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Uff – back home – tired and exhausted but with a lot of new memories, good experiences and awesome feelings. Folsom in Berlin, the biggest fetish get-together of Europe was, as always, great again. But it wasn’t the parties or the streetfair who makes this event such a special experience. It’s the people!
It is so great to meet and socialize with kinksters from all over the world. And Folsom are the days in which it is normal that all restaurants and bars in the neighborhood are full of guys in leather, rubber, sportswear and other gear, that pups kneel on the floor and on the streets, and almost naked guys are walking or being lead around on leashes. But the real crazy thing though is that if you do all that in the area around the Motzstrasse, the neighbourhood in which Folsom Europe takes place, people seem to have absolutely no problems with it. It is incredibly funny to see old ladies sitting between rubber gimps having coffee together, older men talking with pups and giving them pets and so on. They are not staring, they just accept it as strange normality.
We have visited Berlin from Thursday to Monday. So you can imagine it was lots of socialising and naturally also party and action. We have met a lot of friends and made new friendships. We also had to take a look at the new Quaelgeist venue, a big sm dungeon with a bar, which is run by the members of the Quaelgeist fetish association. Something you’ll soon read more about here. Ok, to be honest, we haven’t just been looking around there 😉 We also had some kinky time for us. Just to test everything of course cough
Saturday is always the streetfair day. Kinksters from all over are having fun under the sky of the German capital and enjoying the air of Berlin, and of course also the cute guys there. This year the weather was perfect for it. No rain, not too cold and not too warm. Everyone who ever was at summer parties in leather or rubber knows what I’m talking about.
The only thing I want to complain is that there isn’t anymore as much kinky action on the street during the streetfair as in other years. It becomes more and more a catwalk on which people are showing their new gear they got during the powershopping in the multiple fetish stores of Berlin the days before. It would be nice to feel again more of the sexual lust and vibrance also on the streetfair. Folsom shouldn’t become a “normal” pride event, it is more!
What was your Folsom Europe 2018 highlight?
Pup Bolt (UK): Folsom Europe 2018 for me was a perfectly mixed cocktail of fabulous friends and heady, hedonistic, and horny fun. I’ve always described myself as a sybarite, and my pledge to pleasure begins with planning. Dull as it sounds, balancing key markers set in stone and then going with the flow for the rest of the time ensures that Folsom is all about wham, bam, thank you man.
The day after arriving I found myself frogtied and mitted, laying on the floor of the playroom of an amazing new friend I’d been chatting to for some months. In full rubber and an inflatable hood. My jaw pressed against the tight interior by an inflatable, breathe-through gag. With a heavy metal collar attached to a wall by a short chain. The useless rubber object was then tormented mercilessly. After an hour or so, I was untied and ordered to crawl into a padded isolation box and then cuffed. My poor tormented cock was locked in chastity with an electro attachment inside. An S10 with an integral gag was put on my head and I was locked into the silent pitch black. The breathing tube was connected to a port in the roof to allow waves of poppers to take effect, and it quickly transpired that the gag contained a tube that frequently filled my mouth with fresh piss. GIMP HEAVEN. I was let out for his turn to cum, as he face-fucked me hard on my knees until he was suitably satiated.
From fucking (kinda) to friends. I don’t know where I’d be without my friends. Along with my collection of gear, they’re the most precious thing to me in my World of Kink. From pints outside PK, to the annual rubber dinner on Friday night, many meetings at the street fair, and breakfast at Berio on the way home, I’ve got to know and love the meaning of ‘social butterfly’. And every year I meet new people. Shaking hands timidly turns into hugs and kisses (one, two, or three – depending on your nationality!) on the way out, or the next time you meet. With many laughs in between. And that’s where the unplanned bits come in. From a truly delightful Sunday brunch with a deeply kinky and vastly intelligent couple and their friends, to meeting a wonderful leatherman who looked like a kinky Kaiser. And that super hot biker boy. You just never know who you’ll meet, and I’m yet to meet a bad ‘un. So, to the question that others have chosen to make so important, decisive and judgmental – social or sexual? I answer with another question and say, “Unless you want to, why limit yourself?” Folsom Europe rocks.
SonForDaddy (UK): My highlight this year was the rubber party at LAB. That place has something that I’ve never been able to find anywhere else. It’s just such a bizarre, beautiful, filth place – a great mix of hard industrial aesthetic and sleazy beautiful rubbermen looking to get their rocks off. This year seemed to focus heavily on watersports which may not be to everyone’s taste but was right up my street. (The easy access to clean water, showers and a place to freshen up was very much appreciated.) My advice to anyone who wants to go: get there EARLY to avoid 3hr long queues, make friends at the street fair earlier in the day to play with in the evening and pig-out to your hearts content.
Ale Tedesco (IT): During the last 2 years I did not have the chance to be present at Folsom Europe due to other engagements. This year I decided to come, but just for fun, without any work arrangements. Folsom Europe is one of most important fetish events globally, it attracts people from every part of the world. This time I met lot of American guys and friends.
The thing I like about Folsom is the freedom, you are free to be what you like without any prejudice. You can be a dog, a slave, a master, a sub and you have the chance to realize your fantasies in all different parties. The only thing I don’t like of Folsom… is queuing at the parties, be prepared for that ? !
Antoin (UK): 2018 was my 13th year attending the Folsom Europe event in Berlin. For me, the highlight isn’t just representing Recon and participating in the street fair and chatting to people who come to the Recon booth – even though that’s really exciting and I love what I do. The highlight is being able to catch up with so many friends, all in the same weekend. Over the years, I’ve met so many people (some completely unforgettable) and it’s always great to come back to the event and see so many familiar faces. Seeing thousands of guys out in gear is ALWAYS hot! But getting to hang out with good friends – in gear – is always the highlight for me.”
Pup Matt (FR): It was my 2nd Folsom and my 4th time in Berlin this September, and again, I really appreciated all moments I spent there. Folsom is really nice because most kinkier friends come here and it’s an amazing opportunity to meet the European (and more) fetish community. There are some friends I only see during Folsom (hey pup Locky :p )
Of course, doing Folsom as a titleholder is sometimes a run, especially during saturday, that’s why, I usually like to come earlier and leave a bit later in Berlin.
In term of partys, I didn’t do the “big” offcial partys, but went to Lab.oratory gummi party and to the Qualgeist sunday. And of course, plenty of drinks at prinzknecht.
Reto (CH): Folsom Europe on such a summer weekend brought together Leather and Fetish friends from all over the world again in a fantastic street fair. Besides the party and sex nightlife, for me it is wonderful to observe how Folsom Europe has been more and more developping the social and community activities over the years: From boat tour to Classics meet Fetish to dinners, brunches and lunches. The Leathermen of Switzerland are proud to have established the Friday evening in the Sally Bowles for uncomplicated and relaxed gathering of fun Leathermen. This contributes to the various opportunities to feel home with the Leather and Fetish family outside the darkrooms and dancefloors.
SaM Rber (FR): Defining a single highlight will be difficult, but for me seeing so many people living their fetishes in the street during the street fair, meeting in person many fetishists with whom I exchange on social networks and seeing many friends again, having a drink with them, talking, laughing makes this event exceptional to me. Too bad the day went by too fast and I couldn’t see as many people as I would have liked:-(
Rubberfoxy (AT): Talking about my Folsom 2018 highlight is simple: it was Folsom itself. I arrived on thursday with still a bit of anxiety about what to expect but that quickly settled as soon as I was greeted with the sight of the first rubber kinksters in the hotel lobby. The game was on for me and I did spent over 3 days fully sealed in rubber, expressing my colourful pup personality, meeting my Twitter crushes and so much more charming and lovely people. Expressing my fetish and desires to other people that liberate, socializing till late night and just having a good time really made this my most favourite fetish event so far. Even though I might have spent just a tiny little bit too much on new rubber but can you blame me for getting that pair of bondage shorts when it made me pop a boner on instant? For me, the hunt for more kinky events across europe is on. =)
Skinlatex (FR): Well, I think it was my fifth Folsom and I’ve been to most existing big events for quite 20 years now… so I’ve learned not to have too much expectations. I came especially because it’s a good occasion to meet friends from the whole world and to make new ones. And it was great to meet some guys to check there’s a good feeling, before they visit me in Paris for a private session. So, my highlight has probably this guy who told me he just bought skin gears and he had never been tied up in it… and he clearly needed an haircut. So at the beginning of the street fair, I blindfolded, gaged and tied him up before to shave him a nice mohawk… that was a great beginning ! Folsom Europe is clearly the space of freedom where you can do that.
Lumos (UK): As someone whos primary turn-ons and sexual motivations revolve around protocol-oriented BDSM and training; fetish events which are somewhat more focused upon sex and sexual freedom can be an interesting experience.
For me, in the past they’ve typically been a dope place to meet guys from Recon/Twitter with a splattering of sexual encounters (hey – I’m only human!) and, well, Folsom 2018 was no different.
Whilst there are plenty of amazing candidates for highlights, my favourite experience was (rather unconventionally) entirely non sexual.
On the Saturday night, due to some admittedly poor planning, we queued over two for Labs with a couple of lovely American chaps. As someone active in the community I have a tendency to skate around at events to see all my friends (breakfast at 9, a meetup at 10, fair at 12) so it was really great to spend a few hours properly getting to know a couple of guys who happened to share a lot of commonality in terms of BDSM, TPE dynamics and the like.
It’s really encouraged me to reflect upon the way I approach events in the future – fucks are ten a penny in my hometown but finding folks to have super interesting core-BDSM discussions with are somewhat more rare!
Pup Slugger (US): As an American making his first ever trip to Folsom, I was totally blown away by the experience. I had very high expectations of the event based on what I heard from others about past years, and I must say that my expectations were still exceeded. Everyone was so approachable and welcoming to me as a first timer that it made for a good weekend.
The rubber party at Laboratory was by far my favorite part of the weekend. All the time spent in the piss pens with Pup Echo and Pup Storm, getting dicks and a fist in my butt, and the other bits of play that went on made for an incredible night. The one downfall of my experience is that there is so much going on that I didn’t get to spend as much time with a few people that I really wanted to, but that is a difficult line to walk at an event like this.
Folsom has in a way ruined every American event I’ve been to and should be a gold standard for what events in the US should ultimately look like. The atmosphere in Berlin was incredible and I will definitely be back next year.
Pup Spike (DE): As almost a tradition by now, the saturday evening in Berlin started with pulling out my rubber, shining it up and checking if everything I needed was packed.
My friends and I met downstairs at the street, to wait for our Taxi. Destination: Lab.Oratory and it’s well know Gummi Party. A place so shockingly different from my usual life, that just being there and enjoying the atmosphere is enough for me to go there. We arrived fairly early, and as we walked around the old generator building somewhere in the east of Berlin, we surprisingly saw no one. We were the first! The excitement helped us forget the about one and a half hour wait, and as we finally entered the building, everyone was ready to get sleazy. Putting on rubber, shining up, getting ready. When everyone looked their best, we decided to show the new guys around. Lab was as always: Different. The smell of men, sweat and a little bit of piss was immediately noticeable, but as time went on, I got used to it. We got a beer, and waited for the venue to fill. About 1000 men, clad in rubber, shined up and horny were about to become very naughty.
After a lot of fun between fucking, fisting and kissing men, we decided to call it a night… and move up to Berghain. So: Pay your tap, don’t change, leave lab, and scare the “normal” people, patiently waiting at the front of the building. After a minute of waiting (as opposed to 4 hours for everyone else) we were asked inside by the scary looking, buff bouncer, who is known for having a strict door policy. Security check, bag dropped off and we’re in. Berghain. Maybe the most fun place in the world, at least for me. The mix of loud, bass heavy music, places to relax, drinks, kinksters and non kinksters just does it for me.
Walking up to the main dance floor, I could feel the bass pushing heavier on my chest, my heart racing quicker as I just wanted to lose myself in the music. Pushing our way through the crowd, we found a nice place to stay… and dance.
The best part about Berghain must be their intend to keep you in for as long as possible, declaring the whole weekend as just one night, not showing you the time, not letting you worry about anything at all. I felt home again, in this giant mess of people, and no one seemed to care, or judge that I was dancing in rubber, with a dog mask, kissing boys. More than ever, I did not feel out of place, but free and welcome. The night went on, as probably every Berghain night goes on: Dancing, only interrupted by a quick stop at a bar, or the ice cream parlor, which is where we ended our night. Almost 7am, partied for 9 hours, up for about 24, and we were sitting in a techno club, eating ice cream and getting our boots licked by a boy. When we left, the sun was already up, there still was a queue to get in, but we were done for today, and headed home to get some rest.
