Going For the Green in 2014: The Progress

[DRA]

Side Trip to Switzerland:

I started my day early, leaving from Almere Haven at 6:15 AM. The bus to Almere Centrum was on time and quick, I was early for the 7:39 train to Utrecht where I would board the ICE to Basel SBB.

It started out as a cold and overcast day for most of the ride across Germany. It wasn't until just before we reached Freiburg that the clouds gave way to blue skies and sunshine. Warmer temperatures followed as I arrived in Basel a few minutes later than the posted itinerary.

I had gotten Swiss francs at CVG before I left, so I was prepared as I made my way into the bahnhof and found it easy to coax a ticket for the local train out of the multi-lingual self-serve machine.

Just a few minutes later, I was on my way to my destination, the Secret Swiss Hash Den. Through Liestal and past Sissach... once I got off the train it was a quick walk to the location.

At the Hash Den, Testing Tuesday means there are free samples of hash for taste and effect, if you're unsure of what you want. There are 10 different types of hash and I have sampled the best hash on the menu at the insistence of my host. It is a premium Moroccan hash which, as I was told, is what the ''sausage'' is made from.

There are four different kinds of herb available here. Three premium strains and one economy strain. I have tried the Bio Super Skunk, which is amazing! The big, crystally buds are sticky and aromatic with a pungent yet inviting scent.

There have been some upgrades here at the Hash Den with the addition of a smokers' lounge and a separate, smoke-free selling lounge where the various menu choices are made available for inspection.

My Swiss associate and I are planning our return to Netherlands for either Friday or Saturday, at this point. We will be going out to Almere Haven where we will be staying at Els' Place until we meet up with our first-timer friend on the 22nd. That is also the day we check into Voyagers Hotel.

It's refreshing to get back to Switzerland. The patrons at the Hash Den are free from tourist naïveté and there aren't pretentious coffeeshop fixtures pontificating on this or that topic. Still, I'm looking forward to returning next week and spending time with friends.

More reports to come so check back soon. I am Going for the Green in 2014.


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[Weedsmoker]

Going for the green in 2014 sound fun, it looks like your have a whale of a tim, amsterdams full of green

[Quazer]

Thanks for the live reports. The hash den seems to be pretty cool. So they call their best hash "Wurst"?

[DRA]

Thanks for the live reports. The hash den seems to be pretty cool. So they call their best hash "Wurst"?

That's a good one, Quazar. Will you be around next week? Will there be an opportunity for us to have a joint together?


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[DRA]

Hanging at the Hash Den:

I'm observing the way things work at the Swiss Hash Den and this year I am getting to see a different side to the business. First let me comment that the amounts of hash sold here each day are astounding. Not really surprising since I've observed this before, the size of the chunks that some customers purchase must surely be a supply for a couple of weeks or more.

Customers can sit in the dealer's den and make their purchase, roll thier joint and go to the smoker's lounge to smoke it. The joints are made in the traditional European way, that is, the hash is rolled with tobacco. They can enjoy a cup of coffee as well.

By far, I have seen more hash sold at the Den than herb. However, yesterday, there was an opportunity to see and sample 4 different varieties that are newly available. These samples were presented so that the dealer at the Den could evaluate the buds and place an order for an amount of each to restock his herb supplies on hand for his customers. I was flattered to be asked my opinion of the offerings because I had recently come from Amsterdam.

We have decided to return to Netherlands on Saturday. We will be in Almere Haven for Saturday night, Sunday night and Monday night. Then we will check into our room at Voyagers.

I'm having a great time here in Switzerland as I always do. Lots of laughter and a learning experience in the process. I have not shot a lot of video at the Hash Den due to security concerns. In fact new security measures have been implemented to better protect everyone's privacy and assets.

I am looking forward to returning to Netherlands and I am planning to be at some of the 4/20 T-n-T sessions to meet all the cool ACD folks who are also in town for the observance.

It's all part of Going for the Green in 2014!


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[Stonedisland]

Great reporting Dra, I enjoy your fresh outlook on your experiences and your plan for April sounds very interesting, the kinda thing I would do and will be doing come May

Did you drop by De Graal already when you went to De Pijp? Your youtube video of De Graal from the previous trip inspired me to visit and it is now my new favorite, love the atmosphere there. I had some of the pineapple chunk when I went in February and got this vibe like I was in a wood cabin back in Woodstock. It was one of my best experiences to date.

[Weedsmoker]

Great reporting Dra, I enjoy your fresh outlook on your experiences and your plan for April sounds very interesting, the kinda thing I would do and will be doing come May

Just like me but it's 2 days May, 3 days June and a whole 2week in July. Whoooooooooooop whoooooop

Great report so far and looking much forward to the rest of it.

Enjoy

[Quazer]

Thanks for the live reports. The hash den seems to be pretty cool. So they call their best hash "Wurst"?

That's a good one, Quazar. Will you be around next week? Will there be an opportunity for us to have a joint together?


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Sadly no opportunity to have a toke. But something tells me both of us will be back in the near future... See you soon, and have a great time!

[DRA]

Thanks for the live reports. The hash den seems to be pretty cool. So they call their best hash "Wurst"?

That's a good one, Quazar. Will you be around next week? Will there be an opportunity for us to have a joint together?


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Sadly no opportunity to have a toke. But something tells me both of us will be back in the near future... See you soon, and have a great time!

Thank you my friend. I remember toking with you at Utopia last year.

Best wishes!

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[TwoCanucks]

Great report DRA, thanks for sharing

[DRA]

Great reporting Dra, I enjoy your fresh outlook on your experiences and your plan for April sounds very interesting, the kinda thing I would do and will be doing come May

Did you drop by De Graal already when you went to De Pijp? Your youtube video of De Graal from the previous trip inspired me to visit and it is now my new favorite, love the atmosphere there. I had some of the pineapple chunk when I went in February and got this vibe like I was in a wood cabin back in Woodstock. It was one of my best experiences to date.

I did not get by De Graal yet but I'm almost positive I will get by there at some point during this trip. Perhaps I will be able to spend a little more time in the shop this year.

[DRA]

Great report DRA, thanks for sharing

Thank you for readig my posts and thanks also for the kind words. I'll be posting more once we get back to Netherlands.

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[DRA]

Leaving Switzerland:

This is my last morning in Switzerland. It's a cold and damp morning as I am preparing to pack up all my gear and get on the road with my Swiss associate behind the wheel of his trusty Saab. We will be traveling across Germany on the Autobahn and make our way to Els' Place in Almere Haven.

Looking at current weather conditions and the forecast I can see that the weather is actually warmer in Netherlands than here in Switzerland. So, I have better weather to look forward to as well as the 420 celebrations.

I am looking forward to meeting all the cool ACD folks who have made their way to Amsterdam for this year's observance of 4/20. I am planning to make it into Amsterdam for tomorrow's T-n-T sessions.

My next update will come once we have returned to Netherlands and have gotten settled into our room at Els' Place. I might make a walk over to the Chillie Kiki coffeeshop after arrival, it depends on how my stash holds out as we get across Germany!

More reportage to come as I am Going for the Green in 2014!


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[DRA]

I just wanted to drop a quick entry in here just to let everyone know that my Swiss associate and I have arrived safely in Almere Haven.

I am looking forward to getting into Amsterdam tomorrow morning for the 4/20 T-n-T sessions which are scheduled.

I am planning on documenting some of these events. For a look at some video I shot last year, please go to my channel on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/dra999/videos

Gonna get myself into bed so I can get up and going in the morning. This is what it sounds like when I am Going for the Green in 2014!


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[DRA]

The 4/20 Report:

Yesterday was 4/20 and I was fortunate to be included in many of the activities and events that were planned by other ACD members.

After a delay in getting to the train for the short ride to Centraal Station, I did finally arrive at Voyagers for the 1st planned T-n-T. I was happy to see gapie there and I was introduced to 4 other ACD members who were also in town for the planned events. I met Bifton, Danny, TheTrashcanMan and I think the other fellow was Scandalous Monk. Forgive me if I have gotten any names wrong, I will edit correct names if I am made aware of the errors. Thanks ACDers.

After a few minutes hanging out at Voyagers and sampling a variety of purchases, the 5 of us gathered up and walked down to Nieuwmarkt, and what a lovely day for the walk it was. We arrived a little early as the T-n-T was listed at 12 noon, but apparently it was not scheduled until 12:30 or "half 12" as I understood it. We met up with ftcarer and son... and others? This is where things start getting hazy, OK?

We sat outside The Green Place in the sunshine and enjoyed the nice weather for a while before the now larger group of us all headed over to Utopia.

We packed inside Utopia, purchased herb and drinks, both being served up by Ingi who was happy to see us and help us with our purchases. The shop was clean and cheerful with fresh flowers on the tables and familiar music on the speakers. I appreciate that Ingi attempts to play a mix of tunes that will appeal to the clientele who are in the shop at that time.

We met other ACD folks at Utopia, including, but not limited to, Occasional Bowl, ZBeebs, spliphy2, RvanSteensel and Lemming.

After several minutes of toking and enjoying lively conversation, it was time to head over to Prix d'Ami as a memorial for Cattales, an ACD member which I do not recall having had the pleasure of meeting in the past.

This was my first visit to Prix d'Ami even though I have walked by the shop many times in the past. This shop takes security very seriously. There is a metal detector you must pass through after you get past the uniformed security agent standing at the door, checking ID, forcing people to check their backpacks at the door and making us remove our hats, which we were not allowed to wear at all at anytime we were inside the shop. Can you say fascist?

Otherwise, the shop is a nice place and I can understand its popularity especially with the younger crowd who were very well represented on 4/20. The shop encompasses 3 levels in a building right in the centrum. There were lounge areas on every floor and pool tables on the second level. On the top floor, there was a large lounge area with very comfortable seating that allows you to recline as if sitting in a bed. This area of the shop featured waitresses who would take your order for drinks and food and then bring your order back to you and collect payment.

Also on the top floor, there are several large screen TV monitors and while I was there they were showing Men in Black 3-D with 3-D glasses provided. It was a bit odd to walk into that room and see so many faces wearing those goofy red and blue lensed specs.

I sat down and placed an order for a bottle of water. The friendly waitess brought it back and collected payment from me and I had just taken a sip when the decision was made to pick up and leave for the bar near Café 420.

A bit bewildered by the frantic pace of events, I opted to stay awhile longer. So I sat and enjoyed a smoke and conversation with spliphy2. While I enjoyed the general layout of the shop and the large lounge area with ample seating, Prix d'Ami is a bit too corporate for my liking. I don't mind the security and the checking of ID so much but the regulation of hats is a bit extreme.

I sat there with spliphy2 until just before 4pm when we made our way over to Oudebrugsteeg to hook up with the other ACD members who were enjoying a beer at Café The Bottle, right next to Café 420.

We squeezed into Café 420 as the place was packed with mostly young Americans who were there to enjoy 4:20 at Café 420. When the clock reached 4:20, it was announced, large joints were lit and passed around the shop. This was at the point where I met banshee beat and others but I just cannot recall everyone.

It was shortly afterwards that Lemming led us down to Koningsplein where we made an appearance on the Trans-European Research and Education Networking Association webcam. From there we made our way back up towards Dam Square but our destination was The Nes-cafe.

I enjoyed the time I spent there at The Nes-cafe. I recommend it for a place where you can enjoy a toke and a beer as they are a Smoker Friendly establishment.

I am back out in Almere Haven now. Monday night will be our last night here at Els' Place. My Swiss associate and I will check into our room at Voyagers tomorrow afternoon. I don't think I will be heading into Amsterdam today as I am opting to enjoy some of the local scenery and attractions here in Almere today with a likely stop at Chillie Kiki coffeeshop.

I will be posting further updates as I am Going for the Green in 2014.


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