Netherlands - Pilgramage to Amsterdam

[DiarrheaBarn]

I was just wondering how many of you know people who have been to amsterdam specifically for smoking/tripping, how the trip was, how the weed was, etc.

I'm from the U.S., and those lucky enough to have gone loved it.

[tayo]

Swim has yet to live there, it will happen at some point in Swim's life though. Hopefully things won't change too much, or if they do only for the better.

[Nature Boy]

SWIM went. He didn't go tripping but he found the choice and easy availability of cannabis to be excellent. Unfortunately the Netherlands may not stay that way for long.

[weekender2]

SWIM has gone, more times than once - and he certainly got his fair share of buzzes. But if SWIY goes, to go just for the stone is missing the point a little bit. It's a wonderful place, not only for the easy accessibility of the sticky icky.

It sure helps though!

Pax,
Weekender

[tayo]

It is against swim's morals to pay for any type of sex, or viewing, swim respects woman kind and won't support that type of offering. But just absorbing the culture would be a wonderful experience, living there.

[weekender2]

That's an interesting point, SWITayo. SWIM has taken the obligatory stroll through the red-light district and found it just a little bit uncomfortable and itchy, though he never once felt unsafe.

SWIM would never consider prostitution to be one of the top draws of Amsterdam, but consider the context: the good people of the Netherlands are nothing if not pragmatic. Amsterdam being a haven for sailors, they figured it was going to happen anyway; they might as well make prostitution safe and legal.

And it is precisely that attitude, more so than any one thing, that makes Amsterdam so special: As long as it doesn't hurt ME, you can do whatever YOU want to do. It's a triumph of liberal society, in SWIM's opinion.

Plus they have hash.

Pax,
Weekender

[Bananas293]

Do you really want to plan a trip halfway around the world just to have a smoke?

there is a lot more to Amsterdam than coffeshops, I personally dont understand smoking trips to Ams. and the whole coffeeshop thing is turned into a marketing strategy for the tourist industry and a steady flow of foriegners for the criminal element to extort(Venlo on the German border is a good example of this). They say cannabis is legal-its not, it is only tolerated upto 5g. This amount(and more) is tolerated across most of Europe, maybe the other countries dont have the 'coffeeshops' but then again its not hard to find something to smoke in most European countries (except Sweden they have a hard line on all drugs, and the French police dont take to kindly to it but its still easily found across France). Why not plan a vacation first and if there is something to smoke then its a bonus, if really want it can be found easily enough.


That said Ams. is a great city with some awesome museums(there is something for everone), a good nightlife and the Dutch are great hosts plus it has the coffeshops and redlight district(but dont go just for these).

Not sure what the green stuff is like in the US but Northern European produce is potent stuff(15%+ THC is not uncommon) and if not used to it then it can ruin what should be a good time, too many people rush out to smoke and without (initially) realizing get mashed off such unusually small amounts they spend the rest of the night being sick, it can take the edge off the most seasoned smoker, its worth taking it slowly (at first).