California Vacation 2000

I thought last year's trip to Disneyland for Gay Day would be hard to top, but I was wrong--this year was the best vacation ever!!

I went down to Los Angeles on Wednesday because that was Weston's video night. I didn't tell anybody exactly when I was coming, because I wanted it to be a surprise. I took a cab from the airport to the inn where I would be staying, did a bit of shopping along Santa Monica Boulevard, then when evening came I went to Weston's apartment. He wasn't there at the time, but someone else let me in the complex so that I was waiting at his front door to greet him when he returned. It was a very happy reunion.

Tim and Robert joined us again for the evening, and Weston had invited another guy I hadn't met yet: Victor. Weston, Robert, and I went for a swim before the other two arrived, and Tim came just before I got into the shower. The look of surprise on his face when he saw me (in my towel!) was priceless! I met Victor when I came back out. He's another cute blond. When we were all ready, we went out to Subway for dinner, then came back and watched a recording of a British cable series "Queer as Folk", which was a fun show (and had a good-looking lead character too).

The inn where I was staying at was the San Vicente Inn, right in the heart of West Hollywood just a block from Weston's apartment building and within walking distance of everything. I highly recommend it to any gay men visiting L.A., especially if you like meeting other men. It's a very open place, with little bungalows scattered around a central patio with a small pool. When the guys at Weston's heard I was staying there, they smirked and told me they had heard stories about what goes on in the jacuzzi. I didn't realize there was a jacuzzi at the inn, so when I returned that evening I asked about it at the office and the guy there pointed it out to me, tucked away down a little alley. I felt I could use a good soak after walking around all afternoon, so I went to my room to change into my swimsuit, then came back out to the hot tub. Then I found out for myself what my friends were talking about. :^>

The tub had been empty before, but now there was a guy in it who I found to be rather good-looking. I introduced myself and started up a conversation, and found out that he was originally from Salt Lake City too, but is now living in New York. He was down in L.A. on business, so sadly couldn't remain for Disneyland. Every once in a while, when there was a lull in the conversation, I would glance at him and he would glance back at me (or vice-versa) and we'd both smile, and I could feel a spark between us. We played footsie under the bubbles. After being in the hot water for a little too long, he decided to get out and have a cup of coffee before retiring. I followed a minute later, shook hands with him as we said goodnight, and let him know which room I was staying in. 'Nuff said.

The next day, it took me several hours to write down my diary entry for Wednesday. As I was writing in my padd, I saw a guy walking around the patio who bore an uncanny resemblance (from a distance) to one of my college roommates, John Taber, who I had been thinking about a couple of weeks before. Later in the afternoon, as I came out of my room I saw him sitting at a table right by my stairs. I said hi, and he invited me to sit with him and chat. I knew right away that this wasn't John, because of his distinct accent. He introduced himself as Peter, from Australia. He was in the middle of a month-long vacation, and had been in New York for two weeks where he heard about Gay Day and decided to come to Los Angeles. We hit it off very well. After talking for a while, I started getting chilly (L.A. was overcast most of the day), so I suggested a sit in the hot tub, and Peter said he would join me. We got in along with another couple, and talked with them while Peter and I played footsie underwater. It was very enjoyable. ;-)

I spent most of my time from that point on with Peter. We had a lot of fun together, playing in the pool, shopping, or cuddling in bed. Friday night we went out to see a new movie, "The Broken Hearts Club", which was about a group of gay friends in West Hollywood who were dealing with relationships. It had some big-name stars in it, and several gorgeous hunks! Go see it.

I didn't rent a car for this trip, since the inn was in walking distance of everything in West Hollywood, and I figured I could hitch a ride with somebody to Disneyland on Saturday. I asked Weston to check for available drivers for me, and Friday he called me in Peter's room to let me know who he had found. First thing, however, he had to know who Peter was and what I was doing in his room =D. He said there were a pair of guys, Steve and Matt, who would be willing to give Peter and me a ride, and gave me their number. I called them and arranged for them to pick us up Saturday morning.

After breakfast on Saturday, Steve came and found us on the patio. He's a tall, thin, handsome blond--I wondered whether all of Weston's friends were blond. I was definitely attracted to him, and could tell I was going to enjoy our day together a lot. We sat and talked for a while, and then went out to the street to wait for his roommates, who were running late. When the jeep arrived, I saw Matt on the passenger side waving to us with a huge grin on his face. (I also noticed that, unlike Weston's other friends, Matt is not blond.:) Matt is quite attractive too, and has that boy-next-door look. Of course, I didn't realize just how close to `next door' he was until we got talking, and found out that not only had we both attended BYU back in 1990-91, but we were also living in the same dorm! Amazing. (I looked him up in the dorm directory when I returned home; he hasn't changed much in the last ten years, except for his hairstyle. ) They have a third roommate, Brian, who drove the jeep.

Well, when we arrived at Disneyland the first attraction we headed to (by unanimous agreement) was Space Mountain: the best ride in the whole park! Then we toured as many of the other big rides as we could. The park was crowded (as it usually is on the weekends), so it took about an hour to get through the line on most rides. But we enjoyed passing that time joking around, ogling the good-looking men in red, and flirting. I'll admit, I was probably one of the biggest flirts in our group. I enjoyed being flirted with by Eddie so much last year that I just had to give back this time.

By the way, I ran into Eddie once as we were going from one ride to another. It was a very happy, though brief, reunion. I also saw two other guys I recognized from last year while waiting in line at Splash Mountain. I peered over the rocks as they floated by, pointed and shouted "Hey, I know you!!" They greeted me in return. I didn't see anyone else I was with last year, but that didn't matter much because I was preoccupied with my new friends.

This is our group, plus a couple more guys we picked up when we rendezvoused with Weston in the afternoon. Peter (under the New York Yankees cap) acted as my body shield, and behind us Steve grabbed on to Matt as we toppled over the waterfall. Brian is hiding.

I took turns pairing up with Peter, Matt, and Steve on various rides, and often got to hold hands with them or even put my arm around them, not caring whether anyone else was looking. I felt so uninhibited and comfortable among such a large contingency of gay men; it was wonderful!

Later in the evening, we gathered in the center of the park to watch the fireworks display. As the sky lit up, Steve held me in his arms. It was heavenly. After the show, we rushed out again to get on our favorite rides a second time. The Indiana Jones Adventure was much too long, so we skipped that and finished off with Space Mountain. This time the ride was even better than it was in the morning, because we got to sit in the front car with the music playing and it was a lot wilder. Matt, Steve, and I went through it twice. Then we browsed through the shops on Main Street before heading home.

Brian suggested visiting Magic Mountain the next day. Peter loved the idea, and made arrangements to stay in Los Angeles for another day. I, unfortunately, had bought my plane ticket in advance and it was non-refundable, so I couldn't go with them. I wish I could have; it seems like this vacation was just a bit too short. But then again, if I had gone to Magic Mountain, I would have missed out on a wonderful Sunday morning!

I called up Steve to ask if he would give me a ride to the airport, and he agreed. So Brian dropped me off at their apartment as he and Peter left for Magic Mountain, and I spent a couple of (very) pleasant hours visiting with Steve and Matt before leaving. When they dropped me off at the airport, I got a kiss and a big hug from each of them.

I had been thinking about moving to California as early as my senior year at college, and every time I visit West Hollywood I want to move down there more and more. As my good friend Weston said, "you find more Catholics in Vatican City..." Well, I've wasted too much time just thinking about it; I'm setting a goal to be back in L.A. to stay by the time my current lease expires!

CALIFORNIA, HERE I COME!