BosGuy in Dallas

I'm in Dallas this week. I actually arrived on Monday for a week of training mandated by my firm. Although I was not looking forward to the business trip, now that I'm here its not a big deal. On paper it sounded awful - 800 of my co-workers and peers stranded at one of the Dallas airport hotels, but the accommodations are comfortable and its really nice to see many people I work with remotely on projects through out the year.

My blogging may be pretty spotty this week as I juggle training, travel and additional work responsibilities. Hang in there and I'll be back to my usual self next week when I am back home. In the meantime, let me know where this cowboy may hang out. I see a lot of people here wearing cowboy boots but most of them are a bit overweight (being polite by saying "a bit") and do not resemble this guy in the least.

Photo from Great Looking Guys blog

Hotel review: The Strand Hotel NYC

The Strand Hotel has a trendy vibe, which only makes sense since its nestled in the heart of New York City's Fashion District; located between 5th and 6th Ave on 37th Street.

The tiny lobby exudes a sense of style that carries through to the hotel room and it's furnishings. Although the rooms are tight, they are well appointed and suited my needs just fine.

Aside from the location, the thing I enjoyed the most about staying at The Strand NYC was its roof deck terrace and bar. (That's me and my buddy Paul enjoying a cold beer on the roof deck bar.)

Drinks cost a small fortune, but when you factor in the amazing view and the beautiful weather which made it so pleasant to sit outside - I couldn't get enough of the place.

I've included a picture of my tiny room and bathroom. You can click on the photo to enlarge. More pictures appear on my hotel review on TripAdvisor.com.

For more information about this hotel you can visit: www.thestrandnyc.com

Finding a bit of heaven in Hell's Kitchen

I arrived in NYC on Friday with my buddy Paul for a fun weekend in the city. We took the Acela from Amtrak down to the city and arrived in plenty of time to enjoy Boxers, crazy happy hour festivities.

Bars are not allowed to have happy hour promotions in Massachusetts so true to form we drank more than intended and left pleasantly buzzed with plans to head out to Hell's Kitchen after a quick pit stop back at the hotel to freshen up and a quick bite to eat.

We'd both been to Hell's Kitchen but it had been several years (at least for me since my previous visit). One of the things I really like about the neighborhood is how easy it is to bar hop. We started by checking out Industry. It was one of the busier bars we visited and the music was great, but neither Paul nor I were feeling it so we walked across the street to Therapy. However, Therapy was fairly dead by comparison so we opted to head over to Ritz.

Entering Ritz would make just about anyone feel claustrophobic but of all the places, this had the most energy and the by far - the best people watching. We worked our way to the back room and danced up along the walls.

Paul and I spent most of the evening watching a young couple "get familiar" with each other, some A-List wannabes with killer bodies shake their groove thing and chatting with people to our left and right - there always seemed to be a constant ebb and flow that brought a new someone every 5-10 minutes.

There are plenty of other bars all close by and when visiting its so easy to bar hop its enough to make my head spin. What bars in HK do you like and why? Leave a comment to share because I'm hoping I can head back soon.

Weekend in NYC

On Friday morning I'll be joined by my good friend, Paul, and we will hop on Acela to head into NYC for a couple nights of fun. We don't really have any plans other than arrival and departure times and where we'll be crashing.

Past preferences have led me to book hotel rooms in the West Village, Tribeca and SoHo. I'm simply not a fan of the crush of tourists and inhuman scale of Midtown; not to mention its where I have to stay for work. For this visit I booked a stay at the Strand Hotel. Located in the "heart of the fashion district" (that bit I stole from their website), the hotel is pretty convenient at 33 West 37th Street between the Avenue of the Americas and 5th Avenue.
The hotel has a roofdeck lounge that also looks very appealing called appropriately enough "Top of the Strand". I'm looking forward to some early evening cocktails there before heading out. We'll see what this little adventure brings us. Neither Paul nor I are all that NYC-savvy and on past trips we've ended up mostly walking around aimlessly. Should you have any suggestions, feel free to leave a comment.

Travel: My drug of choice

“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness.”
– Mark Twain

I love to travel, and I've been very fortunate to visit many places. One of my favorite countries to visit is Brazil. Its an amazing country both exotic and familiar for American travelers. The country has the can-do, entrepreneurial spirit many Americans identify with and like the U.S. - Brazil is a giant melting pot of people, races and religions. However, its history is more closely aligned with Portugal and the Latin speaking nations of Europe providing a uniquely exotic personality that thoroughly romances you. The picture above is a breathtaking image of Rio de Janeiro; one of the most beautiful places I've had the advantage to visit.

What are some of your favorite destinations, and where do you dream of traveling some day?

Rio de Janeiro welcomes gay travelers

Rio de Janeiro is one of my favorite cities in the entire world; it is easily one of the most beautiful cities I've ever visited. It is also an intensely sexual city since most men and women seem to walk everywhere in the tiniest bathing suits I've ever seen.

Gay life in Brazil and especially in Rio is alive and thriving. To welcome gay tourists Riotur joined with Rio de Janeiro City Hall and made this video to show why the city is a favorite destination for lesbian and gay tourists. If you are planning to visit Rio or have any questions about this magnificent city (or Brazil in general) please feel free to send me a question and I'll try my best to answer you.

Interesting Information about Rio
- First discovered in 1502 and founded in 1565
- 7,000,000 people live in Rio de Janeiro
- In 2014 Rio will host World Cup
- In 2016 Rio will host the Summer Olympics
- This is one of BosGuy's favorite places in the entire world

Travel reviews

I record many of my travel experiences (flights, hotel stays, etc) on my blog as well as a few travel sites, which I use when planning personal trips in the United States and abroad. I've come to rely on these tools, by identifying travelers with similar likes and interests, and I follow their reviews when I'm looking to visit a new destination.

Earlier this month I was in San Francisco. After returning home, I posted a review of my stay at the Fairmont San Francisco, on my blog and a couple of travel sites. I then promoted my review on twitter and facebook to let people know my thoughts. If you travel frequently, you may want to consider doing the same. In part, your active profile will tip off savvy properties that someone with a potentially large audience is coming for a stay and they may go the extra mile as the Fairmont did for me.

Fashion Faux Pas

How does a guy from Boston (a town best known for perpetuating preppy) end up looking like a porn extra? Its easy, just spend an afternoon in the Haight in San Francisco with Sean and David (pictured below)... I look like a cross between Captain Stubing and a Solid Gold Dancer... sorry for the early 80s reference, but its the best I can come up with...

Curious who dressed me? This handsome couple, Sean & David... You may recall I met these guys last summer and participated in their wedding as they eloped to Provincetown to get married because their home (California) is too small minded to be able to conceive of two men living happily ever after. I shouldn't come down too hard on California. If those state residents hadn't been so small minded with their vote on Prop 8, we would have never met and they've been such a wonderful couple to get to know (despite their fashion sense).

My stay at Fairmont San Francisco

I spent much of last week at the Fairmont San Francisco on Nob Hill. Not a bad place to call home if you ask me. I was lucky enough to get a beautiful room with a fantastic view from the 21st story overlooking much of the city and San Francisco Bay. I posted some of the views that greeted me each morning in previous posts.

What I did not show was the box (made completely out of chocolate) and the delicious handmade chocolate truffles that were inside it. The tray with chocolates was accompanied by a lovely bottle of red wine and was delivered to my room shortly after checking in. If the Fairmont was trying to make me feel special - I would have to say that they succeeded in making it one of the most memorable arrivals to a hotel. I was still taking in the beautiful views of my room and wondering how I was going to be productive with such a distraction when I was greeted by this delicious treat. If you're a traveler and would like to read my review of my stay at the Fairmont San Francisco, you can read it on TripAdvisor here.

I'd be remiss if I did not thank Lucas in the Fairmont business office for all his help and going the extra mile to make my stay so relaxing. It was certainly appreciated.

SF Transamerica Building and Coit Tower

The conference I'm attending officially kicked off last night with a cocktail reception in the Crown Room on the top floor of the Fairmont San Francisco, some 20+ stories high. The room is filled with huge windows providing spectacular views of the San Francisco skyline and Bay. Unfortunately, my phone died before the gorgeous sunset behind the Golden Gate bridge, but I've included two photos from earlier in the evening (sorry the camera quality in my phone leaves a lot to be desired).

Transamerica Pyramid opened in the early 70s and is as important to the SF skyline as the John Hancock is in Boston. Its unique design and iconic stature is even more amazing to see from the Crown Room at the Fairmont.

Coit Tower is the second photo and its a bit further off in the distance, but this art deco tower is one of my favorite SF landmarks and I couldn't resist snapping another picture of this beautiful tower.

Transamerica Pyramid
Coit Tower

Fairmont San Francisco

I arrived in San Francisco earlier this afternoon and have checked into the Fairmont which is a beautiful hotel located on Nob Hill. This beautiful property was built in the late 1870s and the hotel exterior and lobby exude all the charm and elegance one would attribute to that age.

I was lucky to get upgraded to the 21st floor. The pictures below provide glimpses of my view of the San Francisco bay. The first image shows Coit Tower and the second is the iconic Golden Gate Bridge off in the distance.
I'll include a review of the hotel and the service after I return to Boston and will post it on my TripAdvisor account.

Off to San Francisco

Work rarely takes me away from home for more than a day, but tomorrow (Wednesday) I leave for San Francisco. I'm using the opportunity to extend my stay through the weekend to visit with friends.

I was in San Francisco last summer for work, but the trip was a blur. I arrived in the evening and flew out the following day before lunch. This trip will afford me the opportunity to enjoy the city and get caught up with friends. I will be staying at the Fairmont San Francisco for the conference that is bringing me to California. This is a charming property that is fairly central. After the conference I will head over to my friend's Sean and David where they have offered to host me in their Castro Apartment. I'm really looking forward to seeing them and my good friend Jeff.

I don't anticipate having much time to blog, but I will be tweeting on my account, twitter.com/BosGuy.

Quick Update Just got upgraded by the Fairmont thanks to my tweets about travel. One more reason I love Twitter.

Je me souviens

One year ago this week I was in Paris with Sergio celebrating my 40th birthday. So I thought I would post a handful of photographs from the trip. I know that many people think the French and Parisians in particular are rude, but that has never been my experience. I love the food, the architecture, the downtown neighborhoods (and yes - the people too).

We had a wonderful time and splurged mightily staying at a beautiful hotel and enjoying all Paris had to offer. Some of the highlights included drinking champagne at a little bar in the Marais and people watching, having dinner near the opera house with Alicia, the views from atop the Eiffel Tower, and dinner at the oldest run brasserie in the city of Paris located in another favorite neighborhood, the Bastille.

Yo Amo Puerto Rico

As I type this from my hotel room, I have floor to ceiling sliding glass doors open to have an unobstructed view of the Carribean. Soothing sound of waves crashing below have made it easy to forget today is my last full day here in Puerto Rico. The resulting rainbow (click image to make larger) is from a passing shower; the first since arriving. The weather has been as fantastic as the people watching has been interesting. Within the first 24-hours I snapped, tweeted and blogged about two couples in particular; #SluttyCouple and #DrunkUglyCouple.

WranglerMan left the funniest comment, "Where are you staying? It looks as if the hotel caters to the "Jersey Shore" fan club!" I can see how one might think that, but La Concha Hotel is a "classy joint". I'm imagining that's how the cast of the show might describe this place. In addition to these entertaining distractions there have also been a number of interesting gay couples we've met and chatted with during our stay. Its easy to spot these guys with their iphones permanently set to Grindr, Scruff and other gay-themed apps all furiously trying to identify some guy's profile who claims to be just a few feet away. Then there are the clueless, handsome men who have come to get away with a friend, girlfriend or spouse. Really who they are traveling with is of no consequence. I'm just happy to see them poolside and at the beach. They are like nice art; just by virtue of being here they make the hotel more pleasant. When I get home, I'll post photos I took from my camera. However, til then enjoy these few pics from the past couple of days.

Handsome Dad who played with his well behaved toddlerAttractive guy travelling w/ couple to his right; couldn't figure out the deal but was intriguedYoung married couple who sat next to me and didn't speak the entire day

Hola San Juan, Puerto Rico

I arrived without incident on Thursday afternoon at La Concha Hotel in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The flight down was uneventful (thankfully) and the first 24-hours have been both relaxing and funny. I've already finished my first book, Catch Me If You Can by LB Gregg. It is 200+ page gay novel that is funny and easy to read about a lowly art gallery assistant who's world turns upside down. I found myself laughing out loud on more than a few occassions while reading this easy to solve, but entertaining gay-themed mystery.

I'm inserting a couple of tweets from the past 24-hours with accompanying photos as follow up from my previous post, Off to Puerto Rico. The picture quality leaves something to be desired but I took these with my blackberry and the camera is only mezza mezza. If you click on the photos they should enlarge.

TWEET: Zoom in + see #SluttyCouple. Makeout session aside, he has killer abs #GetaRoom
TWEET:#DrunkUglyCouple who kept bumping into me at the bar last night. Yup that's her leg on him. #ISeeUglyPeople
For more entertaining "Tweets", follow me on Twitter at @BosGuy.

Off to Puerto Rico

I'm making a mad dash to the Carribean to escape this bitter cold. I want to remember what it feels like to have the sun on my face and be warm.

Since I bore easily I will most likely be tweeting photos and witty comments poolside / beachside. See below for some examples of my "Tweet Pics" from my trip to Puerto Rico this past December.

My alter ego, "Vacation BosGuy" is about to emerge, so check back and follow me on Twitter. I've included some Tweet pics from my last stay at La Concha Hotel in San Juan from this past December.

My handle is @BosGuy.
Tweet Pic #1 "Random Handsome Guy"
Tweet Pic #2 Hotel Bar (dispenser of all things rum)
Tweet Pic #3 "Random Handsome Guy"
Tweet Pic #4 Hotel pool & patio

Sucker punched by Renaissance Hotels

Last week Renaissance Hotels announced on Twitter (handle, @RenHotels) they are offering a deal "Stay 2 Nights, Get Your 3rd Night Free" from February 10 - March 27, 2011. I was so excited because my partner and I are leaving to stay at a Renaissance property in San Juan, PR starting February 10th, and it never seems like I can leverage these last minute travel deals which regularly clog my inbox.

However, when I called I was told that the property we were staying at would not be offering the deal. I went from being psyched that we could save some money during our 5-night stay to disappointed and frustrated. It makes me wish I had not seen the offer. After getting off the phone today I blasted out a tweet crying foul, but I don't know if it will help or provide any satisfaction. Should I hear back from the Renaissance Properties, I'll be sure to update you.

Off to Puerto Rico (again)

I recently booked another trip to Puerto Rico so I can escape the winter cold. I leave in about 4 weeks and will spend 5 nights back at La Concha in mid-February. I had intended to book a trip to a new destination to see more of the Caribbean but Puerto Rico was easily the most affordable non-stop airfare from Boston.

I would not have anticipated that I would make a second visit to Puerto Rico so soon after my previous trip, but I'm getting excited now that it is just weeks away. Because I've been to this property a few times already, I feel like I know the area fairly well. If past visits are any indication of what to expect on this trip, the weather should be beautiful (hope I haven't jinxed myself by saying that) and I will spend my days poolside or on the beach, my afternoons (hopefully squeezing in a run), my evenings eating, and my nights sipping cocktails outside by the beach. I've included some additional photographs I found online of where I'll be staying to help sustain me until I board my flight and head back down to Puerto Rico.

Puerto Rico

I returned from Puerto Rico this evening and although I love my apartment, I wish I was still there. Last Thursday, I left for Puerto Rico to see my cousin, Mike, marry his long time girl friend, Kate, at the el Conquistador Resort. I'm so glad that I went to this wedding - it was so much fun and the setting was spectacular.

The day after the wedding - on Saturday - we left to check into La Concha Hotel in San Juan. As my previous post indicates, I tweeted through out the vacation with images (thanks to TweetPic) including restaurant meals, men who caught my eye and beautiful vistas. I've included a couple of the men who were at La Concha below but if you'd like to see everything you'll need to check out my profile on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/BosGuy.

Very handsome Spaniard who was on vacation with his wife
He was all smiles, unfortunately he only had eyes for his girlfriend.

Tweeting from Puerto Rico

While visiting Puerto Rico, I've been using TweetPic to post photos from my trip. For example, I tweeted a picture of the view from my balcony at El Conquistador resort here and one of the fountains poolside here.

And I'd be remiss not to point out the man-candy at the new hotel we checked into here. There's more, check'em out.

I'll be tweeting a bit more so check out my tweetpic of the eye candy that was at the pool today at La Concha Hotel and follow me if you're on Twitter at, twitter.com/BosGuy