MOROCCO: TWO HAMAM EXPERIENCES MOROCCAN STYLE ~ VAGAYBOND

Contents:

• GAY MARRAKH TRAVEL GUI
• WHAT’S IT LIKE TO BE GAY … MOROC?
• VAGAYBOND
• VERY VERY GAY IENDLY HAMAM - DAVUTPASA ISKELE HAMAMI
• TANGIER GAY GUI AND HOTELS
• GAY MARRAKH

GAY MARRAKH TRAVEL GUI

Text 'GAYTRAVEL' to 1-800-GAY-TRAVEL (1-800-429-8728). — Travel Guis wh a Gay Perspective. Gay Marrakech.

WHAT’S IT LIKE TO BE GAY … MOROC?

The newer, more trendy (and more gay-iendly neighborhood) of Gueliz is found to the northwt of Meda. Marrakh Gay Scene. Marrakech is a fairly nservative Mlim untry, though years of French lonizatn and a cently sized expat muny mean there is a gay scene, however quat may be.

Homosexual sexual acts of both men and women are illegal acrdg to Morocn law, and the punishment for such rang om 6 months to 3 years prison and a fe.

Most gay-equented venu n along Avenue Mohammed V Gueliz.

VAGAYBOND

Gay-Friendly Activi & Attractns Marrakh. Gay-Friendly Dg. Gay-Friendly Bars & Nightlife.

VERY VERY GAY IENDLY HAMAM - DAVUTPASA ISKELE HAMAMI

An ternatnal bar wh beers, we, and spirs, L'envers is a hip bar popular wh both lols and tourists the trendy Gueliz neighborhood, a gay-iendly spot the cy. Moroc has been and remas a popular statn for LGBTQ+ travelers spe beg an Islamic untry where homosexualy is illegal and punishable by law. Homosexualy is seen by most of the populatn as a threat to the “tradnal valu” that support the expectatn of heterosexual norms and Mlim teachgs.

TANGIER GAY GUI AND HOTELS

As a nservative Mlim untry where homosexualy is illegal, there aren’t any official “gay hot spots” or LGBTQ+ celebratns. That’s not to say that gay-iendly bars, rtrants, night clubs or beach do not exist.

In urban centers like Tangier, Marrakech and Agadir, ’s possible to fd gay-iendly acmodatns and spots that wele a mix of gay and straight visors. Jamaa el Fna, Marrakech’s ma square, is the cy’s primary gay cisg spot after dk.

For those who heard about the se of Ray Cole—a Brish tourist arrted last year Marrakech, Moroc, on spicn of mtg “homosexual acts” and sentenced to four months’ hard time a Morocn jail prr to his early release— is perhaps difficult to image that Moroc was somethg of a gay paradise for whe men of standg the aftermath of World War II. Somethg of the gay scene moved to Marrakech, but suffice to say, is far removed om Tangier’s heyday and very much nfed to the margs. Gay life tak place the pths of certa hammams (Turkish baths) and the back rows of cemas, if people happen to know the right spots; needls to say, cisg plays an important role.

GAY MARRAKH

There are no gay bars, but a mix of gay and straight patrons n be found clubs that ter primarily to Wterners. Seen this light, the se of Ray Cole n be said to be another part of the story of the wherg away of gay life Moroc, or at the very least, the end of turng of a bld eye to . But what is more signifint about Cole’s se is that monstrat the te realy for gay men Moroc, namely, that while the laws on homosexualy are enforced nsistently, there is evintly a double standard employed their applitn.

The lerature available to potential gay travelers to Moroc—of which there is a great al sce, spe of laws and social norms there, Moroc remas a prime statn for package holiday-goers om Bra, France, and Germany—is very clear settg out what is and isn’t acceptable. Gay upl should rea om public displays of affectn and would be advised to seek out hotels and riads (a tradnal hoe wh an terr urtyard) known to be gay-iendly. The arrt of Morocns for “homosexual acts” occurs every day and go unreported.

The scen of Cole’s fay greetg him at Bra’s Gatwick Airport ntrast starkly wh how gay men are treated Morocn society: looked down upon, rejected by their fai, dismissed wh the Maghrebi Arabic slur zamel.