cannabisnews.com: Hasheesh To Hasheesh....





Hasheesh To Hasheesh....
Posted by FoM on April 27, 2002 at 20:46:53 PT
Travel Amsterdam - The Best Joints in Town
Source: Observer UK
The UK is gearing up for high-street cannabis cafes. But what can we expect? In the name of research, Sean Vaardal hits the 'coffee shops' of Amsterdam. Out of Amsterdam's Centraal Station they flood in all directions: culture vultures to the Museum Quarter; packs of men to the red-light district; and first-time 'pot tourists' round in circles like headless chickens. With about 400 coffee shops to choose from, it's easy to end up in some unknown dive, not knowing what you're being offered or if it's going to be any good.
And as the UK prepares for the launch of its own 'cannabis cafes', based on the Amsterdam model, we look at some of the best in the European city best-known for coffee shops. At Grey Area (Oude Leliestraat 2), posters and stickers are the only concessions to interior design. And if you swung a cat in here, it would hit all four walls. Although it may never grace the cover of House & Garden , if you want to buy quality marijuana, put this underground 'hole in the wall' at the top of your list. The friendly American behind the bar recommends the Grey Mist (€15/£9.20 a gram), a hash so potent it won second place at last year's Cannabis Cup, the pot world's equivalent of the Oscars. It's very much an aficionado's shop, and my amateur status is confirmed by a bout of coughing. It's sometimes called 'the Cheers of coffee shops', because Woody Harrelson, star of the US comedy, makes it his preferred hang-out when in town. It doesn't sell food or booze, just soft drinks and fruit juices. The limited space gets crowded but this makes it the ideal quick-stop venue to start any voyage to oblivion. The 'colonisation of Mars began in 1945' monologue from the grunge timelord on the next stool is my cue to leave. De Rokerij (Lange Leidsedwarsstraat 43) is one of the better coffee shop chains in the city. The flagship - just off Leidseplein - was redesigned six years ago when the owners successfully created that 'inside of a sultan's tent' feel. On the walls, Indian murals are held in mood lighting around a thoughtful seating plan for communal or private relaxation. Buddhist-type bar music on a top-notch sound system keeps the ambience flowing, and extractor fans maintain a fresh atmosphere. Henna tattoo artists and tarot-card readers come in two nights a week to enhance the ethnic feel. The pot's pretty good, too; Stardust, Nepalese Cream, AK-47 (about €8/£4.90 a gram), alcohol and snacks are available, plus the shop's own energy drink. If De Rokerij is the Taj Mahal, then Abraxas (Jonge Roelensteeg 12-14) is Bilbo Baggins's house: all wood and spiral staircases leading to upper levels with see-through glass floors. If you want to email anyone and tell them how stoned you are, they also have internet access. Not every coffee shop in Amsterdam sells pot - some just sell coffee. The ones that do sprang up in the mid-Seventies, when the Dutch government first tried to separate the hard and soft drug markets. Until last year the drug-selling coffee shops were only tolerated, but now they are legal. In 1995, a nuisance policy was introduced to focus on controlling problems associated with coffee shops. This has reduced their number somewhat. Entry age was increased from 16 to 18, and premises near schools were closed. Shops require a permit to trade, stricter than any pub licence, and the police run monthly checks. Patrons are not allowed to have more than five grams in their possession, and if you are arrested having eaten cannabis, it is viewed as a category A drug offence because of its more potent effect. It's also surprising how few coffee shops have wheelchair access. Only Sheeba (Warmoesstraat 73) and 'T' Nescafé (Nes 33) have ramps and wide aisles, but there's no disabled toilet. Along the Singel Canal, the usual side-effects are occurring: rapid moisture loss to the mouth, a clicking noise with each swallow. I aim a white foamy dot of spit at the cobbled street, but it flies upwards. This is all terrible, but not as bad as the aeon it takes to recognise the Wittenburgerdwarsstraat on the street sign as the Wittenburgerdwarsstraat on my map. With relief I find De Dampkring (Handboogstraat 29), which I passed twice thinking it was a Wheeler's steakhouse. In fact, inside it's more TGI Fridays - all red and green mosaic lamps and dark varnished wood. No, actually, it's more like a crowded pub. Damned impaired faculties. In the corner it smells as if someone's set fire to a Christmas tree. The piney scent comes from a customer smoking a prop-department spliff of Jack Herer - a strain of weed named after a chap who did great things with grow lamps. Behind the dealer's bar are bell jars of green bracts up to the ceiling; 23 different grasses, 18 hashes and 10 types of pre-rolled joints. You can go 'organic' by smoking any variety with the 'Fair Smoke' label. This means it's been grown only with biological nutrients and without the use of chemical pesticides. De Dampkring serves alcohol and is another connoisseurs' venue, judging by the menu categories which state the cannabis' effect: from 'clear high' and 'heavy stoned' up to 'psychedelic high'. A conscientious patron steers me clear of the Amsterdam Moonshine, the equivalent of ordering a phal in an Indian restaurant. I pick instead one of the house-rolled Tbizla joints (€5.70/£3.50) - another 'high' with handle bars, and after a few dozen Cokes my cotton-mouth abates. You won't find many tourists at Katsu (Eerste van der Helststraat 70), as it's too far off the main drag. Near the Albert Cuypmarkt, it has a discreet local feel, making it popular with females, the more thoughtful and older smokers. In fact, one regular is an 87-year-old who doesn't even smoke; he just comes in with his grandkids. It is here, having just exhaled a bong hit of Supersage (€7.50/£4.60 a gram), that I achieve what pot commentator Professor Horsecollar described as 'that perfect false sense of well-being we all crave'. Blaring out of the speakers, 'Some Like It Hot' by The Power Station becomes the soundtrack to my euphoria. Across Sarphatipark is Greenhouse (Oudezijds Voorburgwal 191) - king of the Cannabis Cup. In the 15-year history of this event, no other coffee shop has won more titles for its marijuana, with winning names like King Hassan Elite, Shanti Baba and Shanti's Holy Balls. All 36 trophies are displayed in the entrance. The feeling of opulence continues as you move into the purple-coloured lounge, all spot-lighting, gilt frames and the cool indifference of the other smokers. In a shadowy corner I merge with the world's most comfortable leather sofas and prepare a joint of Big Bang (€8/£4.90 a gram). Then, as is typical when the moment is perfect, existential pot psychosis: Am I really a sad writer who's travelled abroad to take drugs on their own? Why do I hate Guy Ritchie? And, whatever happened to Howard Jones's gimp, Jed? It's hard work being this high. Like so many other Englanders, I'm only doing to excess what I don't do at home, and maybe it's just a coincidence, but the last five people to die by falling into the Amsterdam canals have all been English. Up early the next morning to sample the delights of Barney's Breakfast Bar (Haarlemmerstraat 102). Not strictly a coffee shop, but then again the owner isn't called Barney. I'm not usually a practitioner of the 'wake 'n' bake', but the sound of Santana at 8am leaves little option. Here they serve an all-day breakfast menu for meat eaters, vegetarians and vegans, plus crepes, truffles and shakes. I order the pancakes - bacon and maple syrup - my appetite somewhat dented by having woken at 3am in a ravenous sweat to eat half the mini-bar. Apart from the food there's another reason to visit Barney's and that's the Sweet Tooth - voted Cannabis Cup 2001's number one grass for the second year running. Its effects are shocking, like someone injecting your skull with Botox. The next few hours are spent walking in rapidly increasing circles, my internal navigation system down. At Schiphol airport I do a passable impersonation of Dracula checking in for the easyJet flight back to Luton. I open my bag and, to my horror, it smells like a Rasta's car. Gathering the various button bags of weed, I put them in an empty cashew nut jar and chuck them in a skip outside the terminal. Rusland (Rusland 16) had been my last port of call. It never seems to get busy at this tucked-away gem set on three levels of dark, creaking wood. Just find a table, and if the house cat takes a shine it will plonk down next to you and purr like a chainsaw. It is also the best place to drink tea (42 varieties). I play backgammon with an architect who's planning a boat trip this summer. Up the canals to the shipping lanes of the Rhine, then on to Romania. He thinks it'll take three months, but he's not taking any pot. 'You don't want to be high when an oil tanker crosses in front of you,' he says. Uppers and Downers of UK's Dutch Experience Author: Anthony BrownePublished: Sunday, April 28, 2002Until 15 September last year, it had only been famous for its hat museum. But on that day, Stockport, on the outskirts of Manchester, suddenly featured in news stories around the world: in a quiet industrial area, Britain's first cannabis cafe, the Dutch Experience, had opened. It was raided by police on its first day, but supporters immediately reopened it. Seven months later, it has been raided four times but has remained open every day. Cannabis campaigners - including two MEPs - marched on Stockport police station carrying cannabis, and demanding to be arrested. After 28 arrests, the police gave up, ignored anyone else possessing the drug, and campaigners declared that it had in effect been legalised. The Dutch Experience continues to attract hundreds of people from across the country every day, but its co-founder Colin Davis has been remanded in Strangeways Prison since December for breaking bail conditions on drugs charges. The Dutch Experience has inspired other cannabis activists to open coffee shops in a planned programme of civil disobedience that effectively forced a change of law in Holland thirty years earlier. Many have taken a special 'Cannabizziness' course set up by the Dutch co-founder of the second British cannabis cafe. The Dutch Experience 2 opened earlier this month in Bournemouth, and has been raided twice by police but immediately reopened each time. More than a dozen other cannabis cafes are planned, in Brighton, Liverpool, London and Edinburgh and elsewhere.Source: Observer, The (UK)Published: Sunday, April 28, 2002Copyright: 2002 The ObserverContact: letters observer.co.ukWebsite: http://www.observer.co.uk/Related Articles & Web Site:Dutch Experiencehttp://www.dutchexperience.org/Drugs Uncovered: Observer Specialhttp://freedomtoexhale.com/dc.htmSeven Held in Cannabis Café Raidhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread12643.shtmlGo Dutch in Dorset http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread12634.shtmlCannabis Entrepreneurs Go Dutch http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread12482.shtml
Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help




Comment #15 posted by kaptinemo on April 29, 2002 at 10:30:09 PT:
Been there, too
and I can attest that the Amsterdam police do not care what you do, so long as you cause no harm to another. And lest anybody think the Dutch police are pushovers, I saw one cop take charge of a young shoplifter. The kid didn't dare move, much less struggle; cops mean business over there, and it would not have gone well if he had. But the arrest did not proceeed in the vicious mad-dog style of american police brought up to be rabid DrugWarriors; the kid stood still, the cop talked quietly with the store owner, and then cop and kid walked away to the station house. No violence at any point. I felt completely at ease, walking up to the politieman on the corner and asking some typically (for him, no doubt) dumb tourist questions. I've said it many times, before; the Dutch cops are pros, and I would not want them on my arse. But cause no problems for them, and they're the kind of folks you'd like to invite over to Sunday dinner. How many cops would you say the same thing about in the States?
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #14 posted by greenfox on April 29, 2002 at 07:53:26 PT
poop test?
They do a poop test?No, actually, they don't care really. :) This is just simple propoganda. I was there, 5 times in the last year alone, and lemme tell you.. the cops there do not give a flying poop, never mention trying to test yours!In any event, every one should go there. It's an experience you CANNOT forget...sly in green, foxy in kind,
0gf`
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #13 posted by dddd on April 29, 2002 at 04:48:37 PT
..I'll never forget..
...back when I was a teen,,,and my parents went to play bridge for the evening,,so me and my friend,Fred,,decided to make a homemade pizza,,which we liberally topped with some possible paraquat gold harsh Mexican buds....of course,,my parents arrived home earlier than expected,,and my really square Mom decided to have a few pieces of the special pizza..she even asked about the "spices" that we used in the toppings,,we sheepishly explained that it was some sort of parsley and rosemary type blend.....the whole event scared the shit out of me...My Mom was the Best!...that's the last time I ever tried to cook weed .......dddd
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #12 posted by WolfgangWylde on April 29, 2002 at 04:36:12 PT
Not from Detroit...
...That was just the point of entry in the U.S.
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #11 posted by el_toonces on April 28, 2002 at 20:56:21 PT:
Customs in Detroit?
Wolfgang, do you live in this area, too?If so, would you be interested in any type of local activism? El
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #10 posted by WolfgangWylde on April 28, 2002 at 15:52:22 PT
Ahh, The Grey Area...
I remember it well (should put that "damage to memory" crap to shame, eh?). The AK-47 was the best, and the hosts were more than hospital with the water pipes. I purchased 2 "space cakes" (space "doughnuts", actually), for the trip home. Ate them at Schiphol while waiting to board the plane. I was the happiest camper ever at customs in Detroit. The Customs Officer gave me a knowing grin, then waved me on through.
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #9 posted by lookinside on April 28, 2002 at 08:06:42 PT:
dddd...
From what I understand, cannabinoids vaporize at 350degrees F. If you bake anything near that temperature, Some of the potency would be lost. You method with the big gelatin caps is probably the best.Back in the 70's, I tried eating pot in brownies. It would constipate me for days. I'd suggest a prune juice chaser.One time, my wife put a full ounce of killer homegrown in a batch of 12 brownies. I was already suffering from the munchies. Ate 5 of the things. For 2 days, touching the ground was an exercise in self control...LOL!
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #8 posted by JR Bob Dobbs on April 28, 2002 at 07:48:49 PT
Questionable facts
  I wondered as well about the eating vs. smoking passage. And at the "it was only condoned but last year it became officially legal" passage. And I know he's full of it when he says Jack Herer was a genius with grow lights... that's not the reason he has a cannabis cup-winning strain named after him! So I hesitate to take the entire article at face value, even though it's miles better than anything you'd find in a mainstream publication in my corner of DEA-land.  Also, the second piece credits Nol Van Schaik as being a co-founder of DE2, but not DE1! Weird!!
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #7 posted by mayan on April 28, 2002 at 06:39:00 PT
Our friend...
the British gay Police Chief,Brian Paddick, may get his job back:
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/po/20020425/co_po/british_gay_police_chief_may_get_job_back
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #6 posted by dddd on April 28, 2002 at 02:00:27 PT
...eating herb...
..About eating herb,,,,,I was quite ill recently,,and I put the medication in large gelatin capsules...I was dazzled by the results!...I think that cooking it into brownies,and such,,may compromise the potency somehow.
....it's not a "poop test",EJ,,,,it's a Shit test!,,,and it's no wonder they would not do one......I dont know about anyone else,, but my shit smells so bad it would make the shit tester barf!....Like I said before,,a pee test is one thing,,you know,,a supervised pee test is alot different from a supervised shit test!,,and I can imagine the person who would attempt to cheat on the shit testing,at the last minute,,,and pick up a little log of dogshit from the lawn out front of the shit testing center....Busted!.....The shit testing technician caught you trying to fake them out,and plop the peice of dogshit into the cup,,as you did your best to pretend that you had pinched the actual loaf in question!!..."Aha!",says the shit test tech....later on ,,you are forced to turn over a real turd,,,and then you must go back for further "TREATMENT" ..
....dddd
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #5 posted by BGreen on April 28, 2002 at 00:52:35 PT
After a bit of thinking
The Dutch don't look too highly upon those who are disorderly, or who drive or bike while intoxicated. If you can't handle your stuff, and decide to do something that endangers other people, the Police can arrest you (RARELY,) but it's not like Amerika, where you're arrested just because you consumed cannabis.
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #4 posted by BGreen on April 28, 2002 at 00:45:41 PT
The answer is simple, E_Johnson
That little piece of trivia is nonsense. I've been there, so I know first hand. If there was any truth to his statement, space cakes, etc. wouldn't be allowed to be sold. Also, hashish would be thought of the same way, since it's the concentrated resin of cannabis, obviously "much more dangerous and addictive" (LOL) according to our drug czar.I'll ask a cop when I'm over there next month, just to make sure. It'll be a pleasure to talk to a law enforcement agent who doesn't hate me down to the very core of my being.
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #3 posted by SWAMPIE on April 28, 2002 at 00:30:27 PT
Eating Cannabis...
 Haven't you ever axperienced a "gravity hole"from eating cannabis?If it is prepared properly,edible cannabis is extremely potent,Not something to be doing in public! When I was a teen in the 70"s,myself and a friend would visit our girlfriends every weekend(50 mile ride)and one time I got a few slices of Banana bread made with some killer Jamaican.We ate it on the way there,and when we arrived,the girls wanted to go visit a lady at a nursing home.We visited for about an hour,and as we went to leave,my buddy looked at me and I knew that he was as wasted as I was.The only thing was that when he looked at me,he made a funny face,and we had just walked out the door and it made me go into a fit of laughter and I ended up on the floor rolling with laughter at the fact that he made this goofy face at me.As we walked to the car,my legs wanted to go out from under me a few times.The girls didn't know that we had eaten the banana bread,and when we told them,we had to share the rest with them.We only bought 4 slices,but it did us all for the day.The body high you get from eating properly prepared cannabis is much different from smoking a joint,and I can understand how some unsuspecting Briton could well fall into the canal!If you go to Pottv.com.,Cici the tap dancing chef shows tou how to make ganja butter on Shake-n Baked.You can use it many ways.Someday I would like to go to Amsterdam,and experience it.What cannabis connoisseur wouldn't?Ahhh!the good old days!!!
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #2 posted by Dan B on April 27, 2002 at 22:46:15 PT:
Good Question, E_Johnson
In the past, I have seen plenty of coffee shops advertising their "magic cookies" and other such items on their websites, so I don't think the statement made in this article (the one you quote) is true. If there is such a law, it was implemented quite recently and with no fanfare or hullabaloo whatsoever. I find that hard to believe.If anyone out there can confirm this law, please let me know. And I'd also like to know how they plan to enforce it. And by the way, one can get mighty high smoking cannabis, too. It seems utterly absurd to have a law against eating it--particularly because it is the safer method of ingestion.Dan B
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #1 posted by E_Johnson on April 27, 2002 at 21:18:47 PT
And how is this enforced pray tell?
 if you are arrested having eaten cannabis, it is viewed as a category A drug offence because of its more potent effect??They do a poop test?
[ Post Comment ]


Post Comment