By Nickel L.

If you want your eyes to meet the stars and the sun to enlighten your heart, you should definitely make time for a visit to Douala or Yaoundé … by night…

Simply pop by any of the multiple nightlife hotspots of these cities and you will be drawn into a wonderful journey to a cosmopolitan universe bursting with the latest fashions and trends of Cameroon’s LGBTIQ community. Fasten your seatbelts and open your eyes – this is going to be an unforgettable trip!

If you visit any venue like Akwa, Deido, Essos or Bastos, you will see them. Indeed, you will unescapably gaze at them, as captivating your sight is what they do best. Rivaling anyone anywhere for imagination and creativity, their clothing combinations — whether simple or extravagant – deliver the unmistakable GAY TOUCH that will trigger anyone’s GAYDAR.

Such a splurge of style ranges over a number of different fashion trends. From a comfortable, classical BCBG style to a metal, gothic total look, there’s enough to cater for everyone.

Stealthily, such evil angels surf across all major fashion standards. And fantasy is never missing.

Designer clothes, ready-to-wear garments, second-hand clothes or made to measure alike. In Cameroon, fashion is a passion above all else, if not an obsession. The purpose is to assert oneself as desirable rather than simply adopting an image or identity.

An invitation to the Michel ballroom can become a joy to the eye. A night out at such an iconic downtown venue offers the chance to see every conceivable style of Cameroonian LGBTIQ people. It is easy to get lost in the maze of this fantastical world, but only a personal invitation will open up the doors to this fanciful playground of secret codes.

Show me what they wear and I’ll tell you who they are. Let me introduce you to the protagonists of such a lively extravaganza:

PSEUDO STRAIGHT OR DISCREET KOUDJE: He hangs out with his straight buddies, wears a straight-looking hairstyle and avoids the LGBTIQ clubbing scene. Keen on jackets and sweats, such a total Adonis accumulates a bunch of t-shirts typical of a bore and likes to dig his spring –or winter – suit combined with a pair of glowing loafers. And of course, he’s into manly colours.

MAMY SITA OR COCO: A self-asserted bottom who – from head to toe – sings out the hymn of his vindication. His colorful slim-fit pants – or any other sort of jeans – or his tight floral t-shirts never fail to exhibit his most feminine side to the whole world. Sophisticated hairstyles with dyed strands in an array of colours are always present. Did anyone say colours? Well, for her, an outfit has to feature plenty of well-combined colors. To top it off, the multichromatic eye lenses worn by the gorgons of this new era are not to be missed either.

BRAISED FISH OR VERSATILE: Straight or gay? Top or bottom? Delightfully sailing between the different sides of his sexual orientation, his look doesn’t quite seem to help to clear things up. He’s keen on any item of clothing he can rustle up in his own style. Tank tops or blouses, polo shirts or suits, his secret lies in the evocative transparencies he wears. Flax trousers or pants gently loose around his hips, subtly revealing his chic and alluring underwear, which is also a key feature of such a stealthy, mystical beauty.

Close companions to these gentlemen are the following ladies whose different styles we cannot resist contemplating in admiration. I’m glad to present some of them to you:

TONTONNE OR DYKE: Passionate about sportswear items like caps and sneakers, her masculinity will never – ever – be insulted by a dress. ‘No, thanks,’ she would say with contempt.

BELLA: Lesbian alter ego of the discreet koudjé, yet showcasing an American-style manicure or overflowing Brazilian extensions, there will always be a detail that will betray her sexuality: tattoos, leg-warmers, or rings explicitly worn at the right place and the right way. After all, the dance floor queens are well-known, and the message is clear to the right ones.

CROSS OR NYIEE: Often right out of the army or defence forces, they excel at changing their coarse cotton daytime uniforms for a stunning leather cover or pair of jeans at night. But if it’s required, or if the occasion calls for it, they don’t think twice about modelling a kabba ngondo (Cameroonian traditional dress made of loincloth) or even toying with a miniskirt, sexy blouse and suspenders look combined with a pair of leather ankle boots or sebagos.

The key theme among such different groups is the cunning pleasure they all have to accessorize their bodies (scarves, hats, necklaces, rings, glasses and belts) to strive for a more original look. Rainbow colours are always honored.

And before finishing I have to update you on the very latest of the current trends: the kit bag aka 24-hour bag. Long life to XXL bags! Far from being unnoticed but no less elegant, they have the advantage of covering your tracks, as at first sight they may look like a travel bag or a duffel bag. Kit bags are not for outsiders though. They call for those who are most “in.”

If their clothes already tell enough about the person wearing them, their hairstyling is no slouch either. What’s trending now are layered haircuts or different dreadlock styles such as that of the acclaimed singer Flavour.

Sensuality spreading to the edge of their lips, the members of Cameroon’s LGBTIQ community dare to flirt just like their straight friends do with an always very well-combined fanciful touch of elegance. After a stylish sleight of hand, they become the moving targets for all eyes.

Only a few pursue and experience such an atmosphere where everything seems to gleam; militant for a day, militant for a life! To each his own. But for others, magic shades off at the first ray of dawn, and Chinese shadows get lost in the drab universe of the average masses. That’s also the price to pay to be accepted in Cameroon.