Growing up in Europe was fun. From age 16 forward I frequented Amsterdam with friends, and then later with my husband. There is no place in the world like it – from the coffee shops to the red light district – and every part of the unique surroundings. The first time I went there all of the traffic lights were out throughout the city. People were driving across medians and fighting to make it through major intersections first while dodging all of the bicycles. It was crazy!On that first weekend there we went out to eat at a nice restaurant that was seriously overbooked, and the host walked us through the crowded tables, out a side door, down the alley, and into another establishment where we were seated. The food wasn't so great, but I imagine that was because it had to be carried down the same route that we walked from the far-away kitchen. We were so ripped that we didn't have a care in the world though, and saved room for space cake at a nearby coffee house.
One important thing that I learned about Amsterdam is that the buildings go straight up, with ladder-like stairs – hell, they are ladders and not stairs at all. It's not the place to wear a dress; that's for sure. When a tenant moves furniture into an apartment it is lifted from the outside of the building, and every building has such a lift. Though I am not so sure that I could deal with this on a regular basis it sure was cool to watch.
At one point in my life – from age 17 or 18 to 21 – I spent almost every weekend in Amsterdam. I lived in Germany at the time and it was about a six hour drive, if you drive fast, or we usually took the train as we had no intention of driving once we arrived anyway. In the later years I frequented a club called Melkweg that is actually still there… believe it. The Melkweg has survived all of these years! That translates to Milky Way. It felt like being on a different planet too, or what one would think that would feel like. The place had a moat around it and a drawbridge, and when it was full, they lifted the bridge and no one could leave, or enter of course. My main advice if you should decide to go is to never wear a dress there; trust me on that.
The Melkweg had a coffee shop that sold space cake and other fun deserts and had a hashish and marijuana menu. If memory serves me it was in a basement area, and I do recall the lines going out the door and around the halls. A busy place indeed! One could order whatever they wanted from the menu by gram, for example when it was your turn you approached the counter and said:
Let's see – I'll take 5 grams of Trippin Green – this was hashish from Turkey that was a light grass green color and was super potent and resulted in a ripped type of high. I'll take 5 grams of Afghani black – this was rich, dark, and musky in taste and it took very little to end-up in a mellow can't move frame of mind. Now that was usually enough for me as each had dissimilar effects, each to be used for its own purpose. I don't think that I ever smoked marijuana there except perhaps once – who remembers? Not me.
For many years, and perhaps even today, the one thing that I really wanted to do in life was to be the house dealer at the Melkweg. We walked through the red light district on occasion, though there are no cameras allowed, and if anyone catches you taking a photo, well at the very least they'll chase you off. It's just not something that you do. I have had friends that worked in the district up until a couple of years ago, but I was told that Russians had taken it over by the early 1990s.
It is a free life there. I do miss it for many reasons, with the main one being the total lack of censorship. A person can do just about anything in Amsterdam without being judged and stifled. As long as you are not harming another person life is full of options and freedoms. Just make sure that you skip the dresses.
One important thing that I learned about Amsterdam is that the buildings go straight up, with ladder-like stairs – hell, they are ladders and not stairs at all. It's not the place to wear a dress; that's for sure. When a tenant moves furniture into an apartment it is lifted from the outside of the building, and every building has such a lift. Though I am not so sure that I could deal with this on a regular basis it sure was cool to watch.
At one point in my life – from age 17 or 18 to 21 – I spent almost every weekend in Amsterdam. I lived in Germany at the time and it was about a six hour drive, if you drive fast, or we usually took the train as we had no intention of driving once we arrived anyway. In the later years I frequented a club called Melkweg that is actually still there… believe it. The Melkweg has survived all of these years! That translates to Milky Way. It felt like being on a different planet too, or what one would think that would feel like. The place had a moat around it and a drawbridge, and when it was full, they lifted the bridge and no one could leave, or enter of course. My main advice if you should decide to go is to never wear a dress there; trust me on that.
The Melkweg had a coffee shop that sold space cake and other fun deserts and had a hashish and marijuana menu. If memory serves me it was in a basement area, and I do recall the lines going out the door and around the halls. A busy place indeed! One could order whatever they wanted from the menu by gram, for example when it was your turn you approached the counter and said:
Let's see – I'll take 5 grams of Trippin Green – this was hashish from Turkey that was a light grass green color and was super potent and resulted in a ripped type of high. I'll take 5 grams of Afghani black – this was rich, dark, and musky in taste and it took very little to end-up in a mellow can't move frame of mind. Now that was usually enough for me as each had dissimilar effects, each to be used for its own purpose. I don't think that I ever smoked marijuana there except perhaps once – who remembers? Not me.
For many years, and perhaps even today, the one thing that I really wanted to do in life was to be the house dealer at the Melkweg. We walked through the red light district on occasion, though there are no cameras allowed, and if anyone catches you taking a photo, well at the very least they'll chase you off. It's just not something that you do. I have had friends that worked in the district up until a couple of years ago, but I was told that Russians had taken it over by the early 1990s.
It is a free life there. I do miss it for many reasons, with the main one being the total lack of censorship. A person can do just about anything in Amsterdam without being judged and stifled. As long as you are not harming another person life is full of options and freedoms. Just make sure that you skip the dresses.
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