Fridae

"You're coming to the Mardi Gras?" a blond immigration officer asked me gently. A friend of mine who was ahead of me in the line must have told him.

"My first time...," I said, handing him my documents. As he was checking them, I was checking him out. Is every Sydney boy this cute and friendly? I thought to myself.

Before I could read his nametag, he was already done with me. For the first time in my life, I wish the immigration process took a longer time.

"Thanks," I said and saw a flash of a beautiful smile on his face.

My first time to Australia, in fact - I should have told him. Although for me Australia had not been at the top of my to go list but for many a Thai student, Australia already has a reputation as a top choice for further education. Someone recently told me that Thai students in Australia already outnumber those in England, another popular venue.

The week my friend and I arrived, the month long festival was already in full steam. On March 3, an estimated 7,500 participants marched along Oxford Street commemorating the 29th Sydney Gay & Lesbian Mardi Gras. It is believed to be the world's largest nighttime parade.

My friend and I were invited to study the gay scene in Sydney and get an up close and personal experience of the city's most important annual festival.

The New Mardi Gras committee took office after the old one went bankrupt in 2002. At the time, many in the community were unwilling to see Sydney without the Mardi Gras regardless of one thought of the event.

At New Mardi Gras' warehouse-office headquarters in a Sydney suburb, we met Chair of the committee Marcus Bourget who looked tired like everyone else there. But he was still full of energy when we shot a series of questions.

What's Mardi Gras these days all about?

Of course, it's a parade to celebrate who you are without shame and historically a great channel to rally political issues for equality and civil rights. Since its inception in 1978 in Sydney, the event has grown into cultural activities with diverse interest in sports, education, health-care, literature, theatre, film, and dance until you drop.

"There are some 110 events and festivals in Mardi Gras. In addition to serving as a platform for political protest, Mardi Gras facilitates discussion on many issues," Bourget said.

"Like other countries, the gay community in Sydney is also concerned about generation gap - which is one big issue. More and more, younger gays share less in common interest with their senior ones.

"Sexuality is not an issue anymore for them. They grew up with more acceptance from their friends and family. More and more gays could enjoy events at straights' venues," the 36-year-old said.

There is an important event before the parade day which people tend to overlook, highlighted Bourget. "Mardi Gras Fair Day" is where members of gay families and friends get together and have a picnic in a park from 10 am till 8 pm.

"Fair Day is for ourselves, not for other people. It's a crucial event as well," he said.

Interestingly, visitors to Fair Day held in Victoria Park were advised not to bring their own alcohol due to the state of New South Wales' restriction.

"Save the hassle and save yourself the back pain of carrying your own and enjoy the friendly service at the Fair Day bars," as it read in an official Mardi Gras booklet.

I'm not sure how much revenue the bars in the park had generated to fund their series of festive activities. But definitely, it's a business involving a huge investment and vision to make this mega event successful. And surely enough, some people look at the event as a commercialised one.

Bourget said New Mardi Gras is different from the previous organiser and is driven almost purely by the contribution of volunteers. Volunteering is in the spirit of the event, not sponsorship money. So what concerns the organising body the most is how they balance their act and books.

"It's about management too. The organiser in the past hired nearly 30 people full-time. We have only two full-time officers. The rest are volunteers. Volunteering in this country is a tradition. Volunteer people are very important to us," he said.

As it's been growing in size and influence, the annual gay and lesbian event has become somewhat an indicator to the livelihood of tourism business of the year, not only for Sydney, but Australia entirely.

Each year it draws more than half a million spectators. It's beyond imagination that semi-naked marchers, dance music, rainbow flags, and drag queens at the parade plus affiliated parties and events could bring A$46 million (US$35 million) to Sydney's economy. The amount however has not convinced PM John Howard to support the event despite being supported by all local authorities at all levels.

"He said he is against discrimination, but he does nothing to show it," said Bourget, pointing out his dismay from a statement given by the prime minister's liaison office. It reads: "On this occasion, I regret that the Prime Minister is unable to provide a message."

But at least, Kylie Minogue cares. She sent a private message and a troop of 250 dancers to join the parade - one of the biggest floats this year.

Everyone knows the pop princess is a beloved treasure of this country. But I simply could not "feel it" until I went to a Mardi Gras press conference the morning of the parade that I started to feel Kylie's spells.

The organiser proudly presented a series of Kylie's hit songs prior to the conference's start. If they were played a bit louder and longer, I believed some media attendees would jump to their feet and dance along rather than covering the news.

And on top of that, I have realised something else about Australia's other national symbol aside from the jumping marsupial and the fat mini "bear" with the funny nose always vacationing on a tree. I caught sight of some "Aussie bums" when a group of hunky lifesaver members showed up at the conference wearing their thin bright-red trunks.

Since they were so friendly and expressive when posing for my camera, I reciprocated by getting heaps of photographs of their smiling bodies and bulging undies which I have posted on my university's alumni web site. I was almost sure that the pictures would draw certain "warnings" from some of my conservative-headed pals. To them sex/ sexuality should not be played up and discussed in public as it's not for everyone.

For me, it's somewhat a political act to post the pictures. Perhaps, if I did a job good enough, I might be able to cure them of such social pressures and silly restrictions adults like us should be free from. This is what the gay parade might do the best - giving a new perspective of life to the spectators who might not have a chance to explore their own sexuality and their private sexual issues. That said, I personally do not support any displays of nudity in the public sphere.

While the parade on Saturday night did contain messages about social and political issues, the parade organiser admittedly had to tread a thin line to balance entertainment elements with social justice messages. A parade too heavily loaded with political messages would not a crowd pleaser make.

The spectators at the parade are very diverse with some coming to the parade to give support and celebrate the diversity, while others to be purely entertained. All in all, a gay parade means different things to different people. Next year, the Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras will celebrate its 30th anniversary. I wish to return and say: Happy Mardi Gras.

Vitaya Saeng-Aroon is a gay icon in Thailand. An openly gay writer, public speaker, and a movie producer, he founded Cyberfish Media Co. Ltd, the country's first gay media company with his partner of nine years. He is based in Bangkok.