CENTRAL, GAY-FRIENDLY, AND CLEAN. The avatar next to the listing showed a black man with a generous smile. The prospect of my host in this foreign land being gay—or at least gay-friendly—instantly put me at ease. I contacted the owner, Loren, and introduced myself, saying I was also interested in visiting Kyoto and casually mentioning that I too was queer—realizing as I typed them that I’d never written those words before. I stared at the screen for a few minutes, the cursor blinking in sync with my heartbeat, before hitting SEND.
