I simply cannot begin to describe my weekend in Amsterdam, censoring out the parts that some people may not want to hear or the parts that are completely illegal in the United States [as for almost every other country on this planet for that matter]. So...I've decided not to censor. Im about to go Edward R. Murrow on this shit! [Sorry Bubba...]
So sit back and freak'n brace yourselves [I'm serious, this ones a long one].....
The trip started off with the great idea of not sleeping, but instead drinking at home, before our 3am bus ride to Pisa. This replacement of sleep with fun is just a precursor to the entire weekend. From Pisa we flew, using RyanAir [I highly suggest this for very cheap travel through out Europe], and landed in Eindhoven, Netherlands around 9am. Extremely excited, we crammed onto a double-decker bus and opted for the top front seat [just like a roller coaster!].
We roll into the city of Amsterdam, find our hostel, and go to a coffee shop with in 20 minutes.
Ok, lets go over some Amsterdam basics...
+Marijuana, hash, and a few of miscillanous hallucinagents are LEGAL in Amsterdam
+Prostitution is also LEGAL in Amsterdam
+You can only smoke weed indoors and cannot carry more than five grams on you at any time
+You would normaly find a prostitute in the Red Ligh District [which I will cover a little later]
+You would normaly find/smoke marijuana in Coffee Shops
So when I say we rolled in to the city of Amsterdam, found our hostel, and went to a coffee shop with in 20 minutes. I really mean I was high in the first 20 minutes of being in Amsterdam.
Now, I am not a smoker or a "pothead" [though I'm sure some of you will find this hard to believe after reading this]. But...when in Amsterdam...do as the Amsterdam-ese [?] -ians [?] -whaterver- do!
Don't get me wrong, there are alot of things to do and see in Amsterdam [especially for architecture students], but there is a certiant allura about it that doesn't make sense for a young and adventuring tourist not to atleast try legal weed. It is part of the culture [which of course has become really touristy].
I was blown away by the city at first. It was not what I expected at all [not that I was even sure what to expect other than the Red Light District and Coffee Shops]. Amsterdam is a port town built on a bay off of the Nordic Sea so it is full of canals. It is also full of some awesome architecture, a lot of it modern.
And I'm not gonna lie, exploring the city a little stoned was awesome. It was about this time [36 hours after our last night of sleep] that we decided to take a small nap so we could go out at night. I woke up after the "nap" in the hostel bunk bed, looked over at Nik, and asked if he was ready to go out. He responded with a smirk and said "Dude, it's 3am." Needless to say we didn't make it out that night. Also needless to say, we didn't really sleep again for our next two days in Amsterdam.
Now I've contemplated doing this for a long time [one of the reasons this post took so long to be posted] but you know me...And like I said before I not going to censor this trip [Sorry again Bubba]. For all of those reasons, plus the fact that I had not one good beer in Amsterdam, here is...
The rest of our trip was full of more exploring, more architecture, delicious food, a trip to a park [where Frank and I walked across a frozen lake...scary! but fun!], the Vincent Van Gogh museum [also fun a little stoned], and of course a few more coffee shops. We also perused the Red Light District at night. The Red Light District is easily distinguished by...[duh]...red lights [that, and the massive amount of semi-nude women dancing and making obscene, sexual gestures at you through store front windows trying to entice you to stop by and blow a large sum of money for some "time" with them.] The Red Light District is also full of Live Sex Shows, porno, sex toys, lingerie shops, drunk/high American and British tourist, Nik's future wife [apparently], and nude clubs with promoters outside who intimidate you with the classic line, "What are you boy scouts?!" when you say your not interested. The best way I can think to describe it is the island in the animated Disney classic Pinocchio. You know the one...where all the real boys get shipped to an amazing island where they get to drink and smoke and do what ever they want! That's Amsterdam! ...except you don't turn into a donkey at the end...
Though we did not turn into donkeys at the end, we may have acted like jack-asses, but we had fun. Sadly, our trip had to come to an end. The bus back to Eindhoven didn't leave till the early morning, we figured we would just party till the bus came instead of booking the hostel for another night, and it was Super Bowl Sunday [and the STEELERS were playing!!!]. So we found a sports bar that would play the entire game [which didn't end till 5am our time] and Frank, Logan, and I sat down for our first ever Space Cake [basically a hash brownie].
Here's some things I learned that night/next morning...
+Always give a Space Cake time to work its magic! It takes up to an hour and a half to kick in, but its well worth the wait!
+It is true the US is a STEELER NATION! But planet Earth has become a STEELER WORLD!
I was not the only Steeler fan in Amsterdam, nor were the drunken Brits behind me at the bar who's "Here we go Steelers!" chant slowly turned into "Here we go Stoners!"
+It doesnt matter how uncortable the bus seats are, or how turbulant your flight may be, after 3 days of non stop adventure and party in Amsterdam, you will sleep like your in a coma on the way home.
+Never touch/smoke marajuana with your winter gloves on. Or atleast don't expect to not get half-muled by a drug sniffing German Shepard at the Pisa airport and then patted down and searched from head to tow by an agressive Italian drug enforcement officer who knows that your just a dumb American who just got back from a first-ever weekend in Amsterdam, but he needs to make sure that your not an International Drug Trafficer. Yea...thanks for that Frank.
So we did it all. We smoked legal weed, tried a hash brownie, saw the Red Light District, purchased an awesome hat and shades as souvenirs [haha...your heart stopped for a second there when I said the word 'purchased' after the phrase 'Red Light District'...hahaha], stayed up for days at a time, and we were even able to throw some cultural/educational stuff in there too! [there ya go Bubba! = ) ]. Thankfully I did not have any class on the following Monday, which was necessary for recovery after an absolutely amazing weekend in Amsterdam!
Now I've contemplated doing this for a long time [one of the reasons this post took so long to be posted] but you know me...And like I said before I not going to censor this trip [Sorry again Bubba]. For all of those reasons, plus the fact that I had not one good beer in Amsterdam, here is...
=The BUD of the Blog=
(for this post only...I promise)
Amnesia Haze was suggested to us by a coffee shop owner and sounded interesting so George splurged alittle so we could try it. Lets just say the name Amnesia Haze says alot. We were all in a coffee shop called Double Reggae laughing, yelling, and having a good time and then all at once the Amnesia Haze hit us and we sat there silently looking at each other for about ten minutes. I am still laughing looking back at how silly we must have looked. If you ever have the wonderful opportunity of traveling to Amsterdam, try Amnesia Haze!
(for this post only...I promise)
Amnesia Haze was suggested to us by a coffee shop owner and sounded interesting so George splurged alittle so we could try it. Lets just say the name Amnesia Haze says alot. We were all in a coffee shop called Double Reggae laughing, yelling, and having a good time and then all at once the Amnesia Haze hit us and we sat there silently looking at each other for about ten minutes. I am still laughing looking back at how silly we must have looked. If you ever have the wonderful opportunity of traveling to Amsterdam, try Amnesia Haze!The rest of our trip was full of more exploring, more architecture, delicious food, a trip to a park [where Frank and I walked across a frozen lake...scary! but fun!], the Vincent Van Gogh museum [also fun a little stoned], and of course a few more coffee shops. We also perused the Red Light District at night. The Red Light District is easily distinguished by...[duh]...red lights [that, and the massive amount of semi-nude women dancing and making obscene, sexual gestures at you through store front windows trying to entice you to stop by and blow a large sum of money for some "time" with them.] The Red Light District is also full of Live Sex Shows, porno, sex toys, lingerie shops, drunk/high American and British tourist, Nik's future wife [apparently], and nude clubs with promoters outside who intimidate you with the classic line, "What are you boy scouts?!" when you say your not interested. The best way I can think to describe it is the island in the animated Disney classic Pinocchio. You know the one...where all the real boys get shipped to an amazing island where they get to drink and smoke and do what ever they want! That's Amsterdam! ...except you don't turn into a donkey at the end...
Though we did not turn into donkeys at the end, we may have acted like jack-asses, but we had fun. Sadly, our trip had to come to an end. The bus back to Eindhoven didn't leave till the early morning, we figured we would just party till the bus came instead of booking the hostel for another night, and it was Super Bowl Sunday [and the STEELERS were playing!!!]. So we found a sports bar that would play the entire game [which didn't end till 5am our time] and Frank, Logan, and I sat down for our first ever Space Cake [basically a hash brownie].
Here's some things I learned that night/next morning...
+Always give a Space Cake time to work its magic! It takes up to an hour and a half to kick in, but its well worth the wait!
+It is true the US is a STEELER NATION! But planet Earth has become a STEELER WORLD!
I was not the only Steeler fan in Amsterdam, nor were the drunken Brits behind me at the bar who's "Here we go Steelers!" chant slowly turned into "Here we go Stoners!"
+It doesnt matter how uncortable the bus seats are, or how turbulant your flight may be, after 3 days of non stop adventure and party in Amsterdam, you will sleep like your in a coma on the way home.
+Never touch/smoke marajuana with your winter gloves on. Or atleast don't expect to not get half-muled by a drug sniffing German Shepard at the Pisa airport and then patted down and searched from head to tow by an agressive Italian drug enforcement officer who knows that your just a dumb American who just got back from a first-ever weekend in Amsterdam, but he needs to make sure that your not an International Drug Trafficer. Yea...thanks for that Frank.
So we did it all. We smoked legal weed, tried a hash brownie, saw the Red Light District, purchased an awesome hat and shades as souvenirs [haha...your heart stopped for a second there when I said the word 'purchased' after the phrase 'Red Light District'...hahaha], stayed up for days at a time, and we were even able to throw some cultural/educational stuff in there too! [there ya go Bubba! = ) ]. Thankfully I did not have any class on the following Monday, which was necessary for recovery after an absolutely amazing weekend in Amsterdam!
+Footnotes:
-GO STEELERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
-I hope you understand why I didn't post any "good" pix...
-There are alot more pix on Facebook. Thanks Nik and Logan!
-Check out my band, Racecar Backwards', new music video[below] and tell me what you think! Thanks!
-GO STEELERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
-I hope you understand why I didn't post any "good" pix...
-There are alot more pix on Facebook. Thanks Nik and Logan!
-Check out my band, Racecar Backwards', new music video[below] and tell me what you think! Thanks!
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