Trips 1 through 9; 1984 to 2013 +some pics(finally)

[Slim d]

Cheers Eurotripper for taking the time to post the reports
Enjoyed reading them and had a giggle along the way

[Eurotripper]

Thanks Slim, here's the last one. Next trip in 10 days!

Cheers, Eurotripper

P.S. Slim, are you going to be in the Dam when I'm there? Feb 19 to Mar 3.

[Eurotripper]

Travelogue 8 of 9

It's early 2012 and the politicians in the Promised Land are making noise again. The weitpass has been implemented in the South, and they say the North is next. I think I hear the Fat Lady tuning up, so we make plans for another quick dance. Since it might be the last, we try to re-create our first visit from 1990 and go in May. It's a month of beautiful flowers, with better chances of sunny weather.



A short trip this time, only 9 days to roam our favourite city, and business calls sharply for our return. It's been so long since we've been here in warm weather, and I have to research again for business opportunities, clubs, cruises, etc. Never could locate our original Tudor-style hotel from 1990.

Day 1

We arrive early at the hotel. No prizes for guessing it was the Hem, and our normal room. They know us by now and let us in early. The screwdriver was still there (read earlier thread), and the half g. of sticky black hash that I'd taped to the handle for my next arrival. (Oi, Billy, there's yer chance, mate!)



A quick twist-up and we're out on our private balcony. Next stop is drinks on the front patio, which they've renovated and made more spacious. Nice! The day is warm, sort of, and we head up to the flea market at City Hall on the Waterlooplein. Mostly junk here, but we're buzzed and it kills some time. We decide to stroll towards Voyagers and duck over the bridge and into Bluebird for some more hash, then sit next door in Reefer to smoke because they have tea for a good price, 1.80e. Also their shop is almost below ground, so the front window seats have a bizarre sidewalk-level view! Almost never buy from their menu, and I seriously don't suggest you try the toilet, but the shop has charm and the BT's have always been friendly.



From here it's a walk up the street to the Neiuwmarkt, where you can get buttered corn on a stick for 1.50e right in front of De Waag. There's an Albert Heijn and quite a few coffeeshops in that block, but we're going north to our green oasis; Voyagers. Done so much business here in the last 3 years that it all blurs together, but I think we bought Kosher Kush, Og, and Haze-something for the Mrs. We spent some time chatting with an American who came for a week, but had already been there a month, and wasn't leaving anytime soon . Amsterdammed again! Headed back to the Leidsplein for some tourist-menu food, and back to the hotel for the evening.

Day 2

We get some good sleep and are up for the early breakfast downstairs. Properly stuffed, we head out into the morning's cool air and the front patio. This will be a day of re-touristing, visiting the sights of 20 years before, the Rijksmuseum, the obligatory canal cruise (by night this time), and dinner at the American.



Boom Chicago was on, but it was the same show my daughter and I had seen in Nov.2011. Stopped in several coffeeshops to smoke and drink, but didn't buy anything else yet. Discovered that the four locations of The Rokerij had closed, R.I.P. Watched the buskers on the Leidseplein from the Bulldog's glass canopy. A relaxed day and evening in the Dam.

Day 3 to 6

Now it's time to get serious about business, and we haunt all my old connections. There is one place I've never been to, always the wrong time of year; the Sunday market at Neiuwmarkt on the open square. Easily the best find of the trip, made it worth my while in several ways and formed some new connections. Noorderkerk and Spui markets were good, too. One evening was spent at the truly fabulous Tuschinski Theater, near Rembrandtplein, watching a movie. If you've never been here, then go, even if it's only to view the interior, they are friendly about showing awe-struck tourists around the place!



Coffeeshopping was mainly Voyagers, Grey Area, Amnesia, Paradox, Spirit, Greenhouse and Barney's. The inner canal-ring and uptown was the area to be in, this trip. Didn't buy anything outside of it. Mostly Kush strains and Cheese varieties, as always some Amnesia Haze for mrs. juicebomber, and some hash from Grey Area this time. Individual strength reports I didn't write down, most of it was strong and all of it was tasty . Some fancy meals and some cheap ones, lots of money for the business, and spent evenings packing.

Day7

Our time is free now, so we get up a little late and hang out in the Hem's breakfast room. Two full days left to shop, eat and drink, smoke and laugh, so we're going pub/coffeeshop crawling. A slow crawl through the Neiuwmarkt, up the Zeedijk to Molly Malone's for lunch and on to Voyagers. Bought something in Hill St. , Silver something Haze. Mrs, said it was better than the Amnesia.

We've been in Voyagers for awhile now. I'm standing at the counter, chatting with the BT about business, and I say “Last year I shipped a thousand keys home.”. I mean iron door-keys, but one of the regulars starts choking on his coffee and says “What! A thousand kees?! How the fuck did you get that past Customs?!?”. When we could all stop laughing , we explained more fully. You always hear the phrase “eyes bugged right out” and here I really got to see it! After the way I got treated at Customs last trip, I wouldn't ship a g., much less a kee!



And so on with the crawl, as we headed towards Leidseplein and some of the most highly garlicked food I've ever eaten. The restaurant was on the Top 10 list, can't recall the name, it was Italian and right by Rookies coffeeshop, either half a block east or west. If you like garlic then go there, the food was saturated. I had cannelloni and the mrs. had spaghetti, and I swear you could have lit our breath on fire! Probably a great way to get us to drink something, anything, just hurry! It was good cooking, but too spiced for me.



A few more drinks at the Hard Rock to kill the taste of garlic, a few more smokes at the Bulldog's canopy watching buskers, then we decided on the Holland Casino for the evening. Actually won enough to pay the cab fare home. However, the emails you then get, to attend every casino on earth, won't stop for many months, if ever.

Day 8

Last full day here and we're up early, breakfast downstairs and then off to the NoorderMarkt. Afterward a quick stop at Barney's, then on to the ferry behind Centraal for a roam around the north island. The buildings here are not as old as the main city, some nice tile roofs and pretty gardens, but not the eye-appeal. One side of the street had little early cottage-type homes, and the other was all modern apartments. Jarring to the eye. Especially the industrial area, close by.



Back to the mainland and on to NEMO Science museum for a tour around, very interesting, but child-filled and noisy. And look, Voyagers is just over there! Another hazy hour later and we're off for food again. Pizza this round and back to the crawl. Made the foolish mistake of going to Grasshopper 2, got treated rudely, forced to buy their overpriced crap weed just to use their premises. Then the bitch BT comes in and snarls at a guy for having his cigarettes out, then she sits down right beside me and smokes a cigarette ! I'm a non-smoker so maybe that's what ruined the taste of their weed, but I think it was just crap. Anyway, rudeness counts, so we left quickly.

A brown cafe and then we wandered back through the Vondelpark. A long walk, but it was our last night and we were relaxing. Stopped at the Blue Tea House and our favourite tree beside the lake . Back to the hotel for final packing and give that Jacuzzi one more thumping.

Day 9

A relaxed morning, our flight leaves late today. Breakfast and the front patio, smoke the rest, stash the screwdriver again (Billy, are you listening? ). Cab it back to Schipol and a smooth flight home. Even the Customs guys didn't bother me at all. ChildPerson waiting with our dog to greet us at the airport!

That was my eighth trip to Amsterdam, business went well again, lots of brain-cells stayed behind, and we had a nice sunny time again in the City of Sin.



** Okay, this has been a lot of fun! Thank you all for the comments and help. It was a great way to feel involved while the time passed before trip number nine. When I return in early March I'll give you a detailed report with shops, prices, strains and qualities. If I can remember.... See you all then!

Cheers, Eurotripper

[StonedSince67]

** Okay, this has been a lot of fun! ... Cheers, Eurotripper

good read, well illustrated with pics, really long time frame ... what a treat ... is the point where i tell you i've enjoyed all the tales??? ... hope you have a great next trip and thanks

[Slim d]

Thanks Slim, here's the last one. Next trip in 10 days!

Cheers, Eurotripper

P.S. Slim, are you going to be in the Dam when I'm there? Feb 19 to Mar 3.

There on tues 26th feb, quick one day FLY and TRY
Think I may meet the infamous Gapie in Voyagers at 3pm for a quick t&t
If you are on the ground, join the troops

[Eurotripper]

Good one, mate. I'm already there earlier that day, but I'll try and get back for 3pm.

Cheers, Eurotripper

[Slim d]

I will probably be Voyagers first thing in the morning as its my first stop on arrival then back at 3pm.
If you are heading there in morning drop me a line or maybe we catch up in the afternoon
Cheers

[vr6goth]

We ducked behind this row of huge skyscrapers and found an old bombed-out medieval church that had been converted into a park. St. Dunstan's in the East, with beautiful flower gardens, benches, cobble-stone paths, a fountain, it was amazing!We sat for 3 hours and only 1 other person came in. An oasis in the middle of London!

Been there myself. For very similar reasons

Good stuff. Thanks for the effort. Wish I could rememeber such detail from my previous trips.

[toker31]

Bravo, great read. Thank you for sharing!

[Eurotripper]

Travelogue 9

It's 2013 and the Promised Land has been freed from oppression. Sort of. Amsterdam is safe from the weitpass for now, but the south of my favourite country isn't so lucky. Even in the Dam some shops must close or relocate to satisfy the politicians in 2014, but the Mayor says it's business as usual for us Pilgrims for this year. So smoke 'em while ya can!

This was my ninth trip to the City of Sin, a bonus one since we really thought the doors were closing in 2013. We decided to go early, even though it's cold there, but it was cold in the Frozen North, too. Hotels are less busy and far fewer tourists about, so there were some benefits. More research had been done, ACD was scoured for information, and a few T&T's were planned before we even left. The idea was a real vacation in full-relax mode, no business at all. Anyone believe me?

Day 1:

We flew in on KLM again and landed early, faster and not much more expensive than other airlines with stopovers. (Plus they get priority at Schipol, in the past I've sat for a half-hour in a British Airways plane and watched KLM ones get boosted past us, missing my connection in London.) As we fly into the airport, we see the ground is covered in snow. Expected, of course, but we've never been here during Winter before. Deplane and head to luggage belts, wonder-of-wonders; my bags are already unloaded and on the belt! Grinning at our good fortune we walk to Customs and find it virtually empty of people, only two ahead of us!



Breeze through there, a fast shuttle to the Hem hotel and we're in right away because we're regulars. We got the second biggest room this time. The largest one was booked solid, so I never did get to recover my ceiling-stash from last May's trip . Only a half gram, but hopefully it'll still be there next time. Drop the bags, grab some essentials like my Zig-Zag rolling papers, and onto the tram towards Voyagers. And it's only 9:30 am!

We roll sedately down the snow-filled avenues, past the Vondelpark, through the early-morning quiet of the Leidseplein where they're dismantling the skating rink, and on uptown into the central canal ring. Not many people on the tram or the streets, this early on a cool and cloudy day. Ride the tram to beautiful Centraal Station and walk across to Voyagers, but we're just a shade too early. Okay, that means it's time for a big English breakfast while we wait, got to fortify ourselves for the ordeal to come. After all, it is Testing Tuesday! Went to the Mexican eatery next door, whose windows faced Voyagers, and had an unspectacular breakfast. My advice; don't eat here, we never did again.



The machine has been fueled now and the sound of locks turning in the doors bring me sailing to the counter in my favourite coffeeshop. The lovely Lady BT greets us with a smile and we rip into their menu; Kosher Kush to begin, Kandy Kush to follow, Super Lemon Bio for the straight-away, and Amnesia Haze for the home-stretch. That took care of the first four minutes of our stay! Pulled up a seat in their newly renovated interior and gave the new ventilation system a thorough workout.

The Kosher Kush; 15 euros, nice big buds, strong skunky smell, lots of crystals, heavy body stone, great taste, burns reasonably well. The Independent Panel of Judge rates this one 8.5 out of 10. Tied for second best Kush smoke of the trip with Greenhouse's Flowerbomb Kush.

The Kandy Kush; 10 euros (monthly special), nice buds, crystals, smelled a bit like mown-grass, good buzz, burned not too well but tasted great in the vape, like lemon candy. The Judges say 7.5 (8.5 in the vape).

The Super Lemon Bio; 12 euros, nice buds, strong citrus smell, sharp taste like the Lemon Skunk, uplifting high, burns well, buzz lasts. About a 7.5 for this one.

The Amnesia Haze; 9 euros, fluffy buds, smelled a little citrus, the mrs. had this one and simply said “good”. No rating on this. (Always liked it in the past)

It's 11 am and Gapie should be arriving any minute now, so I roll up a fat one for each of us and wait. I had Kosher, the wife had Lemon Bio, and Gapie's was Kosher, too. Shortly he appeared and we gave the ventilation a further workout until Zootly arrived. He was a nice friendly English guy, just out for a break from his working life. We enjoyed his company while Gapie talked a mile-a-minute, fun to listen to. We're all hot to get to the next great smoke, so shortly we're headed out to Utopia.



With our tour-guide Gapie in the lead we navigate the snowy streets in record time, arriving at Utopia by noon. Hot drinks all around while I peruse the menu and settle on the Champagne Haze and the Recon. Introduced to BT Nel and chatted briefly before taking over the front table by the window. Recon and people-watching out the window occupy the next hour. Gapie also had some Recon handy. I think that maybe Zootly wasn't really used to the amounts we were smoking, but it was very clear that Gapie was!

The Recon; 14 euros, a big fat bud, very compact, smells of citrus, lots of crystals, burns well, strong taste and buzz. An 8 out of 10 here.

The Champagne Haze; 15 euros, smells great, lots of crystals, very smooth taste, slightly bitter like real champagne, burns well, nice lasting buzz. We gave it an 8.5 making it a three-way tie for best Haze smoke of the trip with De Graal's High Rise and Barney's Liberty Haze.

Another round of hot drinks and we're off and running to Grey Area. No surprise, it's busy and the line up is to the door. We make a quick buy & fly; I get Grey Crystals, and Gapie got something too. No seats here, so our tour-guide directs our fog-shrouded attentions towards Paradox, and we're off again. While following Gapie at high speed, one realizes that they aren't seeing much of the city-scape. However, it's not even 2 pm yet, my pockets are full of superior weed, and we're headed for our fourth coffeeshop! Damn, I love this city.



Grey Crystals; 22 euros, nothing but crystals!, smooth and tasty, unfair to give a rating since it was always mixed with something else, but it added star-power to everything.



Paradox is open, the renovations are finished for now, and we park our collective asses. Nice place, sort of like an old 50's diner, with a little woodstove (maybe gas) for hugging up to. Now it's time and the Important Question needs to be asked; is Finger hash available?!? Sadly, the answer was no . We bought some nice hash the BT called Wash, hot drinks all around, and settle in for a bout of hash-spliffs. Zootly was heading back to England and said his goodbyes to us at Paradox. Hopefully he had fun and retains good memories of Gapie's Amsterdam Tour!



Wash Hash; 12 euros (I think), fairly hard consistency, broke to powder, smelled medium-strong, unfair to give rating since we mixed it with the Grey Crystals. That worked just fine, thank you!

It's about 3 pm now and we haven't eaten since the plane, so we part company with Gapie and set off for Moeder's restaurant. Heard good things about this place and their food, but it's closed today . Well, guess what? Funkee Munkee coffeeshop is right over there, and the Girl Scout Cookies is calling my name! A friendly BT and a gram of GSC and we're relaxing again. A nice tasty smoke, but we're really hungry now. Grab the tram down the outer canal to the Leidseplein and our favourite Italian restaurant.

The Girl Scout Cookies; 13 euros (I think), smelly, crystals, smooth mungy taste, good buzz. An 8 out of 10.

Italian food hits the spot, the tram is close by, and we're on our way back to the hotel by 5 pm. We unpack a little, smoke some more, shop for food and necessaries at Albert Heijn and Blokker and crash. Wake up at 2 am and write my notes for the day's adventures, smoke some Kosher and crash again. Not bad for my first day back in the Dam!

(more added, hopefully tomorrow, as I'm a bit busy dealing with the flood we had in our absence!)

[gapie]

sweeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeet schmoke smoke lolz zootly next time I hope u can handle more lulz
thnx for the write up eurotripper

[toker31]

WooHoo! Good stuff Eurotripper. Nice work of your first day.

I agree Gapie is the Usain Bolt of tour guides, talk speed and walk speed fastest in the world!?!

Stan absolutely is 1 of the coolest people in Amsterdam, the world actually ;p

[treetop]

Thanks for that last one. Really nice, mature writing. Great bud reviews. I'm interested you rated the Liberty Haze above the Kosher Kush. Is that a personal pref for a haze over a kush or did you think the Liberty Haze was that much better?
I liked Liberty Haze a lot but no where near as good as KK IMHO.

However since we certainly smoked different batches of each weed then as you fairly observe in your trip report no comparison is possible.


p.s. - I need a bike to keep up with Stan these days. It works quite well.

[toker31]

p.s. - I need a bike to keep up with Stan these days. It works quite well.

[Eurotripper]

Yeah guys, keeping up with Stan is an adventure, walking or talking! And that lad can puff!

@ Treetop; I tried to rate the Haze strains separately, they seemed to wake me up. I like Kush strains best, love that couchlock , but there's times when being conscious has it's advantages! My #1 Kush was the Kosher from Grey Area, just a smidgin stronger and tastier than Voyagers example.

Cheers, Eurotripper