This Saturday, 4/3, was a day of celebration for gays, lesbians, trans and straight people in the city of Cape Town, South Africa, with the traditional Gay Parade. The date follows the Mardi Gras calendar, as Carnival is called in many countries around the world.
With the theme "I am What I am", in free translation into Portuguese "I am what I am", around 10 cars started walking along Main Road, in Green Point, the region of the city where the bars and restaurants are located. gay restaurants, the epicenter of the city's gay nightlife, promptly at noon and continued about 2 km to Green Point Urban Park.
Nightclubs, bars and HIV prevention NGOs participated in the march. One of the coolest cars was the Priscila, a historical film from the 1990s that became a musical. As a way of publicizing the arrival of the musical in the city, there was a representation of the bus on the streets.
After the walk, the party continued in the park, however the format is different from what we see in Brazil, as to access the park you paid R50 (around R$13) and it works like a music festival, with a stage and music tents. drink and food. The bars set up in the park were Crew Bar and Beulah Bar, the two most famous and lively in the city.
Brands such as Vodacom, a telephone company that operates in dozens of countries around the world, was one of the event's supporters and sponsors, printing t-shirts with the phrase "Vodacom proudly supports LGBT".
The gay and straight couples had a lot of fun, but the unlucky atmosphere started right when the sun went down, for the singles. Many couples were dressed in matching outfits, a common tradition in Asian countries. It `s cute. Still regarding couples, the most common to see are black or white couples, interracial couples are not so common, as can be seen not only among gays, but in society in general, for which, in practice, apartheid not over yet.
After Party Collection
As South Africans are very lively, the party didn't end in the park, the city's two main bars were packed until 4am, when everyone in the city occasionally closes.
Gay marriage
On the African continent, many countries still punish homosexuals with fines, imprisonment and the death penalty, but South Africa is an example of progress. It was the first country on the African continent and also in the southern hemisphere to legalize gay marriage, in 2006.
