Mini August Trip
Posted: Mon 5th Sep 2011 01:23 pm
Hi All
I had my fifth trip to Dam back in early August and my first going solo. It was a last minute job as I was supposed to go to Greece with the family but prices kept rising to almost double what my mum paid at the start of the year. Oh well...
I opted for a mid-week trip so that I could easily move about and not queue for ages so I flew out from Luton on a Tuesday morning, flights are even earlier now as it was a 6:10 take-off rather than 7:05 which it used to be. For me the whole excitement of being in Dam starts when you walk outside of the Centraal station into the sunshine and you know what lies only a few hundred metres in front of you over the canal.
I made Voyagers my first stop of the day I’ve read good things on here although I just had a cup of tea and no green as I wanted to stay reasonably ‘with it’ and energetic as it would be some time before I could check-in and the day was still (very) young. It was nice just perching on the corner of the bar looking out and taking it all in, I was happy and content.
From Voyagers I had a wander around just to get my bearings again, it’s such a rabbit warren of a city that you will always come across something different every time you go. I made mental notes of all the coffee shops I saw on my journey, not a lot was open this time of morning though except for a few bakeries.
After floating round the centre I headed towards my hotel (Hemp Hotel) to the South, it is quite a walk but is easy enough to get to as you just follow the Amstel. I found my abode but walked past (still too early) and decided to try and find Club Media, with the help of a mixture of the ACD map and a google maps print-out I found it on the street just behind the Albery Cuyp market. I walked in and the bud counter is just in front of you on the left and I got chatting to the Irish lady who was very nice and chatty and happy to show me all and explain things, I kind of knew what I wanted but had a look at a few bits but I had to get the Hindu Kush. It’s a staple of this place and a popular choice. I got buzzed through (there is a security door) to the coffee shop itself and it is very smart and modern and clean in there, completely different to the usual coffeeshop experience. Let’s face it most coffeeshops are very basic but tend to have their own character, this one is comparatively plush so I was quite taken aback haha. I sat in there talking music with the budtender, she has an eclectic taste in music and was showing me the internet radio package (basically a radio version of Sky/Virgin) where she puts on a whole range of genres from rock to French hip-hop and even my favourite which is dubstep (not the screechy wobbly Skream type stuff though). After relaxing and chatting for an hour or two the end I grabbed a g of the amnesia haze which looked very good and was the best smelling weed of the trip. I love the fact that all their gear is organic too
I also asked the lady about Katsu as I knew it was in the area, she said “yes turn left out of here then your first right. Cross over the market and it’s on your right you can’t miss the building haha”. So, 2 minutes later there I was I went down the stairs and it was quite cramped in there (I’m 6’2”). I had a quick look at the menu then left as I just didn’t really feel like staying in the place, I think it’s because of where I’d just come from and I knew there were plenty of others I wanted to check-out. I was just in the area and wanted a nose. I though their wares were quite expensive especially compared to CM.
From here I went to the Hemp and even though it was still about midday I went to ask to put my rucksack behind the bar but the old hippy lady said I could go straight up as no one was staying in my room the night before. I had the Tibet room (I think) on the top floor by the shower, it was basic but perfect for my needs. I dumped my stuff, had a little munch (the day before I boiled a dozen eggs and cooked half a dozen 97% pork Sainsburys sausages to keep me going and keep costs down) and went to Mellow Yellow which was in the area. After reading reviews on here I was prepared for a less-than-friendly experience and I wasn’t disappointed. There were a couple of (I think) Italians in front of me who just wanted a drink but the bud tender was saying “NO YOU MUSHT BUY VEED HERE TO SHTAY”, in the end they got a pre-roll. Again, I knew what I wanted so asked to see the S5 haze and he pulled out a big tub of buds which looked lovely so I grabbed 5g at E10/g. Just to make conversation I said something like “So, this is a good weed at the moment?” and he said “Yesh I shmoke ziss al day long!!” and I thought God if I had known that I might not have bothered. Seriously this guy looked like a crack head, he was tall but very pale and gaunt. Made me wonder what the hell they put in it. I needn’t have worried though as it was great
Next up I wanted to kill two birds with one stone by going to puccini the chocolate shop (best chocolate shop I’ve ever been to, the real deal here) and Bluebird. First was the puccini’s and here I bought 4 or 5 chocs: rum, amaretto, mint and something else. Highly indulgent and expensive but well worth it!
Next was Bluebird, I went here on my first ever trip and loved it but subsequent times could never find it. Again thanks to the ACD map it was easy-peasy. It was very busy in there (the biggest queue of the trip) but the bud girl (the one with short hair who has been there forever) gave a friendly smile and a hello to everyone before dutifully ducking out back to locate the pre-bagged goods. I wanted to try the blue cheese so grabbed that but also the Parvati cream caught my eye so I bought that too.
I then spent absolutely ages trying to find Dampkring (the one to the South of Dam sq.) and I went down every nook and cranny and was just about to give up, I’m a fit guy who goes to the gym a few times a week but I was starting to tire by now plus it was a very warm sunny day and I hadn’t really re-fuelled. I ended up asking the pedal taxi guy who was sitting having a smoke in the afternoon sun and he said “Go down that road and turn left”. Lo-and-behold there it was. You fcucker I found you I said to myself, this best be worth it. It’s a nice coffeeshop for sure and was very busy in there, I went to the bud counter at the back and queued for about 5 minutes. One of my ‘must trys’ this trip was Manali cream and I decided to try Damkrings version, the bud-man showed me the jar and I said how much for that bit and it was something like 1.1 so I said can I have 2g please just to round it up!! You don’t get much (physical size) with hash as a g looks much smaller than a g of bud
Last but certainly not least I wanted to end the day in Basjoes, somewhere I wanted to stay and chill for a while. I’ve been here on all but the first Dam trip and I just love the unique, relaxed atmosphere. I walked in and looked at the menu and saw Orange bud which caught my eye, I understood it to be a nice mellow strain so I opted for that and James agreed as he said “Happy happy high”. I got the booth in the corner closest to the counter with my stash and a freshly squeezed orange juice and took it all in whilst having a blaze. A new and amusing addition to the shop is a couple of record sleeves featuring James on the cover of some Sideshow Bob look-a-likes record. I was really enjoying the music too, it was reggae and felt slightly familiar. I asked James what it was and he brought the CD over, it was Junior Kelly so I made a note of it for when I got back home
After this I went back to the hotel and just crashed out having a munch and a smoke in my room. Next morning I went down and had breakfast and Banter was the guy behind the bar today so we had a good old chat (he’s a North African looking French guy who loves his hash) about vinyl, trainers and hash. He recommended Bushdoctor but I was leaving that day so didn’t bother going.
Before I ramble on any further I’ll stop there. The rest of the day was only about hanging around then heading back to the airport then back to Blighty. Before I sign-out below is a quick round-up of the buds
Hindu Kush (Club Media) – Absolute knock-out stuff. Best saved for last thing at night. Heavy body stone with a narcotic effect. It's green heroin (not that I’ve tried it)
Amnesia Haze (Club Media) – Nice high and buzz though not as good as the S5
S5 Haze (Mellow Yellow) – Loved it. Nice, happy, uplifting high and strong too.
Orange Bud (Basjoe) – Wonderful mellow yet functional high, I can actually be productive on this. Not very smelly or dense buds like I thought but great effect
Blue Cheese (Bluebird) – Strong and stoney with tight and dense buds, enough said
Parvati cream (Bluebird) – sent it home but not tried it yet. Looks similar to the Manali
Manali cream (Damkring) – Dark, crumbly (not to dissimilar from an oxo cube) and spicy. Nice evening stone
I will endeavour to add photos too as we all love these
Thanks for reading
I had my fifth trip to Dam back in early August and my first going solo. It was a last minute job as I was supposed to go to Greece with the family but prices kept rising to almost double what my mum paid at the start of the year. Oh well...
I opted for a mid-week trip so that I could easily move about and not queue for ages so I flew out from Luton on a Tuesday morning, flights are even earlier now as it was a 6:10 take-off rather than 7:05 which it used to be. For me the whole excitement of being in Dam starts when you walk outside of the Centraal station into the sunshine and you know what lies only a few hundred metres in front of you over the canal.
I made Voyagers my first stop of the day I’ve read good things on here although I just had a cup of tea and no green as I wanted to stay reasonably ‘with it’ and energetic as it would be some time before I could check-in and the day was still (very) young. It was nice just perching on the corner of the bar looking out and taking it all in, I was happy and content.
From Voyagers I had a wander around just to get my bearings again, it’s such a rabbit warren of a city that you will always come across something different every time you go. I made mental notes of all the coffee shops I saw on my journey, not a lot was open this time of morning though except for a few bakeries.
After floating round the centre I headed towards my hotel (Hemp Hotel) to the South, it is quite a walk but is easy enough to get to as you just follow the Amstel. I found my abode but walked past (still too early) and decided to try and find Club Media, with the help of a mixture of the ACD map and a google maps print-out I found it on the street just behind the Albery Cuyp market. I walked in and the bud counter is just in front of you on the left and I got chatting to the Irish lady who was very nice and chatty and happy to show me all and explain things, I kind of knew what I wanted but had a look at a few bits but I had to get the Hindu Kush. It’s a staple of this place and a popular choice. I got buzzed through (there is a security door) to the coffee shop itself and it is very smart and modern and clean in there, completely different to the usual coffeeshop experience. Let’s face it most coffeeshops are very basic but tend to have their own character, this one is comparatively plush so I was quite taken aback haha. I sat in there talking music with the budtender, she has an eclectic taste in music and was showing me the internet radio package (basically a radio version of Sky/Virgin) where she puts on a whole range of genres from rock to French hip-hop and even my favourite which is dubstep (not the screechy wobbly Skream type stuff though). After relaxing and chatting for an hour or two the end I grabbed a g of the amnesia haze which looked very good and was the best smelling weed of the trip. I love the fact that all their gear is organic too
I also asked the lady about Katsu as I knew it was in the area, she said “yes turn left out of here then your first right. Cross over the market and it’s on your right you can’t miss the building haha”. So, 2 minutes later there I was I went down the stairs and it was quite cramped in there (I’m 6’2”). I had a quick look at the menu then left as I just didn’t really feel like staying in the place, I think it’s because of where I’d just come from and I knew there were plenty of others I wanted to check-out. I was just in the area and wanted a nose. I though their wares were quite expensive especially compared to CM.
From here I went to the Hemp and even though it was still about midday I went to ask to put my rucksack behind the bar but the old hippy lady said I could go straight up as no one was staying in my room the night before. I had the Tibet room (I think) on the top floor by the shower, it was basic but perfect for my needs. I dumped my stuff, had a little munch (the day before I boiled a dozen eggs and cooked half a dozen 97% pork Sainsburys sausages to keep me going and keep costs down) and went to Mellow Yellow which was in the area. After reading reviews on here I was prepared for a less-than-friendly experience and I wasn’t disappointed. There were a couple of (I think) Italians in front of me who just wanted a drink but the bud tender was saying “NO YOU MUSHT BUY VEED HERE TO SHTAY”, in the end they got a pre-roll. Again, I knew what I wanted so asked to see the S5 haze and he pulled out a big tub of buds which looked lovely so I grabbed 5g at E10/g. Just to make conversation I said something like “So, this is a good weed at the moment?” and he said “Yesh I shmoke ziss al day long!!” and I thought God if I had known that I might not have bothered. Seriously this guy looked like a crack head, he was tall but very pale and gaunt. Made me wonder what the hell they put in it. I needn’t have worried though as it was great
Next up I wanted to kill two birds with one stone by going to puccini the chocolate shop (best chocolate shop I’ve ever been to, the real deal here) and Bluebird. First was the puccini’s and here I bought 4 or 5 chocs: rum, amaretto, mint and something else. Highly indulgent and expensive but well worth it!
Next was Bluebird, I went here on my first ever trip and loved it but subsequent times could never find it. Again thanks to the ACD map it was easy-peasy. It was very busy in there (the biggest queue of the trip) but the bud girl (the one with short hair who has been there forever) gave a friendly smile and a hello to everyone before dutifully ducking out back to locate the pre-bagged goods. I wanted to try the blue cheese so grabbed that but also the Parvati cream caught my eye so I bought that too.
I then spent absolutely ages trying to find Dampkring (the one to the South of Dam sq.) and I went down every nook and cranny and was just about to give up, I’m a fit guy who goes to the gym a few times a week but I was starting to tire by now plus it was a very warm sunny day and I hadn’t really re-fuelled. I ended up asking the pedal taxi guy who was sitting having a smoke in the afternoon sun and he said “Go down that road and turn left”. Lo-and-behold there it was. You fcucker I found you I said to myself, this best be worth it. It’s a nice coffeeshop for sure and was very busy in there, I went to the bud counter at the back and queued for about 5 minutes. One of my ‘must trys’ this trip was Manali cream and I decided to try Damkrings version, the bud-man showed me the jar and I said how much for that bit and it was something like 1.1 so I said can I have 2g please just to round it up!! You don’t get much (physical size) with hash as a g looks much smaller than a g of bud
Last but certainly not least I wanted to end the day in Basjoes, somewhere I wanted to stay and chill for a while. I’ve been here on all but the first Dam trip and I just love the unique, relaxed atmosphere. I walked in and looked at the menu and saw Orange bud which caught my eye, I understood it to be a nice mellow strain so I opted for that and James agreed as he said “Happy happy high”. I got the booth in the corner closest to the counter with my stash and a freshly squeezed orange juice and took it all in whilst having a blaze. A new and amusing addition to the shop is a couple of record sleeves featuring James on the cover of some Sideshow Bob look-a-likes record. I was really enjoying the music too, it was reggae and felt slightly familiar. I asked James what it was and he brought the CD over, it was Junior Kelly so I made a note of it for when I got back home
After this I went back to the hotel and just crashed out having a munch and a smoke in my room. Next morning I went down and had breakfast and Banter was the guy behind the bar today so we had a good old chat (he’s a North African looking French guy who loves his hash) about vinyl, trainers and hash. He recommended Bushdoctor but I was leaving that day so didn’t bother going.
Before I ramble on any further I’ll stop there. The rest of the day was only about hanging around then heading back to the airport then back to Blighty. Before I sign-out below is a quick round-up of the buds
Hindu Kush (Club Media) – Absolute knock-out stuff. Best saved for last thing at night. Heavy body stone with a narcotic effect. It's green heroin (not that I’ve tried it)
Amnesia Haze (Club Media) – Nice high and buzz though not as good as the S5
S5 Haze (Mellow Yellow) – Loved it. Nice, happy, uplifting high and strong too.
Orange Bud (Basjoe) – Wonderful mellow yet functional high, I can actually be productive on this. Not very smelly or dense buds like I thought but great effect
Blue Cheese (Bluebird) – Strong and stoney with tight and dense buds, enough said
Parvati cream (Bluebird) – sent it home but not tried it yet. Looks similar to the Manali
Manali cream (Damkring) – Dark, crumbly (not to dissimilar from an oxo cube) and spicy. Nice evening stone
I will endeavour to add photos too as we all love these
Thanks for reading
