Amsterdam, NLD–  I should have ordered a mild joint, but instead I chose the Moroccan hash. Since I can’t get this stuff at home and  I’ve never tried hash or been to a coffee shop like the ones in Amsterdam.  At these coffee shops you can purchase and smoke small amounts of cannabis and dine on edibles and magic truffles that promise a four hour trip.

It was the blue green color and the deep sea decor that attracted me to The Dolphin’s Coffee Shop this evening. My inexperience with the hash showed. I began to roll a gram of it, like a joint. “Sir let me get you a pipe,” said the bud tender. “Just smoke a little of it at a time,” she added. I felt embarrassed and a little stupid. I add some hash to the pipe, light up and take a hit and then another. It seems to relax me and clear my head. “How is it?” she asks.  “I like this,” I reply.

Suddenly, a couple of young men enter the shop. “Uh do you sell marijuana?” one of them sheepishly asks. “I need to see your IDs,” says the bud tender. They fumble for their passports. These young men remind me of dumb college kids ordering drinks in the America.  She shows them the menu. “Uh what’s the difference between Kush and Sativa?” one of them asks. As she explains, the other  accidentally walks into the women’s restroom by mistake. I laugh, but I suppose I shouldn’t. After all I was like that too once and I almost rolled a whole gram of Moroccan hash!

After an hour or so at the coffee shop, I decide to leave. I still have about half a gram of hash left. I’m feeling good, my head is clear and the cold Amsterdam air no longer seems to bother me. I do have a bad case of munchies though. I still got some hash left and it’s Thanksgiving in America. I know where I’ll be spending the holidays. I guess I have a lot to be thankful for.

Amsterdam has tolerated and decriminalized the use of small amounts of soft drugs since the mid 1970s, however conservative politicians have been pushing for more of a crackdown on coffee shops in recent years. The High Times Cannabis Cup is currently going on, but they have been forced to close some of their events for the first time in 27 years.

To the surprise of some people I know, there is more to do here than just get high or go to the red light district. I went to the excellent Van Gogh Museum and visited Anne Frank’s home, which I found very moving. If it’s warm you can rent a bike and ride into the Dutch countryside to see windmills.