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Steamworks
Steamworks is easily the most popular bathhouse in Toronto. It's a destination for local and visiting gay men during Pride Week and Halloween. There are line-ups during holidays. Don't even bother trying to get in on New Year's Day unless you have a reservation. I have also found sweaty summer afternoons to be a good time here, spending time with four different guys in the span of two hours, if not more. Why not get my money's worth?
The first time I climbed the flight of stairs and paid $8 for my keys and towel, I went to a locker area where I discovered glass door upon glass door and then a wet area with showers and a hot tub. Next to the showers are a bathroom and two saunas, one dry and one wet. I chose the wet one and met Pete. Since neither of us had a room we resorted to the public areas. We left the locker area, moved to the main area where the rooms and the halls are — and where clothing is optional.
We found our way to the middle where the S&M room is. I call it that because of the sling, but there's also a semi-open double bunk bed. The top part of the bunk bed gets most of the action. It's fun climbing it but it's even more fun to do it there.
After Pete was a shorter guy that I share the same name with. We went to the dark room, which isn't ideal because I like knowing what the guy I'm having sex with looks like and no time span will make my retinas adjust to that darkness. But then again I came with him to the area. I know what he looks like. I should be fine.
After him I decided to leave Steamworks and say goodbye — although he told me to stay because the party had just started. That was at 2 a.m..
Because I'm neurotic, I wanted to do an inventory of the other interesting places and people within the establishment. On the third hallway from the lockers are bathroom stalls where people go to clean up. The stalls have faucets but you have to buy a hose from one of the vending machines where you can also buy lube, chips and bottled drinks.
Anyone can technically have sex anywhere they want with the exception of the gym and the balcony. Away from the private rooms and beside the lockers is the glory hole/army room. Its outer walls are lined with mirrors that are only useful when your eyes get used to the relative darkness.
There are also one or two semi-private rooms that look like jails. I once saw a guy here dressed in a leather super-onesie with a tag on him the read URINAL. Private rooms can be rented for as cheap as $13. There's a mattress with sheets and bottom compartments where you can hide your clothes. There's also a TV and a full length mirror where you can watch yourself with your lover.
The standard rooms are good for a quick post-coital cuddle session or to smoke a cigarette. Some of the larger rooms have more mirrors and, sometimes, their own slings. Those rooms are often bought by the older customers.
The employees at Steamworks are spotless, like this adorable boy from God Knows, Ontario who convinced me to get a membership and took his equally adorable girlfriend there. There's a custodian who drives his cart through the hallways politely saying Aiwa so that the customers would move out of his way. There's also a handsome tanned guy who helped me use my membership to get discounts on rooms.
If you're a member, the front end staff will ask you if you want to put anything in a box to keep for safety. I should tip them - there's a box on the cashier's desk beside the door before the exit. If only the customers were just as perfect. The worst of humanity comes here, like a guy who told me to go back to my own country and slapped me, people who slam doors in my face, who try to slam me into stalls and force me to have sex with them, use abusive foreplay, use drugs and the hottest guys who caress their tongues to my ear telling me about the benefits of unprotected sex.
There are guys of every shape, age and ethnicity. It's probably my bias talking but I keep seeing my ideal man here, 30ish, tall, bulkier than me, Mediterranean/white guy with a tan and scruffy. There are more bottoms than tops but every guy with every kind of preference is here. I tend to sleep with older guys here because they're the ones who respond to me more.
I've also been lucky by how nice they can be. There are two guys (not at the same time) who ask me before or after if I'm using protection and avoiding drugs, PSA style. There are also guys who stay here until the subway starts running again. I come here once every three months and the good guys are the kind who keep me coming back for more.
Writing by Paolo Kagaoan. Photo by Dennis Marciniak from the 2011 Tight Whities car wash.
Discussion
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It would have been nice if the author had a unique perspective he wanted to share, as opposed to just describing everything and anything.
Besides the ridiculously obvious grammatical errors, the content is borderline offensive - you're essentially selling Steamworks as a place where you can get "four different guys in the span of two hours, if not more." Not only is this advocating an extremely dangerous lifestyle, it doesn't even contain any information regarding the risks- an informed adult can make an informed decision, however as a website that clearly caters to a younger crowd, you have a responsibility.
I considered Blog TO to be a relatively reputable source of reviews, and while you're strength has never been in catching grammatical errors, I never thought you'd let a mistake as large as this get posted.
But seriously, this is ridiculous. Did a horny 20something break into the blogto compund and post this while no one was watching?
BlogTO is getting far too hip for the room.
And it's not offensive because of the article, it's offensive because the content plays into every stereotype that every homophobe loves to believe is true. That gay men are shallow and pathetic, and nothing more than horny hamsters who will get it on at the drop of a hat in a Loblaws if possible.
And people wonder why Ford didn't want to be associated with the parade.
Hope this post lasts more than 3 minutes.
Good for you, Paolo for writing this! Don't listen to the naysayers. They just don't know what they're missing or are jealous or simply don't understand the gay culture. Anyhoo, it doesn't matter. Just be happy, y'all!
Keep it up, girl!
I have an idea. Why don't you guys organize a BlogTO sex party? Oh, pretty please? I think that would be doubly F-A-B-U-L-O-U-S!!!
Seriously, though, as an adult, I find this article extremely irresponsible.
"...as an adult, I find this article extremely irresponsible."
Mike, you mean as a "straight" adult. Str8 ppl would find this irresponsible, naturally. Your religion has taught you that promiscuity leads to evil things. You've been brainwashed from an early age to believe that sex=bad.
This is part of gay culture. If you don't agree with it, then out the door you go!
Where did I say that a. I was straight b. I was religious or c. that sex was bad?
You may claim that promiscuity is part of gay culture (and I enough gay people who will claim otherwise), but it's not part of a responsible adulthood. Make any excuse you like, but nothing good can come from irresponsible promiscuity, gay or straight.
Claiming that irresponsible behaviour like that is somehow part of a "culture" would be akin to a Jamaican man abandoning his children and chalking that up to a cultural thing, too. That argument doesn't fly.
There's no excuse for an article, regardless of the content, that is this poorly written nor is there an excuse for publishing anything, ever, that contains the grammatically horrendous phrase "where I honestly saw one of the hottest ass slamming I've seen."
This is just plain awful.
An honest and open perspective of what goes on this place. As a straight girl, these are the details I've been dying to know!
Thanks Paolo!!!! You're the awesome gay best friend I wish I had.
Please get tested Paolo.
"Get tested get tested get tested get tested ..."
Good lord, don't you dummies know that the Steamworks is where gay guys go to take a bath?
Steamworks encourages safe sex. A lot. There is no shortage of free condoms or posters or employees (or the condom wrapper itself) telling you to USE IT.
There are certain people that will have unsafe sex no matter what. Steamworks, or any bath house, isn't some kind of bareback haven.
Being proud of being gay and owning your sexuality is one thing, but to promote it in such a base manner is flat out irresponsible and reflects a complete lack of foresight in regards to how it would be received.
people complaining in the comments: it's a blog not the new york times, f'ing relax.
blogTO, I really loved this article and how candid it is, so please don't be affected by the negative comments. I'd love to see more articles like this one.
Whoever cleans this place, you need a raise.
And as someone flat out offended at the suggestion that this type of establishment and the promiscuity that goes with it are a part of "gay culture", I guess I'm a gay man without a culture.
Perhaps I should head off to one of those conversion therapy places since I don't conform to your standards of homosexuality.
That being said, the writing was just plain atrocious. I mean really. I understand this is not the "f'n new york times" but something a little more legible would have been appreciated. If Paolo isn't exactly a journalist, that's fine. But the least take the time - as a blog that is fairly respected in this city - to edit it for him before you attach your own name to it. To be honest, you letting this quality of work through makes me question what you let through on a bad day.
Who the hell cares what is your ideal man?
This is by far the most absurd "review" I have ever seen.
Does this question the audience number of straight,lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender blogTO readers?? Does reading the article make you think of the changing teams or even curious to check out Steamworks?
Apparently, the only straight bathhouse is Oasis Aqualounge - which BlogTO wasn't interested in at all.
Amazing to see how riled up some people get from learning about something that's been a standard part of the queer community for decades.
If nothing else, this article speaks to what's NOT happening in the gay world - sanity. We are so obsessed with this fantasy (the straight university athletes we wish to God were gay but aren't) and reality (the 45-year-old gay guys who are 50 pounds overweight that we don't want to look at) and in the process have learned nothing about what really matters in a partner, a relationship, or where to even look for one! I mean, in a city as large as Toronto, it should not be so impossible, in 2012, to find someone to have coffee with. It was easier in 1992 when people weren't hiding in gay chat rooms online waiting for the perfect, straightest-looking guy who might be 'good enough' to go out with. We've fine-tuned our expectations on what's 'good enough' or 'worthy' to be seen in public with that nobody's meeting anybody, more and more of us are isolated at home, and fewer guys are coming out than ever, because they see what's 'expected' of them once they do come out (fancy university degrees, lots of money, look perfect) and simply don't bother. This can not be what was in mind when those before us worked so hard to make us feel included. It's very clear that, unless you are a rich-bitch gay guy who looks perfect, nobody cares about your involvement in the community anymore.
I have to apologize to say everyday I have seen "No blacks, no Asians" and "White only" in gay community. At worst, these people just tell other "that is not racist, but it is my preference."
How about most shops and bartenders in gay community? Owners "prefer" to hire hot white muscle guys. I am sure that is "preference".
Take a look http://www.douchebagsofgrindr.com/ and understand how much "body nazi", "femmephobia" , "racial preference", and arrogant out there in gays.
I do feel a lot of the time that I don't belong in this so-called 'community', simply because, to me, it doesn't feel very much like what a community should be.