006, my first broad exposure to the growing DF lesbian culture.

Caberetito VIP was closed for over a year, one of the many clubs in Tito Vasconcelos’ “Cabaretito” chain to end up with a CLAUSURADO sticker posted across the door. Walking down Londres, in the heart of the Zona Rosa, it was sad to walk by the gated patio in front of the club, the hedges the ran from the street to the club dry and dead from neglect. In the walk-way, which two years before was filled with festival-goers and tables from local GLBT organizations, was dark and littered with garbage thrown in from the street. With such contrasting memories of the place, I’m pleased to report that VIP has reopened. My sources tell me there have been parties there since mid-March.

The crowd at “Jueves Lesbico” at VIP is one of the few placed in Mexico City where I’ve seen a more visible butch/femme culture, although it certainly doesn’t dominate the space, which hosts a mix of women of all gender expressions. There are passing-butches, their go-go dancing high femme girlfriends, and plenty of young women with jeans, ponytails, and baseball caps. The crowd is generally younger and more middle/working-class than the ladies at Lipstick, with a little less snobbery and a few more bar fights too. Watch out if you dance with someone’s girlfriend by accident; these machas don’t fuck around!

Cover is free and the space reflects a low-cost decor. The music is a mix of faggy house music, remixed English and Spanish pop hits, and occasional grupero songs sprinkled in. Beers are cheap, but other drinks are small and disproportionately expensive. Expect a crowded dance floor on a good night, lots of young tipsy women, and no toilet paper in the bathroom. I recommend Caberetito VIP as a low-pressure place to go people watching or dancing with a group of friends.

Tonight, promoter Martha Cuevas has brought in aerial dancer Draco Art and is billing the event as a circus themed night. I saw this female aerial dancer perform at the Festival Lesbico and recommend checking her out as she flips and spins suspended above a crowd of spellbound machas.

Cabaretito VIP; Londres 104, Zona Rosa, Insurgentes Metro and Metrobus station. No cover.

Thirty years ago, a Mexican novelist talked for the first time about gay life in Mexico City, setting his novel in the Zona Rosa, and the now hipster area, the Colonia Roma. His name is Luis Zapata, and reading his novel is mandatory if you want know about gay Mexican culture. Next Friday a series of lectures celebrating the Vampiro de la Colonia Roma and its influence will take place at the Palacio de Minería, in the Centro Histórico. What is most striking—and exciting—is that the event is organized by “the new readers” of Zapata’s piece, which is a clear invitation to think about the changes that have taken place in Mexico City regarding gay life and culture.

For instance, the Zona Rosa and the Colonia Roma are still gay spots, but the famous (maybe notorious) Vips cafe where all the gay men used to meet up with friends or potential lovers has disappeared. A newly-constructed, cold, glass building stands in it’s place. The Vips was located on the corner of Reforma and Florencia Street, right in front of the Angel de la Independencia, and the morning before the gay pride march it was always teeming with gays and lesbians having a coffee before the parade. In spite of this absence, nowadays younger gay people dare to kiss or hold hands on the streets, the possibility of gay marriage has made it to the Congress, and the local government has passed a bill that allows trasgender people to officially change their name—and yet, homophobic crimes, especially against trans women, are registered every year.

So, these changes are not black or white, but celebrating things like this always helps us think about our achievements, and the work that has to be done in the future. This series of lectures is a good opportunity for reflection, and also to learn about the underground gay culture of the seventies, one that was not that influenced by American GLBT life.

The lectures will continue in different spots until June.

30 años del Vampiro de la Colonia Roma, 1979-2009. February 27th, 2PM. Palacio de Minería, Salón Bernardo Quintana, Tacuba 5, Centro Histórico, Tacuba Metro Station.

Macha Mexico’s (English-language) write-up of the invited performers, panelists, and presenters can be found here.

4o. Festival Lésbico, from November 20th-23th. Centro Cultural Contempo. Plaza del Ángel, Londres 162, 1st. Floor. Free entrance.

We made a reservation the next day at Hotel Marco Polo, which describes itself as a “small, luxury, gay-friendly boutique hotel in Mexico City.” We didn’t search hard to find it; it was the first site listed when we typed “gay friendly hotels mexico city” into google and the price was right. Interestingly, the page that professed how gay-friendly the hotel is can not be found easily from the main website. Rather, if you click on the site map, you will find a list of pages aimed at niche markets: gay friendly hotels, hotels near the American embassy, hotels with honeymoon specials, etc. I wondered if this might mean the hotel was not seriously committed to being gay friendly. When I asked our bellman if the hotel was gay-friendly, he was quick to explain that it was not a gay hotel, but that, gay or straight, “our guests are our guests.” On other gay-friendly notes, the desk clerk did not give us the hairy eyeball when we asked for a shared beds instead of two separate beds, nor was it a problem when we were affectionate with each other in the lobby or hotel restaurant. I wasn’t surprised; Hotel Marco Polo is located on Amberes street in the Zona Rosa, surrounded by gay bars, cafes, and street life. Arguably, it is on the gayest street in the gayest neighborhood of Mexico City.

We found our room—a regular single—spatious (for Mexico City), well-designed, and very clean. There were several cute touches: little tissue paper fans accented every roll of toilet paper and box of kleenex, and a white terrycloth bathrobe was laid out on the bed invitingly. In addition to the bed, the furniture included a small breakfast (or work) table with chairs and handsome armoire that tastefully concealed the cable television. The color scheme of the room was in dark tones, mostly browns and greys, but floor to ceiling mirrors that run along a portion of the wall helped give the room an open feeling. The view, unfortunately, was nothing to write home about, since the hotel faces another tall modern glass building, but if you press against the glass you might be able to catch a peek at the night life brewing on the street below.

before

I’m happy to report how comfortable we felt in the room. The bed was clean, firm, and well-outfitted with good quality sheets and a fluffy comforter and pillows. You can control the temperature in the room yourself using a thermostat on the wall (which was perfect for Anahí, who can’t stand air-conditioning). The room offered the basic amenities of any nice hotel, including a complementary package of coffee, a small basket of toiletries, and a not outrageously overpriced mini-bar. (A mini-bottle of Cazadores brand tequila was 44 pesos.) They were also kind enough to visibly attach a price (35 pesos) to the bottle of water left enticingly above the mini-bar. (After unexpectedly getting charged 80 pesos for a carafe of water at the W Hotel in Mexico City, I was grateful for the warning.) Room service and laundry service are also available, but we did not take advantage of either.

We did, however, eat in the hotel’s restaurant, the Pimiento Verde, the following morning. The price of our room included complementary continental breakfast, and we went down expecting to find a pitcher of weak coffee and a plate of stale danish. Instead we found a lovely selection of sliced tropical fruits, some pan dulce, as well as yogurt and granola. When we sat down the waiter also informed us that eggs were included in the breakfast, as well as a a side of beans or chilaquiles. Our expectations for “continental breakfast” were further exceeded when the chilaquiles that arrived were spicy and delicious. I would not stop and eat at the restaurant if I were not staying in the hotel (the quality and prices, we decided, were about on par with Sanborns), but it was an excellent option for breakfast (and, I imagine, room service). Although breakfast is only served from 7am to 11am, bisquets and coffee are available from 4am to 7am, good if you have an early flight to catch but don’t want to deal with the airport on a empty stomach.

(On a related note, if you have a late departure, or simply want to spend a lazy day in bed, Marco Polo’s stated check-out time of 2pm can be extended until 5pm at no extra charge.)

after

One of the nicest things about Hotel Marco Polo was their rates, which drop 40-60% when you book online. The listed price for a single or double room booked online is $88 during the week and $80 Friday through Sunday. When we tried to make our online, reservation, however, the server wasn’t working properly, and we had to call and make sure they could guarantee the online price even though the server was down. At first, the receptionist said there was nothing she could do and that we would have to pay the regular rate of $144, but with a little persistance, we were able to make the reservation under the quoted online rate. Hopefully that has been cleared up, but in case you encounter similar problem, don’t hesitate to be persistant about the rate you should pay.

Hotel Marco Polo offers a nice middle ground between the myriad of budget hotels throughout Mexico City (most of low quality) and the high-end, high-priced hotels that run along Reforma. It is not a super-chic hotel (the bar closes with the restaurant at 11pm), but it has an elegent, professional feel to it, and, in additional to all the amenities I’ve mentioned already, boasts a small fitness center, business center, and valet parking. It is an excellent choice for gay and lesbian travelers looking for a well-equipped, moderately-priced hotel in the heart of the Zona Rosa.

Hotel Marco Polo; Amberes 27, Colonia Juárez, phone: (55) 50 80 00 63 , reservations:  (55) 50 80 14 45, (55) 55 11 18 39, (55) 55 14 39 07; http://www.marcopolo.com.mx/

UPDATE: Festival schedule posted.

The 4th edition of the Festival Lésbico represents one of the few attempts during the year to gather and celebrate the lesbian community in Mexico City. It is organized by the non-profit organization Fundación Género Diverso, A. C. headed by Martha Cuevas, a veteran lesbian activist who has focused her work on young queer community, sexual education, and combatting domestic violence and violent relationships among lesbians. For a long period of time she worked at the now disappeared Cabaretito VIP as the promoter of Lady’s Night on Thursdays.

One of the goals of Fundación Género Diverso is to promote “a better quality of life” among the queer community through cultural activities that involve artists, politicians, and institutions as well as NGOs related to sexual diversity and sexual education. This time, the festival will be held at the Centro Cultural Contempo located in the Zona Rosa. A formal schedule has not being published yet, but a list of the participants already settled for the Festival is as follows:

LECTURES

Ana Francis Mor. Activist and actress, Mor is a member of Las Reinas Chulas, the cabaret group that manage El Vicio, a little theathre in Coyoacán. Ana Francis Mor, recently married in a symbolic ceremony to her female partner, will talk about theatre, women and diversity issues, based on her own experience.

Enoe Uranga. A veteran activist for the human rights is a former independent member of the Legislative Assembly of the Capital. Her biggest strike was the initiave regarding “Leyes de Convivencia”, the legal figure that assembles to a “gay marriage” in Mexico. Her lecture will be on “Positive political experiences and challenges we face to face”

Paulina Millán. Psychologist and sexologist, Paulina is in charge of the research department at the Instituto Mexicano de Sexología. She hosts the internet radio program “Sexo Abierto”. She is also member of Fundación Género Diverso, where she coordinates the group Nueva Generación de Jóvenes Lesbianas. Her lecture will be on sexuality and eroticism.

Musas de Metal. I know this group because of a couple of parties they organized few years ago. The environment was a little awkward since it seemed that one of the main purposes was to meet someone. But it called my attention that the crowd was pretty diverse, including the whole array of variety in the queer world. The organization has worked on case studies of discrimination and violence against lesbians. Their lecture will be about their experiences and projects.

Fundación Género Diverso A.C. Based on their 11 year-experience, this organization will talk about their campaign against violence among lesbians. The lecture is called “Let’s Make Constructive Relationships”.

LECTURES ON LITERATURE “Literature, creation… and then what?”

Gilda Salinas. Author of short stories, play and film scripts. She teaches workshops on literature and drama. She has written six novels, 22 plays, and three film scripts. She has received many awards due to her work.

Carolina Villanueva (Newvillage). Even though her actual career has to do more with tourism, life lead her to get involved with the world of TV, movies and publicity, where she started working as a script writer.

Odette Alonso. Poet, narrator, and literature promoter. Her short story “Nocturnal Animal” won the literature contest “Mujeres en vida” in 2008. She works as editor at the Dirección General de Publicaciones y Fomento Editorial of the UNAM.

Bertha de la Maza. She is manager of the internet bookstore LesLibros, a very interesting project that aims to distribute queer literature in Mexico (and around the world, I guess) through internet., She is also the distributor of Voces de Tinta, and publishing houses Egales and Topka, as well as of independent writers in Mexico. During 9 years, she has worked as a literature promoter in order to take the LGBT literature out of the closet.

CONAPRED and Dirección General de Igualdad y Diversidad Social del DF.. I still don’t know if representatives of these two institutions will participate at the same lecture, but it seems that they will be part of a space opened to lesbian organizations in order to listen to their proposals. In the case of the second governmental organization, they will describe their activities regarding programs and campaigns addressed to the lesbian community and sexual diversity. Something like a report from the government for the LGBT community.

THEATER

Las Hijas de Safo. We’ve mentioned this group before. This is a great opportunity to see them performing. I have only listened to them from a backstage, but they sounded agile, funny, and neat. Also, as far as I can remember, their make up was great.

Drag King México. They define themselves as the first drag king group in Mexico, which I think is an interesting enough reason to take a look at what they are doing. Their show will be about facing discrimination in Mexican society, especially prepared for this occasion.

Art Draof. They will perform twice. The first play is named “Historias en minutos” which is based on the stories of lesbians of different ages, social backgrounds and experiences. The stories converge to the same point throughout the play, with music as an important element. The second performance of this group is more of a comedy. They will play various famous Mexican singers from the eighties. They themselves say you can’t miss the experience…

SHOWS

Burlesquimeras. Institutrices de Belleza Universal. The first queer Mexican neo-burlesque troupe, the Burlesquimeras use their bodies as means of expression, combining humor, strip-tease, satire, and camp to create a fun and sexy show. The group members are Chichis Glam, Gabina Estrella, Glitter, Islandia, Lupe Tequila, and RiberQueen. What can I say about this show? You will have a blast…!

“Emocional”. by Ana Carolina. A stand-up comedy performed by an Argentinean girl who, if the writing on her blog is any indication, has created a show that is very funny and smart. She gives workshops on stand-up comedy and also works as correspondent for an Argentinean radio station.

“Efimeros Goces e Inés yo con tu amor“. by Artemisa Tellez and Fabiola Jiménez. Based on poetry text by Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz and other contemporary writers/poets, this literary show fuses music, poetry and lesbian experiences in poignant and funny ways.

LITERATURE
There will be also, readings of lesbian short stories and poetry. Part of the literature activities include the opening of Dos Orillas, a book that compiles short stories and poetry written by lesbians from America (yes, the continent) and Spain.

And last but not least, it seems that the big show will feature Aurora y la Academia, a rock-pop band that was famous during the late nineties in Mexico. The members of the group are three women (now in their thirties) that define their style as “Flower Pop”. Check out their myspace if you want to take a look a t them and listen to a little bit of their music.

4o. Festival Lésbico, from November 20th-23th. Centro Cultural Contempo. Plaza del Ángel, Londres 162, 1st. Floor. Free entrance.

For those interested in knowing about trans culture in Mexico City, we invite you to the First Festival of Trans Culture. Sexuality, Politics and Health. It will be celebrated from May 14th to 16th, at Contempo Cinema. Some luminaries of the Mexican trans/gay scene will be there, like Alejandra Bogue, Hazel Davenport and the transmigrated-Spanish sexologist Anabel Ochoa. It will be in Spanish, in case you are interested in practicing your listening skills. Click here for a full schedule of events.

The opening starts at 4 and the entrance is free.

Contempo Cinema. Londres 161, Plaza del Ángel, Zona Rosa. Tel. 5208 4044

According to the Enkidu website, the weekly event began in 1987 by “El Grupo Guerrilla Gay” in order to create a space to discuss “sexuality in general and homosexuality in particular.” Topics differ every week and can range from AIDS to jealously to masculinity to the gentrification of the Zona Rosa.

Different people lead the events each week and discussions are sometimes followed by a performance or a reading.

These events take place in Spanish, though many of the attendees also speak excellent English. If you are trying to improve your Spanish and took enough women’s studies classes to know the basic jargon, this is a great place to practice your listening skills and maybe even jump into the conversation.

Events are free and open to the public.

Los Martes de Enkidu, Contempo Cinema, Plaza del Angel (upstairs), 161 Londres (between Florencia and Amberes), Zona Rosa. Phone number for Contempo Cinema: 5208 4044, http://enkidumagazine.com/losmartes.htm