7 Great Canadian Gay Watering Holes To Add To Your Bucket List

If the presidential election goes a certain way, a lot of people will be apartment hunting in Toronto and Vancouver. Fortunately, it could be a lot worse: both cities boast beautiful parks, great ‘hoods, and some of the best gay bars and bartenders in the world.

In celebration of the Stoli Key West Cocktail Classic, vote for your favorite bartender, whether Canadian or otherwise, once per day from May 20, 2016-Jun 2, 2016. Based on your votes, the winners advance to the finale competition at Key West Pride.

Check out 7 of our fave Canadian bars & lounges:

1. The Junction Public House (Vancouver)

-When Pulse became the Junction, the popular club picked up a new DJ booth, upper level to hang out, and a new bar by the dance floor.

2. Numbers (Vancouver)

Vancouver’s longest-running gay club, there are special nights for Karaoke, pool, keggers, and more.

3. Church on Church (Toronto)

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Located in Toronto’s Boystown, CHURCH on Church offers something for everyone. Stop in for a drink afterwork and you’ll probably end up dancing the night away.

4. Gotham Steakhouse (Vancouver)

Add a little meat to your cocktails at the Gotham Steakhouse.

5. Crews & Tangos (Toronto)

Great atmosphere at these two converted Victorian houses. There is always some kind of drag or other spectacle in the works and the crowd is always ready to party.

6. O’Grady’s (Toronto)

O’Gradys is a cozy pub complete with two fireplaces, a private lounge and two large patios. It’s the perfect place to find a yummy midnight snack.

7. Shangri-la (Toronto)

The lounge is a destination where art and architecture are emphasized. Sculptures and an Italian handcrafted Fazioli piano are set amid contemporary dove-grey leather sofas and chairs.

Vote for your favorite bartender once per day from May 20, 2016-Jun 2, 2016. Based on your votes, the winners advance to the finale competition at Key West Pride.

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Crowd at NC Edward Sharpe Concert Goes Wild as Gay Couple Renews Vows: WATCH

Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros took a different approach to protesting North Carolina’s HB 2 at a Friday night concert in Raleigh,

Alex Ebert, the band’s frontman, told the crowd of 2,500 that he had to miss his friends’ wedding, so he thought it would be a good idea if he could officiate at a ceremony renewing their vows.

He then invited those friends, PETA Senior VP Dan Mathews and his husband Jack Ryan, on stage to do so.

Said Ebert to Rolling Stone:

“HB2 was passed by an immoral minority – North Carolina has many thriving, creative, modern communities. We were tempted to cancel the show, but decided at the last minute to rally the crowd instead by renewing the vows of our good friends onstage.”

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5 Up-And-Coming Queer Comics To Laugh At

Did we say “at”? We meant “with,” obviously.

What is it about the LGBT experience that lends itself so easily to comedy?

Well let’s start with the historic oppression which creates sharp outside perspectives, add in the years of self-doubt and humiliation that give ample oxygen for self-deprecating flames to burn bright, and sprinkle an evolutionary need for a thick skin on for good measure.

So maybe the ingredients of queerlarity aren’t so funny on their own, but these comics can sure spin them into solid gold.

If they’re not already there, it’s time to put these five queer funny people on the proverbial radar:

1. Zach Noe Towers

Zach is the co-host of The Elite Daily Show on Verizon’s new streaming platform, his short film Killer Friends is playing at Cannes’ Short Film Corner, and he’s excited to be opening for Bob the Drag Queen this summer. You’ll also find him as a closing act at St. Louis Pride 2016, so watch out, Mound City.

2. Solomon Georgio

Solomon Georgio has appeared on Conan, Flophouse on Vice, and the IFC web series Ball or Nothing.

3. Samaria Johnson

Sam is playing Bonnaroo this year, and has previously opened for Hannibal Burress. She’s one of Comedy Central’s “comedians to watch.”

4. Casey Ley

Casey Ley has showcased at Bridgetown and SXSW.

5. Rye Silverman

Rye is the first transgender performer to be featured at the All Jane comedy festival, and the first trans model for clothing company Modcloth. Her album Intimate Apparel is a best-seller on Amazon.

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PHOTOS: There’s Nothing These Filthy Pigs Won’t Do For Attention

Meet Priscilla and Poppy (a.k.a. Prissy and Pop, or as we like to call them PnP), two Florida-based piglets with an Instagram following of over 620K. Like most piglets, they enjoy eating, sleeping, rooting, long walks on the beach, sensual belly rubs, and taking Cherios baths.

Related: PHOTOS: Tea Bagging Like You’ve Never Seen Before

PnP are so popular that they have an entire online store that sells fan merchandise and a Facebook fan page with over 40,000 followers. What is it about these two swines that have people so mesmerized? Scroll down and see for yourself…

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Honest Confessions From Men With HIV

Testing positive for HIV is a sobering experience, and aside from just health implications, will likely present unexpected emotional hurdles. There’s no one right or wrong way to process a diagnosis, and the good part is there are people around who want nothing more than to help others who suddenly find themselves having to face that initial fear. Local LGBT centers are a great place to start, or some googling will yield many results.

And the future is bright! Having HIV doesn’t mean what it once did — detecting the virus early and starting the right course of meds means a fully, happy and healthy life is very much within reach. In many ways, knowing you’re positive and taking the proper course of action is safer than not knowing your status at all.

Below, we hear from guys on Whisper who are in varying stages of coming to terms with HIV.

Be smart, get tested, and ask for help if you need it.

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PHOTOS: Cute Boys Party Hard In The South Of France

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Texas Congressman: No ‘Perverse’ Gays Will Be Chosen for Space Colonies – WATCH

Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-TX), who made international headlines in July 2015 when he proclaimed that a study trapping gays and lesbians on an island to see if they died out would prove that “what nature says is the preferred marriage,” blasted LGBT rights on the House floor this week.

Gohmert argued that spending time and resources fighting for equal rights for LGBT people is a waste of time because humanity would never choose same-sex couples to populate a space colony should there come a time when we had to abandon Earth.

Right Wing Watch reports:

He said that if lawmakers had to decide “whether humanity would go forward or not” in case of an imminent asteroid collision by putting people in a “space ship that can go, as Matt Damon did in the movie, plant a colony somewhere, we can have humans survive this terrible disaster about to befall, if you could decide what 40 people you put on the spacecraft that would save humanity, how many of those would be same-sex couples? You’re wanting to save humankind for posterity, basically a modern-day Noah, you have that ability to be a modern day Noah, you can preserve life. How many same-sex couples would you take from the animal kingdom and from humans to put on a spacecraft to perpetuate humanity and the wildlife kingdom?”

Watch:

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