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The first thing they give
you in Cuzco is a cup of
coco tea. Which sup
posedly helps your body
adjust to the altitude.
You can believe it. Coco
tea is made from Coco
leaves, which is one of
the two ingredients used
to make Cocaine. That’s
all we had to hear, we
found a local market
and bought the leaves
and spent the entire
time in Cuzco chewing
the leaves. While
everyone else around us
was taking it easy in
bed adjusting to the
altitude we were feeling
fantastic. We spent the
afternoon wandering
through the narrow
streets, Indian markets
and ancient plazas
before driving on to the
colossal pre-Inca for
tress of Sacsayhuaman
(pronounced sexy
wooman). The fortress
is made up of giant
blocks of polished stone
weighing as much as
300 tons apiece. That
evening we hit a couple
of Cuzco’s gay bars,
retired early.
The next morning we
boarded the 7:oo a.m.
Alpine train for Machu
Picchu. If you did
nothing but take this
t r ain through the deep
valleys across high
switchbacks and beside
the onrushing
U'ubamba River (which
becomes part of .the
headwaters of the
Amazon) the day would
be unforgetable. When
you arrive at the tiny
railstation below Machu
Picchu the bus that
climbs the hairpin
gravel road to the
ancient city is another
adventure itself.
Now it’s time for the
reason most of us are
here. It is an
astonishing moment to
be face to face with the
Lost City of the Incas.
My first view of the
craggy peaks and green
valleys was like the
finale of a dream. If
anvting, it was even
more impressive than I
had pictured it. It was
like meeting a blind
date for the first time,
after hearing glowing
reports and finding him
even more attractive
than you expected.
Before you spread
across a natural saddle
on the mountain, as an
ancient city that defied
discovery for centuries
Machu Picchu framed
between the high peaks
clean and green and
under the brilliant
alpine sky is an over
whelming experience.
The city is as it stood
centuries ago, unspoiled
by tourists, we were
fortunate to see it prior
to the progress that
comes with several
large hotels and air
strips that are currently
being built to bring in
the hoards of tourists.
But for the time being
there is a primitive
hotel (15 rooms) beside
the lost city where we
enjoyed luncheon
searved in the sunlight.
Machu Picchu’s
history is as cloudy as
the mist that hangs
from the surrounding
mountains. Most
historians concur that it
was established as a
refuge from the warring
tribes of the Amazon
basin, and in their
secluded stronghold the
Incas grew vegetables
and raised livestock.
Today a solitary llama
or two still grazes on
the serene moun
tainsides.
The Incas remained
undisturbed in their
retreat, unknown to
their enemies through
the ages, hidden from
the valley 2,000 feet
below. Generations of
Spaniards crisscrossed
the Urbamba Valley but
they never came upon
Machu Picchu.
How civilization
actually died there is
still largely unan
swered; was it an
epidemic or did the
inhabitants leave
willfully and why were
mostly female skeletons
found? These female
remains have given rise
to a theory that Machu
Picchu was primarily
the home of Inca
virgins. The walls of
the fortress have
crumbled’, shrubs and
creepers covering the
buildings and terraces
further obscuring any
keys to the riddle. But
the eerie remnants of
the Inca civilization
spread out for one to
see, uniform terraces
climbing up the
mountain, stone ruins of
what was once a
Dale’s World
Veneral Disease: Myths and Facts
By Dr. Francis Dale
This month’s column
was prompted by a
letter I received from a
young man in Atlanta.
He stated, “there are so
many facets to a man's*
sexuality that it still
amazes me how so
many gay men lack
fundamental information
about their accepted
lifestyle...I’ve been out
of the closet for nearly
seven years and I think
I am just realizing that
it’s time to learn
more...I like your new
approach of discussing
one specific topic. Due
to space limitations you
can barely touch on a
topic as broad as
“Water Sports”, but you
did put down a few
basics and some good
factual as well as
safety-oriented
material.”
As a writer I must
admit that I often take
it for granted that we
all know the basic facts
of our lifestyles, but this
letter made me more
aware of the fact of
how little many of us
really know. With this
in mind I am going to
discuss a few of the
facts of VD which seem
to have stayed in the
“closet” even though we
are such an enlightened
people.
One of the first facts
we must realize is that
their are over three
million cases of VD
reported in this country
alone and it is not
particular whom it
strikes - no one is
exempt!
Silence, fear and
guilt are VD’s best
friends - if you suspect
you have contacted VD,
you should not be silent,
fear it or feel guilty
about it. What you
should do is go to your
doctor (or city or
county health depart
ment for a free test and
free treatment)
Parents of minors will
NOT be notified.
You can not contact
VD from a germ on a
toilet seat, drinking
glass or eating utencil.
Neither is it picked up
just from kissing. It is
only transmitted
directly by sexual
relations with an in
fected person.
The largest number
of cases of a com
municable disease
reported last year was
from gonorrhea. The
main symptom of
Gonorrhea is a
discharge, from the
penis but often symp
toms of gonorrhea are
not noticable until the
disease is well on its
way. You can have
gonorrhea of the anus
and the discharge will
give you no noticable
discomfort. Gonorrhea
(clap) can also affect
the throat and here it
will pass as just a
simple sore throat and
go undetected. Some
persons who have
prostate trouble also
have a discharge from
the anus and penis
which can pass for
gonorrhea infection.
These people should not
take it for granted that
this is the case, but
should keep a constant
check on it to make
sure that it is just a
prostate problem and
not VD. If you’re
bisexual, remember that
if you and a woman get
gonorrhea, you will
have the symptoms first
and they may not be
noticeable for some
time in her. Women,
don’t fool yourselves
into thinking that VD is
limited just to male-
male, male-female
relationships. You can
get it from female-
female relationships as
well, though it is less
likely. But the idea is
never to take anything
for granted when it
comes to veneral
diseases.
It is NOT TRUE that
if untreated, gonorrhea
can turn into syphillis.
Gonorrhea (clap) and
syphillis (syph) are two
different and distinct
diseases, but both are
only contracted by
direct sexual contact.
This is due to the fact
that these diseases need
warmth and moisture in
order to survive - both
of which are offered by
the sexual parts.
Syphillis is one of the
hardest veneral diseases
to notice, even though
the symptoms are a
sore oh the sex parts, a
rash on the body, or a
sore throat. But any
and all of these sym
ptoms may appear at
one time or separately
and go unnoticed
because they last for
short periods. A person
with any one of the
symptoms might just
assume that it “cured”
itself since it "healed”
on its own. But syphillis
comes in stages - the
first being one of the
above. Then it can seem
to disappear for months
only to reappear in its
second, more serious,
stage. The only real
way to know if you
have contacted syphillis
is to have a blood test.
If you have it sooner or
later your blood test
will be “positive”. If
you do get syphillis, you
CAN be cured - but
ONLY t\ DOCTOR can
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affect such .' v „-ure. DO
NOT to treat
yourse’
closing, I would
Lxe to mention that 1
have only touched the
surface of the subject of
VD and owe it to
yourself to get further
information on the
subject from your
county health
organization or local VD
health clinic. Remember
that venereal disease
can be a serious
problem for anyone and
everybody and that VD
is more prevelant
amongst those who
follow the “gay”
lifestyle. Also ’ consider
that just because you
had it once and it was.
treated and cured, that
it is still possible to get
it again and again.
One of the best ways
to prevent getting VD is
to be careful. Take time
to notice if your partner
has any sores on his
penis or anus or a
discharge. If soap and
water are available use
them after . sexual
contact, if not take to
carrying some sort of
“wash-up” (those
packaged clean-ups in
foil packets) and use it!
It has been found that
many of the con
traceptive gels and
creams are useful in
preventing VD, it might
be wise to use
something of this nature
for lubrication, (such as
Ortho-jel or Orth-
cream) REMEMBER
THAT YOUR DOCTOR
IS YOUR BEST
FRIEND! His job and
aim is to help you, not
judge your sexual
preferences.
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