More videos from this show which was recorded on Friday, December 4th at the Sydney Opera House are available on the BosGuy YouTube Page. You can also double click on this image to make it larger for better viewing.
The annual Boxing Day dinner party my friend hosts was fantastic. This year there were a few more faces and it had a true internationl flair with our additional houseguests Joanna from Australia and Alicia from France joining the party. I’ve included a photo album from last night’s festivities. If you have speakers, turn them on to enjoy the cheesy holiday music.
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I hope that everyone reading this has had a relaxing Christmas holiday whether this is a day of special meaning and tradition or not. Tonight, I will be heading over to my friend’s house for her traditional Boxing Day dinner party.
Our Christmas celebrations really started on Christmas Eve. We had a delicious dinner and friends started dropping by to visit around 9 pm. The following day was also wonderful. We spent the day up at my parent’s house in New Hampshire. Our two houseguests who arrived on Wednesday, December 23rd have added so much to our holiday celebrations this year and I was pleased that they had such a nice time with all my family. Both are young women from other countries and with their own family traditions, but I think that everyone genuinely had a wonderful day.
Sunday I woke to find Boston covered in a thick blanket of snow. The city was absolutely picture perfect and despite my dislike of the cold, it definitely put me in the holiday spirit. Considering its just a few days ’til Christmas, a holiday flavored posting seems in order.
I’ve included a clip from one of the numbers from Drag – Camp as Christmas – the drag show I saw at the Sydney Opera House. I only wish we were able to record the entire number from the fabulous drag queen, Tess Tickle. Check out how she holds on to her wig while she jing-jangles her way across the stage.
All right, Mr. DeMille, I’m ready for my close-up…
The phenomenon that is YouTube scaled to new heights this year. One only need only to type in the words “Single Ladies” (last count shows 119,000+ results) to prove my point. I would guess that the overwhelming majority of these videos are made by gay men.
Although I’m not a fan of the camera, I do enjoy most of these videos. I’ll be the first to admit that in this regard I’m as deep as the kiddie pool, and I can waste countless hours watching these videos since most are usually either quite humorous or include very cute young men lipsynching their way through their favorite songs.
Today while I was on WGB I happened to come across one such video.
Hub Arts blog has mentioned that Commonwealth Shakespeare Company will offer “Othello” as its 15th annual Shakespeare on the Common production in July and August 2010. I know that this is quite a ways off, but Othello is one of my all time favorite plays by Shakespeare and dreaming of a warm summer night out on the Common is a great way to escape the bitter reality that it is absolutely freezing in Boston just now.Exact dates and casting for the performances this summer have not been scheduled, but I’ll be certain to write more about this as the time approaches. Until then, I’ll use this trusty promo from the 1995 production which starred Lawrence Fishurne as Othello and Kenneth Branaugh as the despicable Iago.
On Friday I’m heading to see the Gold Dust Orphans show “All About Christmas Eve” This was an hilarious show that Ryan Landry initially premiered in December 2008, and I initially wrote about this last year in my post, “All about Christmas Eve.” The show spoofs one of the best Bette Davis movies of all times, “All about Eve”.
Do you love cooking shows? Do you live in the Boston area? Well if so, you are in luck. The blog, Boston Restaurant Talk, has a post today indicating that Comcast has has brought a number of “The French Chef” episodes to their On Demand Service. Partnering with WGBH, the cable company is offering more than 20 episodes of this public television series for free through January 4, 2010. Julia Child’s “The French Chef” series first premiered in 1963 and lasted for 10 years. The series began two years after the release of her now-famous book “Mastering the Art of French Cooking,” which was the centerpiece of the movie “Julie and Julia” a popular movie released in 2009.
The clips above are from the drag show I mentioned I saw at the Sydney Opera House. I regret not having a digital recorder, but these bits are better than having nothing and I definitely wanted to share. There are several drag queens in Sydney that indicated they would be checking to see if I posted anything and I would not want to disappoint.
It goes without saying that this is worth seeing if you find yourself in Sydney the first week of December. Apparently each year it gets more outrageous. This year’s performance ran from Dec. 1-6 and had 22 acts.
BTW: If you double click on the video it will open in YouTube where you can view this on a larger screen or download it in HD.
The 2009 Santa Speedo Run in Boston (the 10th annual) happened today at 1pm despite freezing temps in Boston. The wind chill made the air feel as cold as 20 degrees and the steady breeze left me chilled to the bone. However, the 500 crazy men and women clad in red speedos were all in good spirits (and humor).
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I was able to catch a drag show at the Sydney Opera House which will go down as the funniest and most extravagant I have ever seen, I’m sure. The show was called, “Drag – Camp as Christmas”. You can check out a promo video clip here or do a search on Facebook to see more. As I said to a few of the drag queens later that evening, they could teach Ms. Spears a thing or two about how to lip sync.
The drag show was only the tip of what turns out to be a mountain of options when contemplating what to do each evening. In addition to all the activity in the CBD (Central Business District) night ferries provide endless options and are both easy and affordable. I also enjoyed spending time on Crown Street in Surrey Hills, which is easily accessible from downtown and filled with galleries, antiques, cafes and pubs. I also enjoyed a great meal on Victoria Street which was quite a mixed crowd and near the gayborhood.Since I never made it out to see the nightlife in Melbourne, I made a concerted effort to check out what Sydney had to offer. Like many cities, “the scene” is pretty concentrated on Oxford Street. The area is a bit dumpy similar to the Castro in San Francisco, but I enjoyed checking out the clubs, sipping coffees at Coco Cubano (note there is good wireless here and it is free) and even nosing around in the GLBT bookstore, The bookshop darlinghurst, where I made several purchases. The two main clubs that I visited could not have been more different except that they both had a lot of energy and some very good people watching. The clubs I visited Arq and Slide will probably end up changing names (as all clubs do) but I had a great time and would suggest even if you are not a club-kid (as I most definitely am not) it is still worth checking out for fun and laughs.
As with my write-up about Melbourne, I’ve also included a slide show which is a collection of photographs from my trip, please enjoy.
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Don’t forget, this year’s Santa Speedo Run will start from Lir on Boylston Street at 1:00 pm this Saturday. 
A huge reason I’ve fallen head over heels with Australia is because of a city called Melbourne. There is a magnificent contrast of architecture that compliment rather than compete with each other and provides a sense of charm that I was hard-pressed to find elsewhere. Some of my favorite activities included: strolling down Lygon Street which is chalk full of Italian cafes, shops and gelateria; checking out the ever so hip Gertrude Street which had a definite San Francisco-vibe; seeing the Fitzroy Gardens and in particular the conservatory; hanging out in Federation Square which has been scorned by many but I think is an excellent example of modern architecture and houses interesting cafes, restaurants, pubs and museums – not the least of which is the Australian Centre for the Moving Image.
Melbourne is surrounded by wine country, which is so easy to visit if you are willing to drive on the other side of the road. I opted to select an overnight in Hepburn Springs, which is next to the quaint town of Daylesford. The drive is easy and picturesque making it a great overnight trip, although I will admit I did not want to leave and would have enjoyed spending more time there. On the positive side, I made the excellent decision to book at the Peppers Springs Retreat which is 1-2 hour drive from Melbourne depending on 1) how fast you drive and 2) how direct your route is to get there. After taking the indirect route to see the countryside, I can tell you that your best bet is to drive directly there (the scenery is beautiful regardless of the route) and the towns prior to Daylesford and Hepburn Springs simply are not worth visting.
If you do book a stay in the country, I would definitely recommend the Peppers Springs Retreat which is less than a 5 minute drive to Daylesford downtown. Request a room in the main building with a private deck that overlooks the countryside. The two owners, Chris and Wayne, are as warm and friendly as the rest of the staff and the trip provided the perfect respite between visits to Melbourne and Sydney (Australia’s two largest cities). If you want to learn more about the retreat, you can read my glowing review on TripAdvisor.com here. Visiting wineries from the hotel is easy to do, but I preferred the pampering of the natural springs spa on sight and eating at the hotel’s restaurant – rarely have I ever been so full in my life. Below I’ve included a sampling of photos from my time in Melbourne, the drive out of the city and the stay in Hepburn Springs.
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