I walked into my hotel with my rolling suitcase, past the old, 1950s-style marquee and a retro camper in the parking lot. The receptionist, clearly gay, took my information. “You booked the local rate – do you live here?” he asked inquisitively. I lied, flirtatiously, showing him my almost-expired Massachusetts driving license and a fumbled story about a conference in Los Angeles. The real reason, though: I wanted to spoil myself. And with only a weekend in my old hometown of Boston to visit friends, get drunk and eat junk food, I needed to stay somewhere convenient. (By that I mean near my old favorite haunts.) The Verb Hotel, one of Boston's newest design hotels, is located just around the corner from Kenmore Square and is one of those unofficial gay hotels which comfortably accommodates LGBT tourists thanks to a cool design, a great location and a fun atmosphere.

After checking in and a quick shower, I'd already destroyed my room. Clothes everywhere, trying to find the right outfit for the night out. There was no time for dinner because I'd already planned to meet up with The Welcoming Committee – a nationwide group of LGBT people that organizes meetups and “guerrilla queer bars” (that's when a bunch of gays secretly meet up at a stereotypically hetero bar, turning it gay for the night). Skipping dinner, not a problem. I'd probably just end up eating a sausage on Landsdowne Street on the way home, anyway. 

Leaving the hotel, I began my weekend in Boston with drinks at the House of Blues with some old college friends. The last time I'd been there, I was dancing shirtless on a podium next with a go-go dancer at the weekly Epic Saturday gay party. Sitting at the bar this time, we watched a grainy TV while The Decemberists were on stage in the other room. At some point in my life, years before, that would've been the highlight of my night. But I've grown up (or maybe not), and now I'd rather be dancing shirtless to some Rihanna remix than bobbing my head along to an indie folk band. Saving my money for drinks and a late-night sausage, we threw back a cocktail and then made our way to the guerrilla queer bar event at Tequila Rain – a trashy bar that's usually full of college jocks and girls in heels, but tonight was about to be taken over by a throbbing mob of glittery gays and queers.

The evening went just as you'd expect from any other queer club night. Articles of clothing came off as the night progressed. There was glitter. There were tequila shots. And because it was Boston, there was dancing on top of broken glass, fist-pumping to local music and a sloppy exit out of the club at 2 a.m. The guerrilla queer bar was once a big deal in Boston, with a secret, homegrown e-mail list, but today GQB has become such a spectacle, the bars and clubs that are taken over (even ones as laid-back as Tequila Rain) are comfortable and welcoming.

As the night wound down, I found myself opposite Machine Club, just a few blocks away from the party happening on Lansdowne Street. Machine is that kind of gay club with the big, burly guy out front who's just intimidating enough to keep a skinny guy like me away. My curiosity would've led me inside, had it not been for a trendy burger joint open across the street.

While eating my Tasty Burger after the club (I felt it was a little healthier than The Sausage Guy), I couldn't help but compare the Boston of 2015 with the same city I lived in five years earlier. The Kenmore Square area, where I stayed exclusively on this weekend trip, had all the signs of change but hidden underneath the same Citgo Sign that's been there for years (the current iteration of the sign since 2005, though the earliest sign went up first in 1940). Boston isn't the same city that it used to be. It's grown up, with trendier hotels (looking at you, Verb Hotel – on the site of an old, run-down Howard Johnson, LOL) and tastier burgers. But the city still knows how to keep it real.

Where to Go

• Eastern Standard – Popular restaurant in Kenmore Square, serving a fusion of European and American cuisine, especially crowded on weekends for their brunches
   
• House of Blues – Bar, restaurant and music venue, the chain club sits opposite Fenway Park and hosts a number of parties and traveling bands every week
   
• Tequila Rain – Where it's summer all the time, this trashy but always fun bar attracts a lot of college students
   
• Tasty Burger – Open late with some of Boston's tastiest burgers
   
• Machine Club – One of the few gay bars & clubs in the Fenway area, Machine has a reputation for kinky parties and crazy club nights.

Where to Stay

• Verb Hotel – Boutique design hotel with simple but stylish rooms and an outdoor pool, popular in summer for pool parties and a lounge full of sexy hipsters

Adam is a travel writer and blogger. He covers the world's coolest cities, writing about festivals, nightlife and gay travel on his personal travel blog. When he’s not out exploring the coolest bars and clubs, he’s usually eating whatever local foods he can find. You’ll find him most often on Twitter at @travelsofadam — don't hesitate to say hi!