Peering into shop windows along the streets and canals of Amsterdam…
…presents many an oddity that will surely arouse the senses. Although, considering Amsterdam’s predilection and distinction for legal marijuana and prostitution, it would seem unlikely that there could be any room for other surprises.
Yet oddly enough, despite the merchandising overload of everything cannabis,
and the city’s penchant for 24-hr flesh peddling,
there is more to Amsterdam than just kink and circumstance.
There are also plenty of museums,
and enough al fresco cafés and frites stores to support a cultural and gastronomical battalion.
Amsterdam is a place for eyes behind your head, because two eyes in front is not enough to sidestep all the oncoming cyclists coming from every direction,
but also to catch all the head-turning outrageousness of an unrepentant town that still embraces Easter.
Amsterdam is a place to relax. Heck, half the population is already stoned, and the pungent waft of weed is a strong reminder to kick back and enjoy the scenery.
Amsterdam is a tolerant town, where all kinds of people gather and co-exist without judgement or little reservation. Citizens are proud and expressive, at times aggressive, but mostly helpful–although they smoke entirely too much, and regard the street as their personal ashtray.
As a laissez-faire society by practice and design, it appears to work. Quite simply, Amsterdam is a libertarian’s delight!
And that leaves plenty of room for rubber duckies and vaginas, and everything between.
Streaming thru America 
OMG I love it!
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Thanks, Stacey. We all deserve a slice of indulgence served over-the-top.
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My (future) husband and I stayed in a youth hostel in Amsterdam in the 90s. All the hotel accommodation was booked when we arrived, except for a couple of rooms that were way outside our price range. We ended up in a mixed dorm with one other young German tourist. I foolishly asked him what type of work he did. His response was that he tried not to find work. I slept with my wallet tucked in my underwear. I needn’t have worried. He was so stoned nothing was going to wake him. It was so funny.
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Fond memory? It’s safe to say that nothing has changed, except the cannabis is more potent and omnipresent.
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To be honest, no. I had a splitting headache the whole time I was there from the smell of weed. The seedier side of Amsterdam didn’t interest me at all.
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Easily understood. The “kid lost in a candy store” atmosphere is an economic engine of Amsterdam’s tourism sector, but doesn’t necessarily define the city’s beauty and culture. Yet the belly of the beast certainly rumbles from all the curiosity seekers.
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Good place to go shopping!!
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…whatever your pleasure!
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