El Paso Brokeback Scene

[Guest verymarried]

I am headed on business to El Paso and that south of the border pick up scene from Brokeback Mountain fascinated me. Does anyone know if that is relative fantasy or if there is a good scene over the border from EP? Thanks

[Epigonos]

Be EXTREMELY careful in Ciudad Juarez, which is the city, across the border from El Paso. It is one of the most dangerous cities in Mexico. Much of the city is controlled by the drug cartels and violence in rife. DO NOT wander the streets late at night.

[trilingual]

I'd suggest checking out the bars in El Paso itself and asking locally about the scene in Cd. Juarez. People there are likely to know and can tell you what's safe and what isn't. It does seem to be a very corrupt and pretty dangerous town, although it seems to be more dangerous for young single women, who have been abducted and murdered by the hundreds over the past years. There's considerable suspicion the police are involved. So do be careful and listen to the advice of locals who are closest to the situation.

[jasoncarter_dfw]

The Old Plantation in El Paso is a hot gay bar/nightclub with lots of hot Latino men. Just a suggestion from my experience traveling in my state!

 

P.S. Trilingual is right...Juarez, and especially Nuevo Laredo, are not the smartest places to be wandering around in after dark nowadays.

 

- Jason Carter - Dallas, TX

- jasoncarter53@hotmail.com

- (972) 365-0120

 

>I'd suggest checking out the bars in El Paso itself and

>asking locally about the scene in Cd. Juarez. People there

>are likely to know and can tell you what's safe and what

>isn't. It does seem to be a very corrupt and pretty dangerous

>town, although it seems to be more dangerous for young single

>women, who have been abducted and murdered by the hundreds

>over the past years. There's considerable suspicion the

>police are involved. So do be careful and listen to the

>advice of locals who are closest to the situation.

[Guest verymarried]

Just wanted to thank Jason, Epigonos and Trilingual for the security advice for a planned trip to El Paso and south. This forum can be really uselful. Thanks for taking the time to prevent me from doing something very risky.

[Guest Jocoluver]

I thought that was one of the extremely few scenes in BBM that seemed too "contrived" (excessive # of available men). Was I wrong? Did that scene have the same verisimilitude that BBM consistently embodied? (I don't mean the issue of Jack picking up a gay man - it just seemed there were too many choices and too obvious).

[trilingual]

The border cities are worth visiting and I don't mean to completely scare you off them. They have good and bad areas, like most other cities, and you need to know about them before crossing over. There are big problems with the drug trade which has corrupted local politics and police, which sometimes leads to strikes, riotous demonstrations, violent turf wars, etc. Locals in the American border towns will be most familiar with the local situation and can tell you what things are OK to do and if things are quiet or unsettled. Another possibility is to stay at a hotel on the Mexican side; most of the border cities have at least a few good hotels and their staff can orient you once you're there.

 

Besides their gay bars, the Mexican border cities often have interesting shopping (including public markets and malls) and excellent restaurants where you can eat very well for much less than in the U.S. Not all of those restaurants serve Mexican food. All of the larger border cities have an educated middle and upper-class population segment that supports good French, Italian and Asian restaurants in addition to traditional Mexican restaurants. You'll also find restaurants serving regional Mexican cuisines you won't find in the U.S.

 

If you cross the border in your own car be sure to get Mexican car insurance beforehand. It's sold by the day/week/etc. at various locations on the U.S. side and also at the AAA. They can usually provide street maps of the Mexican city you'll be visiting. Most U.S. car rental companies don't allow their cars to go into Mexico, but some do and provide Mexican insurance. Your best bet is to find such a company locally when you arrive at the El Paso airport, or in the El Paso yellow pages. Be sure to ask at the counter about cars that can cross the border, and be sure before leaving the counter that the contract isn't marked "Cars cannot enter Mexico" or anything like that. If you decide to stay on the Mexican side and don't find a cross-border car-rental in the U.S. you can get to your hotel by taxis and then rent a car in Mexico. Once in Mexico, leave your car in attended parking lots/garages as much as possible, especially at night. Be sure you don't have any kind of weapon in your car before crossing the border. Bringing guns of any kind into Mexico is absolutely forbidden. There are no exceptions. Americans who get caught doing this (even inadvertently, like forgetting about hunting gear in their trunks) are put in jail and getting released is a big and expensive headache.

 

For names/addresses of gay venues, try the directory/guide at http://www.sergay.com.mx There may not be any specifically hustler bars, but they're often "mixed," particularly if they're more working-class kinds of places. As in all of Latin America, there is lots of poverty and deprivation, and guys are often willing to peddle themselves to earn a living. Sergay lists 3 gay "discos" in Cd. Juarez, without any further description, so again you'll have to ask around locally. In addition to the discos, there are likely to be some bars that are "interesting."

[doctordoctor]

I know what you mean, joco....the scene seemed too quick and only "symbolic" of his apparently-ongoing random sex needs...to get really persnickity, the scene even looked too soundstage-y, movie set-ish, and seemed only thrown in there to quickly show the audience his need for anonymous sex........minor quibble, really

 

again, be very careful in Juarez....though it certainly attracts many tourists to the popular areas right across the bridge, fringe activities may be risky, of course...like others said, ask ELP locals...also, there is a popular pedestrian bridge across the river that you can use for 50 cents or something...a car is a hassle across the line...ELP itself may have all you need

[+ Hoover42]

I'm certain the "border scene" from Brokeback Mountain was actually filmed in Old Mesilla, New Mexico (I lived there for years).

 

What you saw in the movie is in no way representative of what you would find in Juarez, one of the filthiest, most decrepit places I've visited.

 

Actually, El Paso is not much better (thanks to over a hundred years of lead and copper mining by ASARCO), but at least you won't have to deal with the Mexican authorities if you get in trouble.

 

...Hoover