“The beauty of standing up for your rights is others see you standing and stand up as well.”–Advice columnist Cassandra Duffy
As this journey began to take shape, I spent a lot of time soul searching. What is it I really wanted out of this adventure? What would be the reasons for choosing my destinations? This not only led me to dig deeper into myself but really had me doing my research on everything.
Growing up and living most of my adult life in the southern United States it can be hard finding “your community” at times. Enter Pride Events. Pride festivals here in the United States are not only a lot of fun but I have left each one with a restored sense of community. I have been fortunate to attend events in several cities. Lexington, KY. being my first Pride Festival, obviously, since it is so close to my hometown. I have been to events in Chicago (yes Market Days is better), Indy, Knoxville, Louisville, Nashville (many times), and Orlando.
This summer I had the opportunity to attend Belfast Pride in Northern Ireland. This was a fantastic experience and it really sparked my desire to see how other countries celebrated this event that I hold so dear. Ironically enough, this was my best friend’s (Chuck) first Pride parade and he was hooked. So, knowing a fellow traveler was also interested in seeing more really got me looking to incorporate some into my itinerary. I started a spreadsheet due to this. The following spreadsheet covered Europe’s best Gay Pride festivals!
Amsterdam Pride immediately became top of the list for several reasons. One of them being that Amsterdam was already on my list of destinations for this adventure. Secondly, I had spoken with several people who were interested in joining me for this leg of the trip so why not schedule it around Pride. Doing my homework led to Amsterdam solidifying its top ranking. I mean who does not want to see a giant, bright, vibrant parade going down a canal on barges?? Yep, no one! Amsterdam also hosts some of the largest and best-ranked street parties during their Pride Festival. So, if you are free go ahead and make plans to join me in Amsterdam July 29 – August 3, 2020.
Other cities definitely have reasons to visit during their Pride celebrations. Unfortunately, the dates are not matching up for most of this first year. But you better believe I will be attending and supporting as many of these as possible in all my glitter and rainbow glory over the next few years. Who wants to start a tour of Pride festivals with me???