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[[Image:Nathaniel_Hawthorne_old.jpg|thumb|right|180px|Nathaniel Hawthorne in the 1860s]]
==Definition==
'''Nathaniel Hawthorne''' ([[July 4]], [[1804]] – [[May 19]], [[1864]]) was a [[19th century]] [[United States|American]] [[the novel|novelist]] and [[short story]] writer. He is seen as a key figure in the development of [[American literature]].
'[[Homosexual]]' is this article is defined as 'having a greater sexual attraction for the same sex than for the opposite sex'. Thus, a person happily married to a spouse of the opposite sex may still be [[gay]] even though he or she consciously refrains from or has never indulged in homosexual acts.
==Biography==
==Statistical Problems==
He was born in [[Salem, Massachusetts]], where his [[Nathaniel Hawthorne Birthplace|birthplace]] is now a house museum, and died in [[Plymouth, New Hampshire]]. Hawthorne's father was a sea captain and descendant of [[John Hathorne]], one of the judges who oversaw the [[Salem Witch Trials]]. Hawthorne's father died at sea in 1808 of [[yellow fever]], when Hawthorne was only four years old, and Nathaniel was raised secluded from the world by his mother.
Hawthorne attended [[Bowdoin College]] in [[Maine]] from 1821–1824, befriending classmates [[Henry Wadsworth Longfellow]] and future president [[Franklin Pierce]]. Until the publication of his [[Twice-Told Tales]] in 1837, Hawthorne wrote in the comparative obscurity of what he called his "owl's nest" in the family home. As he looked back on this period of his life, he wrote: "I have not lived, but only dreamed about living" [letter to Longfellow, June 4, 1837]. And yet it was this period of brooding and writing that had formed, as [[Malcolm Cowley]] was to describe it, "the central fact in Hawthorne's career," his "term of apprenticeship" that would eventually result in the "richly meditated fiction."
It is unknown exactly how many homosexuals there are in Singapore or what percentage of the population they constitute. The main reason for this is that [[section 377 of the Singapore Penal Code]] criminalises 'carnal intercourse against the order of nature' which includes even consensual, private, adult homosexual acts. The penalties are either:
*life imprisonment, or
*imprisonment for up to 10 years with or without a fine.
As such, in any survey or census, no citizen would readily admit to being what is essentially, in the eyes of the Law, a criminal. By the same token, it is impossible to determine how many murderers, rapists or grand larcenists there are.
Hawthorne was hired in 1839 as a weigher and gauger at the [[Boston, Massachusetts|Boston]] Custom House. He had become engaged in the previous year to the [[illustrator]] and [[Transcendentalism|transcendentalist]] [[Sophia Peabody]]. Seeking a possible home for himself and Sophia, he joined the transcendentalist [[utopian]] community at [[Brook Farm]] in 1841; later that year, however, he left when he became dissatisfied with the experiment. (His Brook Farm adventure would prove an inspiration for his novel, [[The Blithedale Romance]].) He married Sophia in 1842; they moved to [[The Old Manse]] in [[Concord, Massachusetts]], where they lived for three years. Hawthorne and his wife then moved to [[The Wayside]], previously a home of the Alcotts. Their neighbors in Concord included [[Ralph Waldo Emerson]] and [[Henry David Thoreau]].
This has not presented any problem in the past as no population census conducted in Singapore has ever endeavoured to quantify such people. However, with the increasing cognisance of equal, universal human rights, freedom of individual expression and the growing political and economic clout of homosexuals, this hitherto neglected aspect of sociological statistics will become increasingly important.
[[Image:Nathaniel Hawthorne - Project Gutenberg eText 15161.jpg|thumbnail|left|180px|Nathaniel Hawthorne illustrated in an 1870 publication]]
The 2000 U.S. decennial census estimated (by extrapolation from hard data) that the proportion of gay men in America was 2.5 percent and of lesbians, 1.2 percent (source: [[Scientific American]], March 2005 issue, page 20, 'Gay and Lesbian Census' by Rodger Doyle [http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?colID=19&articleID=0008006F-D033-1212-8F3983414B7F0000]) even though socio-psychological studies from the [[Kinsey]] era to the present day show that the same percentages of those claiming greater erotic attraction for the same sex were 7.7 for men and 7.5 for women. No conclusive explanation exists for this anomaly. Figures in Singapore may be broadly similar.
*Read [[PLU3]]'s review of previous international studies: [http://www.geocities.com/plusg1/facts_05.htm]
Like Hawthorne, Sophia was a reclusive person. She was, in fact, bedridden with headaches until her sister introduced her to Hawthorne, after which her headaches seem to have abated. The Hawthornes enjoyed a long marriage, and Sophia was greatly enamored of her husband's work. In one of her journals, she writes: "I am always so dazzled and bewildered with the richness, the depth, the... jewels of beauty in his productions that I am always looking forward to a second reading where I can ponder and muse and fully take in the miraculous wealth of thoughts" [Jan 14th 1851, Journal of Sophia Hawthorne. Berg Collection NY Public Library].
==Historical Background==
In 1846 Hawthorne was appointed surveyor (determining the quantity and value of imported goods) at the Salem Custom House. Like his earlier appointment to the custom house in Boston, this employment was vulnerable to the politics of the [[spoils system]]. When Hawthorne later wrote [[The Scarlet Letter]], he included a long introductory essay depicting his time at the Salem Custom House. He lost this job due to the change of administration in Washington after the presidential election of 1848. In 1852 he wrote the [[campaign biography]] of his old friend, Franklin Pierce. With Pierce's election as president, Hawthorne was rewarded in 1853 with the position of United States consul in [[Liverpool]]. In 1857 he resigned from this post and did some traveling in France and Italy. He and his family returned to The Wayside in 1860. Failing health began to prevent him from completing new writings. Hawthorne died in his sleep on [[May 19]], [[1864]] in Plymouth, N.H. while on a tour of the White Mountains with Pierce.
===[[Singapore gay history]]===
Nathaniel and Sophia Hawthorne had three children: Una, Julian, and Rose. Una suffered from mental illness and died young. Julian moved out west and wrote a book about his father. Rose converted to Roman Catholicism and took her vows as a Dominican nun. She founded [http://www.hawthorne-dominicans.org/found.htm a religious order] to care for victims of cancer.
===[[Singapore gay movement]]===
==Writings==
===[[Discrimination against homosexuals in Singapore]]===
Hawthorne is best-known today for his many [[short story|short stories]] (he called them "tales") and his four major [[romance (genre)|romances]] of 1850–60: ''[[The Scarlet Letter]]'' (1850), ''[[The House of the Seven Gables]]'' (1851), ''[[The Blithedale Romance]]'' (1852), and ''[[The Marble Faun]]'' (1860). (Another book-length romance, ''[[Fanshawe (novel)|Fanshawe]]'', was published anonymously in 1828.)
Before publishing his first collection of tales in 1837, Hawthorne wrote scores of [[short story|short stories]] and sketches, publishing them anonymously or [[pseudonym|pseudonymously]] in periodicals such as ''The New-England Magazine'' and ''The United States Democratic Review''. Only after collecting a number of his short stories into the two-volume ''[[Twice-Told Tales]]'' in 1837 did Hawthorne begin to attach his name to his works.
===[[Homophobia in Singapore]]===
Much of Hawthorne's work is set in colonial [[New England]], and many of his short stories have been read as moral [[allegory|allegories]] influenced by his [[Puritan]] background. "Ethan Brand" (1850) tells the story of a lime-burner who sets off to find the Unpardonable Sin, and in doing so, commits it. One of Hawthorne's most famous tales, "[[The Birth-Mark]]" (1843), concerns a young doctor who removes a birthmark from his wife's face, an operation which kills her. Other well-known tales include "[[Rappaccini's Daughter]]" (1844), "[[My Kinsman, Major Molineux]]" (1832), "[[The Minister's Black Veil]]" (1836), and "[[Young Goodman Brown]]" (1835). "The Maypole of [[Merrymount]]" recounts a most interesting encounter between the Puritans and the forces of anarchy and hedonism.
==Singapore gay culture==
Recent criticism has focused on Hawthorne's narrative voice, treating it as a self-conscious [[rhetoric|rhetorical]] construction, not to be conflated with Hawthorne's own voice. Such an approach complicates the long-dominant tradition of regarding Hawthorne as a gloomy, guilt-ridden [[moralist]].
===[[Singapore gay terminology]]===
Hawthorne enjoyed a brief friendship with [[United States|American]] [[novelist]] [[Herman Melville]] beginning on [[August 5]] [[1850]], when the two authors met at a picnic hosted by a mutual friend. Melville had just read Hawthorne's short story collection ''[[Mosses from an Old Manse]]'', which Melville later praised in a famous review, "Hawthorne and His Mosses." Melville's letters to Hawthorne provide insight into the composition of ''[[Moby-Dick]],'' which Melville dedicated to Hawthorne, 'in appreciation for his genius.' Hawthorne's letters to Melville did not survive.
===[[Singapore gay literature]]===
[[Edgar Allan Poe]] wrote important, though largely unflattering reviews of both ''Twice-Told Tales'' and ''Mosses from an Old Manse''.
===[[Singapore gay theatre]]===
==See also==
===[[Singapore gay films]]===
* ''[[The Snow-Image, and Other Twice-Told Tales]]''
==External links==
===[[Singapore gay art]]===
{{wikisource author}}
*Eric Eldred's [http://www.eldritchpress.org/nh/hawthorne.html excellent Hawthorne site] at Eldritch Press contains all of Hawthorne's works, notes on the writings, annotated editions,and lots of other information.
*The [http://www.hawthorneinsalem.org Hawthorne in Salem Website] was funded in May of 2000 by a three-year grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities and is a collaborative effort of North Shore Community College in Danvers, Massachusetts, and three Salem, Massachusetts museums with important Hawthorne collections.
*[[Herman Melville]]'s appreciation, [http://209.11.144.65/eldritchpress/nh/hahm.html "Hawthorne and His Mosses"] (1850)
*[[Henry James]]'s important book-length study, ''[http://209.11.144.65/eldritchpress/nh/nhhj1.html Hawthorne]'' (1879)
*WBUR's celebration of Nathaniel Hawthorne at 200, [http://www.wbur.org/arts/2005/48691_20050101.asp], with links to NPR's "The Connection" on Hawthorne's birthday, as well as an interview with author Phillip McFarland.
*{{gutenberg author|id=Nathaniel_Hawthorne|name=Nathaniel Hawthorne}}
[[Category:1804 births|Hawthorne, Nathaniel]]
===[[Singapore gay documentaries]]===
[[Category:1864 deaths|Hawthorne, Nathaniel]]
[[Category:American novelists|Hawthorne, Nathaniel]]
===[[Singapore gay portrayals on television]]===
[[Category:Massachusetts writers|Hawthorne, Nathaniel]]
[[Category:American short story writers|Hawthorne, Nathaniel]]
===[[Singapore gay organisations]]===
[[Category:Unitarian Universalists|Hawthorne, Nathaniel]]
===[[Singapore gay businesses]]===
===[[Singapore gay conferences]]===
===[[Singapore gay charity work]]===
===[[Transgender people in Singapore]]===
==Singapore gay personalities==
===Historical===
===Contemporary===
The following categorisations are arbitrary as most of the LGBT individuals listed are active in more than one field.
====Activists====
[[Image:AlexAu&KelvinWong01.JPG|center|500px|Singapore gay activists Alex Au and Kelvin Wong during a television interview on Channel i News in July 2003]]
*[[Alex Au]]
*[[Kelvin Wong]]
*[[Eileena Lee]]
*[[Clarence Singam]]
*[[Leona Lo]]
====Entrepreneurs====
====Arts Practitioners====
*[[Kumar]]
*[[Jason Wee]]
====Academics====
====Professionals====
====Ordinary Folk====
==Singapore gay venues==
Being frequented by a stigmatised minority in fear of running afoul of the law every time they congregate for social or sexual intercourse, gay venues have remained largely unknown to the mainstream public. Outdoor hangouts tend to be patronised mainly at night and it was only in the past few decades that openly gay establishments have been allowed to operate relatively free of police harassment.
The following list, which includes cruising areas some conservative gays may feel does not cast a favourable light upon the Singaporean homosexual image, has been drawn up for the sake of academic comprehensiveness and as a record of the collective local gay memory.
(For [[transgender]] ([[transvestite]]/[[transsexual]]) venues such as [[Bugis Street]] and [[Johore Road]], see [[Transgender people in Singapore]])
===Outdoor venues===
====Historical====
*[[Boat Quay]] and the adjoining back alleys- very cruisy at night before the area was rejuvenated with the present row of restaurants in the early 1990s. Surreptitious sex also took place at the foot and back alley of [[OCBC building]] nearby, before bright lighting was installed which serves no real purpose other than to deter nocturnal [[homosex]].
*[[The Esplanade]]- a broad walkway fringing the outlet of the [[Singapore river]] lined by bushes enclosed in tiled rectangular stone enclosures where strollers could sit and chat before the present arts centre was built in the early 2000s. It was frequented for decades by especially [[gay]] young men who acted more girlishly than usual to attract straight pick-ups for the night. Some activity also spilled over into [[The Padang]], which at night, was mainly the territory of straight couples making out on mats. Other parks which were relatively cruisy but less well known in the 1970s were [[Central Park]], accessible via the long flight of steps up from [[River Valley swimming pool]], [[Fort Canning Park]] nearby, [[Labrador Park]], accessible only by car or motorbike, [[Mount Faber]], the [[Botanic Gardens]] and [[MacRicthie Reservoir]].
====Contemporary====
*[[Hong Lim Park]]- the first and formerly the most famous Singaporean gay venue, listed in the foremost international gay tourist reference, the [[Spartacus Gay Guide]]. Cruisy at night for more than half a century, its dim lighting and shrubbery provided ideal conditions for quickies between gay men, especially elderly Chinese-educated ones, until bright lights were installed in the early 90's to deter such activities. The construction of the [[Kreta Ayer]] [[Neighbourhood Police Post]] next to the car park was also considered a measure to curb late-night cruising. Straight patrons were shocked at some young boys holding hands and wrote letters to the newpapers in the 80's to complain. In spite of several police patrols in which these boys were questioned, no one was charged as nobody was caught ''flagrante delicto''.
*[[Fort Road Beach]]- a secluded stretch of reclaimed land near [[Fort Road]] in [[Tanjong Rhu]], visited by gay men since the 1980s. Nude sunbathing or swimming sometimes takes place as it is remote from public view and no one is disturbed. Its future as an [[idyll]]ic gay venue is uncertain as development plans may bring it into direct public access. Less frquented stretches of beach include the more secluded areas near [[Changi Point]] which in the past were occasionally visited by heterosexual [[Gurkha]]s and [[Korean]] construction workers who served as the draw for local gay men, the segment of [[East Coast Parkway]] near [[Big Splash]] and the area near the [[People's Association]] chalets.
*[[Ann Siang Hill]]- cruisy at night since the early 1990s, but much less so since a landscaped sanctuary named [[Ann Siang Hill Park]] was built in 2004 with adequate illumination so that clandestine activities are not so convenient.
*Back alleys in the [[Central Business District]] and [[Tanjong Pagar]]- less popular since the sprouting of numerous gay saunas since the late 1990s and the development of well-lit commercial complexes like [[China Square]] which replaced the dark, dank, derelict [[shophouse]]s where night-time cruising took place.
*[[Katong Park]]- the previous toilet which was completely enclosed by 4 brick walls was a hive of activity. The new toilet, built in 2003 during a major redesign of the park, whose interior is visible from the outside via large gaps in the slotted timber walls is much less conducive to cruising, although some still takes place. Most homosexuals prefer to stroll in the fresh air along tracks traversing and skirting the perimeter of the park.
===Enclosed/Indoor public venues===
====Historical====
*Toilets- public toilets have their fair share of furtive homosex. Some of the historically popular ones which no longer exist were those near [[Hong Lim Park]], at the former [[Odeon cinema]] where [[Orchard Cineleisure]] now stands, and along [[Balestier Road]] next to the open market.
*Swimming Pools- the most notorious one no longer extant was [[River Valley swimming pool]]. It was one of the few public pools built in the city area, sandwiched between [[Liang Court]] and the imposing backdrop of [[Fort Canning Park]]. In one incident, two men were caught by the lifeguard for underwater [[fellatio]] and jailed. It was also one of the few swimming pools where outdoor photography was banned. Less well known were [[Yan Kit swimming pool]], [[Jurong swimming pool]] and [[Bukit Merah swimming pool]].
*Shopping Centres
====Contemporary====
More comprehensive and up-to-date listings can be found at the [[Utopia]] website's Singapore pages:[http://www.utopia-asia.com/tipssing.htm]
*Toilets
*Swimming Pools
*Shopping Centres
===Pubs, Bars and Karaoke joints===
====Historical====
*[[Le Bistro]]- Singapore's first gay bar, as far as many gay Singaporeans can recollect. One retired [[New Zealand]] serviceman, in a chance encounter with [[Alex Au]], claimed that in the early 1960s when he was stationed in Singapore, there was a [[Golden Venus]] bar in the [[Orchard Hotel]] along [[Orchard Road]]. This claim has not been corroborated by Singaporeans. The old [[Orchard Hotel]] has since been reconstructed beyond recognition. [[Le Bistro]] and [[Golden Venus]] no longer exist.
*[[Pebbles Bar]]- located on the ground floor of the now-demolished [[Hotel Singapura]] along [[Orchard Road]], it was the most famous gay bar operational in the 1970s. It was patronised largely by the English-educated, upper-strata gays of Singaporean society. Its main draw was the live band [[Tania]], whose lead singer, [[Alban de Souza]], was decked out in glitz, painted his face à la [[KISS]] but with red makeup instead of black-and-white, and entertained with energetic camp. Although it was the only one of Singapore's first 3 gay bars to have a dance floor, no homosexual dancing was allowed. However, it was a common sight to behold men pecking each other on the cheek or lips, incidents which raised nary an eyebrow.
*[[Treetops Bar]]- located at the now-demolished [[Royal Holiday Inn]] along [[Orchard Road]]. Gays also adjourned to [[Café Vienna]] after a night of hectic discoing in the 1970s.
*[[Vincent's]] lounge (at [[Lucky Plaza]])- opened on 18 May 1989, the forerunner of the present East-meets-West bar at [[Duxton Road]] in [[Tanjong Pagar]].
*[[Inner Circle]]- the grand daddy of all gay [[karaoke]] joints, along with [[Babylon]], located in [[Tanjong Pagar]], it finally drew its shutters on 24 July 2004 after providing [[diva]]s an outlet to show off their vocal skills for almost ten years.
*[[Taboo]]- pub-cum-disco in [[Tanjong Pagar]]; one of the most popular with the trendy young crowd for seven years since 1997, attaining quasi-[[icon]] status. It closed in August 2004.
====Contemporary====
*[[Babylon]]- karaoke in [[Tanjong Pagar]]. A miniature version of its legendary namesake in [[Bangkok]] and the original [[Sumerian]] city.
*[[Why Not?]]- former [[karaoke]], but now a disco along [[Tras Street]] in [[Tanjong Pagar]].
*[[Vincent's]]- an East-meets-West pub where [[Asian]] [[potato queen]]s can meet up with their [[Caucasian]] aficionados, otherwise known as [[rice queens]].
*[[Happy]]- new pub-cum-[[disco]] at the same ___location as the former [[Taboo]] along [[Tanjong Pagar Road]].
===Discoes===
Originally catering to a gay customer base only once a week, usually on Sundays, newer small establishments have managed to survive on the burgeoning pink market by going full-time, on every night of the week.
====Historical====
*[[The Hangar]]- Singapore's first gay pub-cum-disco located in a hard-to-find alley near [[Changi Point]] was operational in the early 1970s. Looking back, some patrons presently in their fifties could not imagine how they could have grooved to the now seemingly uncool hits of that era like '[[Beautiful Sunday]]' by [[Dawn]].
*[[Marmota]]- located on the second level of [[Kallang Leisure Centre]] in the early 1980s, was one of the first to hold Sunday gay nights when the dance floor was packed with the then unusual sight of men dancing with each other. However, this happened only during the fast numbers. When the slow songs came on, the dance floor cleared faster than if a [[tsunami]] threatened and only the daring ones irresistibly smitten with their partners were left in tight embrace to be ogled at by those on the sidelines. It was the first disco to organise unofficial masculine Mr. Gay Singapore contests long before [[Manhunt]] began. Ironically, the first winner of the contest was a straight boy named Oliver.
*[[Niche]] (at [[Far East Shopping Centre]])- opened in April 1983 to cash in on the popularity of [[Marmota]]. More popular with the English-educated crowd. Forerunner to its present day namesake at [[Pagoda Street]] in [[Chinatown]].
*[[Legend]]
*[[Shadows]]
*[[Studebaker's]]/[[Venom]]- situated at the top floor of the present [[Pacific Plaza]] along [[Scotts Road]] was the largest disco that homosexuals had ever experienced in Singapore. It remade its image several times over since the early 1990s to remain fresh and introduced [[webcam]]s where people could see who was dancing in real time by logging onto the [[Internet]]. Needless to say, this raised a howl of protest.
*[[Music World]]- 2-level disco in [[Katong Shopping Centre]], operational in the early 1990s.
*[[Centro]]
====Contemporary====
*[[Zouk]]
*[[Happy]]- located where [[Taboo]] used to operate, along [[Tanjong Pagar Road]], but incorporating double the space with the takeover of the next-door unit, giving it a sizeable dance floor.
*[[Cocconuts]] at [[Cocco Latte]]- located along the perimeter of the [[Gallery Hotel]]. Despite unique features like kitschy decor, striptease poles, flashing neon signs, drink specials and date-matching via number tags, the atmosphere is rather sedate.
*[[Chinablack]]- the present reincarnation of [[Studebaker's]]/[[Venom]] occupying the mammoth 2-level penthouse at [[Pacific Plaza]] along [[Scotts Road]]. Features techno beats and gay anthems, ideal for bare-torsoed exhibitionists itching to strut their stuff on platforms.
===Spas and saunas===
====Historical====
*[[Spartacus]]- the first [[gay sauna]] in Singapore opened in 1997 by pioneering [[entrepreneur]] [[Max Lim]], it was four storeys of hedonism, with a daily gay [[disco]] on the ground floor fringed by an overhead observation deck, and showers, a gym and sauna above that. One could recognise it immediately from its external façade because of its colossal signage and the painted sketches of nude gladiators on its external wall facing [[South Bridge Road]], near its junction with [[North Canal Road]]. It experimented with the novel concept of giving its customers the option of buying [[shares]] in the business. It also pioneered services like offering upmarket [[buffet]] meals on its premises, but unfortunately, demand for the meals and disco was poor, even though the spa facilities were a resounding success. It closed in 1999 due to high rental costs and other factors.
*[[Stroke]]- the successor to [[Spartacus]] under the same management, located along [[Ann Siang Road]], it had a spell of success from 2000 to 2002 when it was the only [[gay sauna]] in Singapore, before the opening of other saunas forced its owner to move into newer premises to refocus its strategy two years later.
*[[Rairua]]- a multi-level sauna along [[Neil Road]], the brainchild of activist [[Alex Au]], it opened in 2002 and positioned itself as Singapore's first luxury gay sauna, with prices to match. It pioneered Singapore's first '[[skin night]]s' touted as 'all nude, all floors, all night', a concept that unexpectedly proved so popular amongst supposedly 'conservative' Singaporean gays that such nude nights spread to all saunas within the span of one year and continue to be a major draw. It also organised special events like cultural talks, personalised [[photography]] and [[naturist]] art sessions, and erotic dancing by showerboys. Unfortunately, due to the expiry of its lease and disagreements with its landlord over maintenance, it closed down in April 2005.
*[[Diamond Health Sauna]]- located on level 5 of [[Sultan Plaza]] along [[Jalan Sultan]], it started as a straight sauna offering [[massage]] by women masseuses, but gradually gained a predominantly gay, elderly Chinese-educated clientèle. It was the first sauna to have a coin-operated [[karaoke]] machine on its premises, free buffets and [[Hollywood]]/[[Hong Kong]] movie screenings, all of which proved to be very popular. It closed in early 2005 for renovations and reopened for business on 29 May 2005 with a relocated entrance but has, since the latter date, been patronised by mainly elderly straight Chinese customers.
====Contemporary====
*[[Raw]]- the third [[sauna]] established by [[entrepreneur]] [[Max Lim]] in 2003, its competitive advantages are its budget entry fees, 24-hour opening times and a '[[barracks]]' containing individual rooms for those desiring to stay for prolonged periods. It pioneered the concept of theme nights, which later spread to all saunas. This introduced variety and catered to subsegments of the [[gay]] crowd such as [[chubs]], [[foam party]] lovers, minority races, foreigners and sun worshippers. It also experimented, for a short period, with an [[à la carte]] [[restaurant]] on the ground floor, a [[transvestite]] [[cabaret]] and male undergarment/swimming trunk fashion shows. It is the only sauna to proudly hang a [[rainbow flag]], an [[LGBT]] icon signifying diversity, outside its main entrance. It is located next to [[Ann Siang Hill]], already a popular cruising ground. Membership no longer required.
*[[Towel Club]]- billed as [[Singapore]]'s largest gay [[sauna]] and also the most expensive. Its monthly nude 'full moon' parties and youthful attractive patrons are the greatest attractions. Consistently ranked as the most popular sauna in [[Singapore]] through various polls. Located along [[Loke Yew Street]] near the [[City Hall MRT Station]].
*[[V-club]]- a 3-level sauna along [[Mosque Street]] near [[Chinatown]] appealing to a mainly Chinese-educated clientèle. It has the most nude nights in a week.
*[[The Box]]/[[Shogun Spa]]- the first [[cruise club]], a concept which proved less popular locally, which was later converted into a [[sauna]]. Located near [[Tanjong Pagar]]. No membership required.
*[[Club One-Seven]]- an upmarket [[sauna]] near [[Raffles Place]]. It was the first to have an ''al fresco'' swimming pool which later had to be covered up, as office workers in the neighbouring building could have a bird's eye-view of the frequently naked men lounging around the poolside. The floor above was acquired and renovated at great expense in 2004 which effectively doubled its cruising space. Two men were arrested here by undercover policemen for [[homosex]] in 2003. Their penalty was commuted from a potential 2-year jail sentence under [[section 377 of the Singapore Penal Code]] to a mere $600 fine under section 20 of the [[Miscellaneous Offences Act]] in what may be a landmark ruling in [[Singapore]] legal history, as far as [[gay rights]] are concerned.
*[[Blue Heaven]]- a [[sauna]] near [[Bugis Junction]] established by a naturalised [[Frenchman]]. Another four men were arrested here in April 2005 in a police raid masquerading as a night-time fire-safety inspection. The outcome of this case is still pending amidst the apparent official backlash against the rising incidence of [[HIV]] infection amongst [[homosexual]]s in [[Singapore]].
===Non-commercial/non-sexual venues===
====Historical====
*[[The Attic]]- the former ___location of the Sunday services of the [[Free Community Church]] (see below)
====Contemporary====
*[[Pelangi Pride Centre]] ([[PPC]])[http://www.pelangipridecentre.org/]- set up by activists from [[Action For AIDS]] ([[AFA]]) to inculcate pride in being [[gay]] and in staying [[HIV]] negative, it is located at 22a [[Rowell Road]], above the [[AFA]] [[headquarters]], in the [[Serangoon]] or [[Little India]] area. Its main features are the extensive library of local and international [[gay literature]], whose catalogue can be searched [[online]] on its [[website]], and an archive of [[Singapore gay history]] and culture. Open once a week on Saturdays from 3 to 7 pm.
*The [[Free Community Church]] [http://www.freecomchurch.org/] at #04-02/04, [[Yangtze Building]], 100A [[Eu Tong Sen Road]]- a Singaporean [[Christian]] church which welcomes all people regardless of race, religion, gender, sexual orientation or economic status. It conducts Sunday services at 10:30 am.
==The Future==
The greatest impediment to the achievement of absolute [[gay equality]] in [[Singapore]] is the rampant spread of [[HIV]] infection amongst [[Men who have Sex with Men]] ([[MSM]]). The [[Ministry of Health]] is contemplating measures to curb this exponential increase. These may include the closure of [[gay]] [[sauna]]s.
Looking beyond the immediate crisis, however, it is probable that with the intensive international efforts at developing an [[HIV]] [[vaccine]], a cure for [[AIDS]] will be found before the decade is out. This would remove the [[raison d'être]] for the current [[conservative]] [[backlash]] and the [[liberal]]isation that had been witnessed in the years prior to 2004 would in all likelihood resume its normal course.
==See also==
*[[Singapore gay movement]]
[[Category:Homosexuality in Singapore|*]]
[[bg:Натаниел Хоторн]]
[[Category:Singaporean culture]]
[[da:Nathaniel Hawthorne]]
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[[he:נתניאל הות'ורן]]
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