Home from Germany

I love Berlin. It is my favorite city in Europe and the "sister city" to Los Angeles, my home. Great food, people, beer, PARKING... what more could you ask for? Well, the weather could be better, but this is coming from a spoiled "Angeleno" by way of the East Bay Area of San Francisco. Now when I visit up north, I'm constantly cold. Cold and cranky. I'm shocked by how cold the city can be. And wet.

The first time I went to Germany was in 1994. I was 24 and on a crazy "5 countries in 3 weeks" tour. Book a Eurail train pass and "go for it". Never again. By the time my partner Mike and I arrived in Munich, I was OVER it. Exhausted and living out of suitcase... not for me. I wouldn't return to Germany until 2000. A group of us went to Berlin and LOVED it. Extrememly open and laissez-faire, it puts San Francisco to shame in its acceptance and freedom. Having grown up in the Bay Area, I always thought San Francisco was so unique in it's tolerance of others. In reality, it's a tiny little city with cool "areas". In some areas you are free to be WHATEVER. In other areas, you'll get murdered. The city is 7 square miles. For real. Not too tolerant overall.

Over the years, the quality of living has plummeted in San Francisco, especially in the Castro where I used to live. Homelessness, drugs, potholes, filth... all with the added joy of a dying gay scene and an outrageously expensive cost of living. One time while leaving my apartment on 15th street, smeared on the garage door was human feces (as if the culprit pooped, fell against the door and slid down). Lying on the ground at the end of the trail? A blood filled syringe. Good night? Good morning! A mass exodus to Palm Springs!? Why not?

That San Franciscans flock to Palm Springs still baffles the hell out of me. You could not POSSIBLY find two cities more different than San Francisco and Palm Springs. Don't get me wrong, I love Palm Springs and think it's beautiful-IN THE WINTER. Somewhere in the 90's it became socially acceptable for gay guys to live in Palm Springs FROM San Francisco while holding on to a weird, psychological hatred for LA... With the Dot-Com explosion and soaring real-estate prices, many people cashed out and moved down there. The juxtaposition of city life and desert life is radical though and not for everyone. One summer makes or breaks you in Palm Springs. It can be 120 degress for days. Maybe it's just what the doctor orders to dry out cold, wet, cranky bones... hmmm. Palm Springs anyone?