Cannabis use in public/on public transport

[MisterT]

Mod Note: Posts #1 - #13 originally found in this thread.

You could start your day in a 'coffeeshop'. Sampling some of the excellent natural products.

Though you may find you lack motivation to do anything else after that. And feel peckish.

Please don't. The British people are already notorious for being drunk at all times in Amsterdam. There is no need to add getting high at all times to the list

Edit: as this has got its own thread, this comment was just meant as a joke with a more serious problem in the background.
Of course not just the British, but there seems to be a spike in people misbehaving in the public transportation around Amsterdam, and they are usually visiting tourists.
As a train driver, I see my colleagues being (verbally) assaulted too many times.
So just a question to any tourist visiting Amsterdam: could you please keep your own limits in mind to stay in control at all times? Not just for yourself, but also for me, my colleagues and all other travellers. Thanks!

 

[InterCity:125]

Please don't. The British people are already notorious for being drunk at all times in Amsterdam. There is no need to add getting high at all times to the list.

Drug tourism is something the Netherlands is trying to stop, do get involved.

 

[bnm]

Please don't. The British people are already notorious for being drunk at all times in Amsterdam. There is no need to add getting high at all times to the list.

Yes, because someone chilled and relaxed on good quality cannabis is such a violent, uncouth, n'er do well that shames their country of origin.

A few relaxing smokes in Amsterdam are infinitely preferable to a sinful of Heineken.

I was of course being lighthearted with my suggestion. But, if there's a suggestion to visit the Heineken Museum then I think a 'coffeeshop' visit is an equally valid suggestion. I'm aware that many with closed minds hear 'cannabis' and respond 'but, drugs'. Forgetting that alcohol is one of the worst addictive drugs out there. I'm also aware that it's each to their own. Drinkers, smokers, teetotallers.

My one trip to Amsterdam was 25 years ago for a friend's stag. I drank little, instead enjoying a few grams of cannabis. A most agreeable few days I had. You meet many more interesting people in a coffeeshop than you do in a bar. I didn't end up in a canal like one in our party, nor did I drunkenly injure myself like another.

I hope to go again soon. Before the Dutch conservatives try again to roll back on the toleration of cannabis use. Mellowed out trips on the trams for me!

 

[MisterT]

Well, there's the nice and shiny theory versus the reality.
Would everyone know their own limits and have a nice time and be nice to others, didn't vomit in public areas, or doing just cannabis while they are inside the coffee shop, then you wouldn't hear me.
In reality, way too many people don't know their own limits and create a carnage in the city, the stations, the trains and other public transportation. Being completely drunk or high and causing trouble.
Just "Mellowed out trips on the trams for me!" says it all to me. That's behaviour from the tourists that can't handle it and I already feel sorry to the colleagues at the GVB that have to handle you next time you visit.

And of course, not all of them are British.

 

[bnm]

Well, there's the nice and shiny theory versus the reality.
Would everyone know their own limits and have a nice time and be nice to others, didn't vomit in public areas, or doing just cannabis while they are inside the coffee shop, then you wouldn't hear me.
In reality, way too many people don't know their own limits and create a carnage in the city, the stations, the trains and other public transportation. Being completely drunk or high and causing trouble.
Just "Mellowed out trips on the trams for me!" says it all to me. That's behaviour from the tourists that can't handle it and I already feel sorry to the colleagues at the GVB that have to handle you next time you visit.

And of course, not all of them are British.

You do know what mellow means? I won't need any handling. Being high on cannabis rarely leads to anywhere near the problems caused by drunkeness.

If it's as bad a picture as you paint with tourists to Amsterdam, then the proposals that coffeeshops serve locals only should be matched by bars doing likewise, yes?

As for 'doing just cannabis' in a coffeeshop. Exactly that if they want to keep their licence. The only other drug permitted in coffeeshops is caffeine.

 

[MisterT]

Just because drunkenness is bad, being intoxicated by a substance in public transportation is good? That's a fallacy.
It might not seem to you that you are creating nuisance for others when being high, but you are.
Please do it at home or someplace else where other people don't have to deal with all that ####.

 

[bnm]

Please explain the nuisance I would be causing travelling by tram in Amsterdam after having legally consumed some cannabis. I can walk, I can talk, I can tap in, I can sit down and mind my own business. I can just mellow out and enjoy the journey. Real nuisances they are.

 

[MisterT]

That is the nuisance. You *think* that you can walk, dance, tap in, tap out, and all other things. Too many people simply can't. And about minding their own business, too many people also think that everything is their own business, not only creating nuisance, but they are also (even sexually) assaulting other people in the PT.

 

[bnm]

I don't *think*. I CAN.

30 years experience of recreational use in moderation and I know my limits.

No idea what sexual assault has got to do with this. Are you suggesting (you seem to be doing a lot of my thinking for me) that cannabis use turns me into a sexual predator?

I'm me. Don't tell me it's a fallacy that I can keep control. I can.

I pity the fool (sorry, couldn't resist ) who thinks he knows more about me than me.

Now, my electricity has just come back on following a long power cut. Time to stub out this blunt, check the fridge/freezer contents and get some sleep. Feeling reeeeaaaallllly mellow.

 

[MisterT]

Forgive me for being a bit sceptical, but you realise that you sound exactly like an addict to me?
I see thousands and thousands of people every day in my trains and on the stations. Too many of them are intoxicated. And many of those intoxicated people try to assure me and my colleagues that they are fine, can walk, can even dance. Almost none of them can.
And that's why I'll repeat my question: please don't do it. Enjoy Amsterdam, it's culture, the museums, the red light district, but don't be an a#####e that assumes, err "knows", it can walk.

 

[bnm]

Forgive me for being a bit sceptical, but you realise that you sound exactly like an addict to me?

Ahh, well done. After doing my thinking for me you've hit on a truth. Lucky guess.

Yes, I am. Got the badges for my particular drug addiction. Oh, the bad times I've had. The DTs, the relapses, the hospitalisations. The addiction is with me for life. Thei odd puff has certainly helped me through the worst of my addiction to a far harder drug.

That drug? Alcohol.

And hiding the name calling behind hashes doesn't excuse it. That's a direct personal attack and against forum rules. Play fair or don't play at all.

 

[MisterT]

No lucky guesses here, it's the truth. Like I said, I see it almost every time I'm passing through Amsterdam and yes, that's why I try to warn every tourist away from the coffee shops. Not just you.
Would it only have an effect on the person doing it, please be my guest. Get high, drunk and all other kinds of things, for I don't care.
But when it comes to riding public transportation or being in other public places, please don't. Because getting high or drunk doesn't only have an effect on the person itself, but also their surroundings. Assaulting me or colleagues of mine (or any other passenger or human being for that matter), just because someone is high/drunk/whatever, simply isn't OK.

Btw, that last sentence was not an personal attack, but a question for anyone that wants to get high in Amsterdam.

 

[TheAlbanach_]

That is the nuisance. You *think* that you can walk, dance, tap in, tap out, and all other things. Too many people simply can't. And about minding their own business, too many people also think that everything is their own business, not only creating nuisance, but they are also (even sexually) assaulting other people in the PT.

I go to the Netherlands quite a lot, I don't smoke weed but my boyfriend does. And guess what? After he has, he has no problem walking about, riding public transport and is not a hindrance to anyone. You know how I know that? Cause I'm completely sober. People misuse drugs, that's true, but dont say everyone is the same as that drunk/high person you saw casing problems, cause their not. A lot of people use recriatiomal drugs all the time, and cause no problems. Get over it.

 

[DarloRich]

The British people are already notorious for being drunk at all times in Amsterdam.

This is all because the British lead the world in binge drinking and the Dutch are jealous. Come Brexit they wont be able to complain. Take back control.

I have just come back from Holland and Amsterdam. It was a relaxed and friendly place. I noticed some of the coffee shops ( i don't partake myself) and people didn't seem to be spilling from them itching to fight or vom. it all seemed pretty chilled out and informal and friendly.

There were a large number of stag and hen do's and while i bet they get tiresome i am sure the money they bring into the local economy is welcome.

 

[AlterEgo]

Cannabis is the least of your worries drugs-wise in Amsterdam. I wouldn't judge anyone who consumed it legally. Personal choice.

 

[Mag_seven]

Not meaning to sound all "nanny" but any rail staff reading this thread (this is a rail forum after all) should of course be aware that having cannabis in you blood stream is a sackable offence - just saying!

 

[Bletchleyite]

Mod Note: Posts #1 - #13 originally found in this thread.

Please don't. The British people are already notorious for being drunk at all times in Amsterdam. There is no need to add getting high at all times to the list.

I must admit I've noticed an increased incidence of smelling it in the street, in parks etc in the last 5 or so years.

I even came across a couple in their 30s who appeared to have driven to Bayford station yesterday (at which I had cause to park up and go to London and back - long story!) purely for the purpose of sitting in the shelter and partaking. For anyone who doesn't know Bayford station, it is in the middle of nowhere between two incredibly posh "quainte olde Englishe" villages, so it's not just a city thing.

 

[MisterT]

As this has got its own thread, my first comment was just meant as a joke with a more serious problem in the background.
Of course not just the British, but there seems to be a spike in people misbehaving in general in the public transportation around Amsterdam, and they are usually visiting tourists.
As a train driver, I see my colleagues being (verbally) assaulted too many times.
So just a simple question to any tourist visiting Amsterdam: could you please keep your own limits in mind and stay in control at all times? Not just for yourself, but also for me, my colleagues and all other travellers. Thanks

 

[WelshBluebird]

That is the nuisance. You *think* that you can walk, dance, tap in, tap out, and all other things. Too many people simply can't. And about minding their own business, too many people also think that everything is their own business, not only creating nuisance, but they are also (even sexually) assaulting other people in the PT.

Sounds like you are talking about drunk people there rather than those who are high!

 

[nlogax]

I must admit I've noticed an increased incidence of smelling it in the street, in parks etc in the last 5 or so years.

Same. It's increasingly common to catch a whiff in parts of London regardless of the presence of police or not. Am sure the Met are already stretched way too thin to worry about about the casual use of weed.

 

[61653 HTAFC]

Cannabis use has it's problems, and can become a habit (it isn't chemically addictive unlike nicotine/opiates/cocaine, but can be psychologically addictive). I speak as someone who used it to self-medicate for many years due to the inadequacy of mental health provision and found it very difficult to break that habit.
However, to suggest that it is more harmful to society in general than alcohol is poppycock of the highest order. You hear of drunken brawls outside pubs every weekend. A "stoned brawl" would at worst be a few limp punches thrown and barely connecting, before both sides fell about giggling and then decided to share a pizza!

It really should be controlled in the same way as alcohol and tobacco: legal for adults to use, taxed at the point of sale, and sold by licenced vendors. Strength regulated based on scientific evidence and research, and displayed clearly on packaging. Usage restricted to in the home and in licenced premises, or at least prohibited in certain areas such as near schools.

 

[ChiefPlanner]

British drinking "overseas" can be shameful and hugely embarrassing and destructive. Attempts clearly by many places - notably some of the Spanish resorts to really (and rightly) clamp down on it. I suspect though we are not the only Europeans to let their own side down in this way. Generic football problems are fairly universal , though some years ago when there were matches in Lisbon the local police suggested the attending British fans smoke hash , rather than drink stupidly - as it was (their words) - "less violent"

Never seen any problems whatsover in Amsterdam - (I go at least once a year) though I recall the withdrawal of the ludicrous "beer bikes" for parties - which is a genuinely stupid innovation.

Had a conversation with a Dutch railway security guard on the train from Hanover to Amsterdam who had come off a night shift and was well late - he had just come from the police station after being assaulted by some (local) drunks......he did admit it was a problem.

 

[Arglwydd Golau]

I must admit I've noticed an increased incidence of smelling it in the street, in parks etc in the last 5 or so years.

I would imagine that would be Skunk that you can smell......the weed of choice for the younger generation, generally considerably stronger that the more mellow varieties that those of an earlier generation might have used. In my opinion some of that stuff does need controlling, very different to the more mellow smoke that bnm describes so well....

 

[Busaholic]

I lived in Amsterdam for a few months in 1969, aged 21. I could write quite a lot about my experiences, but I shan't, not because I can't remember them (or, at least, some of them) but because at least in part I don't think I'd be believed. Some of them I have never even told to my family or best friends, and never shall either. The world not only seemed a very different place then, but it was. I will just say one thing: if you are the only person in a room with thirty-odd other people and you're the only one not stoned it is a very tedious experience! Oh, and I've never been back and almost certainly never shall.

 

[bnm]

If I was in a room with 30 other people smoking weed I'd certainly be stoned too. And for free. Result!

 

[Busaholic]

If I was in a room with 30 other people smoking weed I'd certainly be stoned too. And for free. Result!

Please note I didn't say whether I'd smoked it or not, only that I remained sober!

 

[61653 HTAFC]

I would imagine that would be Skunk that you can smell......the weed of choice for the younger generation, generally considerably stronger that the more mellow varieties that those of an earlier generation might have used. In my opinion some of that stuff does need controlling, very different to the more mellow smoke that bnm describes so well....

That's another reason it should be legalised, taxed, licenced and controlled. Cannabis has two psychoactive components: THC and CBD. CBD causes the mellow high, coupled with the "munchies" shortly after. THC causes the more "trippy" reactions and in high doses (such as found in more modern "skunk") has been linked with paranoia and (for some users) psychosis.

It's also not so much the "weed of choice" for the younger generation, it's simply all that's available much of the time.

 

[Arglwydd Golau]

It's also not so much the "weed of choice" for the younger generation, it's simply all that's available much of the time.

Yes, I believe that you are correct, that's more accurate than my statement....the market has dictated it to be so.

 

[61653 HTAFC]

Yes, I believe that you are correct, that's more accurate than my statement....the market has dictated it to be so.

Well, a market that is inherently skewed by prohibition. The skunk is favoured by suppliers due to (a) greater potency to a smaller volume means less risk of detection and it's easier to transport, and (b) those strains are easier to grow with a high yield with hydroponics.

I realise none of my posts on this thread have been on-topic, so apologies for that. Getting back on, as a former user I can smell the stuff a mile away, and I have noticed the smell more often on public transport recently. However this is almost entirely because someone is travelling with their stash rather than using it. I think the last time I saw someone actually smoking weed on a train was in the (formerly smoking) compartment of a VEP, which shows how long ago it was!

 

[Groningen]

The stationhall of Amsterdam Centraal between the doors and the checkin/out gates is full of cannabis smell. The citycouncil of Amsterdam is taking measures to reduce loudy behavior by Dutch and Brits nationals between 13 and 34 years of age. No; i am not making did up.

The link is in Dutch, but you get the message. Behave or you can pay when caught.
http://www.at5.nl/artikelen/182785/nieuwe-campagne-tegen-overlastgevende-britten-n-nederlanders