GenQ - For the not so straight individual

Milan, the hustle and bustle of the style capital of Europe and many would argue that of the world, my new home for the next 12 months to ravage, to have and to hold, to contemplate, to victimise and exploit. I have a lot to be thankful for, after all how many young Aussie guys do you know relocating to Milan? I dare say in this superficial world my looks have dragged me from continent to continent though anything else would pervert the truth. This year Italy will feel the wrath of the blonde from ?Down Under?. Last year Berlin had its fair share, and boy did I leave that city and scene begging for more.

My grandmother, a distinguished woman of Dutch decent who raised her family in the stark contrasting beauty of Zimbabwe the former Rhodesia always said to me, ?My son, if your going to do something, do it right, do it like it's never been done before and leave them wanting more?. This was advice given in a harsh raw Africans accent from an early age which has stuck with me ever since. It is with this sense of adventure, world domination and a yearning to experience all life has to offer that my articles will be derived from.

Let me share my observations with you direct from Milan Italy. A land of Catholicism, a bizarre romantic language closely derived from Latin and many of the worlds most loved and familiar fashion houses.

In USA, Asia and throughout Europe names synonymous with luxury line high end streets and shopping arcades beckoning their sultry seductive powers and the promise through advertising and clever marketing that you can become a clone of the brand.

Gucci, Prada, Versace, Armani to name a few all family owned, operated and run mega competitors in a world hungry for cutting edge design and a society happy to hide their inabilities behind a pre-fabricated persona, tweaked, air brushed and available for sale in any news agency or boutique.

The irony of fashion and the media in relation to social acceptance play a large part in the recognition of the homosexual in an otherwise strict religious country that is Italy.

For a country who's economy is regarded as one of Europe's lowest, closely followed by Germany, frequently quoted as being ?The old man of Europe? despite its industrial power house fa