"Gayteway To Europe" - New Brochure Courts Gay and Lesbian Visitors

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. March 24, 2010

Frankfurt, Germany - 23 March 2010 (tcf) - The Frankfurt Tourist+Congress Board (TCF) has launched its new brochure "Frankfurt City Guide - For Gays and Lesbians". The brochure is designed specifically for homosexual tourists who are travelling or would like to travel to Frankfurt. As well as the usual tourist sights, the brochure also features special attractions for the gay community such as nightlife, memorials to homosexual persecution, information centres, contact points or hotels that describe themselves as "gay friendly".

“CSD”: These three letters stand for an outrageous three-day celebration held annually in the Main metropolis. A truly internationally event, “Christopher Street Day” attracts tens of thousands of visitors to Frankfurt every year, spreading a joyous party atmosphere wherever it goes. Every July, Frankfurt's LGBT community (i.e., the city's lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender population) and its many friends take part in a peaceful protest march that serves to remind of the discrimination and oppression faced by homosexuals in New York on 28th June 1969. In 2009, over 100,000 people took to the streets to participate in this good-natured demonstration or to join in the parties organised by Frankfurt's gay community, which were held at downtown's Konstablerwache, the so-called “Bermuda Triangle' north of the Zeil promenade, and in countless pubs and clubs all around the city.

But that's not all that Frankfurt has to offer! There are myriad activities and establishments available to LGBTs during the entire year, such as a lesbian cultural centre and transgender counselling, men's-only underwear parties, thematic city walks and the celebration of “Pink Monday” at the Frankfurt Dippemess, the city's most popular fun fair. Darkrooms and cruising locations are also available aplenty in Frankfurt am Main. And during summer, there's the very popular gay sunbathing area in Grüneburgpark.

It's only a few short steps from downtown's Konstablerwache to the “Bermuda Triangle”, the hotspot of Frankfurt Rhine-Main's gay and lesbian scene. Here, one finds a colourful variety of establishments, such as Linda's “Schwejk”, “Alegria”, “Lucky's LM 27”, the “Comeback Club” and the “Pulse & Piper Lounge”, just to name a few. All of them are popular meeting places for people of all preferences, ages and walks of life. Other popular establishments include the “Metropol Sauna”, offering relaxing massages, the “Stall”, featuring a great collection of fetish products, and the popular book shop, “Oscar Wilde”.

The gay-lesbian cultural centre offers visitors an excellent alternating programme, as does the “Theatrallala”, run by the dance instructor/travesty artist, Thomas Bäppler aka Bäppi La Belle. A monthly magazine, entitled “Gab - Das Gay Magazin”, offers tips and topics on Frankfurt, Rhine-Main/Neckar and the rest of the world.

The “Gay and Lesbian Round Table”, meanwhile, was established back in 2002. This special Internet site, which may be found at www.frankfurt.de/sixcms/detail, provides address details for more than 20 contact points for gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transsexuals, including foundations, sports clubs, choirs and media, professional networks, student hangouts and much more. A youth centre for gays and lesbians is currently in planning. More recently, Frankfurt celebrated the election of its first gay carnival prince, Torsten Dornberger, the publican of “Schöne Müllerin“, one of the city's most popular apple wine pubs.

The latest news and events of Frankfurt's gay scene are aired every Monday from 20:00 to 22:00 h on “Radio Sub”. The Lesbian Information and Counselling Centre, meanwhile, aspires to provide information and counselling to its target groups.

On the culinary side, Cafe Größenwahn attracts not just gays and lesbians but people of walks of life. Journal Frankfurt recently awarded it the No. 1 ranking in the category of “Frankfurt Favourites”. Last year, the cafe-restaurant, with its cosy living-room atmosphere, celebrated its 30th year of existence.

At the start of June 2009, a special stone was inserted at Mainzer Landstraße 137: Termed the “386th stumbling block”, it reminds of the former residence of Nikolaus Kopp, who in 1936 was “admitted” to Eichberg Sanatorium and murdered five years later at Hadamar Sanatorium for his “sexual inclination”. The very first memorial stone commemorating a homosexual victim of the Nazi regime was laid in front of Savigny Street 53 in Frankfurt's West End on 05th November 2007. Designed by Gunter Demnig, it honours Johannes Bolz, a Frankfurt native who died at Dachau concentration camp in 1942.

An earlier memorial, known as the “Angel of Frankfurt”, pays tribute to the thousands of gays and lesbians persecuted and murdered by the National Socialists between 1933 and 1945. The sculpture, created by Rosemarie Trockel and erected in 1994, is located at Klaus-Mann-Platz, where it is scenically surrounded by a boxwood hedge and four park benches. The name of the square, commemorating the famous homosexual author and son of Thomas Mann, was given to this place of remembrance at the corner of Alte Gasse and Schäfergasse only once the sculpture had been erected there.

The AIDS Memorial at Petersfriedhof is only a stone's throw from the “Angel of Frankfurt”. Each year, on World AIDS Day, a nail is hammered into a special section of wall belonging to this cemetery for every new Frankfurt AIDS victim. The words “Verletzte Liebe” (“Wounded Love”) have been chiselled into the wall, representative of the topic that the artist, Tom Fecht, aspires to draw attention to with this unusual memorial.

After all, the message is "Frankfurt - Gayteway to Europe".

Contact: Gisela Moser, Frankfurt Tourist+Congress Board, [email protected]