Day Two
We awake at around 9am, I open the balcony door to a clouded over sky but nonetheless a bright warm day
Nice view from up here on the fifth floor, we head down for breakfast where along with the customary bacon and scrambled eggs, we find side dishes with smoked salmon and mackerel, I eat a few of these and sit there pretending that smoked salmon for breakfast is the natural thing in the world, and muse that I'm sitting in Amsterdam eating smoked salmon from Scotland, the fish was probably caught about 50 miles from my house .
We head out into the town, we stroll up the Leidenstraat, after a while I feel the need for a wee sit down so Mary and I sit on the banks of the middle canal, we see a barge chug past with furniture piled high on its decks leading me to muse that the canal system is not there just to provide a quaint visual spectacle for us tourists, but is an integral living and breathing part of this over one thousand year old city.
We stroll on, and Calamity strikes, Mary breaks the strap on her handbag, leading to much wailing and complaining, we look and the map and see we are quite close to ABRAXAS so we head in there where we sit for a half hour or so I buy a gram of SILVER HAZE, budtender was a young guy who was nice enough served me no fuss, I buy one of these PEAR LOOZAS which taste fantastic when stoned and retire upstairs to a really lovely room. The seats here in ABRAXAS are a lush varnished wooden inlaid work of art, the walls to which were being tiled as we sat looks like its going to be a fantastic mosaic representation of an african scene with its wildlife. This Silver Haze is nice I think as I puff on this first joint, Mary disappears to buy a new handbag and I sit and smoke a second, this second joint really kicks in and I start getting pulsing hallucination every time I close my eyes, WOW really good head buzz stone the likes of which I am unfamiliar, The music is crap tho, more bland jazz funk nonsense the type of which reminds me of the music which accompanies the ceefax pages.
Five young Americans, sit at the next table to me and after quick hello I find they are from Philadelphia and students on a year out----A YEAR OUT ???---I think I'll try that one with Mary--'' Excuse me dear, I think I'll just take a year out and bugger off to Amsterdam for a year--toodle pip nold girl , see you in 2011 '' Hmmmm, upon reflection, maybe thats not such a good idea, anyway this Silver Haze is doing the business big time, time passes quickly as it does when you are enjoying yourself, Mary returns much refreshed by her shopping trip, immediatly homes in on the young yanks sitting next to me
'' Where are you from then boys ? ''
'' Uh Philadelphia Ma'am '' ( With much politeness )
'' Why are you calling me Ma,am, ? ''
'' Uh er, thats what we caller er older Ladies in America Ma'am ''
As I take cover behind the nearest chair Mary fixes this poor young Yank with a look that I last saw on a cats face when it had a mouse trapped by the tail.
'' Older Woman ? what do you mean by OLDER WOMAN, do ye think that I'm ancient or what, she inquires ''
'' Oh sorry Ma'am no offence ''
And so it goes on, the Americans get right into a good convo with my good lady and everything settles down nicely, a couple of elder Cypriot guys get into the convo as well, and I smoke another joint, a real bomber, and get even more wrecked, lovely active buzz this silver haze. anyway We head out into a now sunny day and sit by a canal somewhere, now I'm a bit lost, and I dont care, must be an Amsterdam thing, yesterday I was a bit panicky about finding my way about and generally settling into a new envirionment, today I dont give a damn, we sit on another bench near some canal and I skin a doobie of whats left of the Buddha Cheese, this joint adds a dreaming quality to the haze buzz and I sit stoned for an hour listening to my MP3 player, Mary reads a book she bought at the airport and the frenetic mindset of the first day is replaced by a calm serenity as I take in the atmosphere, we return to the hotel for a little rest, I get talking to Mary with such earnestness, we both love this place, I decide to have a shower, Mary keeps talking, I am Immersed in her conversation, I am very very stoned,as Mary yaks away I listenintently to her words as I step into the shower with my underpants still on, Jeez, I nearly die laughing
to be continued, mary gets stoned
Looking forward to the next instalment,cracking report so far,hoping the rest the trip was good for you both.Peace