October 21, 2014 Amsterdam, Tulip of Amsterdam, Coffee-Houses and the Red Light District

I slept a little late until 9AM.  I go downstairs and check in at Starbucks.  A grande bold drip with room for cream and a ham and cheese croissant....and no fish. After taking my shower, I check out of the hotel and since I have a lot of heavy luggage its call up UBER.  On there app, its pretty cool because it shows you if a car is in your vicinity on a map.  Also what type of car is available because they have everything from an electric two passenger to a full limo.  I pick the middle level, which is a sedan that can hold lots of luggage.  I see on the screen a "black car' as they call their regular private car, is within 5 minutes.  Voila, here in 3 minutes.  We arrive at the Tulip, where David, one of the managers, is waiting for me.  We square up the bill $600E for seven nights. I will be staying here until next week when I will take a train to Paris and come back to Amsterdam. via train, and stay here for another four days before taking off to Africa. He gives me a ten minute orientation to the area, to include his favorite "coffee shop" in case I needed it.  No pretense here. He explains the rules of the road for the red light district...later about that, where to shop, best museums (can't wait to go to the Van Gogh) and a few suggested restaurants.  He insists on helping me with luggage.  I don't think he realizes the weight of the biggest one. The stairs of the apartment entrance is a private door, between the Tulip offices and the Gusto, where I had dinner last night.
The stairs literally go straight up and steep.  I had never seen steep steps like this in any building. Later, David explained that is the way most row houses are built in the city. When I say “steep”, I mean so perilously vertical that they would contravene building regulations in most other countries. To safely ascend requires climbing on all fours with the additional help of teeth and fingernails, but this is nothing compared to the precision and trust in almighty forces that are required to navigate a descent. The triangular shaped steps in many properties are only wide enough to place your feet sideways, and the slightest loss in concentration can lead to an unforgettable experience of gravitational laws.

Apparently the reason for these terrifying structures is that most properties in the Netherlands are built on soft sandy soil, requiring massive load-bearing stakes called piles to be driven into the e

arth to support them. Houses are also usually built in a row, which helps them keep each other upright. Centuries ago, when folks used to do their own construction, some skimped on how deep their piles were sunk, which caused not only their own house to lean but sometimes adjacent buildings too. This led to so many problems that eventually the government took over the installation of piles, and introduced a tax to cover the cost, based on the width of the house that was built. Hence the vast number of narrow, tall, long tall houses in the Netherlands. They may have reasonable sized rooms but no space at all for a decent staircase.

After David lugged up my bag to the third floor, no elevators, we opened the door to find a quaint room that had a nice large bed, small table and a separate bathroom.  On the table was a nice surprise:

fruit basket with chocolates, crackers and cheese and a bottle of Chilean Cab.  He also showed me the expresso machine, and the frig. loaded with Heineken beer, more cheeses and fixings for cereal or granola.  I think this will work out just fine.  I need to have David give a little consulting to the lady that owns the apt I stayed at in Rio.

I unpacked and then ventured outside to take a walk.  I must have walked a couple of hours just adoring the architecture of homes and buildings.  The city is very clean, no trash and lots of recycling containers for glass, paper and plastics. I mainly walk in the most southern part of the city that seems to be very upscale, but also looks like a very heavy tourist trap.  I find blocks of stores that you would find in the US, but maybe not as much in Amsterdam.  These places were very crowded.  As compared to the most north of the city where I am living, where the streets are more quaint.  The north area is referred to as Old Town because this is where the Amsterdam Central used to reside.  

This is also the area that has most of the "coffee-houses" and red light district.  I think people would say this is the artsy or bohemian area. I like it because it is much more laid back.  

Now for a few lessons.  The "coffee-houses", due serve coffee, but its where you can buy retail marijuana or hashish. Basically you can buy up to 5 ounces per visit.  Most people generally come in and buy 1 ounce, since it can be very expensive.  But, the "products" are much more potent than in the US. Most US products contain about 10% THC where the local product here can be as much as 50%, thus the price.  You can take product with you but you can not light up then walk out on the street.  Smoking product on the streets is "against the law", but most police officials will just ask you to put it out or at worst confiscate it. There are several of these places near my apartment and generally are made up of people between 20-35 years of age.  You don't see any old farts like me in there.  

Next, the "red light district".  This area is very distinguishable, because as you get close to this neighborhood, there is actually a small 3 foot high "traffic light" like structure with a glaring red light.  Each street leading into the district has a one of this lights.  This area totals about a compacted 

4 x 5 city blocks. The majority of the businesses are sex shops, x-rated theater/shows, movie houses and the famous "women in the windows".  Okay this is what I learned from my apt manager David.  The women are in an all glass front that isn't much bigger than a phone booth.   There is a glass door leading out to the street and a glass door leading to the back (probably where clients are taken). The women wear very little. most in thongs and bikini tops.  They have to be partially clothed by law.  If a client is interested they will knock on the ladies window.  She will open the door and a negotiation ensues.  According to David, a 15-20 minute "session" will cost $50E that can be negotiated up or down depending on the "order".  Okay thats the end of the lesson. Now my opinion?  Its pretty pathetic, but I guess this has been around Amsterdam for a long time.  Interesting fact, the Netherlands has some of the lowest crime rates in the world. Not sure what that means, but the point being controlling these vices by the government seem to prevent related crimes.
The contents that you just read do not reflect the opinion of this person and the material was for educational purposes only.

Okay its about midnight and I'm wide awake. Food establishments will stay open until about 2AM during the week or when business tails off.  On weekends most stay open all night.