cinco de mayo: ISLANDS OF THE WORLD MEGAPOST – SOME GAY, OTHERS NOT SO MUCH

There are some islands that are so remote nobody visits them, others that are so beautiful they overwhelm the visitors.

ARGENTINA

Most of Argentina’s islands are located in Patagonia or Tierra del Fuego, so far south that the weather is inclement and living conditions harsh. Their location is as close as you can get to Antarctica and many are actual gateways to the icy continent

The Malvinas (Falkland Islands) contested by Argentina but under British rule; Argentina’s claim is one of vanity because of the geographical proximity but not worth going to war for them.

BELGIUM

Testerep (or Ter Streep) was an island along the Belgian coast. Later, the sea level dropped and the island became connected to the Belgian coast. As sea levels continue to rise, the land will be again disconnected to the Belgian mainland.

BRAZIL

Brazil has many islands as is to be expected for a country with so much territory. The largest island is Ilha de Marajó in the mouth of the Amazon River, measuring a whopping 40,100 km² (15,480 sq mi) ranking as the 35^th largest in the world. There are so many others, many of which are tourist destinations and hospitable, picturesque and gay friendly

Ricky Martin got a $6 million private island in Brazil in 2008. The island is famous for its beauty and convenience. It is also the perfect place to relax for the father and his two sons and his partner.

BRITISH ISLES

CHILE

A long and narrow country running from North to South it has very few islands off its coast with the exception of Easter Island of Darwin’s Theory of Evolution fame. The majority of Chile’s islands are located way to the South and just like Argentina’s islands they are extremely remote and have very inclement weather. Population densities are very low and few people visit them or want to.

CUBA

I don't know if it is just my imagination but in Cuba the skies seem to be bluer, a very deep ultramarine blue and when the evening falls there are the most spectacular sunsets. The sunrises are no chopped liver either. Cuba occupies the entire island and is the Westernmost of the chain of Caribbean islands. It is beautiful beyond belief and the birthplace of this blogger. The capitol is a replica of the one in Washington and the city of

Havana is presently like a time capsule...the old automobiles from the 50's and the buildings in a general state of disrepair. I wouldn’t recommend traveling there at the present as it has a very repressive totalitarian government, but great strides are being made by the gay movement as they have the daughter of the President as their champion.

DENMARK

There are about 406 islands in Denmark, not including the Faroe Islands or Greenland.^[ Zealand (also Sealand (not to be confused with Sealand); Danish: Sjælland; pronounced [ˈɕɛˌlænˀ]) is the largest island (7,031 km²) of Denmark (the 96th-largest island in the world and the 35th most populous).

DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

Shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti and is inhabited by arguably the most hospitable people in the world. It is one of the world’s most favored destinations. It is peaceful and relatively safe for tourists. One of the perks is that it is also very affordable. The weather is perfect almost all 365 days of the year and there is a lot of culture and historical sites to visit.

FINLAND

Incredibly beautiful, unforgiving cold but a great place to witness one of nature’s most spectacular phenomena: the aurora borealis.

FRANCE

The French have islands coming out of their kazoos, from the Caribbean to the South Pacific and even in the middle of the Indian Ocean (the Seychelles) thrown in for good measure. Most of them are delightful tourist destinations albeit a bit remote with the exception of Guadalupe and Martinique which are complete with temperamental, unpredictable and angry volcanoes. The beaches are first class and so is the food…well, what do you expect, they are after all French.

GREENLAND

ICELAND

Perhaps one of the most magnificent examples of the planet’s geothermal activities and volcanic interface with the frigid ice. It is breathtakingly spectacular. The natives are few and don’t get many visitors but they are so warm they can melt the ice that surrounds them. With only 270,000 inhabitants - less than a third of the population of San Francisco living on an island the size of Kentucky - Iceland has emerged as a high-tech welfare state with one of the highest standards of living in the world. Iceland sits remote and mysterious just a few hundred meters south of the Arctic Circle. The sun never sets in the summer and people live in daylight for 24 hours. During winter, there is almost no sun and most of the day seems like night. And yes, the aurora borealis is more spectacular there than anywhere else it seems.

INDONESIA

The Republic of Indonesia is the largest archipelago in the world comprising 17,504 large and small tropical islands fringed with white sandy beaches, many still uninhabited and a number even still unnamed. Straddling the equator, situated between the continents of Asia and Australia and between the Pacific and the Indian Oceans, it is as wide as the United States from San Francisco to New York, equaling the distance between London and Moscow. Indonesia has a total population of more than 215 million people from more than 200 ethnic groups. The national language is Bahasa Indonesia.
Among the most well known islands are

Sumatra, Java, Bali, Kalimantan (formerly Borneo), Sulawesi (formerly Celebes), the Maluku Islands (or better known as Moluccas, the original Spice Islands) and Papua. Then, there is Bali “the world’s best island resort” with its enchanting culture, beaches, dynamic dances and music. It is primarily a very devout Muslim country so that homosexuality is not cool there. But at some of the resorts it is not just tolerated but totally overlooked.

JAMAICA

Beautiful beyond comprehension but may be right up there among the most homophobic places on earth. I avoid it if I can and even go to the extent of boycotting cruises that stop there. Crass humiliation and violence against gays and even lynching are commonplace in Jamaica. I do believe that until Jamaica’s government embarks on a thorough campaign to fight homophobia and penalize hate crimes it is not going to be a place that gays can feel comfortable vacationing in.

MADAGASCAR

Officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island nation in the Indian Ocean, off the eastern coast of Africa with a population of more than 18 million. The main island, also called Madagascar, is the fourth largest island in the world. It is the home of five percent of the world’s plant and animal species, 80 percent of which are unique to Madagascar. Among its most notable examples of biodiversity are the lemur infraorder of primates, three endemic bird families and six endemic

baobab species. Madagascar offers an exceptional diversity of landscapes and climates as well as a diversity of still preserved and intact flora and fauna. Between perfumes and traditions, beauty and emotions, you will be tempted by one of the most beautiful islands in the world, charmingly unspoiled by tourism.

MEXICO

NORWAY

Thousands of islands with the incredible beauty of the fiords and the marriage of the sea and the land in dramatic contrasts.

PHILIPPINES

The Philippines is a tropical country with one of the longest coastlines in Asia at 36,289 kilometres. It has numerous beaches most with fine powdery white sand and clean, clear and cool blue waters. Be sure to bask in the warm tropical sun and get the perfect tan that will be the envy of your friends back home. Top Philippine beach locations: Boracay Island, Aklan; El Nido, Palawan; Camiguin Island; Pagudpud, Ilocos Norte; Puerto Galera, Mindoro; Nasugbu and Lian in Batangas; Ternate in Cavite.

PORTUGAL

There are no islands off the Portuguese mainland, however, the islands that are under Portuguese rule are located in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean and are among the most beautiful in the world. Most of these are of volcanic origin and have ragged, rough terrain which the natives have learned to terrace and plant.

PUERTO RICO

SPAIN

The country that gave us the Inquisition is now one of the most progressive and gay friendly in the world. Of course, same sex marriage is the law of the land and Spaniards don’t raise an eyebrow when they see two people holding hands. There are many Islands just off the coast of Spain in the Mediterranean. The delightful group known as the Baleares include Majorca and Minorca where tourism is really big and a gay destination. Then of course there are

the islands in the middle of the Atlantic known as the Canary Islands…these are by far the most spectacular in their natural beauty.

VENEZUELA

Margarita Island (Isla de Margarita) is the largest island of the state of Nueva Esparta in Venezuela, situated in the Caribbean Sea, off the northeastern coast of the country. The state also contains two other smaller islands: Coche and Cubagua. The capital city of Nueva Esparta is La Asunción, located in a river valley of the same name in Margarita Island. Primary industries are tourism, fishing and construction. The population of the state is about 440,000.

UNITED STATES

The United States claims the privilege to own many and varied islands, most of which are as famous and tourist destinations. From American Samoa in the Pacific, jumping half an ocean to the Hawaiian Island, then closer to the California coast Catalina and then in the Caribbean the US Virgin Islands, Key West, Miami Beach and in the Northeast there is of course the island of Manhattan. These are just a few of the best known ones.