The term’s been around at least since Norman Mailer called himself a White Negro in the 1950s. But according to snide contemporary outlets like the Urban Dictionary, there’s not much more to the hipster than his/her ironic mullet, the preference for cheap swill and poor hygiene — oh, and the avowed dislike of the word “hipster”.

Citing the rise of real estate prices in hipster neighborhoods, Time Out New York has accused the demographic of selling out, morphing into “indie yuppies.” For true cool to begin its comeback, the hipster city guide argues, all hipsters must die.

Silver Lake lives this tension on the ground. Some more authentic heirs to boho beat culture still rent studios here, though the bubble has priced out a lot of starving artists. Body odor’s harder to come by, and Rough Trade, the gay sex shop, just closed its storefront.

These days, the area’s a vibrant mashup of rockstar shades, wildly expensive cheese shops, lingering dive bars, graffiti murals, industry types bravely forging a life far away from the West LA cult of the body-beautiful (but within walking distance of excellent coffee), and even, now and then, the occasional remnant Latino drag queen.

1. Red Lion

The Red Lion wears its dinginess with pride. Its dark wood interior makes it homey in a good way. And then there are the lederhosen. Yes, the waitresses play to the German theme with ironic/authentic attire. What could be more Silver Lake?

The bratwurst are greasy, the herring salad is salty, and the beer comes in steins. Some poor souls never even find their way past the second bar into the beer patio. I watched the last World Cup at the Red Lion, and plan to do the same with the next, thereby completing some kind of hipster/international circle. It’s a wonderful, hoppy, greasy experience.

2366 Glendale Blvd. (323) 662-5337

Cha Cha Lounge

2. Cha Cha Lounge

The last time I went to the Cha Cha Lounge, the smell of disinfectant was so overpowering I could barely drink my weirdly sour cocktail. My friend ordered Pabst Blue Ribbon – the original, ironic hipster Silver Lake move. The décor is what I would call Tiki frat revival by way of día de los muertos.

It has a wacky vending machine. It can be loud and unpredictable. Like many other Silver Lake institutions, it seems to have a drag queen past, but now usually seems hetero. Some would call the Cha Cha Lounge the dive bar ground zero for Silver Lake hipsterdom. Though any true hipsters therein would never say as much.

2375 Glendale Blvd. (323) 660-7595

3. Akbar

Akbar is another relic of truly hip old Silver Lake, from back when it was a gay neighborhood, but Akbar’s still consistently a mostly-gay hang-out. Its online manifesto is self-deprecating and funny, capturing the place well: “We think we’re Ginger, but we’re really Mary Anne.”

The dance floor’s small, but it gets going on a crowded night. You haven’t really lived Silver Lake until you’ve had a beer and done arts-and-crafts in the back room of Akbar. (I made a clock out of an old LP cover that says “Oriental Music.”)

4356 West Sunset Blvd. (323) 665-6810

4. Stinkers Truck Stop

Stinkers has an animatronic Skunk inside. Is this true to Silver Lake’s kitschy, unserious soul? Or is this the Jekyll & Hyde of Silver Lake, a theme-park-ready bar? J&H in New York signaled the historic end of Bohemia, as flocks of outsiders looking for a boho thrill settled instead for a waiter doing the monster mash.

Stinkers is not easily categorized. What does it mean that gangs of bikers convene here, but that they seem like they might be comprised solely of hipsters on crotch-rockets? What does irony mean when it turns on itself, again and again, devolving eventually into a mise-en-abîme of layered meaning? I don’t know. I just wanted to use that fancy French term in a sentence.

2939 West Sunset Blvd. (323) 661-6007

Silver lake Lounge

5. Silver Lake Lounge

Word on the street is that on a good night you can spot Kiefer Sutherland at the Silver Lake Lounge. It’s a black box with standard drinking fare, but it’s crucial for this list.

When my friend’s band played there, the lead singer was stuck between a protruding wall and a speaker. Highlight of the evening? The band-leader’s father-in-law wore Bose noise-canceling headphones for the entire show. Right in front. He said it worked better than earplugs.

This place still serves as a Latino drag queen hangout on some nights. It ain’t hipsterdom unless the music is loud, weird, and your shoes stick to the floor.

2906 Sunset Blvd. (323) 663-9636

6. 4100 Bar

The 4100 Bar is a hookah-lounge style affair. The drinks are standard. A little bit of parking. Nothing particularly out of the ordinary. Some goth nights, some gay nights, some crowded nights. It’s a good place to see a lot of other people and to drink with a feeling of being out and in private at the same time.

1087 Manzanita St. (323) 666-4460

7. Edendale/Mixville Bar

The Mixville at Edendale is part of the new Silver Lake, by which I mean, the new median housing price Silver Lake – i.e. it’s posh. The bar menu is tasty and comes with happy hour prices. The mixed drinks are good. The mojito is almost (but not quite) up to the “New Cocktailian” standards described by Los Angeles food-god Jonathan Gold.

Sit outside in the courtyard in the summer, or watch for the occasional celebrity in the crowded bar. The building is a retrofitted firehouse. When I saw an Olsen twin here, a man came up to her at the bar and gushed, “I love your work.” Ah, ironic Silver Lake.

2838 Rowena Ave. (323) 666-2000‎

8. Malo

Yes, Malo means bad, but in the good way. Another posh-ish addition to the scene, Malo has incredible chips and salsa. Burn your tongue with the habanero crème salsa. Cool it with a margarita. You won’t ever want to stop. They have a good tequila selection. You can almost forget that Sunset Blvd. is roaring outside, especially in the summer.

4326 W Sunset Blvd. (323) 664-1011

9. Tantra

beautifulsilverlake.com

Bollywood dance music comes to life on packed Friday nights at Tantra. It’s a loud but glitzy lounge, with mango martinis and Indian food from the restaurant.

If you’re just having dinner, it’s too much to pay for what is just good Indian food. But if you’re looking to drink froo-froo cocktails, maybe dance, maybe try to do that thing they do with their heads in the Bollywood videos, you’re in the right place.

3705 W Sunset Blvd. (323) 663-8268

10. Spaceland

It’s not really a bar, it’s a music venue. But you can’t say you’ve been to Silver Lake without stopping at Spaceland. Every indie band since indie was used to describe bands, and probably since before then, has played here.

On a good night, with the right music, you can smell the bohemian dreams dripping from the ceiling. It’s an intimate venue. I live within earshot of this place, which I used to think was annoying, but now that I’m being slowly priced out, I’m grateful for the bit of grit that the thumping Spaceland baseline still gives the neighborhood.

1717 Silver Lake Blvd. (323) 661-4380

Community Connection

Feel like tempering all that carousing by bettering society? Urban Volunteering: Los Angeles could have just what you’ve been looking for. If you’re looking for a crunchier approach to life, the 8 Best Treks in California might be up your alley.

How did the idea come about to start this night in Berlin?

A very small group of English and American friends (led by me, Robby Block and Desmond Tumulty) used to meet on Wednesday nights at Marietta, a neighborhood café in Prenzlauer Berg that draws a gay crowd one night a week. It’s full of cute neighborhood guys, but it’s also impenetrable and intimidating. During a year of hanging out there, we hardly met anyone — and I’d say we have pretty well-developed social skills.

We then changed bars and Desmond started casually calling it our weekly “Queer Beer.” We still weren’t meeting people and we continued kvetching about how difficult it is to make connections in German society. We constantly joke that the Germans are “socially autistic.” It is bad to make sweeping generalizations about other cultures, but there is a certain amount of truth in them.

At some point in 2008, I said we should stop bitching and take charge of the situation by starting our own weekly event. The joke was that we could use it to meet Germans on our own terms. On Jan. 18, 2009, QBT was born at Perle Bar in Prenzlauer Berg.

I found the party on Couchsurfing. How do you promote it and what’s the general audience?

We promote the party mostly on Facebook, but also on expat Web sites like ToyTown Germany, which is an excellent resource for people living here, and Gayromeo, the local gay dating site. Robby, Desmond and I also advertise in Berlin’s monthly gay magazine Siegessäule, which is important for drawing tourists. One Swedish guy found the ad last spring and has been back to Berlin three times since and is now moving here.

In terms of the general audience: Anyone who is queer or loves to hang out with them is welcome. Queer is such a great word because it is all-encompassing and also has “punk” associations. It allows you to avoid the LGBT bullshit, which sounds like a chicken’s innards. You can say “queer” and not worry about offending anyone.

The three of us who started QBT are all long-term residents of Germany. I’ve been here almost nine years and Robby and Desmond have been here similarly long. So from that starting point, it was really important to us that this not be a bitch fest for whining about Germany — that’s just too cheap and easy. And we also want it to be clear that Germans are not only welcome, but also highly desired. We don’t want to create any kind of “parallel society” with this event — we just want to be able to speak English one night a week and experience a bit of home.

When we began, we kind of figured it would be 90 percent Americans and Brits. Instead of becoming an Anglo-American ghetto, though, it has become a truly international event. We get lots of gays from other EU countries, especially in the east, Russia, Turkey, some from Asia as well as the Americans, Canadians, Australians and Brits. An increasing number of German guys and gals are also coming, which shakes things up in a great way. We’re also starting to get Erasmus students from other European countries.

We have bartenders who come and we have English teachers, translators, professors, tv personalities, media types and diplomats. The only rule is that we detest snobbery in any form. You can be critical if you come and you don’t have to be salt of the earth, but you do have to be open-minded, friendly and have a modicum of social skills.

Your night feels more like a popular party or a hangout, rather than a crazy all-nighter. Was that by design?

Back in the heyday of gay Berlin in the 1920s, Christopher Isherwood used to hang out at a working class bar called the “Cozy Corner.” I would like to think that we offer a cozy corner, a place where people can turn up once a week and hang out and speak English with other people from different cultures.

We also deliberately avoided the German term “Stammtisch” for weekly gatherings because, for the most part, QBT is completely anti-intellectual. We didn’t want to have yet another venue where you can lament the war in Afghanistan or climate change. It’s a place where you can meet people, drink enough beers to behave absurdly and also drop your pants if you’re lucky enough.

What’s up with that drag party that people were going to after yours?

Chantal. So many stories, I wouldn’t know where to begin. But having Chantal’s House of Shame gives us a place to send the kids when we’re done partying on Thursday nights.

Do you have any tips for what are the current “hot” places in Berlin right now on the gay scene?

The most famous club in Berlin and perhaps that world right now is Berghain in Friedrichshain. But if beats per minute or aggressive door policies are not your thing, then it will be hell for you without drugs. Skip it.

I think it’s safe to say that, after Chantal’s House of Shame, the QBT crowd gives its strongest endorsement to Schwuz in Kreuzberg. Schwuz is sort of like a gay community center/nightclub, but also very cool. Like QBT, it draws a very diverse crowd — at least in terms of age. It’s very friendly and always fun, with its themed parties.

There are French nights frequently and Madonna- and Kylie-Mania parties. Irrenhaus (Insane Asylum) at Geburtstagsklub is also a favorite – it’s also hosted by a drag queen, Nina Queer.

How big is the gay expat scene in Berlin? Is it growing?

Berlin is one of the world’s gay capitals. The word “expat” always conjures up images of Americans and Brits. The image should be a lot bigger, though.There are so many Eastern Europeans and Russians in Berlin, SOME OF WHOM are escaping cultures that are incredibly repressive towards gays. If you add Eastern Europe to your view of what it is to be “expat,” then the population in Berlin is huge.

What would you say to the person who might be intimidated to go to the party by themselves?

We try to look out for new arrivals, but it is getting admittedly harder because the crowd is growing. All you need to do is ask the barkeepers about QBT. We have two sweet and very sexy bartenders — Roberto and Andreas — who are pretty vigilant about informing the QBT organizers (the “queen bees”) about newcomers who are here for the party.

I haven’t heard of many parties like this. Do others exist?

It is important for us to admit that we are not the first. Munich has a monthly gay expat event that has existed for a while, and there are probably a lot of other places with similar parties. We had a guy visit from Lyon, France last summer who wants to start his own. This idea is in the public domain and we encourage others to jump on the QBT bandwagon.

The party is held every Thursday at Perle Bar, Sredzkistrasse 64 in Prenzlauer Berg, Berlin, Germany. Join the Facebook page or check out more information at Toytown.

Community Connection

Gay and worldly? Give an eyeball to ten of the world’s farthest flung gay bars. Fans of Berlin, be sure to check out a photo tour of Berlin 20 years after the wall’s fall and a great rundown of places to chow down in a hurry.

High fiving at Barcade. Photo by theleetgeeks

BARCADE

Barcade’s raison d’etre is thirty vintage video game titles, including Donkey Kong, Frogger, Asteroids, Punch Out!, Gauntlet, DigDug, and many others. Supplement that geeky awesomeness with 25 tap beers featuring a strong local presence, chill bartenders, and even small shelves between games to hold your pint while you blast aliens and rescue princesses.

388 Union Ave 718.302.6464 www.barcadebrooklyn.com

TURKEY’S NEST

On the northern fringes of the neighborhood, Turkey’s Nest still represents for your grandparents’ Brooklyn and is unquestionably the best place to drink a beer in a styrofoam cup on the entire planet. This time machine to the golden age of blue collar Brooklyn is a dive in the best sense of the word.

Friendly bartenders, downright cheap prices, a defiantly unhip juke box, and a cast of characters that spans half a century of local flavor are just some of the highlights of this delightful neighborhood bar that has refused to surrender to the hipsters and the too cool crowd.

Spuyten Duyvil. Photo by ladandersen

94 Bedford Ave., 718.384.9774

BEMBE

Bembe lies on a sketchy block under the bridge and looks like an abandoned warehouse as you approach their giant wooden door. Upon entering you’ll be smacked to Miami Beach, as your senses are lambasted with Latin percussion sounds, suave bartenders who look the part, and legions of sexy locals dancing the night away. Great and varied live music occurs nightly.

With an impressive menu of fruity island cocktails and low on attitude vibe, this is the dance club for people who hate dance clubs.

81 South 6th Street, (at Berry Street) 718.387.5389 http://bembe.us/

BROOKLYN BREWERY

Although only open for Friday happy hour and Saturday afternoons, this is still a prime location for unpretentious socializing and people watching with 300 of your best buds. Walk in and buy some tokens, redeem them for fresh malty goodness and sit at any of dozens of long wooden tables.

79 North 11th Street, 718.486.7422 www.brooklynbrewery.com

SPUYTEN DUYVIL

Ale enthusiasts from all over the city make pilgrimages to this Belgian themed beauty. With dozens of obscure and fanciful bottle selections and decadent appetizers to go with them, this upscale tavern (named for a loogie-slinging Lucifer) takes the genre to new heights.

The bartenders are knowledgeable and usually very good, although some regulars grumble that they aren’t quite as attentive as they once were. Regardless, there is nothing else quite like it any closer than Brussels, and that’s a good thing.

Photo by bitchcakes

359 Metropolitan Ave. 718.963.4140 www.spuytenduyvilnyc.com

NITA NITA

With a modern Iberian themed menu and an impressive selection of specialty cocktails like the Tequila Mockingbird and the Barton Pear, Nita Nita adds a touch of sophistication to a bar scene that could use it. The outside patio and cozy atmosphere make this an awesome first stop of the night or date destination.

146 Wythe Ave (At N. 8TH St.) 718.388.5328

HAREFIELD ROAD

This cheerful nook is frequented by many of the artists and writers that live in the vicinity. With wood everywhere and a relaxed atmosphere, this is the place for those long, pointlessly meaningful conversations with your best friends. Harefield also provides a multitude of beer choices (26 selections on tap), as well as plenty of wine by the glass and a wide range of single malts.

769 Metropolitan Ave., Brooklyn, NY 11211 718.388.6870

METROPOLITAN BAR

The Metropolitan is Williamsburg’s reigning dean of gay bars but has a reputation for embracing and welcoming everyone and feels as much a neighborhood bar as anything else. Part of that is the friendly, laid back clientele and staff and part is the comfy booths and light, airy atmosphere over two sprawling floors of drinking fun littered with pool tables and video games. The summer months reveal the opening of a vine-covered backyard and Metropolitan’s famous Sunday afternoon free barbecue.

Radegast Beer Garden. Photo by wallyg

559 Lorimer St., Brooklyn, NY 11211 718.599.4444

RADEGAST HALL AND BEER GARDEN

This authentic Czech beer hall is ten blocks south of The Gutter but four thousand miles away in spirit. Radegast revels in the glory of lager and ale, not to mention bratwurst, kielbasa, and schnitzel. It’s the minor details that really make this joint, from the homemade sauerkraut to the waitresses wearing straight out of Bavaria dirndls while hoisting steins.

The old world feel is reinforced by the tap selection, which hail almost entirely from central Europe. The whole deal is complemented by a strong bottle list, fine wine, and a full bar. The reasonable prices and smiling staff make this one a winner across the board.

113 N 3rd Street, 718.963.3973 www.radegasthall.com

THE GUTTER

The Gutter is a gorgeous vintage bowling alley, dismantled in Minnesota, trekked cost country, and reassembled on a cool warehouse row in the heart of Williamsburg. Brought to you by the same geniuses in charge of Barcade, The Gutter is a classic hangout with a great beer selection of mostly local microbrews, retro but hip décor, and reasonable prices on pitchers and pints. Large cafeteria-sized tables and a friendly atmosphere make it easy to meet new friends as well as chill with your old ones. Perfect for extreme bowling.

200 North 14th Street, 718.387.3585 www.thegutterbrooklyn.com

Community Connection

Immediate goal: Learn how to say “one more beer” in 50 different languages. Follow up by studying the 20 best beer towns in America. Finish by enlightening yourself with the 10 best summer cocktails you’ve never heard of.

Photo of Afro Mama Jams from Makena by the author.

Girding up my flip-flops and sheltering under a battered orange umbrella held together with spit and safety pins, I set out for my friend the Acrobat’s house across town to see if we might make a plan.

Thus it was that we found ourselves at nearly midnight at the Makena Cantina Club (free entry on Sundays) in leafy Palermo swigging cold beers and waiting for the band to start.

Makena is unashamedly red, black and under-the-top glitzy. I like the little red shiny tiles and the long rectangular fish tank window at the front which always makes me feel deliciously voyeuristic. I like its size – not too small that you know everyone in there inside of 15 minutes, and not so big that you haven’t a chance in hell of ever finding that hottie at the bar who grinned at you so engagingly.

Photo of bottles from Makena by the author.

The bar is built on three levels – ground floor for dancing, first floor balcony for sprawling on sofas and the stage on a mezzanine in between. Giant silver mirror balls sparkle and twist in the dim light. Row upon row of liquor bottles are red-backlit behind the long dark bar. The walls are red and black. The art is monochrome. The bathrooms are so tastefully done out that I’d be happy to do up my kitchen in the same style if I had one.

Sunday night is the regular Afro Mama Jams night. These guys are a soul/funk/R&B/hip-hop collective, with a core of regulars and many guests. On the whole they are fantastically talented. The crew is all about having a good time and doing huge amounts of improvisation, which when it works is bloody marvellous, and when it doesn’t makes my ears bleed.

They start off well: low-tempo funk improv. Slide onto sofas on the upper level and let the smooth sounds of well-played guitar, keyboard and sax wash over us. Turns out the saxophonist can sing too. All groovy, literally, but hardly stuff to swing the hips to.

Some of the musicians swap on and off the stage and I gradually become aware that they’re not entirely in tune. Start concentrating and come to the conclusion that they’re starting a quarter to half a key different and staying there for the whole song, all except for the keyboardist who seems to be playing a different melody altogether.

A pretty girl belts out an Erykah Badu cover which would have been wonderful but for the disharmony behind her and the fact that the guy singing the duet with her is so out of tune he should be gagged.

Matters improve when the best regular singer of the crew, a diminutive chap with the most enormous afro hair and the pure funk-soul energy of a younger Michael Jackson jumps up and gives it some welly, but he’s a fighting a losing battle against the discord.

The crowd was sparse this night, but if Sunday finds you low on cash and looking for something to do, there’s always Makena and Afro Mama Jams. It’s usually a better time than the end to the waterlogged weekend detailed here.

Community Connection

Matador’s Focus Page on Buenos Aires is a great place to start whether you’re already here or on your way. From public transportation to volunteering, we’ve got you covered.

Photo of the author and some friends at Scholars. Feature photo Mr. Gunn

What did four months of studying abroad in Rome teach me?

How and where to drink!

Photo of Anima: Author

My first night in Rome a friend decided it’d be hilarious to tell an Italian named Marco that I was single. An hour later, we had to make a quick escape.

We mocked Anima all semester, but it held a special place in our hearts—special enough for us to return more than once against my pleas. We occasionally scored free champagne.

Via Santa Maria dell’Anima 57

Everyone knows Scholar’s. If you miss sweaty dive bars where everyone shouts the words to “Don’t Stop Believing,” then this is the place to be. Still, if you desire any real social interaction with Italians or greater connection with their culture, don’t subject yourself to this bar more than once or twice. Okay, fine, maybe three times.

Via Del Plebiscito 101b

Smack among the hustle and bustle of Campo dei Fiori, The Drunken Ship floats alone—a testament to Americanized Rome. The Drunken Ship remains a favorite port of call for Roman partiers for one big reason: drinking games. With tables set up for beer pong and flip cup, you’re sure to meet some new friends who may just become your next fearless challengers.

Piazza Campo de’ Fiori, 21

After about a month in Rome, my cousin sent me a message: “I see you’ve discovered Sloppy Sam’s. That’s where I spent my 21st Birthday!” I cringed a little. On second thought, Sam’s isn’t all that bad a place—assuming you don’t mind drinking beer out of plastic cups.

Piazza Campo de’ Fiori, 9

Photo of La Boticella: Author

This was just about my favorite bar in Rome. Located just steps from Piazza Navona, even the walk from the 990 bus stop reminded us how beautiful the city can be at night. Tucked away on the side streets by the plaza, Botticella’s is a small bar where peanut shells are scattered across the ground, and the bartender (Giovanni) knows his customers by first name.

There’s usually a sports game on, and a loner at the bar just waiting to share some epic travel story about how he ended up there.

Via di Tor Millina, 32

Art Cafe is artsy and pretentious. Even so, it provides a nice escape from tourist traps. Located on the edge of Trastevere, a quaint neighborhood with beautiful architecture and scenery, the bar is filled with hip Italians and their friends. It’s a good opportunity to practice your Italian flirting…er…language skills.

Piazza Trilussa, 34

Cheap Bar has a legitimate name, and if I remembered it, I’d tell you what it is. The truth is, the drinks cost so little that we had too many to ever take note.

What I do know is this: there is an outdoor patio that floods onto the streets on the Vittorio Emmanuele side of Piazza Navona, bubbling with the joyful buzz of alcohol-induced chatter. I once bought a Boston Iced Tea there in honor of my hometown. It was both a great idea and huge mistake, as all the best nightlife choices are.

Address unknown

Photo of Shanti: Author

Shanti has delicious cocktail smoothies and an authentic hookah bar. We loved to hang there when we were too lazy to brave Campo. Sitting on the floor, you’ll be surrounded by beautiful woven rugs and prayer flags, able to relax and test out the various flavors of tropical shisha.

Address also unknown. Must be the smoke.

Trinity College is another quintessential Irish pub in Rome. The true appeal here is location: right off of Via del Corso. It’s a great hangout after a day of site-seeing.

Even better is a walk to the Colosseum or Pantheon at the end of the night. I recommend you grab some wine and take advantage of Italy’s open container law (or lack thereof). Touring the monuments after dark is a great night out, especially with a bottle of wine.

Via del Collegio Romano, 6

Alexanderplatz is a jazz bar right around the corner from Vatican City with an upscale, downtown vibe and great live performers. Whatever you may think, Rome isn’t completely lacking in class—after all, it’s home of the Pope!

Via Ostia, 9

Community Connection

Armchair Travel before you go? MatadorTV’s got Rome in a Nutshell. Italy on a budget isn’t impossible. Find out how to stretch those euros with How to Enjoy Italy on 30E Per Day.

Photo of a First Friday acrobatic show by madmarv00.

The coolest bars in the city are here, so step away from the tourist scene, the Tiki-bars and umbrella cocktails of Waikiki and head into the grittier, sharper, more exciting Chinatown district.

Art is a central theme in Chinatown’s regeneration. At most of these bars you’ll find rotating art exhibits on display.
The first Friday of every month is the First Friday Art Walk. Galleries stay open late and the bars get slammed. If that’s not your thing, try the new Slow Art Fridays on the third Friday of the month. Slow Art Friday gives viewers time and space for greater appreciation of the art on display—something that has been getting neglected in the rowdy, alcohol fueled First Fridays.

Photo of a live show at Mercury by the author.

A few blocks back from Hotel (see below) in a short alleyway, Mercury is a small, divey space where you’ll often see local burlesque act Cherry Blossom Cabaret perform.

1154 Fort Street Mall, (808) 537-3080

Winner of local newspaper supplement Metromix’s Best Bar 2010, Bar 35 is a fancy-looking red bar that has lots of comfortable couches and around 200 different types of beers from around the world. Monday night at Bar 35 is Happy Hour all night. Whichever night you visit, be sure to try Chef Valentini’s handmade, thin-crust pizzas, which have unusual, gourmet toppings like sweet chilli and tzatziki .

35 North Hotel Street, (808) 537-3535

Photo of Thirtynine Hotel by the author.

Thirtynine Hotel has a great, large lanai (patio) and soon after it opens at 4:00 P.M., fills up with local workers enjoying a pau hana (after work) cocktail.

Thursday night is Prohibition, a speakeasy themed night with Jazz music, classic movies and delicious cocktails. In true Prohibition-era speakeasy style, you will need to know the password to get in: here’s a hint, become Prohibition’s Facebook Fan and they’ll email it to you weekly.

39 North Hotel Street, (808) 599-2552

Photo of artwork at Nextdoor by the author.

You’ve got to love the simplicity of thought that went into naming Chinatown’s bars; Bar 35 is at number thirty five; Thirtynine Hotel is at 39 Hotel Street and Next Door is indeed next door (to Thirtynine Hotel). The space has a warehouse feel with a large open floor, red brick walls and mystery door in the middle of one wall – a relic from when the building was split-level.

This is one of the best venues in the city to catch live music; you’ll often find local bands like The Jump Offs, GRLFRNDS and Clones of the Queen playing here. Friday night is electro/breaks night Blow Up and they also throw lots of fun, inventive parties.

43 Hotel Street, (808) 548-6398

It’s easy to forget that Manifest actually opens at 7:00 A.M. and is a pretty chill coffee spot during the day. Nights at Manifest are the flip side: parties, live bands and arts shows all take their turn at this bar that only opened in August 2009 and has already been given a shout out by the New York Times.

32 North Hotel Street, (808) 523-7575

Photo (and feature photo) of art at Soho by madmarv00.

Another good place to see local bands and visiting acts. From the outside, Loft, which is above a bakery and looks a little dingy. Once you get up the creaky staircase, you’ll find an inviting interior with giant red lanterns and a few comfy sofas.

115 Hotel Street, (808) 521-8008

A few blocks back from the main-drag of Hotel Street, Soho Mixed Media Bar was the winner of Metromix’s Best Nightclub 2010, Soho’s best night might be the 80’s themed Acid Wash on Wednesdays.

80 Pauahi Street

Community Connection

Looking for other things to do in Hawaii? Big Adventure on the Big Island of Hawaii could be a place to start. If the new experience your after is food, Foodie Primer for Hawaii: 13 Local Foods to Try may give you a few fresh ideas.

Cookie. All photos by author.

It’s been voted the World’s Third Most Livable City and is as diverse with its sub-cultures as it is with different drinking establishments. With the competition between watering holes being so high, you’ll find it difficult to find a place in Melbourne that you disagree with, or find without having to venture down alleyways and corridors.

Cookie

The whiff of subtle (yet pleasant) Thai dishes engulfs your right nostril and the banter of the crowd hijacks your left ear. The Cookie’s cocktail list is elaborate, the top-range beer is book-sized, and the presentation is even more impressive.

Even on busy nights, bartenders will create lavish cocktails without breaking a sweat or aimlessly look for an abstract liqueur up the ladder.

Rooftop Bar

While the name gives away its floor level, it’s in the same building as the Cookie, which saves travel time and grants a magnificent view of the city. Deck chairs surround the umbrellas protecting you from UV rays and the bar’s plastic cups remove the issue of falling objects journeying seven flights to ground level.

Rooftop Bar.

It’s a relaxed atmosphere with music that won’t blast away conversation, as well as a perfect way to soak in the sun when Melbourne allows it. Unlike many of the world’s other rooftop bars, most nights the turns into an outdoor cinema.

Penny Blue

This small but elegant bar is hidden down an alleyway in the city central. It’s a sophisticed spot with staff who know their drinks. Microbrews found around Victoria state and Australia are frequently hand-delivered fresh from the brewery, and lavish couches fit for an overzealous Queen’s posse keep your derriere comfy.

The Croft Institute

Melbourne’s alleyway reputation gets a full screening when you look down a zigzag of alleyways to The Croft Institute. Initially a mental institution, the building has become a themed spectacle.

The first floor is reminiscent of a high school science class with luminescent beakers, test tubes and mind-numbing shots being served in syringe capsules that squirt into your mouth. Upstairs bathrooms have come out of a 1950’s detective film.

At the top is the gymnasium equipped with a dance floor, wooden seating, house music and real grass on the bar, ready for your stumbling fingers to pat and gawk at. It’s well worth the search around the city and a memorable place to drink.

Belgium Beer Cafe.

The Esplanade

This musical house has survived names big and small. The Esplanade is in the perfect position to offer a romantic sunset, while the rock bands inside blast away every night. You couldn’t find a better place near the beach for anyone to feel comfortable, nor a more eclectic mix of music.

The initial darkness of the place may be off-putting at first but for music lovers this is the place for real, raw and most importantly live music.

Belgium Beer Café

Imagine the outdoor setting of a beerhaus in Germany and you have the Belgium Beer Cafe. The pub’s inside is a homely oak feel, but when it’s warm and sunny you’re best enjoying your Belgium beer in the expansive outside area, surrounded by the trees and benches.

There’s an array of over 100 imported brews (like the delicious Kriek) and grub to keep your palette satisfied.

Madame Brussels

You’d swear that this bar is an advertisement for 1950’s tennis wear or an Alice in Wonderland tea party with the elaborate furniture catering to those wishing to feel like a high-class citizen of the past. Fancy and refreshing cocktails are served for ’singles’ (for two) and ‘doubles’ (four), tempting enough to have for yourself. Selling decorated cupcakes, friendly service and a stylish list of wines is a bonus for the bar with a view.

Section 8.

The Local

On the slight outskirts of St Kilda and Chapel Street is a bar that has the utmost respect for beer. The stage hosts an array of entertainment every night, surrounded by couches to soothe any traveller’s mind from strain. The comfort of the restaurant upstairs and outdoor area makes this warm and wood-finished pub a great place, rain or shine.

La La Land

It’s bigger than you think, but your first impression of Chapel Street’s La La Land is ‘cozy’. The nice walkway to the bar passes the funky, cushy seating and a fireplace. Drink specials are on every day and the staff are always running around with friendly banter and offering seated service, when time permits.

Section 8

Section 8’s origin came from the idea that there’s more potential for a small parking bay down a tiny alleyway than it just being littered with metal with wheels. Replacing it with a larger hunk of metal in the form of a shipping container, Section 8 in the city central is hidden from the public eye and is also one of Melbourne’s simplest and best.

Start in the afternoon without sun glare and admire the Asian artwork and lanterns on the brick wall as you sink down a longneck beer or a mixer in a non-pretentious environment. You’ll want to keep this place to yourself.

Community Connection

In love with Oz? Be sure to check out our Matador hub for all things Australian. If you’re just into bar culture, feel free to peruse our pieces about the world’s best rooftop bars and the top dive bars in Las Vegas. If that isn’t enough, you might get a snicker out of where to find ten of the world’s farthest flung gay bars.

Photo by nareas

THERE’S MORE to backpacking through Bangkok than getting drunk on Khao San Road. There’s getting drunk around the corner too. Here are some of the spots I like:

Na Bangkok

Hidden in the rubbish bin lined alleys across from Khao San, Na Bangkok is set in a 100 year old house. Popular with university hipsters, this place is good for racking up a few games of pool or just lounging on the antiques over some drinks. Plus, from the front courtyard you can to peep on the neighbours going about their lives.

Photo by shandrew

From Khao San Road, turn left onto Tanao Road. Walk 150m and take a right into the lane named Trok Bowonrangsi. Take the first left and you’re there.

Street Drinks on Soi Rambuttri

Come 8pm or so, every restaurant, pub or entrepreneur with foldable furniture will set up tables and chairs along the street, serving food and drinks.

The open atmosphere makes it great for meeting others. Just be wary of where you sit, as many have acoustic live music, with some performers being decidedly average. Music from one performer often interferes with another, leading to unwanted mixes of Cat Stevens with Oasis.

Along Soi Rambuttri between Chakapong Rd and Tanao Road

Barlamphu

A simple bar offering well-priced snacks and drinks. The party tends to merge with the neighbouring restaurants as the night goes on the crowd grows.

Soi Rambuttri, towards Chakapong Rd.

Bangkok Bar

Molly Bar. Photo by Harry Haze

Set in a two story high house tucked in off the street, Bangkok Bar has the feel of a dolled-up dive bar. Stake a claim on the central table that spans over the ornamental pool – just don’t drop your iPhone.

100 Soi Rambuttri

Lollipop

The 15 minute walk to get here from Khao San may sound unattractive, but this pastel coloured bar rocks and shouldn’t be missed by live music fans. The venue regularly hosts local bands playing covers or original music. Imagine a a house party where the band plays in your living room and you’ve got Lollipop.

At Democracy monument walk 400m down Thanon Dinso, turning right into Thanon Mahannop. 100m on the left is Mahannop Soi 1, inside on the left is Lollipop bar.

Cinnamon Bar

A classy entrance, modern interior and pool table gives the feeling of a nice find hidden off Soi Rambuttri.

106 Soi Rambuttri

Molly Bar

Street drinking. Photo by carljoseph

Molly Bar is a Thai favourite in the area for a long time now and a great place to party hard with the locals. There’s a seriously friendly and laid back vibe inside, often with a band playing in the corner (and sometimes sharing drinks with partiers nearby). The walls are filled with photograph and there are two floors of indoor and outdoor seating.

108 Soi Rambuttri

999 West

Previously known as the Suzie Pub, 999 West keeps the feel of the previous establishment. The place doesn’t seem to attract the large crowds anymore but its daily drink promotions, dark-yet-friendly interior and live bands make it a good choice of venue to spend your baht.

100/5-6 Soi Rambuttri (in walkway between Soi Rambuttri and Khao San Road)

Deep Bar and Oh Bar

Lollipop bar. Photo by author.

Deep bar is located down the Swensons end of Soi Rambuttri, and Oh Bar is just around the corner from here.

They’re both recommended for those who like their Thai pop/rock music loud, their whiskey by the bottle and for those who think that personal space is overrated. There’s also a good little balcony over the street for people watching.

Tak Sura (Thai name shown only – ตักสุรา)

You can’t help but be charmed by this 100 year old house house and its yard. There’s a friendly atmosphere, though it’s better to come for a drink over dinner than to spend the entire night.

From Khao San Road turn right onto Tanao Road. Cross Ratchadamnoen Klang and keep walking straight. It is located 100m on the right down a short lane, opposite Naga Travel.

Community Connection

Matador has Thailand covered, from Thai customs to how to eat an ungodly amount of shopping mall food.

Coming around the corner, Berlin’s Bier Bike is a shocker. Heads turn and lips pucker with envy as passengers clank glasses and down foamy pints of suds. Cars nervously skirt by the slowly moving vehicle, tourists point in awe and all the while the bike’s passengers do all that is necessary – pedal and drink.

A bizarre contraption, the Bier Bike has been on the streets of Berlin since this May. It operates on a simple system. Eleven peddlers sitting on barstools move their feet in unison to propel the bike forward. The company’s sober driver sits up front and steers, making sure that the bike stays on course.

No injuries have been recorded as of yet, according to the bike’s driver/manager Ulli. The most common customers tend to be those with celebration in mind, often bachelor parties or sports teams.

I asked Ulli about the most any on group has had to drink. The record currently stands at 50 liters. The question then had to be asked – were they British? “Yes, of course.”

The Bier Bike – which comes stocked with brewskies and a sound system – is available to rent for two hours or more. It (technically) holds up to fifteen passengers and runs around 100 Euros for a two-hour tour and more for longer excursions. Beer is an additional cost, running €3.50 per liter.

The bike runs two routes around, one through Mitte and another towards the north side of Kreuzberg. For more information visit the Bier Bike website.

www.bierbike-berlin.de

Community Connection

Matador is bike happy. If you do nothing else, be sure to check out some of the freakiest bikes on the road in Hal Amen’s photo essay. Also check out Attica! Attica!’s plan to tour the USA by bicycle and raise money for World Bicycle Relief in the process.

Photo of mildly homoerotic hotdog feud and the rest of the photos in this piece courtesy of the author.

Whether you’re a townie (born and raised in the city), a bayman (from the wilds of isolated Newfoundland) or an outsider, George Street has something for you – and I’m not talking about herpes, necessarily.

Early Evening

On the weekends, people begin milling around the street sometime shortly after supper. Business suits take drinks on the ritzy patio of the Martini Bar, while a more casual crowd orders nachos on the Sundance Sundeck.

As the sun sets, vendors shuffle their hot dog carts and french-fry stands onto the street, ready to seduce visitors with promises of greasy goodness and merchandise of questionable nutritional value.

Tip: Do not eat the street meat. Ever.

Mid-Evening

Masterless Men Playing

Starting around 10:00 PM, the party gets started. Pubs such as Greensleeves and the Rob Roy set up for live entertainment which includes local bands cranking out accordion and fiddle music and solo artists.

Regardless of the venue or entertainment, I have never known any band or musician to be acknowledged with anything except loud hollers of happiness, jig stomping, and hip grinding on the dance floor. Grab a beer, and join the party.

Late-Evening

Unlike many places in Canada, the bars in St. John’s stay open until 3:00 AM. If you’re in the mood for dancing and being felt up by the opposite sex, check out Konfusion, where the confusion extends beyond spelling. If being mauled by sweaty college kids isn’t exactly your thing, head over to Dusk Ultra Lounge for sexy lighting and an older, more diverse crowd.

How to Maximize Your Time on the Street

The party does not stop on the weekend. For residents living in downtown St. John’s, hearing loud music and drunken assholes at all hours of a weeknight is a real hassle (unless you’re me, who considers this clamour a lullaby). Most bars and pubs have a specials night, such as Turkey Joe’s which hosts Lady’s Night on Sundays and The Dock which offers 3-4-5 beers (three beers for $5) on Thursdays.

Woman of the Night Taking her Evening Constitutional

When you want to get so hammered that Toothless Tom becomes your best friend and you eventually go home with a stripper, you need to attend a George Street event, when the street is closed down from end-to-end, and party-goers pay a cover fee for the entire street. This means that a $15 charge allows you to wander from bar to bar in a happy, drunken stupor for the entire night.

You can even pour your drinks into a plastic cup and socialize freely between bars. Assemble with the rest of the drunkards in front of the stage situated in the middle of George for some live music. Oh yes, this street has its own stage.

For street events, check out St. John’s very own Mardi Gras, which takes place at the end of October (Newfoundlanders like to do things differently). The town shows up in a colourful array of Halloween costumes, and prizes are awarded for Best Dressed.

Canada Day is another important event, but the real height of shitfacedness can only be reached during George Street Festival at the end of July: one week of open bars, live bands on the street, a real Newfoundland kitchen party, and hundreds upon hundreds of drunken fools and slutty females.

Like Disneyland, Except for Drunk People

The real magic of George Street is that there is an endless supply of bars and pubs to be discovered. After living in this city for three years, spending nearly every weekend downtown, and actually walking through the street to get to work every day, I still find myself catching a glimpse of a bar I have never seen before in a hidden alleyway, or a club long since forgotten from my early college years.

I’m often puzzled as I walk into quiet, less crowded venues like The Well and Trinity Pub to realize that these pubs have a great deal of personality often overlooked for the popular, more crowded nightclubs.

Everyone in St. John’s has a love-hate relationship with George Street. They hate it because at some point they toppled down the concrete stairs and puked in some girl’s purse; they love it because the street provides an endless opportunity of hook-ups and short skirts.

So when you’re in the middle of the street on a warm summer’s evening, drinking legally in public with hundreds of people all enjoying live bands, an alcohol-infused tear of happiness will slide down your cheek and you will sip your cold beer and say, “Honey, I’m home.”

Photo of Chicken Shit Bingo at Ginny’s Little Longhorn Saloon courtesy of the author

Ahhhh dive bars. The smells. The clientele. The homey feeling that says, yes, you can wear your pajamas here and no one will even look at you funny. And makeup? What make up?

“Come as you are,” says the dive bar. “I won’t mind, because at least you look better than Sheryl who lives 2nd bar stool to the right of the beer taps. You know Sheryl of the puckered cleavage and cackle seasoned with a mild windpipe obstruction?”

Whenever I move to a new place, I head straight for the dive bars. That’s where you get a feeling for the true heart of a city. The people you meet at dive bars are the real thing. I’ve lived in Austin, TX for a while now, and this city is rabid about its dive bars. I’m sure to piss off a few aficionados, but this is where I get my beer.

Photo of what you’ll be avoiding in Austin: Neeta Lind

One of the best things about Texas is the legality of the set-up bar. This means you bring your own liquor. Just about all of the dives mentioned here are set-up bars. They do sell beer, but bring your own bottle of Wild Turkey and for a few bucks you can get some ice and mixers and have yourself a good cheap drunk.

On Sundays, bring your lawn chair and maybe a cooler to the parking lot because the place gets packed for chicken shit bingo.

Pick a square, everyone gathers ‘round to watch, and if Sissy the chicken takes a shit on your square—you win!

Really, everyone wins when you can answer the question “What did you do with your Sunday?” with “Oh, I watched a chicken shit.” That’s what Hank “Big Billy” told me as he sweated in his trucker hat and spat some chaw into a styrofoam cup. Go there. You’ll meet him.

Photo: b+c+c+f

C-Hunt’s is a cash-only, BYOL establishment with a popcorn machine and a pool table. Don’t wear your flip-flops, though. There are usually rocks and assorted beer caps on the floor and you could injure some toes. Outside is a kick-ass patio with picnic tables and a massive vine overhead.

Most of the good dives are off Burnet Road. Burnet Road is the Mecca of Dives, and Austin itself is a Dive Bar Mecca. I guess that would mean C-Hunt’s is a Triple Mecca.

Get yourself a Lonestar, the National Beer of Texas, for a buck, and get some dirty, dirty jokes from the creepy owner for free. Can’t beat that deal.

Photo of the people you may meet: DC FIXX

This place hides out in far south Austin, and it’s the kind of place where the music stops and the regulars’ heads swivel around to stare at you when you walk in. “You from around here, boy?” Or girl, depending. I like to think that all the license plates on the wall are from the out-of-towners who got waylaid in the parking lot.

Nah, it’s not that bad. This place is honky-tonk, so it’s a good place to check out live music. And rednecks. Lots of rednecks.

If you’re under 50, you’re probably the youngest person here.

I like a place where you walk in and are reminded that people used to be able to smoke in bars – not because I’m a smoker, which I’m definitely not – but I am pro-freedom. Austin passed a smoking ban just last year. It gets more citified and Californicated every year – it was bound to happen.

Sam’s Town still has a cigarette machine. I think the deal is that this place is actually right outside the city limits (as in a few feet outside). This dive is right in the middle of a neighborhood, and the owner actually lives here. In the bar. I’d call that pretty welcoming.

You can smoke here too, and you’ll meet some characters. That could mean out of a horror flick, or just plain truck drivers.

You better like country, or you are out of luck at the Horseshoe. You have about five beer options and you’d better not order anything too fancy or you might get tossed out into the parking lot. I take my handy little flask here, because the sign on the door encourages it.

Last time I tried that at some snooty 6th Street bar they told me it was illegal and also to “get out.” Screw them.

The Horseshoe is always more fun anyway, and the staff is sweet. Watch for that guy that sells tamales, I think they’re awesome but it could be because I’ve never had one sober.

Most of the time, you will get to witness at least one good fight so wear your brawling shoes.

Photo: emdot

Another Burnet treasure. They do have a few bottles of liquor here, so you don’t get to bring your own.

The two ancient, cranky ladies that own/run the place decorate for Christmas year-round, or more truthfully they just never take the decorations down. There’s some back story about a death in the family and the dead person liking Christmas a whole lot, but honestly when I heard the story I was beyond remembering it the next day.

Note to self: when doing a bar crawl along Burnet, you will never remember anything the next day. Please remember to remember that next time.

This place is definitely in the city limits and there are definitely always people smoking when I pop in. Go during the week, it can get crowded on the weekends.

It’s right in the middle of the shadier part of the East side of town, which some people are afraid to drive through but which happens to be my neighborhood.

If you want to hear the blues or funk, go to TC’s.

Some nights there aren’t any white folk present, and that usually means that’s when the good blues is playing. This place gets packed, sweaty, when the music takes over and the whole place shakes with dancing in a slo-mo, hot southern night. Mondays are good, the cover is $3 but they have free food.

Photo: Jason Rosenberg

Donn’s is actually a depot, a refurbished old train station. I like trains, and I like bars, so I’m pretty happy when they’re both the same thing.

Be careful walking around in here, the floor seems to be several different levels just waiting for a drunk so it can cause a faceplant. Evil floor.

There’s a real train car in here, they have food, sometimes there are old ladies and sometimes there are hipsters, but Donn’s has survived most of the yuppification that has gone on in this part of Austin.

You can still get cheap drinks, but there is often a cover. I know this is a live music town, but I am a conscientious objector when it comes to covers.

The best things about Donn’s are that you can really say hi to Donn, and there is a stripper pole in the bathroom. I like stripper poles.

Photo (and feature photo): Tseandwyer

Frenz Frenzy. Osaka, Japan.

The only gay bar in Osaka run by a foreigner, Frenz Frenzy looks better designed for a Sid & Marty Krofft show than it does for drinking. Dubbed “rainbow heaven”, the venue looks like some kind of twisted first grade glassroom. You’re definitely going to have nightmares after you finish that crantini.

Real. Almaty, Kazakstan

Yes, a gay bar in Kazakstan. Believe it or not, many people say that Christian influence in this part of the world is what’s softening up Muslim attitudes toward gay life. Trip on that for a minute. A website for the area turns up a few bars, including Real, which seems to be the dandy of the scene. Friday nights prove the worldwide ubiquity of the Drag Show.

Beyonce? We think not. Photo: Babasu

Ying Di Jiu Ba. Xian, China

You’ll have to work hard to find this spot, marked only by its telephone number (8762-6676). Once inside “Indy” you’ll find a packed house. Prize night is very popular – simply pay Y$10 to open one of ninety sealed boxes and find out what’s inside. Terrifying.

The Blue Light. Sheboygan, Wisconsin, USA

The Blue Light is host to the Mr. and Miss Lakeshore contest, although it would appear from photos that the winner in each category may have a penis.

Linga Bar. Siem Reap, Cambodia

If a day of exploring Angkor Wat has made you long for some dude love then this is the place for you. Linga Bar serves all kinds of fruity cocktails. Featured in the January 2009 Travel & Leisure, we’re wondering if the author was aware that many of the patrons (who are quick to sit on your lap) seem to be interested in a little bit of side work.

The Linga Bartenders. Photo:Asiax89

Flamingos. Hobart, Tasmania

Open on Friday and Saturday nights, Flamingos has been a mainstay in the Greater Hobart Area. They’re currently in the middle of a little facelift and will re-open later this summer. Google alerts, people!

Ko Ko. Yangon, Myanmar

While not listed as a gay venue, this cafe is owned by a renowned hairstylist. That’s code where we come from. Not surprisingly, reports say that the crowd tends to be hip and stylish. It’s a bit hard to find, so go armed with the address: 9 Sayar San Rd (near Mr. Guitar).

Q Bar. Reykjavik, Iceland

The self-proclaimed “hottest gay bar in Iceland” is in Reykjavik. This is one of those multi-faceted bars with a night for everyone, from the kind of (elderly, drunk) folks who like pub quizzes, to the (tweaked, drunk) folks who like to dance to bad house music. June 2nd was Speedo Night and we’re not asking for pictures.

Q Bar in Reykjavic, before doors open. Photo: Wendycrockett

Pegs N Pints. Delhi, India

A blog about this place gives a real sense of how difficult it is to be gay in India. Pegs N Pints seems to be Delhi’s sole outpost and is only open on Tuesday nights. Things change fast for gay establishments in this country, so make sure that it’s still open if you plan to attend.

Acid. Beirut, Lebanon

Acid is renowned as the first gay bar in the Middle East. It’s as weird to type as it is to read. Not surprisingly, very little information is available online about the outlet, however a website makes sure to point out that “Excessive same sex affections and body contacts are not tolerated.”

Editor’s Note: The author has several lesbian friends, knows the drill and wishes to head off many tirades by saying that there is a planned follow-up to this article just for girls. Chill, please.

Despite Iceland’s infamous financial collapse, things aren’t as cheap as they’ve been rumored to be. A bottle of wine can be prohibitively expensive in a restaurant and a beer will run at least $6 for a pint.

Yet the residents of Reykjavik are still out en masse, partying until the sun comes up, and you plan to join them.

But first, a little lesson on how to make the most of the rúntur without winding up bankrupt yourself.

What is Rúntur?

In the small towns (though towns might be an overstatement – most are just a sparse collection of houses) that dot Iceland’s countryside, the rúntur was devised as weekend entertainment by youth bored during the winter months of near-endless night.

The word rúntur translates to “round tour” and that’s just what it is. Teenagers cram into their cars and make laps along the local roads, stopping occasionally at a car park to socialize.

In Reykjavik, rúntur is also the name given to the weekend pub crawl, when partiers make their way around town to multiple bars and clubs. Ask any Icelander and they’ll be the first to admit – they drink a lot.

In summer they drink to celebrate the long sunny days and in winter they drink to make it through the cold, dark ones.

Straight-laced and sober during the week, Icelanders let loose on weekends. It seems that alcohol is so expensive, they figure if they are going to pay a fortune to drink, they might as well really go at it.

Preparty

Hopefully, the first stop you (along with everyone else) made in Iceland was at the Keflavik Airport Duty-Free shop. The duty-free sells wine and liquor at up to 60% less than what it costs at the city shops.

A liter of strong, smooth Reyka vodka that runs about 2100 kronur at the Duty-Free might sell for 6600 kronur in the city. If you didn’t think to stock up, you’ll need to make an afternoon stop at the Vinbudin liquor store to prepare for the evening’s festivities.

Start with dinner at home or in a restaurant, but not too early. You’ll need stamina to party until dawn so rest up and don’t begin your evening until around 9pm.

Dress

The Reykjavik rúntur is a dressy affair so look the part. For men, jeans are okay so long as they are fashionable, though slacks and a sport coat are also popular. Women’s fashions run the gamut from sexy jeans and slinky tops to trendy dresses, and it matters little what the weather calls for. It’s not unusual to see bare legs and peep-toe shoes in the dead of winter.

After dinner, head back to your hotel (or better yet, a new friend’s apartment) and start drinking. If you want to be on par with everyone else, you’ll need to have several drinks under your belt before you even think about walking out the door.

Where to go

The main rúntur activity takes place on and around Laugavegur Street.

You may be surprised to find the quiet cafés and restaurants you were in just hours earlier have now been transformed into raucous clubs and bars. For live music, head to Nasa, which hosts everything from performances by local jazz musicians to sets by famous DJs.

Feel like hitting the dance floor? Check out Sólon or B5 – both bistros by day, dance parties by night. Kaffibarinn, owned by Damon Albarn of the band Blur, is a more low-key alternative and good place to relax before heading to the more lively clubs.

What to drink

Beer was banned in Iceland until 1989, but now several local breweries produce it, and quite well actually. The most popular brands are Viking, Kaldi, Thule, and Egils. At $6-8 a pint, beer will be the cheapest option and if you’ve followed the rúntur protocol and pre-lubed a bit at home, it should be all you need. Most clubs also offer inventive cocktails and all your favorite standbys, but these libations will cost you much more.

Once you’re in the clubs, there’s no pressure to spend. It’s not unusual to nurse one or two beers all night and buying a round for friends is virtually unheard of. The more frugal partiers are also known to sneak a few nips from a pocket flask as they travel between bars.

Late night eats

As 5am approaches the clubs begin to empty and the streets fill with the well-dressed and well-tipsy. Wander down near the harbor to Bæjarins Beztu Pylsur, the most popular hot dog stand in town. Icelanders take their hot dogs seriously, making them with lamb and covering them with remoulade, ketchup, mustard, and raw and fried onions.

Wait in the long but fast-moving line and then take your bounty back to the city’s main square to join the gathered crowd. The scene is much like last call in any bar around the world: separated friends are reunited and trade stories of the night’s escapades, singles mingle and find their last-minute hookups and everyone else begins to stumble home.

In summer, the sun will be shining brightly overheard while in winter, it will be dark for several hours – just long enough to let you rest and recover for the next round.

Tomorrow, after all, is Saturday.

All photos courtesy of the author.

Community Connection

This article was originally a blog on the Matador Community. See Katie Hammel’s Original blog here. Create your own blog and profile on Matador today.

Photo by ssandars

Here are ten of the finest, most colorful Montana watering holes I have had the pleasure of scarring my liver in. Though there are many others that are worthy of this list, these bars are standouts due to their local flavor and their proximity to world class recreation.

The Palace Bar, Fort Benton

Photo by mattdente

Located within a stones throw of the mighty Missouri River, The Palace Bar in Fort Benton beckons as a fine beverage house with a friendly attitude.

I first found the Palace Bar the night before an extended canoe trip many years ago. With its aged wooden interior and friendly service my wife and I were soon feeling right at home.

A few drinks into our evening a woman in her sixties and her older sister walked in. Turns out, the older sister was actually her 90 year old pistol of a mother. This spry lass found a lonely piano against the wall, sat down and rocked the house. Playing, singing, dancing and drinking, even at 90 she could party with the best.

We camped that night (under a park bench) along the river. My wife had found slumber while I, fearing rain, was stowing our gear. To say I was alarmed when I saw the beat up Lincoln Town car creeping towards us with no lights on would be an understatement. I was armed when the car stopped and the high beams glared in my face.

I was relieved to hear the bartender’s voice. He had come just to inform us he’d kept his word and acquired some horseradish for our mornings Bloody Marys. Now that is service!

Fort Benton is quite the historic place. It has had an important role in the settlement and exploitation of Montana. These days it is better known as the last bastion of “civilization” before many Missouri river trips.

The Metlen, Dillon

I’ve always had a knack for letting a normal drinking night erupt into a spontaneous party and on one of these nights I found The Metlen in Dillon. Several years ago I helped haul a handicapped hunter and the deer he shot out of the woods. We both got animals at about 10:00 am and his ride wasn’t due back till after 5:00.

By the time we had everything loaded up in my truck I was a tad parched and in need of refreshment. When we hit the closest bar this guy told me to let him do the talking and I wouldn’t have to buy a drink all night. Once he started telling the story of our day and my hauling him and two deer out of the hills, that booze started flowing like a river.

Photo: liber

As the night wore on I was taken under the wing of these four random cowboys. I don’t remember most of the drive (except a fight in Wisdom) but apparently we crossed the Big Hole and went to Dillon.

My memory of the rest of the evening remains foggy except for one incident. The cowboys I was with started another round of fights and this old guy I was sitting next to got fed up with the ruckus.

He casually got up, walked behind the bar and grabbed a can of bear deterrent pepper spray. He leisurely walked up to the pile of people fighting and announced that if they “couldn’t drink like normal assholes” he was going to hose down the lot of them with the spray. As I recall, they all opted to start playing nice.

Dillon is located in the middle of some of the coolest country in the state. You are close to the Big Hole, phenomenal climbing and backpacking and a whole host of blue ribbon trout streams. Also, Dillon has a college so there is a decent nightlife for such a small town. Finally, there is a Patagonia outlet store in Dillon that boasts annual clearance sales that are unbelievable.

West Glacier Bar, Glacier

Every good outdoor location needs to have somewhere nearby to re-hydrate and when in Glacier, the West Glacier Bar gets my vote. I found this honey hole after a pack trip many moons ago. After six hard days in the rugged terrain of Glacier the booze hit me hard and I fell asleep at my table around lunch time.

Photo: tavallai

I awoke to the dinner crowd getting rowdy feeling refreshed and ready for round two.

Barn board walls and low lighting initially obscure the stuff on the walls.

As your eyes adjust you can see the pictures and relics on the walls and you begin to realize that the bar is a mecca for climbers, backpackers and whitewater enthusiasts. Be prepared to hear several different languages on any given day as the park draws quite the international crowd.

Rocky Knob, near Conner

I was just a wee ladd of 19 when I first discovered the magic of the Rocky Knob. I was a hunting guide at the time and I would cut loose, real loose, at the “Sloppy Knob” on my few nights off. This is a fun loving redneck bar where almost anything goes as long as you don’t act like a dink or like too much of an urbanite.

Rocky Knobb, Photo courtesy of Rocky Knobb Lodge

The bar is attached to a hotel and a restaurant that has semi-fine dining. It is said that the bar was built in the 1940’s for a colorful lady named Ptomaine Joe who traded personal favors to the loggers and carpenters who built it for her.

I have gotten to know many folks that have worked there over the years and they all attest to the fact that the place is haunted. The hunting and fishing in the area is awesome and the family friendly Lost Trail ski area is just a wee bit down the road.

Miner Saloon, Cooke City

If you should happen to be exploring the famed Lamar Valley of Yellowstone National Park, do yourself a favor and make the small side trip to Cooke City and the Miner Saloon. Depending on the day and the bartender, this place can be an absolute riot. It has a party waiting to happen year round and it doesn’t take much for things to disintegrate into a drunken melee.

This place is surrounded by the Beartooth Wilderness and Yellowstone so there is plenty of fun to be had. The fishing, ice climbing, backcountry skiing and snowmobiling are off the charts.

Coming through the park you will pass through neighboring Silver Gate which also has a fine beverage establishment. If you have an off road type vehicle, I highly recommend taking the Bannock road between the two towns. Do yourself a favor and be sure to drive this road in the daylight before trying it in the dark!

Photo by symic

Charlie’s Bar, Babb

I’ve already mentioned the cool stuff going on around Glacier Park. At the north east corner of the park is a little town called Babb. Babb rocks!

The bar to visit in Babb used to be the Babb Bar. In its day it ranked as one of the most dangerous bars in the country with shootings, and stabbings a regular event.

Today the Babb Bar is a restaurant and the place to go is Charlie’s Bar. Picture this, about a thousand twenty-something year old seasonal employees at the park, a daily influx of international visitors and the Browning Indian Reservation just down the road.

Now add great pizza and a constant stream of awesome live music and stiff drinks. This is the beauty of Charlie’s. The place is a party almost every night and it is a really chill scene with little harassment by local lawmen. I have never had a bad time at Charlie’s and the music scene is incredible.

If you find yourself in Babb, you are usually there for one reason, to enter the Many Glaciers area of Glacier Park. In my opinion, this is the most picturesque, rugged and awe-inspiring region of the park and you must see it at least once in your life. Good food at the old Babb Bar and good times at Charlie’s.

Photo by kapital

The Jack, Missoula

The Jack (formerly the Lumber Jack Saloon), though close to the thriving metropolis of Missoula, is as wild a bar as you could ever desire. The walls of the building are built from old growth cedars and the entire interior is hewn from local logs.

These days The Jack has cabins for rent and all the facilities needed for big parties. My beautiful bride and I were wed there and we have had many, many wild times on their grounds. Anything can and does happen at the Jack. They have live music most weekends and five star fried food.

Located about 16 miles up highway 12, The Jack is close to Missoula and the Bitterroot Valley as well as Lolo Pass. You are surrounded by great climbing, paddling, backcountry skiing, hot springs, hunting and fishing. With the college town of Missoula nearby there is always an influx of party-minded folks.

#1. Pony Bar, secret location

Located in a truly one horse town, the Pony Bar is my favorite out-of-the-way filling station. It is secluded and almost unknown, and surrounded by mountains that get little attention. There is climbing and hot springs nearby and everyone that finds their way to Pony came to party.

I’m going to let this place be a little treasure for the serious drinker-adventurer to find. Do me a favor though, when you find it help keep the secret!

Community Connection

Planning to visit Montana this summer? Pair up your Montana bar crawl with a tour of the Most Unique Local Food in the state.

We’ve recently put together a special Montana In Focus page where you can find locally-written guides on Montana paddling as well as cycling, fly fishing, backpacking . Check it out!

Do you have any favorite Montana bars? Let us know in the comments below?

Photo and feature photo of Bohemian Carnival at DNA Lounge: zemistor

Operating as DNA since November of 1985, the club has had a number of notable owners including Rob Schneider, but is now in the hands of the tech-savvy and fascinating Jamie Zawinski. (Blog)

DNA hosts all sorts of events from fashions shows to dance parties to live music.

Photo of Booty – Smashup Bootleg Party: flawedartist

Live events are webcast in audio and video. If you’d like to have a look at what’s going on in there, you can here. Any time the club is open, 10 video cameras inside go live in rotation over the web and you can hear the audio from the sound system.

Where else can you preview a night out like this?

375 Eleventh Street
San Francisco

All photos from Joan Sinclair’s book Pink Box: Inside Japan’s Sex Clubs.

Prostitution is illegal in Japan, which may be one of the reasons for so many creative “alternatives.” Whatever the reasons, the commercial sex industry in Japan is bold, ubiquitous, and incredibly diverse – a magical hall of mirrors for the die-hard pervert.

Consider this: Japan’s largest red-light district, Kabukicho, is a convenient two minute walk from Shinjuku, the largest train station in the world, teeming with over 3.64 million daily commuters.

Here is a short list of a few of the more interesting club themes and services available to the paying public.

Image Clubs

Stewardesses from a flight themed club whisper to one another. All photos from Joan Sinclair’s book Pink Box: Inside Japan’s Sex Clubs.

Themed clubs or Image Clubs are establishments offering a variety of sexual services in a specifically themed setting. For example, chikan densha, or pervert trains are places where the john enters a look-alike subway car, gropes a number of girls for about ten minutes or so and then chooses one with whom to proceed to a private room.

Other popular themes include nurse’s offices, high school classrooms, and bored housewives. A variety of services are available, running the gamut of vanilla sex acts.

Soaplands

Soapland in an off hour.

Soaplands are some of the most common brothel-type establishments in Japan. Because prostitution is technically illegal, the businesses advertise as being private bathhouses (aka soaplands) much in the same way certain massage parlors are operated in the U.S.

The client undresses and is bathed soup to nuts, generally by one or two hostesses. An array of lotions, bubble baths, and lubricants are used, and in certain scenarios the women strip down and lube themselves up before rubbing their bodies on the customer, using their own skin as a soapy sponge to “wash” them. This generally culminates in a garden variety sex act, the type of which is determined by the client’s budget.

Touch Pubs

Sometimes called Peeping Rooms or even Pink Salons, Touch Pubs are hostess clubs where customers go to engage in sexual touching. Each client gets his own cubicle, sometimes with a view of a live peep show, sometimes with just a TV and a selection of pornography.

A hostess then comes around and takes his order and service is generally delivered on the spot. Average prices range from about $30 to $40 for manual stimulation and $50 to $60 for oral sex. Some clubs offer a “lucky hole” in which the sex worker performs the sexual acts through a hole in a one-way mirror and never sees the customer’s face.

Breast Molestation

Breast Molestation is a specialty of many clubs. Patrons pay for access to a private room and a girl of their choice. Once the girl enters the room the groping begins, the grabbing and fondling continue for a limited amount of time.

There is a general understanding that no other sexual acts will take place, and the customer is to abide by strict rules, only touching the breasts. Very rarely do measures have to be taken to deal with customers who have broken the rules.

Remote Control Vibrator Play

One interesting game is tobikko play, in which the girl wears specialized panties with a built in vibrator that is remote controlled. The game is often times played in public while the couple walks from the front desk of the sex club to a nearby love hotel. The client controls the remote and can hit the switch at anytime, teasing the escort to his liking.

Doll Clubs

One of the more unusual club concepts is the Doll club, in which one can pay by the hour for a room and a personal session with a Real Doll Patrons can choose the face, hair and clothing. Even interchangeable vaginas can be inserted into each doll per customer specifications.

The dolls are incredibly life-like, and weigh about the same as a real woman. Moreover, the price for “alone time” is almost the same as with a living prostitute. What goes on once the door closes is at the client’s discretion – his desires so private they needn’t even be shared with a hooker. The maintainer of the doll may have a pretty good idea, though.

Left: Doll from a Doll Club, right:the spoils of a panty auction

Panty Service

The Japanese obsession with used women’s panties is reflected in some of the services available to those who are willing to fork over enough cash.

Certain clubs offer a special service where the client pays extra for the urine soaked underwear of his date as a souvenir.

Other clubs offer panty auctions, where prospective buyers place bids while the undies are shown in action by models who wear nothing else. Once the bidding ends the women take them off and the keepsakes go into individual plastic bags for the soon-to-be happy customers.

For more on Japan’s sex industry check out the book Pink Box by Joan Sinclair.

Photos taken by Abram Sinclair from his copy of the book.

Community Connection

Want to learn more about Japan? Turner Wright gives you 10 Customs You Must Know Before a Trip to Japan.

And for a big laugh, check out Abram’s classic post on how Teaching English in Japan is Awesome and Sometimes Hilarious.

There is no shortage of beer festivals in May, so if you’re anywhere in the vicinity of these places, make sure you stop by for a swig.

Photo Courtesy of lizzlebob

May 1-2: Edmonton International Beer Festival

Don’t be a hoser, eh! The Shaw Conference Centre in Alberta’s capital is hosting the Edmonton International Beer Festival and will have over 200 varieties to be sampled, so get your “aboot” sayin’ butt over there! 

Note: don’t expect to find any hockey going on as the Oilers are all out on the golf course. Feel free to pop over to Vancouver though, where the Canucks — who’ve just swept their first round playoff series with the St. Louis Blues — are sure to have a long Stanley Cup run (sorry, had to be done).

May 7-9: Banbury Beer Festival

Banbury is about 130 kms northwest of London in North Oxfordshire. Explore the countryside and visit heritage manors and beautiful gardens, but in between make sure to hit up the Banbury Beer Festival. The 9th annual version promises to be bigger than ever and will include a new Foreign Beer bar. Entrance is free for CAMRA members — but I have a feeling that, if you’re a CAMRA member, you would already know that.

Photo Courtesy of whiskymac

May 11-17: American Craft Beer Week

Not a festival per se, but American Craft Beer Week is a celebration of all that is wonderful of a carefully, handcrafted beer. Small, independent breweries around America are drumming up some special plans to honor the culture and traditions of this noble craft.

They call on beer enthusiasts to thumb their noses at the macrobreweries and to sign their Declaration of Beer Independence, promising to practice “informed consumption” and to champion the message of “responsible enjoyment of craft beer”.

In 2006, the inauguration of the week-long event was recognized by US Congress. You can even friend ‘em up on Facebook.

May 15-16: Fete de la Biere

The Fete de la Biere website is only in French, but no worries — here is all you need to know: the festival showcases more than 170 beers and can be found on the lake-shore in Lausanne-Ouchy, Switzerland, with the Alps providing a dramatic backdrop. Live concerts in the evening will ensure you’re given the full festival atmosphere.

Photo Courtesy of deegephotos

May 16: West Coast Brew Fest

The West Coast Brew Fest at Miller Park in Sacramento, California says this year’s 10th annual event will be better than ever. There will be over 60 breweries in attendance and live music on site. Like feeling special? Buy a VIP ticket for some special treatment — just make sure to buy early as they only have 100 of them (it’s exclusive too!).

May 22-23: Kelowna Beer Festival

A little late for snowboarding the champagne powder of Big White and maybe a tad early for water-skiing on Okanagan Lake, it’s the perfect time to partake in the Kelowna Beer Festival in beautiful British Columbia’s interior. Kelowna is an easy and scenic four hour drive from Vancouver, so it’s well worth the trip.

Some of the micro breweries on hand will be: Tree, Granville Island, Sleeman, Dead Frog, and Paddock Wood Brewing. Don’t know any of them? That’s alright, that’s the point! I’ve had several of these, and trust me, if you like beer, you’ll like these.

Photo Courtesy of lizzlebob

May 23-June 1: Czech Beer Festival

“If I had all the money I’d spent on beer, I’d spend it on beer.” – website of the Newark (England) Branch of the Campaign for Real Ale.

Not many countries do beer like the Czechs. The Czech Beer Festival is proclaimed to be the “largest gastronomic event in the Czech Republic”. There are a million reasons to visit Prague, as anyone who’s been there can tell you. And here is one more.

Over ten days you’re going to get the finest Czech beers, dishes and desserts, doled out by servers in traditional Czech folk costumes. If you’re super keen, you can count down on their website to the opening: 23 days, 16 hours, 52 minutes, 37 seconds…36 seconds…35 seconds…

May 30: Plattduetsche Park Beer Tasting Festival

If you’re in the center of the universe, stop by New York’s Franklin Square on Long Island. You have two sessions at the Plattdeutsche Park Restaurant to choose from if you want to taste some of the world’s finest beers. An authentic Biergarten atmosphere will be on hand, complete with traditional German music. Ladies: bring your dirndle!

Photo Courtesy of deegephotos

May 30: Atlantic Beer Festival

The Atlantic Beer Festival website urges you to “tap a firkin keg!”. Moncton, New Brunswick’s event also has two sessions to choose from, and they offer free shuttle after each one. There is much else to do on Canada’s Atlantic coast, including checking out interesting rock formations at Hopewell Cape or visiting the world famous tides of the Bay of Fundy.

May 30-31: 18th Weekend of Spontaneous Fermentation

Yes, I know there are at least 10 things to do in Belgium besides drinking beer, but, well…we’re talking about drinking beer here! What sets this Belgian beer fest apart from the rest is that only lambic beer will be sold. Of that, only “authentic” — no commercial ones — will be on tap. Don’t feel bad if you don’t know what lambic beer is, I certainly didn’t.

This beer is brewed only in the Pajottenland region of Belgium, and rather than using carefully cultivated brewer’s yeasts, lambic beer uses a process called “spontaneous fermentation”, in which it is “exposed to the wild yeasts and bacteria that are said to be native to the Senne valley”.

So, there you go; your May is set. If you do get to visit any of these fine beer fests, make sure to check back with us and leave a comment here to let us know how it was.

Feature Photo Courtesy of a4gpa

COMMUNITY CONNECTION

Check here for Matador’s picks of the 20 Best Microbreweries in America.

Last year, Ben Cox and Jamie Kent went on a mission to find America’s best micro brews. Read about it here. If you’d like to know which are the best beer towns in America, here are 20 of them; best beer bars in New Orleans? Here you go.

And finally, what article about beer would be complete without a mention of the biggest beer festival in the world? Here is A First Timer’s Guide to Oktoberfest.

Photo: davichi

Oaxacan poet Eufrasio Reyes wrote, in a refrain familiar to anyone who’s plunged into a night at the cantina,

In the cantina, a man travels to unimaginable places, but the next day reality is crueler than his hangover.

Reality, legend, legend, reality: the swinging doors of the cantina vacillate between the two.

The cantina was born in the latter half of the nineteenth century, when U.S and French soldiers were attempting imperialistic explorations into Mexico. At that time, establishments serving alcoholic beverages were restricted to wine bars, for upper class Spaniards, and pulquerias (which served the fermented corn beverage pulque), for lower class mestizos and Indians. The two merged into the cantina, which surged in popularity during the dictatorship of Porfirio Diaz.

Photo: Gary Denness

At that time, cantinas were mostly frequented by upper class men. However, when the Diaz dictatorship crumbled, so did the strict class boundaries attached to cantinas. In the radicalized, revolutionary Mexico of the 1920’s and ‘30’s, cantinas were frequented by bohemians, intellectuals, artists, and revolutionaries. And of course men looking, as José Alfredo Jiménez classically phrased it, for tequila and a song.

They were not, however, frequented by women; not even after 1982, when the law banning women from entering cantinas was lifted.

Mexican intellectual Carlos Monsiváis writes:

The cantina revolves around machismo, around a masculine supremacy of misery, around the ambition to submerge oneself in reality in order to forget one’s frustrations.

This “masculine supremacy of misery” is distinctly Mexican in style—it could include downing copa after copa alone, with sombrero pulled low, or it could involve belting out a ranchera at the top of one’s lungs, wiping tears from one’s eyes, or it could involve heart-to-heart man-to-man conversations about—sigh, groan—mujeres.

Photo: monocai

Oftentimes, I find, it is “masculine” only because it occurs between men—otherwise, the cantina is a place to release and demonstrate “feminine” emotions. It is a place where men are simultaneously at their most macho and their most feminine.

It is also a place where lower class men can go to release humiliation or frustration related to their place in society, and where they can temporarily abscond from their responsibilities to family, women, work. The cantinas that appeal to such men also tend to appeal to bohemians, intellectuals artists, and those who like dancing along the darker fringes of society.

Cantinas are not always pretty, and oftentimes visiting is walking the knife-edge between vivid joy and release and profound despair. Perhaps that’s what attracts writers. And what attracted me.

Eufrasio Reyes best captured the cantina in his eponymous poem:

A man loses the sense of passing time
His heart takes comfort in its beating
His mind rests in its unconsciousness
In the ultimate refuge of mankind

The cantina is the stuff of legend. And, like so many legends and myths in Mexico, it mixes indistinguishably–sometimes messily, sometimes romantically–with daily life. In the cantina poetry, beer, manliness, death, love, loss, melancholy, misery, and loneliness blend together to sink a man deep down into the soul of life, or yank him out of it.

The cantina is a socio-economic phenomenon, an illustration of Mexico’s political and cultural histories and realities, but it is also something more ethereal, soul-like or ghost-like. Stay at the cantina long enough, and the distinctly Mexican sense of doomed longing, of giving way to the grinning skeletal pull of the netherworld, creeps into oneself. And then, waking up the next morning with a roaring cruda, eating caldo or chilaquiles, one is absorbed back into the fabric of daily life.

Photo: Jorge Santiago

We wander through the sea to find a table. The ranchera music, with its overdramatic, coordinated wailing of male singers and the vibrant abandon of horns, strings, and accordions, is overwhelming.

On top of that mariachis circulate bursting into whatever songs the customers request, creating sudden pockets of loud live guitar and accordion round the room. Add to that the rowdy displays of machismo that constitute conversation here, and it is like walking through a wave of Mexican male noises drowning one out.

I’m wearing a subtle suede jacket, loose jeans, and Converse, in sharp contrast to the teeny minifaldas and half-open shirts of the other girls here. The men wear the hungry looks of predators, and I’m feeling somewhat exposed as a random blonde piece of prey that’s somehow wandered in. A few laugh and make remarks under their breath as I pass, but otherwise, no one does anything overt. We sit and order beers under their heavy gazes.

Suddenly, my friend Eleutario lets out a cry of “Ay ay ay AYYYY!”, something like a Mexican turkey call which is a mixture of drunken abandon, grief, and unleashed repression. It is common in cantina music and seems to summarize precisely what happens to the male mind in these environs. This cry is seconded by a few other friends and then washed down with lime-laced Victoria. We’re more at home now in the vibe, having let our abandon be known.

But the surreal (at least from our perspective as patrons of the nicely decorated, turquoise-tiled art bars of Oaxaca’s center) quality of the place numbs us a bit. Porno poster, intense male gaze, bustling waiters, prostitute’s laugh, and suddenly…

Mariachis!

Eleutario pays fifteen pesos for two songs, and the mariachis unenthusiastically launch into Camino a Guanajuanto, a Mexican classic.

Photo: Jorge Santiago

“La vida no vale nada…no vale nada la vida…” goes the song. Life is worth nothing…

They sing as though they’ve seen and heard it all before—the revolutionary fighters swept up by patriotic glory; the men who aren’t good enough for the perfect virginal women they desire; the valiant but overly proud heroes killed in duels; the heartless prostitutes and the ones who break men’s hearts; the solitary, tragic figures who give everything up for love and lose.

The music pours over us in the aquarium’s ebb and flow, while the prostitute at the next table grinds away on the lap of a grimly smiling man with three gold rings. Every once in awhile, she gives furtive glances from side to side and tries to pull her jean mini down to cover a little more of her ass, but then, the man’s hand slides up again.

I begin to feel a little queasy. Jorge is taking photographs of another prostitute, who’s wearing big black sunglasses inside the fluorescently lit room, holding up her silver Cinderella heel and smiling. I ask her how she got work here and she shrugs and says, “I came with my friends, and asked to fichar.” Fichar is a verb that refers to fichas, or tickets. The prostitutes earn money from beers men buy them. The normal price of a Victoria at that cantina is 13 pesos; buy it for a prostitute, and it costs 50 pesos.

Somehow, in the midst of our conversation, the woman gets the impression that I am interested in this job possibility and calls over the waiter saying, “Ella quiere fichar!”

“No, no, no!” I clarify, half-laughing, half-horrified, as several men at nearby tables turn their heads. “I’m just wondering how it is for you.”

She shrugs. Shrugging seems to be the normative behavior of a prostitute working the cantinas. I forget, I suppose, that this is their work and their daily life, and they’re not about to break down into sob stories about it because a drunk gringa wants to feel their pain. Do you want to fichar, or not? No? Then vete, get out of here.

I go back to my table feeling slightly ridiculous, but then figure, hey, this kind of humiliation is what feeds good borracheras (the Mexicans have a noun to describe partying with the sole purpose of getting drunk). People are dancing now, men making those sharp, smooth arcs and curves of salsa with the prostitutes. The noise seems to have reached fever pitch, or maybe I’m letting my body cave to my senses.

At some point, I look around to see everyone in a somewhat parallel state, rocking slightly back and forth to the music and the beer, looking a little stunned, occasionally catching someone else’s eye and laughing.

“Vamos?” says my friend Fausto, and we nod. There is a scrambling of peso bills and coins to pay the tab, and then everyone stands with clumsy movements, pushing plastic chairs aside, and we leave. Weaving my way out, I’m noticed less, the men lost in cantina reveries now, thinking of money, or women, or nothing at all.

Photo: Fausto Nahum Perez Sanchez

The night is at once new and very, very old. There are kids playing in the street and alleyways that look as though they are netherworlds containing alternate realities we’d rather not discover. The streets are much darker here, until we begin to get closer to the center and the streetlamps cast a benevolent glow on the sidewalks once more. We are drunk. We are tired. There are really two options at this point:

Sleep.
Tlayudas.

Of course, we opt for the second. Being too lazy to trek across the city to Los Libres, which has the hectic late-night tlayuda joint frequented by all the other rowdy borrachos, we head for the 20 de Noviembre market, where food vendors work ‘til late under the shine of bright yellow lamps. There, we nurse our cantina-beaten souls with huge, crispy tortillas filled with meat, cheese, and beans.

We eat with a sloppy, blissful 1 a.m. laziness, strewn about on the narrow colored benches and lit from behind by the food stand. Our night of cantinas has come to an end. We are sweaty, tired, worn out from the cantinas’ florid outpouring of emotion.

And I can barely think, as we stroll quietly through the empty streets towards home, about where the cantina comes from, and what it means, and where it’s going. Those questions will be for tomorrow.

It is a little past four in the afternoon, and Mexico’s great cobalt sky has faded to a pale blue-white, with tired clouds slipping along its domed edges. The wooden doors of the cantina give the creaaak-crreeaak of rusty springs as they swing behind us; they are the flimsy barrier between the outside world of the street and the inside world of men and booze.

Street, light, women; cantina, men, beer.

Feature Photo: Fausto Nahum Perez Sanchez. Photo: Jorge Santiago

Inside, bars of pale yellow light fall across wooden tables, and men sit drinking. There is a bar to the right, with wooden stools and white-shirted bartenders standing before a wall of tequila. There is a big-screen TV in the far left-hand corner showing lucha libre, men humping each other in elaborate silver costumes.

The tinkly strings and baleful voices of a ranchera fill the background. A few men turn their heads and then return to their long-necked beers. We choose a table.

“What can I get for you?” the waiter asks, with only the slightest glance in my direction.

We order Victorias all around. “Les gustaria una sopa Azteca?” the waiter asks, and we give faint grins and smiles and say, “Si, porfa.” Let the botanas begin.

The cantina, you see, is not just a place to drink, and to weep, and to watch homoerotic wrestling and listen to mariachis sing about troubles with women-betrayers and viejas and putas, but also, to eat. In the majority of cantinas, each beer will be accompanied by botanas, which are the Mexican version of Spanish tapas. The more beers, the more elaborate and plentiful the botanas.

Photo: Jorge Santiago

Here, there is a sopa azteca first, with fried tortillas, queso fresco, and the inevitable heaps of chicharron. The latter–fried pig skin—is the cantina staple. It’s fatty, meaty, manly and, to me, incontrovertibly disgusting. Later there are tostadas of pulled pork, then tacos made with hot dogs, onions and poblano peppers. We eat, we drink. And drink a little more. And then remember there are more cantinas to visit.

The slanting light feels softer, kinder now. Evening breezes with the faintest hint of coolness drift through the long, narrow windows, which are open save for the wrought iron that creates the barrier between here and there. I reluctantly give in to the urge to go to the bathroom.

The doors:

Left: Viejas (Literal translation: old wives)

Right: Machos (‘nuff said.)

We scrounge around our pockets for change and pay the check. The men around us are continuing their hushed, gruff, curt conversations as we leave. It is, after all, only five o’clock. The weeping is for later, and further south in the city.

Half a block down the road at the Tabula Rasa, paintings of skeletons dancing around vivid blue, red, and green dinner scenes adorn the walls. This place is slightly artsier. The walls are painted at table height in a pattern of desert, cactus, drunk Indian sleeping beneath a sombrero, desert, cactus, drunk sleeping Indian, desert, cactus…

Black and white photos of a seemingly random selection of cantina heroes adorn the walls. Bob Marley is there, as is an exuberant, naked Marilyn Monroe; Frida Kahlo, Che and Maria Sabina are present, all smoking joints, and Zapata and Pancho Villa gaze stoically from their portraits, giving off that stolid, serious, revolutionary posture.

Photo: Jorge Santiago

The jukebox is playing–as if out of a surreal, hazy dream–Pink Floyd. Men sit hunched over the wooden tables with caguamas (liter jugs of beer) between them. The question here is not “what-would-you-like-to-drink” but rather,

“Family-sized or regular?”

“Um…regular.” We have to last the night, after all. Five beers and a plate of peanuts later, we’re taking in the new ambiance. I notice a poster on the far wall condemning violence against women, and a “No Smoking” sign: indications of new waves, new influences, infiltrating the cantina. I am not the only woman here, although the other one looks slightly uncomfortable and huddles over her beer, leaning towards her male companion.

Here, as we laugh and squeeze lime over peanuts and order another round, and then another, the sky makes its descent into midnight blue, a rich, vibrant color that fills the ever more distant streets beyond the swinging doors.

Photo: Jorge Santiago

“What is the cantina?” I ask, using Jorge’s cell phone as a recording device. The responses range from anthropological analyses of social class to satirical commentary about the delicious chicharron and the refreshing beverages to a series of low, drunk giggles.

I go to the bathroom again. There is a heavy lock on this door, which the bartender opens for me with a rusty key. Apparently, it’s been awhile since a woman passed through these parts. At least they keep the ladies’ room locked until the moment arises.

Inside, there is a pink trashcan and the most basic of facilities. The walls are covered in spider webs. I wonder, tipsily, if those webs represent the lack of female presence in the classic cantina, or the gradual demise and transformation of the cantina itself. After congratulating myself on this deep thought, I symbolically brush aside a few spider webs and walk out again, sealing the lock behind me to keep the space safe for future females.

We move on to the next cantina. The streets feel buoyant with the intensity of the deepening blue light, or just with our beers and buzz. These streets are a labyrinth to me now; I rarely walk in these areas, far south of the Zocalo, where young women with scared faces hurry along with babies in their arms, and men swagger, and a certain weight and tension hang in the air.

There are knife shops and shops offering dozens of cowboy boots, and then after we wind through hold-your-breath-and-don’t-look-up alleyways, there are many, many cantinas. Most lack doors now and instead have open entryways giving onto fluorescent lights and the cacophony of drunk male conversation.

Gestures in these places are more flagrant. A man recognizes my friend Eleutario, and comes running and shouting out of a cantina to greet him. “El re-encuentro” my friends call it, laughing; bumping into that unfortunate acquaintance as you take another slug of Victoria. Caught caving into the beast.

This re-encuentro consists of the man embracing Eleutario with that unabashed male affection brought out by cantinas, and then, kindly, offering to show us his member for a photo op. He is halfway down the zipper when my scream-laughing, facing the other way, finally dissuades him. He gives another hearty slap on the back to Eleutario and we’re outta there, shaming and taunting E for the rest of the camino.

Photo: Jorge Santiago

The next cantina is an aquarium full of bizarre species of drunken male. It is a large, open, cement-walled room crammed full of plastic tables, bathed in surreal blue and green light, and adorned only with a series of pornographic posters of blondes straddling motorcycles. The attire is jeans and greased-back black hair, and a certain sleazy type of half-smile directed at no one in particular.

I am not the only woman here, but I am the only one not working as a prostitute. Unfortunately, I have to go to the bathroom.

My posse of males—who, as bearded curators and rural teachers and arts photographers do not exactly fit the bill of cantina regular here—wait for me outside the “bathroom,” which consists of a cement toilet surrounded by a shower curtain. I am mid-stream, squatting over the toilet, when the curtain is suddenly yanked open.

“Hi!” says a prostitute in a skin-tight brown silk shirt and white miniskirt.

“Hi!” I try to answer lightly, as if we’re old pals catching up on the street and not a prostitute and a peeing American chatting in a cantina bathroom.

“Your country is beautiful, isn’t it,” she says, matter-of-factly. I consider this while trying to finish up as quickly as possible.

“Uh,” I say, wrapping things up, “it depends, I guess.”

“My whole family is there,” she says, “in Los Angeles. It must be much nicer than here.” She sits squarely down on the seatless toilet and starts peeing without a second thought.

“Well,” I say, trying to make an exit, “I think Mexico has more heart.”

She shrugs in the darkness. “I don’t know,” she says.
.
“Well,” I say, not really sure if I should go on defending Mexico’s heart over the prostitute’s endless stream, “I guess I’ll see ya later.”

“Yup,” she says cheerily, “beer. Goes right through ya.”

I open the curtain and head out.

Feature photo by http://moty66.ipernity.com. Photo above by anniemullinsuk.

Throughout two years of living in bella Roma, I have immersed myself in the blues and jazz scene with a willing ear and an open-mind. Five of the best jazz and blues venues I’ve discovered are:

La Casa del Jazz

“House of Jazz” is the perfect name for this recently renovated and refurbished home of jazz legends. All of the greats perform here, and every great wants to perform here.

American jazz guitarist Larry Coryell performed here with fellow American bassist Jeff Berlin in 2008, along with a sweet medley of saucy tunes from Larry’s singer-wife, Tracey.

Before Mr. Coryell headed to Pomeroy, Ohio to lead a workshop at Jorma Kaukonen’s Fur Peace Ranch, he had this to say about his performance at La Casa del Jazz: “It’s one of the hippest gigs I’ve played in the 21st century.

The beautiful auditorium, the people working here, the park, the great restaurant with pictures of Anita O’Day and Sarah Vaughan on the walls. Wow! It’s the kind of place musicians dream about.”

The auditorium is designed with comfortable, cushioned stadium seats, and wooden beams running from floor to ceiling, draped with sound dampening curtains. There’s a bookstore full of treasures, including Oscar Peterson’s rare albums and an extensive collection of Italian and American contemporaries.

The La Casa del Jazz is located near Testaccio in southwest Rome. It is easily reached by metro, bus, or taxi.

Photo by gutter.

Stazione Birra

The “Beer Station” hosts many blues, rock, and jazz greats, including one of my favorites: Derek Trucks. Trucks is so smooth at age 29 that you’d think he’s been playing for three lifetimes, long before his uncle, Butch Trucks, introduced him to the rest of the Allman Brothers Band.

Hearing Derek in this intimate venue was heaven, not only because of Trucks’ impressive slide guitar, but also because of the inviting interior of the Stazione Birra. The venue is two floors, full of tables covered with aperitivo, Italian styled BBQ, and home-brewed beer (chiara or rossa).

This rocking venue brings me back to my favorite music clubs on the East Coast in the U.S. and the tunes played here resonate for days, weeks, and even months afterward. The Stazione Birra is quite far from the city center, but well worth the trip, even though a taxi or a friend’s car is needed for the last leg of the journey.

Alexanderplatz Jazz Club

Alexanderplatz is “il piu antico jazz club di Roma,” the oldest jazz club in Rome.

This is one of the smallest and one of the best underground jazz clubs in Rome, famous also for its summer jazz festival in the Villa Celia Montana. You become immediately aware of Alexanderplatz’s rich history upon entering the locale, alive with thousands of signatures on its cavernous, white walls.

I had the pleasure of meeting Stefano Bollani at the Alexanderplatz. Bollani, arguably the greatest jazz pianist of his time, performs regularly at the Blue Note in New York City. Signor Bollani’s aura– with his wiry and unkempt hair–reflects that of Alexanderplatz: a rumpled and crowded, yet classy and swanky nightclub.

The venue serves a late pre-show dinner (reservations needed), along with a pricey negroni or martini; however, the best part of the club is the intimacy between the music and audience. There is no stage, but a small nucleus between the cave’s winding autograph-littered walls where the musicians stake their territory.

The vibrations of the upright bass or the trickling trumpet bleats will follow you to the bar, to the closet restroom, up the stairs and outside to the Roman street where well-dressed Italians smoke cigars.

Alexanderplatz is located near the Vatican.

Photo by ragnagne.

The Boogie Club

The Boogie Club is so good that it was worth the 45 minute bus ride and subsequent two mile walk (which might have been avoided with a map, a taxi, and the right bus route).

This well-hidden blues pub is a full of boogie, beer, and bliss. Black and white photos of American blues legends like B.B. King and Robert Johnson line the walls and old-school videos of Elvis and Aretha play in the corners. There is enough room for a small front stage and plenty of table room if you get there early.

Beers come in big steins, hot panini can be ordered until closing time, and the friendly staff is a plus. One of the regular bands is Mississippi Mood, which attributes its name and influences to the Mississippi Delta blues. The crowd is always hopping, of all ages, and because of its distant location, is full of locals and die-hard blues fans.

Depending on the band, you may step back into the soulful 70s or into folk’s early 60s or witness a tribute to Jimi Hendrix or Stevie Ray Vaughan. Another great blues club, on par with the Boogie Club, is Big Mama, located in the central zone of Trastevere.

Be Bop Jazz Club

Be Bop is the smallest jazz venue mentioned here, but no less special than the others. Not quite as alluring and eclectic as Alexanderplatz, Be Bop has its own appeal, including black and white video footage of jazz masters such as Wes Montgomery and John Coltrane during the performance interludes.

Be Bop is a two-minute walk from the Piramide in the zone Testaccio.

Local’s tip: Each of these clubs requires a first-timer fee plus la tessera, the membership card. There’s great satisfaction knowing that a card in your wallet proves you are now a member of Rome’s jazz and blues world. Yet that satisfaction really comes from becoming an integral part of the intimate audience, soaking in the soul, funk, blues and jazz in these special locales.

COMMUNITY CONNECTION:

Music, food, and art: the travel trifecta. Read about slow food and slow travel in Italy here and traveling in Italy on a tight budget here. And be sure to check out the art section in the Green Guide to Florence, which can be found here.

The Tarrus Phenomenon

It’s impossible to walk down the streets in Jamaica and not hear the hit song “She’s Royal” blasting from a shop’s radio. And it’s only the latest in a host of singles from Tarrus Riley’s album, “Parables,” played incessantly in Jamaica this past year.

A simple mention of the name Tarrus Riley to a Jamaican instantly leads to a broad smile. This 30-something talent — born in the Bronx, New York, and the son of famous Jamaican artist Jimmy Riley– is the hottest reggae artist to shoot to stardom in the last year.

Tarrus Riley released his first album, Challenges in 2004, but his real success came with Parables in 2006.

Live in Jamaica

Seeing him live, and listening to his lyrics, it’s clear why this man has become a phenomenon. On December 30, 2008, hundreds of locals and visitors came out to see Tarrus Riley perform at the Negril Escape Resort in Negril, Jamaica.

It’s not that he hadn’t performed in Negril before, but this was before “Parables” hit the stores, and his previous appearance in Negril was not a solo act. So for many, experiencing the December 2008 Tarrus concert in Negril was a first.

A Message For Unity, Love, & Peace

Tarrus Riley’s messages are poignant and heartfelt, his smile disarming. “Cut if off,” he sings, “if a relationship is abusive to you, you must cut if off!” His voice is real, comforting and melodious, almost like getting advice from a friend.

With the hit “She’s Royal,” Tarrus’ intention was to lift women’s spirits by addressing the lack of self-esteem so many women deal with. Sure enough, it’s become every lady’s favorite tune.

Other songs include “Beware,” where Tarrus warns to “be careful of dem guns and ammunition” and observes that “it’s a shame to see brothers killing themselves, wasting energy, [when they] should be uplifting themselves.”

Return to Conscious Roots Reggae

“Poom poom poom poom poom!” he interjects between songs. “When I say that, it’s not a gunshot okay, it’s a musical shot!” he explains.

Tarrus’ talented Gumption Band is just as much a treat as the artist himself. Dean Fraser, a legend in his own right and producer of “Parables,” performs saxophone renditions of various sounds Tarrus throws at him. The three female back up singers also prove their talent, performing quick solos for the crowd.

In a time when dancehall and reggaetón have dominated clubs around the world, roots or “conscious reggae” is now making a strong comeback.

With artists like Tarrus Riley blasting messages such as “Beware!” and “Stay With You,” musicians and fans alike are holding on to the freedom-message era of the Bob Marley days, showing a strong need to address today’s multitude of issues through reggae music.

Other artists aligned with Tarrus’ socially conscious music are Luciano and Morgan Heritage.

If you’re headed to Negril soon and want to experience the best of Jamaican music, these are some of my favorite venues:

The Negril Escape Resort, on the Cliffs

Every Tuesday night at 6:30 PM, the Negril Escape Resort hosts the Sunset Show, a live three-hour concert re-enacting all the phases of Jamaican music, from African drums all the way to today’s dance hall.

Folks can party on the seaside terrace. The Sunset Show also features a celebrity reggae artist once a month. Entry to the regular Sunset Show is US$10. For more information, visit Negril Escape’s website.

Alfred’s Ocean Palace

Alfred’s is a favorite for live music every Tuesday, Friday, and Sunday night starting at 11 PM . It’s located on Negril’s Seven Mile Beach. Locals and tourists alike enjoy the sounds of reggae and dance barefoot in the sand and under the stars at this beach nightclub and restaurant. For more information, visit here.

Roots Bamboo

Located on Seven Mile Beach, Roots Bamboo features reggae artists every single week. Past and regular performers include Gregory Isaacs, Natty King, Yellowman, and many others. Live music is playing Wednesday and Sunday nights at 11 PM on for a cover charge of only $300 Jamaican dollars (US $3).

Bourbon Beach

A favorite for live concerts in Negril, with a unique and gigantic colorful stage, Bourbon Beach hosts many reggae stars, such as John Holt and Luciano, every Wednesday night.

Another chance to dance barefoot in the sand and enjoy the best of reggae for only $700 Jamaican (US $9). For more information visit Bourbon Beach.

Additional concerts and live shows are always posted on billboards throughout Negril.

COMMUNITY CONNECTION

Matador co-founder Ross Borden stumbled onto a reggae show in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Read his blog post about the experience!

Or, for tips on getting to another music-infused island, check out How To Travel To and From Cuba.

Feature photo by Bob Jagendorf. Photo above by Kiril Kolev.

[Editor's Note: Eva Holland contributed to this article.]

It has been said that everyone in New Orleans is born with an instrument in their hands. In a city that is defined by — and defines — music, it can be hard to choose the best venues for live music, but here are a few of my favorites:

Photo by Photo Mojo.

Preservation Hall

Preservation Hall, a French Quarter classic since 1961, is still flourishing today. The hall is open seven days a week from 8 to 11 PM, though I advise getting there by 7 to make sure you will be able to get in. The cover is very reasonable at $10 a person.

The lineup at Preservation Hall is always world class jazz, blues, or brass bands. The hall is small and intimate. The only places to sit are wooden benches, and there is no air conditioning, no amenities, and no sound system — but when the band starts, the frills don’t matter.

The Spotted Cat

The Spotted Cat is one of a cluster of well-loved venues on Frenchman Street, just northeast of the Quarter. It’s a cozy, intimate spot featuring local jazz acts that are often more mellow than the big brass bands you’ll see in the larger venues. Staff are friendly and there’s generally no cover; drinks are priced up a tad as a result.

Like most spots on Frenchman, the Spotted Cat draws a cool mix of locals old and young, and handfuls of tourists intrepid enough to leave Bourbon Street behind. If your ideal jazz bar experience is a dim hole-in-the-wall where you sit a few feet from the band, this could be your spot.

Tipitina’s

Tipitina’s has been an Uptown New Orleans institution since 1971. Shows are Wednesdays through Sundays, with varying ticket prices. Sunday evenings are host to a weekly Fais do-do, a night of Cajun music and dancing. Cajun music could be described as a cross between bluegrass, country, polka, and a few more old time music styles.

The rest of the shows feature rock, blues, zydeco and other music styles. The club is decent-sized, and has a place to buy t-shirts and other souvenirs. The admission fee also helps out Tipitina’s foundation, which helps keep the spirit of New Orleans music alive.

Rock N’Bowl

The Rock N’Bowl, or Mid-City Lanes, dates back to 1941. While it is a bowling alley, and has somewhat shoddy acoustics, it is also one of the best venues in the city. There are shows most nights of the week, and you can bowl at the same time. Bowling lanes are hard to get most nights, so reservations are a good idea.

The shows here run the gamut of musical styles, but rock is a favorite, and it gets nice and loud during shows. The management consistently books good bands. There is also a well-stocked bar and some decent food for sale.

Photo by Emrys.Roberts.

Hi-Ho Lounge

Hi-Ho Lounge could be considered a dive bar, but it’s a great place for music– especially the Monday Night Blue Grass Pickin’ Party. There’s no cover charge; just buy a drink at the bar.

The rest of the week is filled with harder music acts. The Hi-Ho Lounge is a bit difficult to find as it is out of the way of the normal tourist spots, but worth the effort. The atmosphere is nice, with artwork displayed, and a good drink selection.

Snug Harbor

Snug Harbor is a “World Famous” jazz bistro, with a restaurant up front and a jazz club in the back. The club hosts a jazz musician every night of the week. Mondays always feature Charmaine Neville, who blends music and stories to entertain the audience.

The rest of the days are filled with world-class acts. The bar has a wide selection of drinks and waitresses serve throughout the show.

d.b.a.

Another Frenchman Street favorite, d.b.a. breaks from the NOLA norm, with a bit of a hipster vibe and a more eclectic line-up. You might come across anything from folk to indie rock to African jazz here, along with some of the more traditional local fare.

Arrive early to beat the cover charges, or pay up if you’re feeling fashionably late; it’s usually $5-$10. d.b.a. is also blessed with one of the finest liquor and beer selections in the entire city — give the chalkboards above the bar a good look for that night’s extensive list.

Photo by cyanocorax.

House of Blues

While the House of Blues is a chain, it’s still a top music destination. There is also a restaurant.

The House of Blues hosts both national and local acts almost every night of the week. While it holds a good number of people, it retains an intimate atmosphere. Tickets can be purchased in advance via Ticketmaster to avoid lines.

While at the House of Blues, be sure to stop by local music repository the Louisiana Music Factory, just across the street. It sells works by local blues, jazz, and zydeco artists, as well as less regional blues, soul, country, and R&B.

While these are some of New Orleans’ best venues for live music, there are plenty of others to check out when you are in the city. From nationally known bands playing at headliner venues to talented local bands playing dive bars, there’s live music every night of the week.

Check out NOLA’s beloved alt-weekly, The Gambit, for show listings.

COMMUNITY CONNECTION:

A few Matador members have passed through NOLA: check out New Orleans to Memphis: Searching for the Soul of the Delta, or this handy round-up of NOLA content on Matador, Picks of the Week: New Orleans.

Photo above by Matthias Rosenkranz

Feature photo by Bruno Girin

Visitors to Calcutta get a taste of a culture that has been affected deeply by British colonization as well as more modern trends of globalization, all within a distinctly Indian framework. Some of the city’s best bars, clubs, and live music venues are listed below; in each, you can expect to see and meet an eclectic mix of people.

Clubs

Tantra

Park Hotel, 17 Park Street

Tantra is popular with the city’s young clubbers as well as local and visiting celebrities; expect to be treated even better if you’re staying at the Park Hotel. With a dance floor, an additional lounge area and two bars, this would be a popular place even if it wasn’t in such a posh location.

Stag entries are sometimes restricted. DJ nights, theme nights and jams on Sundays are special features.

Photo above by Bruno Girin

Roxy

Park Hotel, 17 Park Street

Another one of the Park Hotel’s offerings, Roxy is also a popular haunt with city clubbers and tourists. Try the snacks here: the kebabs and starters are worth taking a bite or more. Also, the cocktails here are pretty great. The ambiance is a bit less wild than Tantra’s, so head here if you want a laid back night.

The Underground

235/1 A.J.C. Bose Road

The discotheque at Hotel Hindusthan International is good for a night of dancing and drinking. Nice décor, good music, and some great visiting DJs who drop in from time to time. This is a theme nightclub, with decor recalling the London Underground.

Venom

#6, Fort Knox 8th Floor, Camac Street

A word of warning – this place has “members only” nights, so if you turn up on one of these you won’t get in. Otherwise, it’s quite a decent place to party, offering the usual dance floor and bars, as well as pool tables.

Photo above by danielle_blue

Shisha

22 Camac Street

The biggest attraction of Shisha was once its hookah bar; but since the smoking ban was passed, smoking in public places is an offense. Come March 2009, though, Shisha patrons will see a whole new look, and a new smoker’s den will allow patrons to smoke hookah again.

Other clubs you can check out are Dublin (at ITC Sonar Bangla), Fusion (at the Golden Park), and Cloud 9 (at the Astor). If you don’t feel like going to a crowded pub, then drop in at the Fairlawn Hotel at 13/A, Sudder Street for a relaxing drink.

Photo above by johnnyalive

Live Music

La Dolce Vita

3A, Humayun Palace, Behind New Empire Cinema Hall, New Market

Apart from resident DJs, a lounge area and bar, LDV also has visiting bands of many genres, including classic and alternative rock, funk, and hip hop. Calcutta especially adores rock music, and has its own brand of “Bangla Rock” in the local Bengali language (although I don’t think you will come across these any time soon at places like LDV).

This is one of the newest hangouts for headbangers, as well as loungers and clubbers, and is conveniently located in the New Market area.

Some Place Else

Park Hotel, 17 Park Street

An English pub in the Park Hotel, SPE has different acts playing each night of the week, as well as DJs. This intimate pub is one of the older and most popular spots for live music, especially rock.

Photo above by gabyu

The Princeton

26, Prince Anwar Shah Road

Although not situated near the Park Street or Camac Street areas, The Princeton Cluboffers many genres of live music and cheap alcohol. Live bands usually start playing by 9.30 PM, and the featured bands range from the already established to the up and coming.

Apart from this, some restaurants such as Trincas and the Xrong Place also have live music (mostly rock and jazz) regularly.

COMMUNITY CONNECTION:

Matador’s collection of nightlife guides is always growing: check out the Best of Bangkok Nightlife, the Top 10 Nightlife Spots in Mexico City, or the Top Dive Bars in Las Vegas.

The Bulldog

3236 Magazine Street

The Bulldog is an Uptown favorite, located on Magazine Street in the Garden District. It’s a laid-back spot that draws a mixed crowd; the TVs are above the bar if you’re a sports fan. There’s also a sweet patio and dogs are welcome.

The Bulldog’s beer selection is immense: more than 50 varieties on tap and another 100+ in bottles, imported from over a dozen different countries and from local breweries across the US.

Try the local poison — Abita’s Turbodog ale weighs in at 6.1% alcohol — or go all out with Maudite, an ale from Louisiana’s French Canadian cousins that’s a head-spinning 8% alcohol. There’s good-quality, bar food, too.

Photo by mugley

d.b.a.

618 Frenchmen Street

d.b.a. is a fixture on the Frenchmen Street live music scene, just north of the French Quarter. But beyond the nightly shows, it’s also got one of the finest beer and liquor lists in the city.

The draught beers are rotated here (with the schedule drawn up based on “personal preferences, seasonal availability, quality and constant customer badgering”), so the number at any given time won’t necessarily overwhelm.

Check the chalkboards above the bar for the night’s offerings: expect to find a range of Belgian, German, British, and American brews, with the odd brand from elsewhere in Europe or North America. And keep an eye out for the traditional hand-pulled ales.

Photo by chairman moneko

Cooter Brown’s

509 S. Carrollton Avenue

Waaay Uptown, at the end of the St. Charles Avenue streetcar line, Cooter Brown’s Tavern has been a beer-drinker’s landmark since 1977.

The list here is truly mind-boggling, clocking in at more than 400 bottles, with everyone from Bulgaria to Honduras represented.

Cooter’s is a little rougher around the edges than the uber-hip d.b.a. or the not-so-working-class Bulldog — it was recently voted the best spot in New Orleans (besides the Superdome) to watch a Saints game, and it packs in students and boisterous locals alike for major sporting events. There’s an oyster bar, and local fare like po-boys and boiled crayfish on the menu.

COMMUNITY CONNECTION

Are you a beer lover? Check out Matador’s list of the 20 Best Beer Towns in America, or read the First-Timer’s Guide to Oktoberfest.

According to the National Weather Service, winter will officially begin at 6:04 A.M. CST on December 21.

It won’t end until 6:44 A.M. CST on March 20, 2009.

That’s three whole months without drinks in Manhattan’s and Brooklyn’s restaurants with backlot urban gardens. 90 days without an alfresco mimosa or a Manhattan at a sidewalk table. It’s ok: I feel your pain. In the meantime, try:

Campbell Apartment

The Campbell Apartment isn’t well-known even among New Yorkers whose daily routes don’t take them through Midtown. And even commuters hurrying through Grand Central each day may be unaware that one of the city’s best bars is closer than their subway train.

Located inside Grand Central Terminal, the Campbell Apartment is the former office of John W. Campbell, a 1920s NYC high roller. It’s all dark wood, soaring windows, and… a big stone fireplace, and best of all, opens at 3 PM, so you can justify a stop on your way home from work.

15 Grand Central Terminal
212-953-0409

Photo by mudpig (Creative Commons)

Cibar

Called the “Miss America of bars” by NewYorkMetro.com, Cibar is a bar for all seasons. During summer, its bamboo garden invites drinkers to linger awhile. In winter, though, it’s time to cozy up around the indoor fireplaces (yep, plural). Cibar is located in a townhouse, amplifying the homey feel. If only you had a home like this in the city….

56 Irving Place, Manhattan
212-460-5656

The Dove Parlour

Started by a group of friends who wanted to “democratize decadence,” the Dove Parlour is another warm, inviting bar with a tucked-in-a-townhouse kind of feel. There’s a fireplace here, too, but instead of wood, light is given off by a tight bunch of tall pillar candles.

Winter signals the addition of a specialty drink to the limited but creative cocktail list: hot spiced mulled red wine. Happy hour is every day from 4-8 PM, when most drinks are $6.00 USD. Another particularly attractive feature of this bar is how late it’s open: that mulled wine is served all the way ’til 4 AM.

228 Thompson Street
212-254-1435

The Auction House

If you’re feeling cold on the Upper East Side, then warm up by the fire at The Auction House. Just don’t come wearing fur; there’s a strict no-fur policy. Though there’s nothing particularly special about the decor or ambiance of this bar, it weeds out rowdier patrons by enforcing a 25-and-older policy on weekends.

300 E. 89th Street between First and Second Avenues
212-427-4458

Photo by Pingu1963 (Creative Commons)

Arctica

Cold is entirely relative. Save Arctica for one of those mid or late-winter nights when you think there just can’t be any place colder on Earth. This bar honors Shackleton’s Antarctica expedition. There’s lots of warm light, and heat radiates from a small pot-bellied stove. Gathered around the fire, it’s easy to forget you’re in New York.

384 Third Avenue (between 27th & 28th Streets)
212-725-4477

Zanzibar

Forget bellying up to the bar. Elbow your way to the open pit fire at Zanzibar to warm your hands; then head over the bar to warm your insides with some spirits. Cocktails are changed seasonally, so look for something hot and heavy instead of light and refreshing.

645 Ninth Avenue (corner of 45th Street)
212-957-9197

Photo by Digiart2001 (Creative Commons)

Employees Only

You don’t have to be on the payroll to get served at Employees Only… you just need to be able to pay your bill. Along the already warm and cozy vibe that characterizes Hudson Street in the West Village is the even more inviting bar that deserves a spot on your winter barhop list.

First, there’s the working fireplace. Then, there’s the inventive cocktail list: the Kumquat Sangaree blends candied kumquats and allspice with champagne. And then there’s the slightly odd yet curiosity-provoking fortune teller who holds court reading cards just inside the door.

510 Hudson Street (between Christopher and W. 10th Street)
212-242-3021

Huckleberry Bar

Lest you think I’m Manhattan-centric, I mention the Huckleberry Bar in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. In fact, Brooklyn’s one of the best places in the 5 boros to get winter cocktails, as there’s a mixologist movement growing in Brooklyn that’s worth watching.

Case in point? The tequila hot chocolate served at the Huckleberry Bar. What can I say about it? Nothing. You’ve got to check it out for yourself.

588 Grand Street
Williamsburg, Brooklyn
718-218-8555

Photo by Grumpy Chris (Creative Commons)

LIC Bar

LIC= Long Island City, and no, it’s not on Long Island. I’ve got to give my local nabe bar a nod, not because you’ll be blown away by its vibe if you cross the river and come visit Queens, but precisely because it’s NOT one of the pretentious see and be seen bars that are way too common in Manhattan.

Yet it’s not a dive, either. It’s a 100% nabe bar where even locals’ dogs are welcome. And so are you. Being an outer boro bar has its privileges. Space, for one thing. Enough space, actually, for a photo booth. AND a fireplace. So roll in, check out the menu, and if you’re gonna be around awhile, give me a call so I can stop by with my pup.

45-58 Vernon Boulevard
718-756-5400

What are the bars you frequent in the winter, whether they’re in New York or Naples? Share your favorites in the comments!

Whatever you are looking for, Bangkok has it at one of these places:

Khao San Road

The heart of the backpacker scene, Khao San is lined with bars, vendors, stores, and internet cafes. When the sun goes down, neon lights start flashing, music fills the streets, and pretty Thai girls usher you into clubs. Every night, the streets pack with revelers looking to break last night’s drinking record.

Big Bars:

Gulliver’s: Gulliver’s is famous for its dancing, A/C, pool tables, and Thai girls. Lots and lots of Thai girls. All eager to come home with you for a price.

Silk Bar: An outdoor bar that’s a great place to start your night as it’s an ideal people watching
location.

Khao San Center: Khao San Center is just a big hall filled with lots of tables of drunken foreigners drinking from beer towers. A great place to meet people.

Shamrock: Above Khao San Center, this Thai version of an Irish pub features good live music on the weekends and is usually populated with expats.

There are smaller bars along the street but revelers tend to flock to these places. For a Thai experience, head to Brick Bar (located behind the McDonalds) where Thai bands play each night and few foreigners dare to venture.

Clubs: Lava, The Club, and Immortal. All three charge an entrance fee and, except for The Club, are quite small. But if you want to get your groove on to dance music, these places are where it’s at.

Practical Advice: Khao San Road closes at 2am but the surrounding streets stay open all night. Thieves and scammers are rampant. All those tourist dollars bring in a seedy crowd. Keep track of your stuff, watch your pockets, and be aware who serves your drinks. Moreover, watch the Thai women you meet- some of them might not be women.

Khao San Road / Photo by Szymon Kochanski

Sukhumvit Soi 11

Soi 11 contains many of the high end nightclubs and is a favorite spot for Bangkok’s expats, including me. On this street there is a mix of cheap bars to start your night and clubs to finish it.

Cheap Charlie’s: A Bangkok institution, this place is nothing more than a little bar and a few tables on a small side street. It’s a favorite among all expats for cheap drinks (60 baht). The friendly environment makes it easy to meet anyone.

The place is filled every night but the weekend it bursts at the seams. Buy two drinks at once to avoid the queue since the owner is the only bartender.

Bed Supper Club: Bangkok’s top end club. This place has two giant rooms (one for house, one for R&B), each with a top level filled with beds to relax on. The place is wall to wall people on the weekends, with the best of Bangkok’s locals and expats partying here. Entrance is 600 baht, and you will need ID and proper dress.

Q Bar: Dark, sleek, and fashionable, this club attracts a trendy crowd and is a favorite with locals and expats. It has 50 brands of vodka, Cuban cigars, absinthe, and 20 types of tequila. The doormen are kind of rude, but there usually isn’t a cover.

Twisted Republic: This new club opened at the end of 2006, setting out to give Bed a run for its money. The place got off to a rocky start (broken lights, weak drinks, bad sound system) but has since turned itself around.

The music here tilts heavily towards drum and bass. Not as packed as Bed, this place is good if you are looking for something different or if Bed is too crowded.

Practical Advice: This area also closes at 2 AM and is pretty safe. The biggest problem here is drunk Westerners and the temptation to spend all your money at Bed. The street is pretty safe and it’s unusual for bad things to happen here.

Photo by robonline

Patpong

Patpong is one of the many sex spots in Bangkok. Here, everyone tries to take you to sex shows, prostitutes and ladyboys walk the streets, and sex tourists look for the youngest thing they can find. It is neon lights, loud music, and sex. All night, every night.

Ping Pong Shows: A ping pong show is so disgusting that I won’t even mention it here. You can Google it. But I’ll say that seeing one will steal your innocence and there are tons of places gladly willing to do that. You’ll never look at a woman the same way again.

Sex Shows: For those looking for a little live action, there is an ever changing array of clubs offering sex shows. Just look for neon lights and a sign, usually saying “Live Sex Show.”

Go-Go Bars: If you’re into this thing, Patpong has plenty of options for you. Soi 1 and Soi 2 have the most. Reputable establishments are operated by the King Group and have either “King” or “Queen” in their name. They pride themselves on having clean girls. Apart from that, the names change too often to keep up. The girls are all pretty much the same though.

Bondage: The place to go to get your kink on.

Practical Information

For those looking for something different, a few bars like Tapas and Twilo offer a respite from the sex and sleaze of Patpong. But there is not much more here than hedonistic debauchery and if you want something else, Patpong isn’t really the place to go.

This area is also very dangerous. The biggest problem is the hassle and, if you are a white male, people will constantly be bothering you. Pickpockets and thieves are rampant here. Watch out for your drinks- sometimes they get spiked.

Other sex areas include Nana Plaza and Soi Cowboy, and all the same rules apply.

Photo by EyalNow

Thong Lor

Thong Lor is a very “Thai” night spot. Most of the bars and clubs here are dominated by Thais and non-westerners. Tourists hardly ever go here. That means the Thai pop is blasting from the speakers and everyone is drinking Thai whiskey and coke.

This area includes restaurants, pubs, karaoke lounges and even a traditional Chinese tea house. If you want to see how the locals do it, this where you want to go.

Popular Places:

Witch’s Tavern: An English pub featuring live music and Bangkok’s only big band. The bar is mostly popular with expats and their families, but a lot of older Thais go here. The atmosphere is relaxed and it’s a place to start, not finish, your night.

Y50: A modern bar, this place is popular with trendsetters and the young. It’s got a great atmosphere and décor that would fit in well in New York or London. Drinks here are pretty expensive but, if you want to look cool, Y50 is a good place for that.

Barbaska: A restaurant turned bar at night, Barbaska is a good place to catch a few drinks and hang out with large groups of Thais out for a wild night. People eat, drink, then stumble to the bigger places.

Santika: A massive complex, this is one of the biggest clubs in Thong Lor. It is packed on the weekends and features a host of live Thai bands and a big dance floor. Waitresses bring your drinks, avoiding queues at the bar. Everyone is moving and grooving in this place. They’re very strict about IDs so don’t forget yours.

No. 53: A trendy bar/restaurant popular with young Thais, this place is where people lounge for a relaxing night with friends and to socialize with new ones. The music varies but is mostly house or Thai.

Photo by Frederic della Faille

RCA

Royal City Avenue, commonly referred to as RCA, is a long strip of clubs and one of a few government-designated “nightlife zones.” This means that the clubs found here have the honor of being allowed to stay open as long as everyone else in the city.

That doesn’t stop the places here from being busy, even midweek. On weekends, they’re overrun with impeccably dressed locals in their early 20s, a handful of tourists, and a lot of expats.

Popular Clubs

Route 66: Vast, sleek interiors, booming sounds systems, funky furniture, soft mood lighting and dazzling lasers identify this place. On the weekend, Route 66 gets so packed that those already inside are pushed up against the wall and new people aren’t really let in. There are a few tables where people can sit and have space but they fill up quickly.

JazzIt: This bar is a good alternative for those looking to escape the house music that permeates most of the areas establishments. JazzIt hosts a lot of live bands and is usually playing hip-hop.

Zeta: A girls-only bar catering to the city’s vibrant lesbian theme.

808: This new club opened a year ago and is now one of the hottest places in Bangkok. It hosts world famous DJs and bands, has a huge dance floor and is known for its beautiful people. Locals and expats love it here.

General Advice: If you get into trouble, the Thai police are NOT there to help you. They don’t care about you, the stupid tourist. Thailand has very little “law,” and police will usually side with the locals unless it’s a big and clear offense. Get in a fight? You go to jail. Get in an argument over the bill? The police make you pay. Got robbed? Fill out the police report and watch it sit on the pile.

Unless your case will bring a lot of media or governmental attention, it’s not a priority. Corruption and bribery are rampant here and sometimes the easiest way to get things moving is to find out what the “fee” is. Avoid acting out because your recourse is limited and Thai jail is worse than listening to the Macarena on repeat.

There are countless places to party in Bangkok. Everywhere you go there is a new club opening, another bar closing, and locals drinking. The scene in Bangkok is in constant flux, unsurprising in a city that moves so quickly.

An article like this can’t name all the places in Bangkok, but it can tell you the areas that attract the most attention. No matter where you go in Bangkok you will find a place to throw the drinks down, but if you are looking to join the swarming masses of revelers every weekend, head to these areas for unforgettable nights.

Need to know more about Bangkok? Check out these books:

The Hedonist: World Travel Guide

Bangkok City Guide

Bangkok Babylon: The Real-Life Exploits of Bangkok’s Legendary Expatriates are often Stranger than Fiction

Community Connection

Headed to Thailand? Talk to Matador’s own Bangkok expert, asian insights, check out our Green Guide to Bangkok or follow up on editor Tim Patterson’s recommendation for a cheap guesthouse in the city.

I lived in Vegas for four years and went out to dive bars far more nights than I didn’t. There’s one on every corner, often three or four. From the suburbs to the University to Downtown, dive bars are plentiful in Vegas, so a top nine is truly an exclusive list.

It’s against the dive bar spirit to be too discriminating, so I list these in no particular order:

1. Double Down Saloon

Self-proclaimed “The Happiest Place on Earth,” the DD is legendary, but still authentic, as it’s dirtier than ever, and the mosh pit will leave you bloody.

One look at the men’s bathroom, the toilet/urinal/sink, with no stalls, no toilet paper and certainly no soap and you won’t doubt that this icon is still a dive.

The walls and ceilings are painted murals of demonic flapper era naked circus girls and elephants and psychedelic swirls. Punk and psychobilly shows most nights, and never a cover charge, though a donation to the group of hoodlums at the gas station next door is recommended if you want to make it home alive.

If you seek a quieter dive experience, come late, 4 AM on a Tuesday perhaps, when the strippers are getting off work and looking to unwind, and order a round of Ass Juice for one and all.

2. New York Café

Even most locals don’t know about this jewel, where old junkies play the sickest blues/jazz/funk you’ll ever hear on weeknights starting at midnight or 1 AM, until sunrise, with long breaks in between sets. The only cost is whatever you can afford to drink, and your soul.

3. Rush Hour

One of a thousand neighborhood dumps, this one is on the edge of the dreaded Green Valley suburbs, a much needed reprieve from the endless malls. No music here, except the jukebox.

I recommend the graveyard shift, weekends. Tell Josh I sent you and you’re sure to have a few on the house. Great place to just stare into the void.

The Double Down Saloon / photo by MP and Todd Lussier

4.Yayo Taco

That’s not “yeyo,” but it’s close enough. This college bar has exotic tacos such as the Shanghai, and a nice selection of beers and tequilas. Just avoid Thursday’s “frat boy” night, and you’ll be fine.

5. The Crown and Anchor

In the mood to watch a classic bar brawl, or better yet, start one? This British style pub is just the place. Real live European soccer hoodlums just looking for trouble at 8 AM on a Sunday morning. Plus 35 beers on tap, and waitresses in plaid skirts.

6. Champagne’s

Imagine the Beverly Hillbillies decorating their home like a nightmare from Frank Sinatra’s third cousin. Avoid karaoke night unless you are masochistic.

7. The Bunkhouse

The walls are adorned with pictures of Gary Cooper in High Noon and John Wayne in half the movies he made. But this is not done out of some postmodern irony b.s.; I think the owners just like westerns. Drinks at the Bunkhouse are stiff and the degenerates are aplenty.

The author on the couch at Cactus

8. Dive Bar

How can a real dive bar be called Dive Bar? Easily. Once you feel the spilled beer, broken glass and general grime under your feet, and see the six inches of plumber’s butt perpetually showcased by the bartender, you’ll understand.

Free punk and metal shows most nights. Open ‘til sunrise.

9. Cheers

An institution. Just across from the school, part of the Maryland Parkway drunk stroll, which includes Yayo, and the Crown and Anchor as well, and Champagne’s if your feet are feeling good. Everyone claims to go here, but few actually do, except the loyal handful of regulars who live there.

If you think your life is pathetic, stop by Cheers after 10 PM for two dollar well drinks, two and change for double tall drafts, and look at these hopeless barflies. Open 24/7. Conveniently located next door to the infamous Roberto’s taco shop, the perfect place to get cheap greasy food before you pass out.

Community Connection

For a look at a totally different side of Vegas–check out our Vegas Green Guide.

Feature photo by Ben Cox and Jamie Kent. Photo above by Guanatos Gwyn.

Lucky for us, we don’t have to look hard for a better beer. Thousands of microbreweries are popping up across the nation and, chances are, there’s one in your own backyard.

Leaving beer-flavored water behind can be a little intimidating at first, like saying goodbye to those incoherent college days. But fear not – there’s an endless array of awesomeness that awaits you. No one has ever regretted the decision to drink quality beer.

The Great Beer Road-Trip Of 2008

Like you, we were thirsty for something different, and so we hit the road in search of the best beer in America.

Beer Quest 2008 was a crazy adventure that took us through about 30 breweries in 30 states. Although we’ve come home tired and broke, we’ve gained two valuable lessons about traveling and beer:

Lesson #1:
People are great, and most will offer inside info to road trippers. Play your traveling cards right and you’ll inevitably meet some amazing folks with great insights on the local scene.

Lesson #2:
There’s good beer everywhere. Just hit the bars with a touch of curiosity and enjoy the local microbrews on tap. You won’t know what you like until you try it.

Photo by Ben Cox and Jamie Kent.

Beer Report 2008

Sampling over 200 microbrews was hard work, but we’re proud of the fruit of our labor. Beer Report 2008 not only lists the best brews in the country, but also the best breweries and brewpubs to visit.

The Basics

All beer starts with four ingredients: water, yeast, hops, and malted barley (i.e. sugar). The yeast eats the sugar, creating alcohol. Hops are added for flavor and the water holds it all together. Pretty simple, right?

Well, the Great American Beer Festival (GABF) gives awards for 75 different categories of beer, so there’s plenty of room for creativity. 75 categories intimidates the hell out of us, so we decided to make things simpler and base our rankings on 11 general categories:

1. Pale Ale (English style and west coast) – a light, smooth beer. East coast generally equals English style; much maltier, less bitter. West coast pales are loaded with hops, so they smell fruitier and tend to pack a punch.

2. Pilsner/Kolsch – light bodied German style beers. New to beer? Try this one first; it goes down real smooth.

3. Hefeweizen – cloudy, unfiltered, golden wheat beer, often decorated with lemon.

4. Wheat -same as above, but filtered.

5. Fruit Beer – any type of beer with fruit added to the mix.

6. India Pale Ale (IPA) – a super hoppy beer with a fruity taste and a bitter finish.

7. Amber -medium in color, medium in body.

8. Brown – getting darker…

9. Porter/Stout – dark, toasty, creamy, a meal in a glass.

10. Miscellaneous – when brewers have the chance to get creative, there’s a lot they can pull off.

11. Only on tap – brews you can only find on tap at local brewpubs across the country. They can easily surpass the offerings of larger breweries, but you have to know where to find them (that’s where we come in).

Each of these categories brings a unique brew to the table. If you’re just getting into microbrews, we suggest starting with the light choices and working your way toward the dark side, just like Anakin Skywalker.

After six weeks on the road, 30 breweries and 30 states, 10,000 miles traveled, and over 200 beers sampled, here’s what we recommend.

Photo by Ben Cox and Jamie Kent.

Top Brews

Pale Ale

Steel Rail Pale Ale – Berkshire Brewing Co. (S.Deerfield, MA) (East Coast): Smooth, malty, with fruity hints, and straight from the Berkshire Mountains.

Mighty Arrow Pale Ale – New Belgium Brewing Co. (Ft. Collins, CO) (West Coast): A grapefruit filled nose, mouth watering flavor, and great balance. Packs a punch, but goes down easy.

Kolsch/Pilsner

Gruit Kolsch – Roots Brewing Co. (Portland, OR): Lavender and chamomile replace the hops here; relaxing, organic, and fantastic.

Wheat

Sunset Wheat – Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Co. (Chippewa Falls, WI): Smooth and fruity; like a great sunset, but bottled.

Hefeweizen

In Heat Wheat – Flying Dog Brewery (Frederick, MD): Chewy, with a strong wheat flavor and crisp finish.

Fruit Beer

Purple Haze – Abita Brewing Company (Abita Springs, LA): A raspberry lager Hendrix would love.

IPA

90 Minute IPA – Dogfish Head Brewing Co. (Milton, DE): A hopheads heaven. This beer will kick your ass if you’re not ready for it.

Amber

Drop Top Amber – Widmer Brothers Brewing Co. (Portland, OR): Smoother than silk with fruity hints and a well balanced, malty body.

Brown

Hazelnut Brown – Rogue Ales (Newport, OR): Flavor that dances in your mouth, reminiscent of your morning coffee with a toasty body to back it up.

Porter/Stout

Chocolate Stout – Rogue Ales (Newport, OR): True dark chocolate flavor balanced with a crisp finish and creamy body.

Miscellaneous

Double Bag Ale – Long Trail Brewing Co. (Bridgewater Corners, VT): The smoothest beer with over 7% alcohol that we have ever tried.

Only On Tap

Meyer ESB – Thirsty Bear Brewing Co. (San Francisco, CA): This nitro infused beer looks just as good as it tastes.

Photo by misterbisson.

Top Breweries

All breweries were ranked based on overall quality, variety, availability, environment, social impact, creativity, and, well, our humble opinion. Based on these factors, five microbreweries surpassed the rest. Drum roll please…

1. Flying Dog Brewery (Frederick, MD)

Topping just about every one of our ranking categories, it is an honor to award Flying Dog with the Summer Brew Tour’s number one brewery ranking. Their list of great beers spans everything from an In Heat Wheat to the Gonzo Porter, giving them a well-rounded and practically unbeatable lineup.

The fine folks at Flying Dog also let us sample beer out of their 300 barrel fermentation tanks. By the way, did we mention all of their artwork is done by gonzo artist Ralph Steadman?

2. Rogue Ales (Newport, OR)

The variety and availability of this brewery are amazing for a midsized micro (at least 30 different beers in all 50 states!). If you’re into the darker stuff, Rogue Ales can’t be beat. If not, give their Red IPA or Chipotle Ale a try. If you’re not part of the Rogue Nation yet, join the revolution.

3. Magic Hat Brewing Company (S. Burlington, VT)

This Burlington-based brewery offers a fantastic artillery of beer, particularly for those hot summer days. Their unfiltered and unfettered Circus Boy is one of the top three Hefeweizens we’ve come across, and their flagship #9 is the best Apricot Ale we’ve ever tried. Not to mention, their recently expanded facilities in Vermont include a new taproom with 48 tap lines for the ultimate touring experience.

4. New Belgium Brewing Company (Fort Collins, CO)

Coined “The most environmentally friendly brewery in the world,” New Belgium not only sets the bar with their sustainability efforts, but they also offer a great lineup of brews. Their Mighty Arrow is the best West coast-style Pale Ale we’ve tried, and their flagship Fat Tire Amber Ale just hit the canning line. If that’s not enough, their taproom is open every day!

5. Widmer Brothers Brewing (Portland, OR)

This large micro is a Portland staple and most commonly known for its flagship Hefeweizen, which you can find just about anywhere in the country. Little do most know, the rest of their beer is just as good. The Drop Top Amber is unbeatable and the Broken Halo IPA is one of the top three West coast-style pales we’ve come across.

Keep an eye out for these guys – after a recent merger with Red Hook, we have a feeling you’ll be seeing a lot more of them in your local liquor store.

Photo by Burnt Pixel.

Top Brewpubs

All of the brewpubs we visited were ranked based on the quality and variety of beers on tap, the food they served, and the overall atmosphere of the establishment. We highly recommend checking out these places.

1. Capitol City Brewing Company (Washington, D.C.)

CapCity’s unique lineup of quality brews is what propelled it past all other brewpubs in our journey. Its three locations in the D.C. area offer a great escape from the city and a hearty menu complements all the beers on tap. We’re sure there’s a brew and a meal here for everyone in your dinner party. Try the Tart Cherry Ale, a favorite of ours and something you won’t find anywhere else.

2. Mountain Sun Brewing Company (Boulder, CO)

The Mountain Sun has more beers on tap than any brewpub we’ve come across. Teamed with a cozy environment and an interesting crowd of diehard beer lovers, you’re sure to have a good time. Give the F.Y.IPA or the Pearl St. Porter a try.

3. Thirsty Bear Brewing Company (San Francisco, CA)

Thirsty Bear sets itself apart from the rest with an impressive tapas menu that leaves more room for the good stuff. Snack away as you sip on their nitro infused Meyer ESB, unquestionably the best we’ve come across.

4. Crescent City Brewing Company (New Orleans, LA)

Should you ever find yourself in The Big Easy, take a break from Bourbon Street debauchery and stumble over to Decatur, where Crescent City is waiting to introduce you to some quality German-style brews and classic local cuisine. Don’t miss the baked oysters and the Pilsner, both the best of this tour.

5. River City Brewing Company (Wichita, KS)

Located in the heart of Old Town, River City needs to be part of anyone’s trip to Wichita. They’ve got more seasonal brews than any brewpub out there, stretching the boundaries of traditional styles. You’ll leave wholly satisfied, most likely in a cab.

Feature photo by designCL. Photo above by darkpatator.

I’ve zoned out and my fellow “researchers” are waving away the final joint. They can’t handle anymore either. There are only so many joints you can smoke in a day.

I take out my notepad and we try to convey how we feel about this place. After a few long pauses, we give up, order a drink, and begin to roll another joint. I guess you can never smoke too many.

Matador sent me on assignment in Amsterdam (no expenses paid) to find the best coffee shops in the city. This marked my fourth trip to the city and I was only happy to oblige.

If you are looking for the best of the best, follow your nose to these places for the highest times in Amsterdam.

Author’s Note: Amsterdam recently banned smoking tobacco indoors. This has hurt many of the coffee shops since people in Europe smoke marijuana with tobacco.

A few coffee shops have set up separate areas where people are allowed to smoke inside. A few turn a blind eye to the ban. Most tell you to go outside and offer a herbal tobacco substitute. Ask before you light up.

Trinity

This coffee shop is out of the city center, making it a “locals only” spot. (I found it with the help of a local.) There’s a big bar with a great selection, much, much cheaper than the center. There’s also a few pool tables, a big screen TV, and a separate smoking room.

The staff is really friendly and the locals are intrigued as to how you found this place. The smoking ban hit this place hard so it’s not as packed as it used to be but it’s more relaxed than other places.

Photo by Cédric Puisney.

De Rokerij

This café is located on the way to Leidsplein and has a mystical ambiance, one long room with dark lights and darker walls with tribal designs for you to stare at all day.

The weed here is good but the place is better known for its atmosphere. You aren’t allowed to smoke tobacco and they offer an herbal substitute. The drinks here are also reasonably priced considering its location.

The Greenhouse

This coffee shop has three locations, the flagship located in the Red Light district. It’s one of the most famous in Amsterdam and the walls are adorned with photos of celebrities to prove it. Their weed constantly wins the Cannabis Cup (try the haze).

Cheap drinks help cushion the blow to your wallet. You can’t smoke inside but there are outdoor tables or you can use the free tobacco substitute they provide. The music is eclectic (I heard Pink Floyd and Snoop Dog in the same sitting) and the décor dark and relaxing. They even have a few coves in the wall to relax in.

Photo by Marilisa.

The Grasshopper

Located in between Damrak and the Red Light district, this coffeeshop wears multiple hats- it’s a bar, restaurant, and coffee shop. Head downstairs for the coffee shop.

They’ve created a separate smoking area down here so you can light up anything smokable. Tables are lined together in close quarters, making it easy to meet people. TVs run in the background and music plays over the speakers. The staff is friendly and knowledgeable and the weed is reasonably priced.

Hunter’s Café

Hunter’s has been one of my favorites since I started coming to Amsterdam.

Located right at the beginning of the Red Light district, this place is a little touristy, however, the black decor gives a nice lounge feel and there are ample chairs and couches to relax on.

Staff is really friendly and the prices are somewhat cheaper than other shops in the area. They make great shakes, too. There’s no tobacco allowed here, but you can use the substitute they offer. Just head up Warmastraat and look for the giant peeing dog.

Dolphins

Located right off Leidstraat near Liesplein, this coffee shop follows the ocean theme all the way. The walls are painted blue with various sea life images and “coral” is replicated to give this place a true underwater feeling.

Upstairs has the bar and a few tables. You can’t smoke tobacco up there, but head downstairs where the big comfy couches and TV welcome you with open arms. They also offer free wi-fi.

DampKring

This coffee shop was made famous by the movie “Ocean’s 12″ and has since seen a steady stream of people trying to pretend they’re Brad Pitt or George Clooney.

The shop has a wide open interior with orange painted walls. The various shades of orange are in different shapes to provide for the ultimate psychedelic experience.

Good drinks and good weed are served here at standard prices. The tables have patterns carved into them. They turn a blind eye to smoking inside-if they don’t see it, it’s not there. A lazy cat sits in the window all day to greet you as you come in.

Photo by adjustafresh.

No matter where you go, remember that these coffee shops all share similar characteristics. They have atmosphere, a friendly staff, couches, good drinks, and friendly stoners. Look for that and you’ll find the best coffee shop in Amsterdam.

community connection

Some of our community members who’ve lived in Amsterdam for extended periods have gotten over the coffee shops. Here’s one excellent article for those out there who’d like to check out other things while in Amsterdam: 10 Things to do in Amsterdam Besides Smoking Pot.

We’ve got all kind of travelers checking throughout Europe and the rest of the world, come, check in with us.

Feature photo by bdebaca. Photo above by heather.

Mexico City: It’s south of the border’s version of New York. The party starts late and ends early… the next day, that is. Here are our 10 current and perennial favorites in el D.F.

*All facts are accurate as of this posting. As always, check before you go!

10.Mama Rumba

The perennial favorite for live Cuban timba and salsa and 100% Latin music, including cumbia, Mama Rumba is so popular that as the night wears on it becomes impossible to walk—much less dance—in this tight, two-floor spot in the hot neighborhood of Colonia Roma.

If you decide to stay on the first floor with music, take care; when the crowd gets tight on the 2nd floor balcony, the possibility of a drink falling over the railing and onto your head is not at all remote. Skip the “famous” mojitos here, which are as overpriced as they are overly sweet. Best for the 20’s crowd.

Address: Queretaro #230 in Colonia Roma

$80 peso cover (approx. $8 USD).

9. Manguu

For what it’s worth, Manguu markets itself as a “Latin bar” and “minimalist lounge,” but the best thing to recommend it is its martini list; Manguu has one of the most creative—and affordable—drink lists in the city. The scene is laid back, good for small groups of friends, and perfect for before or after dinner drinks en route to somewhere else.

Address: Avenida de la Revolucion #1579, Colonia San Angel

No cover charge.

Photo by Haynes Photography.

8. Condesa df

Condesa df is a hip boutique hotel in the neighborhood of Condesa, and it’s best for a laid-back romantic evening. The rooftop bar offers an amazing panoramic view of the city at night, all from your cozy couple’s lounger, complete with a blanket and a warming heat lamp. The bar also serves sushi and Japanese-inspired small plates.

My favorite is the homemade Ramen noodle soup served with tempura. There’s a dimly lit bar in the interior patio, too; both bars have inventive drink lists.

Address: Avenida Veracruz #102, Colonia Condesa

No cover charge.

7. Casa Lamm

Casa Lamm is a lot of things to a lot of people—by day it’s a cultural center, but by night, it’s a bar and restaurant open to the public. A large and welcoming modern space, the bar has a good selection of drinks and cigars, and boasts live music on Tuesdays and Wednesdays, nights when few bars offer the same.

As with Manguu and Condesa df, Casa Lamm is a great place for drinks if you’re a 20 or 30 something hipster en route from one place to another.

Address: Avenida Alvaro Obregon #99, Colonia Roma

No cover charge.

6. La Nueva Flor del Son

You’d be likely to pass this unassuming bar-restaurant in the neighborhood of Colonia Roma without a second glance if you didn’t know it has some of the BEST live music in all of Mexico City. Although the drinks aren’t particularly good and are terribly overpriced, the music at La Nueva Flor del Son compensates for that, as does the attentive service. La Nueva Flor is famous for its Cuban music.

While it caters to a crowd of adults mainly 40 and over, don’t be fooled– the variety of musical groups is impressive and so is the dancing. If you want to have a true local experience, this is the place for you. Music starts early (5 PM) and keeps going until 1 or 2.

Address: Puebla #52, Colonia Roma

No cover, but three drink per person minimum.

5. El Rincon Cubano

Why so many Cuban places on this list? Because Chilangos (Mexico City residents) love Cuban music and Cuban dancing. El Rincon Cubano looks like it’s lived its glory days, but trust us, they’re not over yet. Don’t show up before 11:00 PM. Thursdays are 2 for 1 beer and mojito nights; Sunday evenings always find Cuban dancers showing off their moves.

Address: Insurgentes Sur #300

Cover: $70 pesos (approx. $7 USD) on Thursdays and Fridays; $50 pesos (approx. $5 USD) on Sundays.

4. Area

Like Condesa df, Area, is a rooftop hotel bar with stunning city views, great (if pricey) drinks, and a see-and-be-seen scene.

Address: Presidente Masaryk #201, Colonia Polanco

No cover.

3. La Casa de las Sirenas

146 different kinds of tequila. You’re in Mexico. Enough said.

Address: Guatemala #32, Centro Historico

No cover.

Photo by deeREK.

2. Cinnabar

Asia in Mexico City. Cinnabar offers drinks you’d be hard pressed to find elsewhere in the city—lychee martinis, for one. The bar also serves fusion Vietnamese and Chinese food so you won’t go hungry.

Address: Nuevo Leon #67, Colonia Condesa

No cover.

1. El Comillo

A bar in my neighborhood where DJs spin everything from techno to acid and Latin jazz. El Colmillo looks like a house from the outside, so it’s easy to miss—but just look for the velvet rope and the beefy bouncer.

Address: Versalles #52, Colonia Reforma

Cover varies depending on the day.

Information Connection: Planning a trip to Mexico City? Check out Julie’s Green Guide to Mexico City and her Top 10 Tips for Navigating Benito Juarez International Airport. You can also check out her video of nightlife at one of the bars mentioned in this article–#6, La Nueva Flor del Son–on her website.

Feature photo by stereogab. Photo above by rob-sinclair

Before I started living abroad, I was never much of a partier. I was the guy you’d more than likely trust to see someone home safely rather than the one doing kegstands with the night sky beginning to wane.

But Japanese culture just has a way of sucking you in. All-you-can-drink (nomihoudai) deals across the country, salarymen setting the example of a work-hard, play-hard schedule, and the women… well, where else can you dance with them so freely?

During my time in Hiroshima, there was a club I had discovered on a recent excursion to the island of Kyushu, in the Tenjin district of Fukuoka. It was and is my favorite place for nightlife in Japan (yes, even considering the clubs in Tokyo, which are great, but usually just way too crowded).

But how to get there? Fukuoka is 210 kilometers from Hiroshima city, not exactly the easiest commute without a car… or is it?

With Japan’s extensive transportation system, I had absolutely no problems taking one of the last shinkansen Kodama trains at 10 PM Saturday, arriving at my desired nightlife spot just before midnight. Perfect time to hit the clubs, and relax with some late night ramen slurping at one of the many yatai.

. Hating it. Photo by perfectoinsecto

Around five in the morning–festivities dying down, telephone numbers secured in my pocket, skull moments away from feeling like it would split open and remind me of those numerous Mexicolas (tequila and Coke)–I had a problem: no hotel, no plans.

Kyushu, despite not being at the top of many tourists’ lists of places to go in Japan, is just an amazing place. Excellent hot springs, history (the bombing of Nagasaki, the last samurai in Kagoshima, a great reconstructed castle in Kumamoto ), and small towns l wanted to explore…

But the pain, the pain…the throbbing pain.

By using some of the techniques explained below, I was able to enjoy a full night of fun in Fukuoka, then catch the early train to various places for sightseeing the next morning, sans sleep and headache bearing down…

Which brings us to the point: How can you best take control of your hangover and enjoy what the road has to offer?

1. The Spiritual Approach

Pray your way through the pain? Hardly, or I would have said religious approach, and we’d probably see a plethora of barflies at confession Sunday morning, begging for relief.

No, in fact I’d recommend a type of meditation technique, one that will calm your pounding heart, compensate for sleep, and relax the part of your brain still functioning properly.

Use hot springs. Although a cold shower might be the standard remedy in many countries, I find that an hour or two in near-scalding water usually does the trick, by eliminating any physical discomfort, leaving your mind to meditate (perhaps enlightening yourself with a different use of your Saturday nights).

2. Playing on your Desire

Let’s assume for a moment that you enjoy spending time with a fair member of the opposite sex. Let’s also assume you are willing to make concessions for them, change your behavior, alter your habits, and especially stop complaining as much.

Whether you’ve been traveling and drinking with a companion for months, met him or her during your night of debauchery, or separated to explore the nightlife on your own terms but must reunite in the morning, he or she is the only excuse you need.

If you know, even in the back of that endorphin-filled brain, that there will be someone waiting for you refreshed or not, you’re that much more likely to crawl out of bed, lean your head against the shower wall as the water cascades across your face, then give that special someone a decent travel experience.

Photo by oskarlin

3. Universal Quickfix

We’ve all heard of those special home remedies for curing the effects of late nights. Aspirin, lots of water, coffee, eating certain foods before or after, certain fruit juices, sleep, exercise, B12 shots…

The consumer market has no shortage of “guaranteed” solutions either, but most of these remedies are not universal and don’t really eliminate all the side effects.

In Poland, I hear drinking pickle juice works rather well. It’s also not too bad if you like to win football games on a hot day.

In Ireland, I believe they used to bury people up to their necks in sand.

I propose an international method: Red Bull from Thailand, Coca Cola from America, and Ibuprofen. Works every time for a quickfix, but I’d only recommend it if you need to be up and about for a few hours; after that, you’ll come down rather hard.

4. The Medical Front

Photo by hangovercure

On the rare occasions med students can crawl away from their residencies and bounce around the globe, I wonder if they’re allowed to bring an IV (intravenous) kit through customs…

Most people are aware of the physiological changes that occur after a night of hard drinking: dehydration, lack of energy, headache, etc. And although some are left to the tried-and-sometimes-true methods stated in #4, those with medical training can hope for a better solution: an intravenous solution of dextrose, coupled with saline.

This rehydrates the body much faster than gulping glass after glass of water, and gives you the energy boost in your blood sugar.

Yet even this method is open to interpretation, the exact IV cocktail a matter of opinion and still subject to what the “patient” thinks is best. Here are some variations:

No matter what the formula, I think we can all agree: those with IV bags getting stopped at the border would be an interesting and embarrassing explanation.

5. No Money Back

Photo by vagabondish

Make a reservation with a non-refundable deposit for the next day. Naturally, I would usually avoid these kinds of bookings at all costs, whether you’re doing an organized tour, checking into a hotel, getting a massage, or catching the early flight, but throw cash into the equation, and the rules change.

Although making any plans for the day following a night of drinking is still a good idea to get you up and about, it doesn’t quite have the same effect as that when money is involved.

Even if you’re meeting other people, there’s always that part of your mind saying “well, I can always do it later, meet up with them later, reschedule, must sleep now…” as opposed to “damn, I already paid $100, better get moving!”

The pain is still there, but you clever people have found a way to work through it. As a famous American once said:

“…it ain’t about how hard ya hit. It’s about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward. How much you can take and keep moving forward. That’s how [traveling] is done!”

Photo by crashmattb

Let’s be clear: This is not a guerrilla guide to Nashville’s secret underground indie-rock haunts or its little-known hipster underbelly.

No. This is a guide to the Nashville you’ve always known existed, but probably never thought was worth visiting. It’s a Nashville full of corny cowboy merchandise, country music at full blast, and middle-aged RVers from Indiana. It’s also a helluva good time.

The Pitch

Once upon a time, country music was officially known as “hillbilly music” on the Billboard charts – and the reputation has stuck. Making an occasional exception for suitably counter-cultural types like the Dixie Chicks, hipster music critics won’t touch the stuff – and in the same way, too-cool travel types don’t often make the trek to country’s mecca, Nashville, aka Music City, USA.

But country has a rich heritage and a vital modern scene. It’s also quite possibly the greatest drinking music of all time. Frankly, Hank Williams Jr. is to beer-guzzling what Bob Marley is to ganja-smoking.

So come on down, hit Nashville’s finest honky-tonks, and throw back a Bud or three. Soon enough, you too might have some new friends in low places.

Where To Go

“They say the neon lights are bright on Broadway,” the old song goes. “They say there’s always magic in the air.”

Sure, the song’s about a musician trying to make it big in New York City, but it might just as well be about Nashville. Broadway forms the heart of the downtown scene. Live music spills out of several blocks worth of bars; the party gets going early and doesn’t stop till “early” comes around again.

Most places have no cover; the bands play for tips only, and no one pressures you to keep buying drinks non-stop – though if you’d like to, no one will stop you, either!

Be sure to hit Tootsie’s Orchid Lounge, a historic dive that can claim legends like Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings and Patsy Cline as past customers. Live bands play upstairs and down, from the early afternoon to the wee hours. The place draws a mixture of country music pilgrims, curious tourists, and die-hard locals, and can morph from a quiet sit-down scene to a foot-stomping dance floor almost without warning. It’s at 5th and Broadway.

Next on the strip is Robert’s Western World, a more laid-back place with an older crowd and talented cover bands playing traditional country: think more Hank Williams Sr. and less Lynyrd Skynyrd. It’s between 4th and 5th on Broadway.

Take a left on 2nd to hit the Wildhorse Saloon – one of the few places to charge cover. It’s got more of a nightclub vibe, with a young crowd, new country on the stereo system, and free line-dancing lessons on the floor.

Across the street from the Wildhorse, the Buck Wild Saloon is a karaoke joint, and a great place to end your night. Had enough liquid courage that you want to take your own shot at “Folsom Prison Blues”? This is the spot to do it. Be forewarned, though: On most nights there’s enough undiscovered talent rocking the mic in this place to fill an American Idol episode.

These are just a few of Broadway’s party possibilities – take a wander and see which honky-tonk is the happeningest on the night you’re in town!

Photo by mlsj_photos

Practicalities

Most of the live music venues serve food, too. There’s a Pita Pit on 2nd for a quick bite to go, and a BB King’s across the street for the chain-restaurant take on classic Southern dishes. Big River, at 1st and Broadway, is another decent dining option with great local microbrew.

As you might expect, downtown Nashville’s hotels are pricey, the usual bland big-name chains. They’re well-located if you can split with friends, though. The city’s official tourism site has info on special offers, and a booking system.

There are also a couple of hostels around the fringes of downtown – Music City Hostel is within striking distance of the Broadway bar strip.

You can take your pick of the cheap motels on any of the highways coming into town, but you’ll need a DD or a couple of steep cab rides. Demonbreun, one street over parallel to Broadway, has plenty of parking lots between 12th and 8th – you can pay around $10 and leave your car overnight, only a few blocks from the main strip. Another option is to check out Couchsurfing for well-located locals.

For the truly bad-ass budget party hound, Nashville’s Greyhound station is in the heart of the city, at Demonbreun and 8th. So if you’re really worried about blowing too much cash on cabs and hotels, you can roll into town in the early afternoon, party through the night, and stagger back to the bus station with the sunrise.

Feature photo discoverfun. Photo above rageforst

It’s summer, and no matter where you are, there’s no better time to explore and enjoy the spirits of the world.

You already know the Capirinha, the mojito, and the pisco sour… it’s time to challenge the bartender with one of these exotic cocktails!

In our guide to the world’s best cocktails, we take you from the Americas to Africa in search of lesser known libations.

10. Michelada:

Legend has it that the Michelada, a Mexican cocktail that boasts beer as its unlikely main ingredient, evolved in the 1950s, when the Mexican beer company Tecate introduced beer in cans.

The marketing innovation, which allowed bars to advertise cerveza bien helada (or “real cold beer”), eventually took on the name the “chelada,” with “mi” (“my”) eventually tacked onto the front.

The practice of squeezing a lime wedge and adding salt to beer is modified in this cocktail, as a tall frosty beer glass is rimmed with lime and salt and then dipped in a chile seasoning.

Add beer to a mix concocted with a dash of Tabasco or other hot sauce and a dash of Worcestershire sauce. Sprinkle a bit more of the chile on top for a fiery finish.

Ask for one at Pachamama’s in Lower Baja California.

9. Violette Royale:

This simple cocktail is a blend of 4 ounces of champagne and a half ounce of Crème de Violette (violet liqueur), which was not available in the U.S. until recently.

Crème de Violette, which is imported from France and Austria, is made of macerated violets from the Alps and has a deep purple color that makes an impressive cocktail with a distinct taste.

Find it on the menu at Hotel Costes Bar in Paris, which has an outdoor courtyard.

8. Elderflower-Pear Martini:

The best cocktails have a back story—preferably one about how difficult the ingredients are to source—and like the Violette Royale, the Elderflower-Pear Martini is made with a liqueur made in limited quantities and which was only recently made available in the States.

St. Germain, the elderflower liqueur, is made of elderflowers that are collected for just a few days each spring. The liqueur is perfect for a summer drink; mix 1.5 ounces of St. Germain with 1.5 ounces of pear vodka and top with champagne.

Serve in a martini glass garnished with a pear slice. Ask for it at Deep Blue Bistro (which doubles as an art gallery on the waterfront) in Sydney, Australia.

Photo by ilmungo

7. Peppermint Somras:

Mint is a classic ingredient in many summer drinks around the world—from the Cuban mojito to the Southern U.S. favorite, the mint julep—but it’s also an ingredient in peppermint somras, an Indian cocktail.

Blend 1.5 ounces of white rum, 1.5 ounces of simple syrup, 2 ounces of cocktail sour mix, and 2 ounces of orange juice. Macerate 6 peppermint leaves and garnish.

Ask for it at the Vie Lounge in Mumbai, which offers outdoor drinking on the deck with impressive ocean views.

6. Nectar of the Gods:

Lithuania isn’t famous for its cocktails, but maybe it should be. In addition to offering a variety of local beers, Lithuania also makes its own liqueurs, including the honey based blend known as Krupnikas and the fruity Palanga and Dainava.

Krupnikas can be mixed with champagne, vodka, or gin in a dizzying number of combinations to produce cocktails that are simultaneously complex and light. Ask for Nectar of the Gods at the Sky Bar in Vilnius, which offers views of the city skyline from the 22nd floor.

5. African Obsession:

More local liqueurs can be found in South Africa, center of production for Amarula, a crème liqueur made of a fruit, marula.

To make it at home, mix 1.5 ounces of Amarula with 1.5 ounces of Crème de Cacao, 1.5 ounces of Amaretto, and 1.5 ounces of milk or heavy cream. Shake with ice and strain into a martini glass.

Belly up to the Oceanside bar at Baraza in Cape Town if you want to experience the African Obsession in the place where it was invented.

4. Cransoma:

Terrible name, to be sure, but a delicious and refreshing cocktail. Celebrate the Beijing Olympics with a nod to the key ingredient in this cocktail, lychee liqueur.

Mix 2/3 ounces of strawberry liqueur with 1/3 ounces of cranberry vodka, 1/3 ounces of lychee liqueur, 1 and 1/3 ounces of apple juice, and 12 ounces of tonic water. Shake and serve in a hurricane glass with a peeled lychee.

Going to China? Ask for the cransoma at Beijing’s Emergency Room Bar.

3. Portuguese Daisy:

Portugal, of course, is famous for its port, so it’s no surprise that porto has found its way into the country’s signature cocktails.

The Portuguese Daisy is made with 2 ounces of port, 1 ounce of brandy, 1 ounce of lemon juice, ½ teaspoon of superfine sugar, and ½ teaspoon of Grenadine, shaken with ice and strained into a lowball glass.

Try it out at Resto in Lisbon, which provides sweeping views of the city and outdoor drinking in the courtyard.

2. Tel Aviv Summer:

The name says it all. Vodka, tequila, cachaca, lemon juice, red grapefruit juice, and a hint of lemongrass are mixed together in this refreshing drink.

Ask for it at the unfortunately named Betty Ford Bar in Tel Aviv.

1. Jus de Bissap:

You probably don’t want to make this one at home, as the complexity level is high and the variety of ingredients makes the work involved intense, so swing by the Awale Bar in Cote d’ Ivoire’s capital, Abidjan, to enjoy this light, summery cocktail made of hibiscus flowers, ginger, vanilla, mint, orange flower water, lemon juice, and pineapple juice.

What’s your favorite cocktail? Leave a comment below!

Feature photo by ruthbruin Photo by ssandars

From the most widely spoken language in the world (Mandarin, Chinese), to the little-known Galego spoken in Galicia, Spain, the following list covers how to say “one more beer please” in 50 different languages.

Try your hand at finding the most sensual-sounding language; this will come in handy when you’re chatting up that gorgeous local! Personally, Latin does it for me.

UPDATE: When this list was first published, readers pointed out enough bad grammar and translation mistakes to keep the State Department busy for a week. Thanks everyone, for chipping in and helping us refine this list! We won’t rest until it’s right, so keep the comments coming.

Best,

The Matador Team

So now that you have circled the world, ordered numerous beers, converted countless currencies, and urinated often, you may rest in a satisfied but sober manner!

Photo by n0thing

Enjoy in moderation.

Community Connection!

Check out Matador’s highly scientific rankings of the world’s Top 10 Rooftop Bars, and Top 10 Local Parties for ideas on where to get your international drink on. Flying solo? Read the Gutsy Girl’s Guide to Drinking Alone.

Still not sure where to travel next? Here are our equally scientific calculations on where to find the world’s Sexiest Women and Sexiest Men – and the Practical Guide To Hostel Sex.

Finally, like many Matador articles, this list grew out of a forum discussion on beer. Matador is the most vibrant travel community on the web – if you don’t have a profile yet, join the community today!

Here’s to international relations!

Feature photo by joeshlabotnik Photo above by tavallai

The ancient Egyptians did it. The ancient Chinese did it. And so did the Greeks.

People around the world have been getting drunk for thousands of years. The act of ‘toasting’ and clinking glasses together has been taking place for so long that the origins of the ritual are quite blurry.

There are many debated theories —the most popular being the noise of ‘clinking’ was to ward off evil spirits. Another tale claims that by crashing glasses together, the libations in each glass would slosh into the other person’s cup, proving that neither was poisoned.

Most commonly the toast translates to ‘good health,’ something we all need after one too many shots.

When traveling, the act of sharing a libation with a local can help foster international good will. Learning how to say “cheers!” in the local language is important!

Here is an international “cheers!” cheat sheet for you to print out, laminate, tuck into your passport, or copy to your cell phone. Enjoy!

Afrikaans : Gesondheid! : (Ge-sund-hide)

Albanian : Gëzuar! : (Géschuar)

Arabic (Egyptian) : في صحتكم! : (Fee-sa-ha-tak)

Armenian : Armenia : (Gen-ots-it)

Azerbaijani : Afiyët oslun! : (Afeeyet Ohs-lun)

Basque : On egin! : (On egín)

Photo by tatianasapateiro

Bosnian : Živjeli! : (Zhee-vi-lee)

Bulgarian : Наздраве! : (NAZ-dra-vey)

Chinese (Mandarin) : 乾杯! [干杯!] : (Gan BAY)

Chinese : (Cantonese) : (Gom bui)

Czech : Na zdravi : (NAZ-drah vi)

Croatian : Živjeli! : (ZHEE-vi-lee)

Danish : Skål! : (Skol)

.

Dutch : Prosit! : (Prowst)

Photo by hzeller

English : Cheers! Bottoms up! Down the hatch! Here’s mud in your eye!

Esperanto : Je via sano! Toston! : (YEH VEE-ah SAH-no/Tóston)

Estonian : Terviseks! : (Ter-vi-seks)

Ethiopian (Amharic) : Letenachin : (L’-TAY-nah-chin)

Farsi : (Ba-sal-a-ma-TEE)

Finnish : Kippis! : (KEEP-us)

French : A Votre Sante! : (Ah Vot-ruh Sahn-tay)

Photo by fihu

Gaelic (Irish) : Sláinte! : (Slawn-che)

German : Prost! : (Prohst)

Greek : στην υγειά σας! : (Stin Eyiassou/Stin Eye-ee-yass-ooh)

Hawaiian : Okole Maluna! : (Å’kålè ma’luna)

Hebrew : לְחַיִּים!/L’Chaim! : (Le Chy-em)

Hungarian : Egeszsegere! : (Egg-esh Ay-ged-reh)

Italian : Salute! : Cin cin! (Salu-tay/Chin Chin)

Japanese : /Kampai! : (Kam-pie)

Korean : 위하여 (Chukbae) : (Sheet seki yah)

Latvian : Prieka! : (Pree-eh-ka)

Lithuanian i : sveikata! : (Ee sweh-kata)

Luxembourgish : Prost! : (Prohst)

Maltese : Evviva! : (A-vee-va)

Mongolian : Эрүүл мэндийн төлөө! : (Erüül mehdiin tölöö)

Norwegian : Skål! : (Skoal)

Persian : به سلامتی! : (beh salamati)

Photo by janthemanson

Polish Na : zdrowie! : (Naz-droh-vee-ay)

Portuguese : Saúde! : (Sow-ooh-jee)

Romanian : Noroc! : (No-roak)

Russian : Будем здоровы! : (Boo-dem Zdo-ro-vee-eh)

Serbian : Ziveli! : (ZHEE-vi-lee)

Slovak : Na zdravie! : (Naz-drah-vee-ay)

Spanish : ¡Salud!/Salut! : (Sah-lud/Sah-lute)

Swedish : Skål! : (Skol)

Thai : ไชโย! : (Chuc-dee)

Turkish : Şerefe! : (Sher-i-feh)

Vietnamese : Chúc sức khoẻ! : (chook-sa-koi-ah)

Yiddish : געזונטערהייט! Zei Gazunt! : (Zye GAH-zoont)

Zulu : Oogy wawa! : (oogee-wawa)

Undoubtedly you will be downing many more drinks in your lifetime – and making many toasts to international friends. Cheers!

Know how to say “Cheers!” in a language that’s not on the list? Please leave a comment below!

Community Connection!

Check out Matador’s highly scientific rankings of the world’s Top 10 Rooftop Bars, and Top 10 Local Parties for ideas on where to get your international drink on. Flying solo? Read the Gutsy Girl’s Guide to Drinking Alone.

Still not sure where to travel next? Here are our equally scientific calculations on where to find the world’s Sexiest Women and Sexiest Men – and the Practical Guide To Hostel Sex.

Here’s to international relations!

Feature photo by krebsmaus07. Photo by Nicole Pelligrino.

With over seventy percent of the population claiming African ancestry, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil has been described as the “Most African city in the Americas.” Yet limiting Bahia to a tiny piece of Africa nestled into the coast of Brazil is a bit too neat. Bahia represents one of the great cultural mélanges of the New World. Nowhere is this more evident than in the musical traditions of Salvador.

Living and working in Salvador, I’ve found that taking in the local music and nightlife is the best means of unwinding after my long, hot, post-work commute, or after an all day sun-bake at the beach. Salvador offers a wide assortment of venues and distinctive musical styles.

While Carnaval is the celebration of the year, the city provides ample year-round entertainment. From the authentic sounds of Northeastern Forró, Axé, and Samba, to African drumming and imports like Salsa and Reggae, to a unique breed of singer/songwriter types–there is truly something for everyone.

The following are the 10 best spots / events to take in the unique nightlife of Salvador.

1. Terça da Bênção

The weekly Terça da Bênção (Tuesday of Blessing) in Pelourinho jam-packs the streets of the Old City with both locals and tourists. Salvador’s famous drumming blocos take to the streets, and behind them Soteropolitanos (Individuals from Salvador) perform elaborate synchronized dances. Onlookers encircle the musicians and performers. Didá Banda Feminina, an all-girl Afro-bloco (and one of many community-based music groups) consistently draws a massive crowd.

2. Terreiro de Jesus

Terreiro de Jesus, the central public square in Pelourhino, framed by churches on nearly every side, is a popular place to check out a variety of local acts. The city erects a large, well-lit stage, and fantastic sound system. Folks flood the square; standing and sitting at plastic tables, eating Acarajé from Baihanas, drinking beer and citrus-sugary capirinhas. People dance and sing along. The effusiveness of Bahians is infectious—you will inevitably find yourself on your feet, dancing and chiming into the music.

Photo by fabbio

3. Gerônimo

Gerônimo is a must-see on Tuesdays. He and his band, Mont Serrat, take the stage which sits atop the steps of the Igreja (Church) do Passo on the Ladeira (Hill) do Carmo. The church stands at the cusp of Pelourhino and neighboring Santo Antônio, and the festivities begin around 7 PM. Arriving early is best to secure a superior view of the band.

Gerônimo’s music is the pride of Salvador, and the number of bodies crammed into the bottleneck-shaped space is always staggering. It may be a claustrophobe’s nightmare, but few Brazilians are daunted by the crowd’s density. Relax and join in the revelry.

4. Salsa Night at Sankofa’a African Bar

Stroll back in the direction of Terreiro de Jesus and stop in at Sankofa’a African Bar for Salsa night. I try to grab an open seat near the edge and watch the talented band and the highly-skilled Salseros. I am generally too intimidated by the expertise of these dancers to join in. For those more valiant than me, Salsa teachers who frequent Sankofa will be glad to lead if you are willing to try.

If your two left feet get the best of you, wander upstairs and take a break on one of the hammocks, and check out the old Reggae music videos on the projector screen, or wander onto the veranda and gaze down at the crowds below.

5. Reggae night at Arté Bahia

Salvador’s music scene is largely homegrown, but Reggae (pronounced “hay-gee” in Portuguese) is becoming an increasingly central element of the city’s musical repertoire. Friday is reggae night at Arté Bahia in Pelourinho, the open air bar; cheap drinks and affordable admission have inspired me to return time and time again.

As the popularity of Reggae continues to increase in Salvador, new artists are popping up rapidly. Even so, polished, experienced, and professional artists are still easy to spot.

Photo by brunogirin

6. Saturday Nights at Bispo Hostel

Bispo’s crowd ranges in age from teens through seniors, and the group is lively, the ambiance intimate and welcoming. Candles arranged in a circular pattern adorn the walls and provide the sole light source for the upstairs music area. Bispo also boasts a large backyard, with an elevated stage and a pit.

Performances are typically collaborative and varied, featuring new musicians and regulars alike. Shows integrate African-derived call and response, experimentation with such instruments as Zimbabwean Xylophones, as well as kalimbas and shakeres.

7. Ladeira do Curuzu on Saturdays

Ilê Aiyé is an Afro-bloco based out of Liberdade and can be seen on the Ladeira do Curuzu on Saturdays. Recently, I was fortunate enough to catch their annual Festival of Black Music and was treated to a showcase of talented musicians; some from Salvador and others from greater Brazil. Margareth Menezes’ powerful voice shook the walls of the concert hall from the stage, while the members of Ilê Aiyé drummed away on the same floor as the concert-goers, who were encouraged to participate, dancing and singing until 5 AM.

8. Sundays at O Galpão Cheio de Assunto

Peu Meurray has done a great job of turning his art into an accessible and interesting musical endeavor, including the transformation of tires into rolling drums. He plays on Sundays at O Galpão Cheio de Assunto in the Sete Portas neighborhoos. Accompanied by his band, os Pneumáticos, he adds new life to the classic sounds of Northeastern Forró.

The open-air music venue doubles as a miniature gallery, one of the most colorful and eclectic spots in the city. This is also a great place to learn how to dance forró. Locals will take you under their wing and show you the simple moves. Be prepared to move your hips; this is NOT the Texas two-step!

9. Jota Veloso at Sesi in Rio Vermelho

Rio Vermelho is a neighborhood on the opposite side of town, another popular location for both music and nightlife. Largo de Santana is notorious for having the best Acarajé in town. After grabbing a beer and food, I walk over to Sesi, a pricey but lovely restaurant and venue which backs up to the Atlantic Ocean.

Featured on selected nights is singer/ composer Jota Veloso (nephew of the legendary Caetano Veloso). A showcase of some of Salvador’s finest talent.

10. Mondays at Casa de Mãe

Another option is Mondays at Casa de Mãe, which are inexpensive, and relaxing. Get there early, and grab a seat with an ocean view on the balcony, as the heat inside can become a bit stifling. An interesting spot is Nhô Caldos, an anomaly in Salvador.

The bar and restaurant pours out onto Rua do Atlantico, and is the only place I have seen punk music featured in the city thus far. Yet other nights it maintains a quieter, family-friendly atmosphere. I cannot quite figure it out, but I like it.

Photo by Nicole Pelligrino

Tips on Nightlife in Salvador

The quantity of things to do is contingent upon the season, the day of the week, and the weather conditions. Carnaval time in February is the apex of the high season, while the low season is between July and September.

Though there is great fervor surrounding Carnaval, the city is much more affordable and relaxed during the low season. Spending the evening at one of Salvador’s many cheap outdoor bars and sharing beer with friends can be just as enjoyable as a night out on the town.

Arriving early at sure-to-be-packed events is a good idea, but do not be surprised if they begin an hour or two after scheduled. Nightlife is a game of give-and-take in Salvador; folks are incredibly low-key when it comes to going out, expect them to be similarly relaxed when it comes to punctuality. Shows scheduled for 7 PM may not commence until 9; friends with whom you have arranged to meet at 9 may not arrive until 10 or 10:30. I have grown accustomed to it.

Finally, these recommendations are intended to provide a concise list of possibilities for visitors and those new to the city. New opportunities to experience the vibrant music and nightlife of Salvador emerge weekly. Come see for yourself. Boa Sorte!

photo by simonparisphotograph y

1. Sirocco

Bangkok, Thailand

No night out in Bangkok is complete without a couple cocktails at Sirocco. Perched on top of The Dome at State Tower, 64th floors above the hectic streets of Bangkok, this sexy rooftop bar boasts 360 degree views of the city with city lights in every direction, as far as the eye can see. If you’re looking for a picturesque place to dine, they also serve dinner.

The Dome at Sate Tower 1055 Silom Road, Bangrak, Bangkok 10500

photo by www.anotacionesviajeras.com

2. The Penthouse

Madrid, Spain

The Penthouse is an ultra-chic rooftop bar owned by Rande Gerber, celeb nightlife entrepreneur and husband of Cindy Crawford. It’s located on the roof of Hotel ME Madrid Reina Victoria, in Plaza Santa Ana, and has a great view of central Madrid. The crowd is dressed to kill, the waitresses are smoking hot the drinks are pricey and the place is often frequented by Spanish celebrities. Best to get here for happy hour, because although it’s open till 3am, the line to get in is insane after midnight.

Hotel ME Madrid Reina Victoria / Plaza Santa Ana / Princesa, 27 / Madrid Spain 28008 / Tel: (34) 91 5418200

photo by grantthai

3. Luna Bar

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

This super sexy rooftop and poolside bar is a hang out for the twenties and thirties nightlife scene in Kuala Lumpur. It’s got a long indoor bar with a chic design leading you out onto the breezy rooftop for the best views of the lights of KL. For a romantic night out, be sure to get there early to snag a private little enclave up against the glass.

Menara PanGlobal 34th Floor / Jalan Punchak (off Jl P. Ramlee) / Kuala Lumpur / Tel: +60-3-20262211

photo by spin spin

4. Rooftop Bar

Melbourne, Australia

An ultra cool venue for music, cinema, or just sunny boozing, this bar sits atop the Thai bar and restaurant, Cookie, on a six story 1920’s building in central Melbourne.

Rooftop Bar / Curtin House, Level 3, 252 Swanston Street / Melbourne, Australia

photo by OneDanShow

5. Gravity

Dublin, Ireland

Although not an open air bar, Gravity boasts an unobstructed 360 degree view of Dublin. It’s got a swanky style and comfortable seating right up against the glass to sit in while you enjoy the view from the highest bar in Ireland.

Top of The Guinness Storehouse / St James’s Gate / Dublin 8, Ireland / Tel: + 353 1 408 4800

photo by FoolishVanity

6. Top Floor Bar

London, United Kingdom

Looking for the perfect place to throw a swank party in London? The Top Floor Bar, the final floor of the Gherkin, London’s newest architectural darling, is available for private parties. The ultra modern venue sits under the spectacular glass cone roof and has stunning views of the city.

Top of the Gherkin / 30 St. Mary Axe / London, United Kingdom

photo by silentway

7. Moon

Las Vegas, Nevada

The Palms teamed up with the Playboy Club giving revelers in Vegas a sexy place to blow their money on the 53rd floor of the palms Hotel. The sound system here is rockin’ and although it can be tough to get in, it’s a great place to check out on Tuesday, Friday and Saturday nights.

The Palms Hotel 53rd Floor / 4321 W Flamingo Rd / Las Vegas, NV Tel (702) 940-7246

photo by jennywong

8. Captain Bar

Shanghai, China

This cool rooftop bar has a wide variety of cocktails and a great view of The Bund and surrounding city lights. It’s usually a cool mix of locals and travelers which makes for a diverse and thirsty crowd.

6/F, 37 Fuzhou Lu / People’s Square / Bund,Metro Line 2 Nanjing Dong Lu Station / Shanghai, China

photo by Martin Callum

9. Hudson Sky Terrace

New York, New York

This super chill rooftop bar has great service, amazing sangria and everything else you could want on a hot New York afternoon. From an air conditioned game room to a hammock with a view of the river, the Hudson has you covered, but like many of NY rooftop hot spots, you must be a guest in the hotel to enjoy it.

The Hudson Hotel / 356 W. 58th St between Eighth and Ninth Aves / Tel 212-554-6317

10. Condesa DF Rooftop Bar

Mexico City, Mexico

This is an awesome bar in an all-around cool hotel. The Condesa DF is decked out in extraordinary design, from the table cloths to the couches. This super-chic hotel only has 40 rooms so make sure to get a reservation, and make sure to hit its rooftop paradise for some cocktails as the sun goes down over Mexico City.

Condesa DF / Avenida Veracruz 102 / Mexico City DF 06700 Mexico

Do you know any rooftop bars that should have made the list? Share in the comments!

The truth is, when you accidentally find yourself in a three roomed club talking music with Kevin Spacey or accepting Xanax from Josh Hartnett, it’s easy to believe you’re in the right place at the right time.

And yet the lion’s share of places I’m going to share with you are sadly lackluster of late, a steady decline in hoi polloi-ness, still trying their biblical best to stay guarded, secretive, with doormen who ask you ‘what party are you here for?’ or say ’sorry, private party,’ when actually they have an embargo on a certain kind of person, the un-cool.

Which is most of you. And, before whoring myself, me.

Below I will include names to drop that will give you an, until now, unachieved authority at these doors. But keep your high hopes and dreams for the daytime, for no club on the streets of The Lair is going to get you where you ought to be.

1. Beatrice Inn

Still considered the one and only. A folded away nightmare and fire hazard past prime that feels like a synonym for falling to the wayside. But who am I to talk? This place can be outrageous. Ignore the doorman and say: ‘Lizzy invited us.’ Bring drugs.

WHERE: W12 Street between 8th Avenue and W4. Best from 1am. Weeknights.

2. Sway

A Chinese DJ who also designs purses plays the majority Morrissey themed part of the night. Under the DJ booth find ‘The Throne’ where all half-hearted stars and their wade pools hang.

Stick around all night because the weirdest and most wonderful music is played in the last hour when the second DJ plays stuff that sounds amazing if you’re on something. ‘What party are you here for?’ ‘Morrissey’ is your reply. Or better yet, ‘Ben and Chloe invited me.’ Similar to visiting Tangiers.

Sundays only. Spring Street and Greenwich. Under the neon sign that says McBar.

3. Annex

Ink black tiles outside do not foreshadow smart design but this place can never be hit or miss: you simply must be in the mood for rave and asymmetrical hairdos commingling with dry ice smoke and whiskey served in plastic cups. If you’re a guy, compliment the black retro-pop doorman and get in for free.

WHERE: Fridays only. 152 Orchard Street.

4. The Web

A demure face if ever there was one, the gray sculpted door and its little latch window insinuate all kinds of holes, and this place is a rather unexpected hole under the Four Seasons hotel.

Gay Asians dance upon pink and yellow light cubes for their varying admirers. How nice that each night of the week is themed, from Miss Asia Supreme night to gang bang night. Be prepared to leave feeling licked all over.

WHERE: Under the diminutive yellow awning, next to the 58th street entrance of the Four Seasons, closer to Park Ave.

5. Hotel del Mano

This is not a hotel. It’s a long room somewhere in Brooklyn going as something fancy in the skeleton of a bought out tattoo parlor.

The doorman is chit chatty Kathy and the host not so much. They’ll go out of their way here to make you happy, even plug in your iPhone if it needs charging.

Come here for cocktails that take sixteen minutes to make because the bartenders are artful but also because they are egomaniacally displaying their knowledge of the mixed drink. Have someone else pay.

WHERE: Corner of north 9th street and Berry Street, Williamsburg.

6. The Box

We’re in a phase in NYC nightlife where bottle service isn’t the draw card, but exclusivity. Forget getting in because you’re going to spend $8,000 on bottles, now you have to be too beautiful and too successful and too artistic to get in.

But The Box is different. Here you have to be all those things and spend $8,000 to get in.

Unless your friends know Richard or you’re sleeping with the doorman or are in the freak show (think dwarf Britney Spears, mechanical-break-dancing-China men and drag queens molesting themselves) that occurs on stage twice nightly.

One of the most showy, exquisite night clubs in town, like Rococo on caffeine.

WHERE: 189 Chrystie Street. Good Luck.

7. Nancy Whiskeys

A small dingy Irish pub situated above an NYPD precinct, this place is full of intoxicated off duty cops playing shuffle board, old men drinking away their hangover from 1956, and a smattering of NYU kids thrilled to be drinking at all.

When the music is right and the liquor is flowing, seeing all the crowds interacting peacefully may leave hope for a peaceful world. Go on Wednesdays, when the drunkest, richest and most entertaining bartender in town, Frankie, is serving up the best drinks you didn’t order.

WHERE: Lispenard and 6th Avenue.

8. Town House

No hats allowed. And they’re not lying; this place is in a townhouse.

A morosely, blandly decorated one that does little to emulate or compliment the revered NYC over-40 gay men who lounge about here like satin in a coffin, drinking what else? Martinis and doing what more? Gaily flitting about the grand piano (hideously set on cream carpet) and singing KD Lang and the show tunes she should’ve written.

A good place to lament disappointing careers, lost loves and celebrate youth, with another Martini. And don’t be a pussy with the olives. Up the stairs on the Upper East Side.

WHERE: 206 east 58th street.

9. Ye Waverly Inn

This place hasn’t officially opened. And never will. Being in a constant state of ‘reviews’ means you never really have to answer to anybody, let alone the phone.

If you want a reservation come in person no more than 48 hours in advance. This is actually a restaurant but it’s enough of a scene to warrant going as a club, where you can eat supper in the back, glass-roofed garden with trees growing through the roof.

Like eating in Never Never Land with sexy waiters who are dedicated to knowing everything about every ingredient. The nice thing here is that you can practice hierarchical warfare with the staff because you’re paying $85 for macaroni and cheese.

New American Cuisine is what they’re going as. I’m going as broke. You go without a reservation and wait for 30 minutes at the bar, otherwise go after 11pm and don’t wait.

WHERE: 16 Bank Street.

10. The lobby of The Bowery Hotel

NYC nightlife begins to get incestuous here, the same geeks who have their hands on Ye Waverly Inn are involved in this mess and they all hang out at Beatrice Inn too.

In fact, the Waverly people have their meetings here so make nice with them at Waverly and get a coveted seat here, in this peaceful lobby, which is open only to hotel guests and special people. This lobby really is a Turkish delight. And Bulgarian and Medieval and Saxon and Gilded New York delight all in one too. Without coming off jarring at all.

If the cow at the potted palm gives you any trouble mention that Sam (from Waverly) said you should stop by, and if that doesn’t get through, ask if she’s seen Paul. As in Sevigny. $12 Whiskeys come with divine pistachios, and Klonopin if you ask gently.

WHERE: 335 Bowery between e 4th and Great Jones. Take the latest edition New York Times on your way out.

Community Connection!

Looking for cool people to party with in NYC? Check out Julie, Lucas, Jordan, or Nick.

If you’re nursing a hangover after a long night of partying you might want to relax in these Green Escapes and get away from the hectic sounds of the city–but don’t get too hungover or you’ll miss the Top 10 NYC experiences! Happy travels!

You’ve heard a lot about Palermo in Buenos Aires but you’re not sure where to begin? Matador gives you a sleek list of options for all tastes, in a city that doesn’t really seem to sleep but only takes siestas.

1. Niceto

Most good weekly parties happen at Niceto – they pretty much have the monopoly on hipster nightlife in BA. From Compass to Zizek, Niceto is a solid choice at least four nights out of the week. You often hope to try other spots but find yourself back at Niceto because it’s where the cool party is that night. Visiting bands like Battles and Eek-A-Mouse and a consistent local scene make it the destination. Just don’t forget to put yourself on the list and avoid the line.

Why Niceto? It’s not only in the top 10, it’s #1 in Palermo. It’s the difference between Buenos Aires and every European discotheque whose soundtrack has made you want to vomit – i.e. you won’t hear “What is Love” on the dancefloor.

2. Miloca

Centrally located with a great garden and terrace, Miloca is the house you feel entitled to own in Buenos Aires. High ceilings, hip furniture and lighting, and a backyard bar scream “I’m so cool I live in Buenos Aires.” Even for just a few days. They have a great happy hour but beware of the top shelf liquor. What is your standard at home may be pricier in Buenos Aires; stay off the Patron and opt for a local favorite, like Pisco!

Why is Miloca in the top 10? Miloca is a favorite with locals and travelers alike and manages to straddle posh and chill with a lounge-y interior and laid back garden. It’s a good compromise for diverse tastes.

3. Unico
Set in the heart of Palermo Hollywood, Unico is the bar you can fall back on. It’s usually more crowded in front than inside and it always has a “hey baby” kind of vibe, but in a good way. You’ve heard the people in BA are friendly? At Unico the meet market is friendly but not overly intrusive. If you care to mingle, you can; if you care to stick with your click, that works too.

Why opt for Unico? Unico is a bar that’s almost always crowded and when you can’t decide where to go and you’d like to be out, or when you want a teaser before the late night scene, Unico is a standard.

4. Sullivan’s

Sullivan’s is the Irish pub in the heart of Soho with live music upstairs and a summer terrace. It’s everything you want in a pub – Guinness on draft, bartender banter and attitude, and a dim, cozy atmosphere. Plus it’s in Palermo Soho, full of gorgeous people who have no concept of stress or hostility and have never met the phrase “bad drunk.” As they say (in English) on a popular radio show here in Buenos Aires, “You’re a winner!”

Why Sullivans? Because sometimes you need to go to a pub where you’re not the foreigner freak, where you understand the menu, and where everybody knows your name – or at least they aren’t surprised that it’s Frank, and not Francisco.

5. Ocho7Ocho

Secret bars, hidden restaurants, and clandestine parties spell exciting and different. Here in BA they’re called “los puertos cerrados,” closed doors, and make for added culinary and cocktail adventures. Thames 878 is home to a lounge that feels entirely exclusive and appeals from the moment you enter the expansive, festive space. It’s not so fancy that you’re outclassed but it has an element of mystery that it makes you feel like you’re special for having found it out. Good appetizers and fresh fruit mixology satiates, but beware the sugar onslaught. “Sin azucar” (without sugar) could be the one Spanish phrase you master instantly, when you forget to use it and end up with a slurpee instead of a “daikiri.”

Why pick Ocho7Ocho over any bar in the traffic circle on Honduras? You didn’t come all the way to Argentina to slum it with the eighteen-year-olds, in from the city outskirts via public transit.

7. Mundo Bizarro

Neon signs, vinyl booths, tattoos, pop art – sometimes you need a little Southern California rockabilly in your foreign travels. Mundo Bizarro explores the car bomb drinker side of you with an eclectic cocktail menu and someone’s Bizarro version of soul food. Located on Serrano just off of the plaza, Mundo Bizarro is a great alternative to standard Argentine partying. Unless it’s exactly what you were looking to get away from.

Why go Bizarro? Pum Pum art in the bathroom and rockabilly on the jukebox makes you feel all urban cowboy/gaucho inside. The crowd is way cooler than your average nightclub or “after office” and will welcome your tattoos. Or cause you to feel naked without them.

8. Kim y Novak

If you only have time for one blowout night, make it a Kim y Novak night. A combination of decent deejays and a good cocktail menu compliment the sixties-mod, “Barbie’s First Diner,” décor. The bar attracts a hip crowd that runs the gamut from normal Argentines-out-to-play, to fading rock and film stars looking for last hurrahs. On the biggest party nights, there’s a consistent blend of good-looking garbage and high-quality spectacle. In a town full of seductive nightlife options, Kim y Novak is the sexiest.

Why is Kim y on the hotlist? It’s the nuthouse you always wanted to party in – totally bananas at times, and perfect for nightlife veterans.

9. Salon Pueyrredon

Set in an old house, this rock venue is the real deal. It’s the CBGB’s of Buenos Aires with bands every night and cheap beers and covers. You climb the stairs and enter the parlor with red walls and a black bar of beer and wine. Straight ahead is the living room with raised stage and bawdy band. There’s almost always a good crowd and “una buena onda” (a good vibe) with a rock edge.

Why rock Argentina style? This is the city where the Ramones played three back to back nights in the River stadium. An earthquake registered in the area when the entire stadium started pogo-ing, i.e. 60,000 kids jumping at the same time. Argentines take their indie and hard core very seriously. Coverse sneakers is the uniform of Generation Porque and it’s a great town to get out and enjoy local bands all night.

10. Congo

Congo, at the crossroads of Palermo Soho and Hollywood, will make you understand why BA is so often called the Paris of South America. It is fancy in that je ne sais quoi kind of way. A booth on the terrace with a bucket of champagne and you will quickly forget any worries you may have, like how annoying it has been to get change for the hundred peso notes you get out of the ATM, or how hard it is to decide which tango show to attend.

Why go Congo? The bar is a pleasure, with multiple rooms and a great staff. You will feel so fabulous you’ll forget your backpack and hostel mates entirely and make new Argentine friends at the bar like you’re a local.

11. (Bonus) Ciudad Konex

Konex isn’t exactly in Palermo, but it’s close enough and it manages to have the greatest Monday evening you’ll ever experience. Replete with trapeze artists and a twenty-five-person drum circle/orchestra, Ciudad Konex Mondays at 7pm is why you travel. The party is exciting and different and it’s set in a converted factory. Come back Saturday night to shake something on the dance floor that was once a parking lot.

Why is Konex necessary in your Palermo life? You came here to get to know the city and this is a mini version of young Buenos Aires – like Ibiza in the South American concrete jungle.

Community Connection!

For more picks on hot night spots in Palermo and the greater BaAs, get in touch with Zento, Christian, Anthony or Durban–or our BsAs expert, Ryan.