Passengers on flight 420 to Amsterdam, proceed to gate G13

[gapie]

[Smirks]

So I'd arranged to meet with TC and The Jinxter at 11am for a trip out West. I wake at 9ish and after all the S's plus breakfast it's nearly time for the rendezvous at Resin. I'd read on mini chat, or thought I had, that Resin stocked something called Dieseltronic. Misheard or misunderstood I must have, as the budtendress looked bemused at my question about it being off the menu. Settled for g of NY Diesel instead for €12.50. No bongs so had to roll. Nice interior is the best I can say about Resin. I got only a small hit off the weed, but taste was ok. However I don't get much from joints anyway so maybe in a bong it would be better.

Checked my PMs at 11.15 to find that TC's back was playing up so no stroll for them this morning but we'll catch up later in the day.

Tbc...after a bong or few...

[Smirks]

So by 11.45, after a lazy joint in Resin and a bit of a chat with some randoms, I reckon it's time to stroll. I head off west along past Grennhouse and Barney's, then turn right for a detour to check if Coffeeshop Barentsz was open, it wasn't. By the looks of it it's permanently closed. Bar area gutted, grey bags inside door.

So I head off to check the status of the other places near Westerpark, and indeed all are still shut, except for Freedom and Chapiteau. Most other former sites are now operating as other businesses, but Londen remains as Coffeeshop, albeit no signs of life, except for a sign with a date of 2015 on it? I took a pic but will post that later.

Bought a €7 g if K2 in Freedom but lack of bong so left and dropped in at Chapiteau but did not buy. Looks like a good menu though.

Walked on past The Republik and then went in to Catch 33, where I am now...

Tbc...bong break...

[gapie]

puff wow thnx for the updates and the info

[Smirks]

I'll fill in the detail on the rest of yesterday when I get home, much easier to type on a laptop than a phone, but basically, after blazing up for an hour or so in Catch 33, I headed back to the centre and met in 420 with a non ACD friend. TC and Jinksy passed by at one point during this three hour bong session. I hit it hard, but not as hard as the Chinese meal I has afterwards. On to PDA then a rest before the start of the evening session. Utopia then finished the night at Amnesia.

Today, I'm off on another adventure, out West. More to follow...

[Smirks]

Started the day by heading to Erste Hulp, with a spliff of the K2 I bought from Freedom yesterday. Nice sweet morning smoke. Bought a g of Sodiesel Somari for €13 in 1st Hulp and bonged it, while chatting to some Israeli stoners. With access to a torch here I made the most of my quartz wand instead of using a lighter. Much tastier hits this way. The SS was nice tasting but not very powerful.

Left and went for a wander West...

[spidergawd]

Either

A. The music in coffeeshops is improving...................................Doubt it
B. I got lucky or have been to the ones playing good stuff...............Possible
C. My taste in music has deteriorated.......................................Likely
D. Any combination of the above.............................................All

Enjoying your little trip report Smirksy

[treetop]

......I headed to Greenplace for that good evening vibe reported by TT. Unfortunately, I guess due to winning the cup, the place was busy and the owner was indeed there. So however was the Mr Asian dude rip-tender.

Ahh THAT's the guy! I got shorted by a different BT during the day at Greenplace earlier in the week it turns out. Probably won't go in there unless I can get served by the owner then.

[Smirks]

Back home now, well at the airport anyway. Had a great few days. Reportage to follow. Nice to see so many of you out there!

[gapie]

sweet u safe back home

[Smirks]

Started the day by heading to Erste Hulp, with a spliff of the K2 I bought from Freedom yesterday. Nice sweet morning smoke. Bought a g of Sodiesel Somari for €13 in 1st Hulp and bonged it, while chatting to some Israeli stoners. With access to a torch here I made the most of my quartz wand instead of using a lighter. Much tastier hits this way. The SS was nice tasting but not very powerful.

Left and went for a wander West...

So, having left 1st Hulp, feeling suitably medicated (high as fuck) I embarked upon a journey West. Why? Never done it before. Turning left out of the shop I then took the first left and headed west. A few streets later I hung a left on Agatha Dekenstraat. This street intrigued me, as there are (or were until a few years ago) two coffeeshops on this street, however neither is listed in the ACD directory. The street was a building site as the road and pavement are being resurfaced, so it was like walking through a sandpit. Halfway down on the left hand side I came across the evidence of the first of the two shops. Coffeeshop Baris, at number 31. Inside looked derelict, possibly with fire damage.

A little further down on the right hand side, at number 40, I came across the second of the two shops, Coffeeshop Melilla. The shutters were down on the shop, but inside looked OK, chairs upside down on tables, bar area still equipped, but not really looking like there was much sign of life. The council certificate on the outside said the shop was licensed up until January 2016. It’s mentioned only once on this site, on the thread with the list of shops that were open (or had active licenses) as of 2010/2011. Coffeeshop Baris is also listed here, under the name Coffeeshop Prima.

At the end of the street I turned right and one block along came across another former coffeeshop premises, La Toya. Looks like it would have been a pretty big shop in its day, but now there were workmen inside, presumably turning it into something altogether more gentrified than a weed den.

Further along the street, on the left hand side, there was an open shop, Millennium. Friendly budtender and a plasma screen menu, same as the posted in October in the shop’s review page. I bought a piece of the Hiya for €8, however the back smoking room was empty, they had no bongs and there were more places to see, not to mention the fact I was still flying from the session in 1st Hulp.

I asked the tender about the shops in Agatha Dekenstraat. He didn’t know exactly when they closed, but thought it was a few years ago. He mentioned shootings as a possible reason for their closures, but wasn’t specific. I’ve tried to find any news of their closures online, but have drawn a blank so far.

After leaving Millenium, I headed south, aiming in the direction of the Kashmir Lounge. Stopped off in an eetcafe nearby for some soup and a sandwich before heading into the Kashmir Coffeeshop. Fairly friendly budtender and I took a oiece of the warm oortjes at €11 a g. I asked him if he had a bong, but the answer was negative, so I rolled a joint of some Moby Dik Haze (from Prix D’Ami) and mixed the hash in, about half a g of it. I sat at the bar and chatted with the budtender, when he wasn’t serving the steady stream of locals who popped in, mostly for B&Fs. About halfway through my joint I noticed he did have a bong after all, on top of the cigarette machine. I asked if I could use it. He said it was missing a piece of rubber that was needed to use it. It wasn’t, it was a Boost bong and had bong, stem and bowl perfectly ready to use. I insisted it was OK, so he went to take it down for me and crash!! RIP bong. “See, it doesn’t work now”, he said, rather embarrassed at his clumsiness. I was in stiches, although a little annoyed at missing out on some bong hits. It turns out the main bong was ok, not broken and the bowl was ok too, but the stem was a goner. Replacing the bowl in the bong, sans stem, he added “looks better now without the stem.” Hmnn.

Nice cup of citrus tea later and it was time to resume the expedition. This time I headed northwest, crossed a canal and found myself in what seemed to be a largely Muslim district of town. I passed by Coffeeshop Massawa, not far past a new Mosque was being constructed. I then passed the address that once upon a time was Coffeeshop Mallorca. No more, now it is a residential address and looks like it has just finished being refurbished, as the furniture in the front room was still in its plastic coverings. From the outside there is no evidence that it was ever a coffeeshop. Directly across the street was a school. Heading further west, a few streets away I found coffeeshop El Marssa and went in. It was a busy local shop and in fact Nel (Utopia) had told me the previous day that it was his local shop, not that he often goes in. The owner seemed pretty friendly and had about 8-10 tubs on the shelf. I went for some Santa Maria at €8 a g, rolled one and then went on my way.

Further down the same street was The Dream, but it looked very unappealing so I just walked on by. I then headed further west, to another area that had several coffeeshops nearby. The first of these that I passed was Coffeeshop 156, a modern looking place with fancy plasma menu and a smoking room in the back. I glanced at the menu through the window, but decided to press on. A few strides further and the next shop I came across was Flashback. More likes flashback to the day you got released from jail. A very unappealing place, with clientele that looked like recently released (or soon to be jailed) convicts. No menu, “weed or hash?” was the tenders opening salvo. Actually he has two weeds – White Widow for €8 or Amnesia for €10. They smelled Ok, but not great. The hash was produced from the guy’s trouser pocket, unwrapped. I passed and moved on.

Flashback was on a corner and just a few yards down the street from it, another place, De Bommel. The door would not open however, but soon after the mid 50s owner/budtender unlocked it and let me in. Inside it looked quite nice. Old style wooden tables and chairs, a dartboard and the owner seemed reasonably friendly…at first. Behind the bar, albeit plastic, was a bong. I decided to stay for a smoke. Perusing the menu, I noticed the top priced item was Kosher Kush at €12 a gram. Thank you very much. I chatted to the owner a bit, asked him what the situation round this area was like. He said there had been a school nearby, but it had moved, saving the shops in the area from being within the range for closure. I also ordered a drink and sat at the bar to prepare my first bong.

“Smoking only in the back room” said the tender.

“I don’t use tobacco” I replied, hoping to get a reprieve from exile to the back room.

“I can’t be watching everyone and the inspectors are tough round here” he said.

There was nobody else in this part of the shop. This was odd, cos he had just been telling me what a friendly fun place it is when it is busy. How can that be when the backroom is tiny compared to the main room and he doesn’t let people blaze in the main room? Nevertheless, I dutifully plodded to the back and entered the small smoking room. There were two others in here smoking at the other table. But there were no chairs. So I went back to the main room to get one of the many unused barstools.

“Can I take chair in there?” I politely enquired.

“Sorry, rules is rules” came the reply.

Maybe he just didn’t like the fact I was not a local, as he had asked me if I was new to the area when I arrived and seemed surprised when I told him I was just a visitor. Anyway, the KK was good value and a very nice smoke. 5 quick bong hits in 15 mins and time for me to push on.

I headed south and on the way passed Cofeeshop Sinbad, which was open, but not busy. I pressed on without stopping. A couple of minutes walk later and the next one I came across was Coffesshop Ruthless (originally Ruthless Stitching). I stopped in briefly. Fairly modern interior, but not much choice – another “weed or hash” place, but with younger looking convicts than were in Flashback. Thanks but no, time to keep walking. From here I passed Bij and then Boerejongens, where I purchased a g of LA Confidental for €10.

I then walked in the direction of Overtoom to start the journey home. A quick look at the empty property where Second Generation once was (the writing on the wall above said Sao Paolo, so maybe it had been renamed that before it finally closed). Legs were beginning to get a bit sore at this point and although I fancied checking out de Tijd, it was on the other side of the road and it was rush hour, so I didn’t cross and pressed on. Further up I stopped into Blue Lagoon and relieved them of a g of their €8.50 Edelweiss. Quite busy in the smoking room and I was beginning to get hungry so decided not to stay. I turned off Overtoom and went to check out what had become of the location that once housed Coffeeshop Custom on 1st Helmerstraat. Now looks to be some kind of grocery storage depot. Dinner time now further up the street at my favourite local restaurant in Dam, Hap-Hmm. I make a point of coming here every visit – the grandmooters meatball is great here!

Its 7pm by now and I’m tired, but I’ve walked this far, I’m not cheating with the tram. Walked past Gouden Boon and a couple of other shops, but then headed back into the centre and walked into Utopia at about 7.30pm, where Bleak, Gapie and Jack Ganga were all hanging. A bong session ensued.

Postcript - I also passed another couple of places on my travels - places that were closed. The original Cheech and Chong, which now looks like an artist's studio and Costa Rica, another place that is now a residence and no evidence left that it was ever a shop.

[elasticband]

nice read, thanks smirks. I live around the west and quite often find myself aimlessly cycling around the residential areas exploring the city, it's much different to the central area.

[Quazer]

Great report on the West smirks! I never had a bad experience with de Bommel during the time I was in the area. Mostly I just went for quick b&f's though. Stuff I bought back then was decent but couldn't compete with the best in town. The owner was always quite friendly, gave me small discounts and more rolling paper than I could use. The one or two times I actually smoked there, it wasn't that great. It's much harder to find someone to talk to compared to places closer to the center.
The Tijd looked okay when I went there last spring, the guy working was friendly, but I wasn't lucky with my weed. Haven't been back there so far.

[treetop]

Nice western travelogue. You certainly cover some ground. How was the LA Con from Bojangles?

[Smirks]

Not sure, it was all in the mix by the time I tried it in Utopia, but I seem to remember Gapie being concerned that it was sparking in the joint. I had about half a g of it left at the end of my trip, which I donated to none other than Mr Gapie, so maybe he can supply more info.