When the sun goes down

It's no fun with the sun around, but I get going when the sun goes down

With the sun around
Provincetown was the next stop on my big gay adventure. I had been told by friends that it was one of the gayest places in the US. I had been due to stay with Matt & Paul, some friends from home who had recently bought a house in P'Town. However,  some over-running house renovations meant that I needed to find a B&B. They had sent me a photo of the current state of the house. It had 2 walls left & no roof. I joked that I could always pitch a tent where the house was supposed to be. I’m not sure they saw the funny side. I managed to find a double room at the Fairbanks Inn. Given I had managed to find a double room I thought some company would be good so I invited a friend from New York to join me. He jumped at the chance.

The Fairbanks Inn - a great place to stay!

After the early start and not much sleep I was feeling a little less than on top form so after arriving in Boston I found the nearest coffee shop and ordered a strong coffee to keep me awake until my ferry was due. I was joined by my friend, “T”. We grabbed a spot of lunch and headed to the ferry terminal early to make sure we got a seat. The queue kept on growing and we finally boarded for the 2pm crossing. There were so many gay men in one spot I renamed the boat the fairy ferry. The crossing was smooth, the sun was shining and I needed a nap. I got a call from one of the ladies from the Fairbanks Inn, Kathleen, saying that they were looking forward to our arrival. The Inn was only a short walk from the dock and we were greeted with a very warm welcome, shown around and taken up to our room. T was impressed with the location and our room & congratulated me. I said it was more luck than skill that I had ended up with a room but that I was pleased it was so nice and the Innkeepers so friendly.

T said that we had arrived just in time for the Tea Dance at the Boatslip (4pm to 7pm), which is a P’Town institution, and that we had to go to. I said that the first drink would either kill me or cure me. It cured me. The drink in question was a Planter’s Punch -  a shot of light rum, a shot of dark rum, a splash of orange juice and pineapple juice, Grenadine and then Bacardi 151 (which has an alcohol content of 75.5%) poured down the straw so your first mouthful is akin to taking a swig of jet fuel. My friends had warned me about the drink, telling me they had a two punch limit. I could see why.

I get going when the sun goes down

The Tea Dance was like nothing I had ever experienced before. The deck of the Boatslip was packed full of gays. There were a lot of fit men, not a chest hair in sight. I felt a little fat and hairy. Within ten minutes of being there T had bumped into some friends from New York. He knows a lot of people. He had warned me that if he didn’t introduce me it was because he couldn’t remember their names so I should take that as my cue to introduce myself. After three punches, we headed to meet Matt & Paul for dinner at Fanizzi’s. They were there with some neighbours, Pat and Betsy, who had been fully informed of my trip. We chatted about my trip so far & what P’Town had to offer. Betsy had the most charming southern accent, that made me want to ask her to just keep talking at me. An espresso martini and a huge burger later I felt it was nearly time for bed. The food was amazing.

Back at the Inn I headed into the bathroom to clean my teeth and get ready for bed. Our room shared a bathroom with another bedroom. We had been told the etiquette for knocking on the door first to make sure it was empty. While I was in the bathroom I pondered on what I would do if there was a knock from the other bedroom. My initial thought was that I would instinctively say “hello” if there was a knock at the door, which would probably not be the best response. I never came up with a satisfactory response but luckily nobody knocked on the door.

The view at breakfast at the Inn

The following morning we had breakfast outside on the lovely little patio area of the Inn. T and I then headed up to the Boatslip to lay out in the sun for a while, a chance for me to finally try and get rid of the t-shirt tan line. After a couple of hours of laying in the sun the air was pierced by a loud whistle and a cry of “Turn those sunbeds”. With the choreography of a chorus line the assembled sunbathing gays all stood up and turned their sunbeds through 90 degrees to once more be facing the sun. It is truly a sight to behold.

We had already settled in to the P’Town routine so did the Tea Dance at 4pm. The place was even busier than the previous night, which I didn’t think was possible. Everyone was in town for the 4 July celebrations the next day. Around 6pm I excused myself and headed to the bathroom. The queue was ridiculous so I told T I would head back to the Inn & then come back, which would probably be quicker. T said he would do the same. As we left we saw the queue of people trying to get in (despite the fact that it was gone 6pm and there was less than an hour of Tea Dance left). We skipped on trying to get back in and went for dinner instead.

After dinner we returned to the Inn to get ready to head out to a club night at one of the local venues. We finally bumped into our bathroom neighbours who were just coming out of their room as we got back. We introduced ourselves, exchanging names and hometowns. They asked if T and I were a couple. I said “Good god no”, then turned to T to apologise for the harsh reaction. He wasn’t bothered. Our neighbours weren’t a couple either. Sharing rooms with a friend seemed to be the thing to do in P’Town.

Getting ready for our night out, T told me he was going to be going topless and he convinced me to do the same. I have never been out clubbing and taken my top off before. I have seen many people do it back home in London and they are always young & skinny or muscle Marys. I’m neither of those hence me never doing it. I felt a little uncomfortable but after a few G&T’s I kind of forgot that I was semi naked. I figured this was the time to do new things. It was going great until T came up to me and said that he had been chatting to some guy who wanted to know where I had got my sweater from. So rude.

“It's no fun with the sun around, but I get going when the sun goes down” 
Lyrics from I Don’t Care If the Sun Don’t Shine from the musical Priscilla, Queen of the Desert