hornyfrog

That was only because it was closed on its regular Tuesday, due to New Year’s Eve. Call that a “special event”.

The recent well-publicized unaliving of the straight American male tourist who picked up two female whores in Lapa and with his friend, brought them back to their AirBnBs where one of them OD’d on “Boa Noite Cinderela” happened on my side of Ipanema. But there have been a combination of true tales — both straight AND gay — that are resulting in the clampdowns. Brazil is a very class-conscious country, and these Zona Sul areas in Rio where the sex tourists come to play are also in or around the best, most expensive real estate in the city. The top percent that lives here and runs the city knows it goes on (they even partake in it themselves, in many cases!), but they’re saying, “take it elsewhere. Don’t shit where we eat and sleep.” Local whoremongers go to the love motels or leave it at the saunas / brothels. What we DON’T want is for Rio to become yet another one of those cities that severely restricts or even bans short-term rentals like AirBnB or VRBO. But it’s always the dummies with inconsiderate, careless disregard who screw it up for the rest of us.

I live and own in Ipanema. My entire building is 24/7 doorman and has a “guests can have no unauthorized guests” policy. A lot of the apartments in the “nicer” buildings in Ipanema, Leblon and the more desirable parts of Copacabana are starting to institute this kind of policy — for safety reasons. There have been some recent (some well publicized, some not very known but to locals) incidents prompting these concerns. The condo boards and management companies are getting stricter with short-term rental policies. I have a rental here I own and no longer rent to guests who plan to bring any “company”. In spite of this development, my rental remains booked at capacity, and there are probably still plenty of other places to short-term rent in and outside of the area that will allow guests to have visitors.

But I addressed this very point in my comment upthread: ”Mondays being the most common. Club 117 was still closed on Mondays back then and Junior Barbosa was still the manager and owner back then. This was happening both before and after the pandemic.” 2 decades of going to Rio. I can’t recall Club 117 ever being open on Mondays to the public. That could be the reason free cabin nights at Point 202 changed exclusively from Monday to Wednesday after all these years. Unless you’re privy to the internal business decisions there (maybe you are?), it’s really hard to definitively say that it won’t EVER happen since the free cabin day has been changed, added and subtracted a number of times over the years.

I’m just reading this. This is such an odd hill to want to die on! Yes, right now, at this moment in time, Wednesday happens to be the only free cabin night at Point 202, but in the very recent past (like in the last few years) 202 has had free suite days on days other than Wednesday — Mondays being the most common. Club 117 was still closed on Mondays back then and Junior Barbosa was still the manager and owner back then. This was happening both before and after the pandemic. Here are some still posted flyers from Point 202’s Facebook page showing “free suites on Monday” in 2020 and 2018 (“Segunda-feira” or “segunda” is Monday, and “suites liberdades” means “free suites” in Brazilian Portuguese).

As a permanent resident, homeowner and brick-and-mortar business owner here in Rio, let me assure you that there are other costs besides rent or mortgage or menu items — and all of those costs have gone up with inflation. Electricity, water, gas. This is going to hurt the Brazilian clients and the working boys the most. The boys will probably feel they have no other choice but to try to bump up their prices, to go with inflation and cover the increase in entrance fees for them. I think it’s foolish to think that the garotos’ programa prices will drop as a result (not that YOU who I’m responding to might be thinking this, just anyone who might be). However, I do agree that Monik should invest in sprucing up the place — starting with updating the suites! As a longtime, regular customer, I’d feel a lot better about the price increases if I could see that the money is going into bettering the client experience — which includes aesthetics. Those round beds, plastic mattresses and flimsy linens are just awful!

Yes, this is all true. Also it’s worth noting that 117 also raised the entry fee for the garotos from 35 R to 50 R. Not long before that, it was 25 R. Inflation is a serious problem here in Brazil. Will there be enough boys that can afford to front a 50 R entrance fee, not knowing in advance how or if they will earn it back? Keep in mind that many if not most of the boys travel a long way to work at the club. Also, Brazilian clients (who earn their money in the Brazilian currency) have always been the most consistent client base. They also will feel the squeeze of higher entrance fees and cabin fees (and probably drink / menu prices, too). How this will affect attendance or spending at the club remains to be seen. Then again, with prices rising everywhere in Brazil, and the exchange rate being less and less favorable for Brazilians, there may be no other choice for these venues to keep the engine running but to go with the trend of raising prices. It’s either this or close up shop.

Just curious. Are you a big fan of Prince? He famously substituted words in his song lyrics for numbers.

Yes, by “I live here” I meant in Rio, not in the hot tub, Point 202 or any other sauna. Though I suppose it would be possible to attend the sauna so much that it could practically become your residence, I’m not aware of any client who has actually pulled that particular trigger yet. (A few working garotos have stayed temporarily in rooms at the saunas before. I think that would require a special arrangement with the manager or owner.)

Hi, long time Rio resident / expat here. This whole back and forth about whether or not there is higher pricing for gringos / tourists is never going to be solved. The answer is: “it all depends”. (1) It depends on who the garoto is. Some garotos price themselves higher than some others — usually because they look like male supermodels or are built like professional athletes, or are hung like a Shire horse — and the market has already taught them what price point they can command. (2) It depends on who the client is. Often, like with many other kinds of services, regular clients get reduced rates. A client that may not be seen ever again, or at the most only once or twice a year, or who may not see him regularly but also doesn’t provide him fringe benefits like gifts and Western Union, probably should not expect this kind of discount for a programa. Also, like it or not, looks / attraction as well as age, charm and personality, do matter to quite a few of the garotos — whether “straight”-identifying or not. The extremely rare superstar client that resembles something like George Clooney, Henry Cavill, Ricky Martin or Idris Elba would get this “discount.” But the overwhelming majority of us clients not blessed with such physical gifts aren’t in this category, and have to flirt with our wallets instead. (3) It depends on what the client wants out of the programa. Asking a garoto to do more performative or more “difficult” or unusual sex work in a short programa — especially for a visiting, rare client — is more likely to increase the cost. Remember, these are human beings, not machines. Yes, there are some garotos who want take advantage, act like scoundrels and charge foreigners more just because they’re gringos and might be naive or unaware of the current market. There are also some who will charge the same, no matter who the client is or what is done during the act. But the price is also to be negotiated and agreed upon in advance, each garoto charges his own price, and he is not obliged to charge the same price as the others, nor is he obligated to charge each client the same. The guys all are independent contractors, not employees of the saunas. The client goes into this knowingly and willingly. It seems like the problem arises when clients take these pricing differences personally. Hey, I’ve also seen the reverse occur: garotos getting upset when they somehow find out that a client paid another garoto more than him! So, it all evens out, I suppose… Gringos / tourists paying more has always been part of “the game.” It’s not like how it is with gentrifying-areas real estate prices; it’s more like tourist-area restaurants or gift shop two-tier pricing. It doesn’t seriously affect local pricing, and locals already know about the two-tier system. Gringos also try to “game” the system themselves by getting local pricing on what basically amounts to only a few dollars, euros or pounds difference between the two. Hope this helps.

Thanks.

Thanks.

Yes, I have. I live here. It’s used about 50% of the time when it’s operable, but it’s often not operable — like with the hot water in the showers.

The airport in Porto Alegre, the main city in Rio Grande do Sul, has been closed since May due to the terribly, deadly flooding in the region. Reports are that it will not re-open until December, at the earliest. https://www.argusmedia.com/en/news-and-insights/latest-market-news/2574807-brazil-s-porto-alegre-airport-to-stay-shut-to-dec

Fair enough. That’s actually the best we all can hope for — an even, fair exchange.