brenda

At the risk of sounding very ignorant, could someone explain what the Netherlands consists of? We were interested in traveling to Holland in particular. Are drugs and prostitution legal there? We heard Amsterdam is not for the prudish. Is all of Holland like that?

ajs

Brenda,<BR><BR>The Netherlands is simply another name for Holland. Only Marijuana is legal, but only for consumption in 'coffeehouses' where it is sold. The Red Light district is actually very tame, and a tourist attraction. There are so many beautiful things about Amsterdam, so don't be put off by their tolerant nature.

Eye Spy

Actually the former answer is not entirely correct. Holland is another name for The Netherlands in colloquial speech. However, the real name of the country is The Netherlands (or Kingdom of The Netherlands) and one shouldn't confuse them. To a Dutchman, Holland and The Netherlands are not necessarily synonymous. The Netherlands is made up of 12 provinces only two of which have the world "Holland" in them: 1) Noord Holland; 2) Zuid Holland; 3) Zeeland; 4) Noord Brabant; 5) Limburg; 6) Gelderland; 7) Utrecht; 8) Overijssel; 9) Drenthe; 10) Groningen, 11) Friesland; and 12) Flevoland (the newest province made from reclaimed polder land in the Ijsselmeer). So you can see Holland is a part of the Netherlands. Amsterdam is the capital; the government is in The Hague but the capital is Amsterdam. There's nothing tame about the Red Light district. Why would you want to visit a seedy neighborhood overseas if you wouldn't want to be in one in your own country? So many people want to see the Red Light District and are less curious about more appealing places to visit and waste their time to look at the truly pathetic of civilization. Welcome to Holland: land of legalized child pornography and other terrible things.

BABA booey

I LOVE Holland!! Great for smoking pot and having sex!!!

ca

I find smoking pot all day somewhat boring so when I'm in Amsterdam I usually rent a bike for a day. Any direction you go you see a beautiful, thriving, relaxed,city.<BR>This year we took a half hour train ride to Zaansvoort(sp)on the North Sea and it was breathtaking. <BR>

SiD

Amsterdam is TRULY the REAL SINN City. <BR><BR>but more importantly there are great museum and other things to do, other than going to the Red Light District (legal prostituion) & the coffee shops (legal sale of pot/hash)<BR><BR>The Dutch are an open culture!

orgy7

I woould like too return too Amterdam and not be in a Haze.. I felt I missed too much. I was there for a night, but one hell of a night.

brenda

Eye Spy, I'm curious, are there other redlight districts in Holland, or is Amsterdam what Times Square used to be to New York until they cleaned it up? and believe me T.S. was not an attraction. Is pot smoking legal all over the Netherlands? Is it controlled by the government? Also since you seem very knowledgeable about the Netherlands, what other countries would be good to combine with Holland, maybe a 6-8 hour drive away? Also would love to see the windmills. Are they everywhere?

Amsterdam

What you perceive as a "liberal" nature is actually from a fairly conservative people. The Dutch believe in minding one's own business, basically. Three things are legal there, that are not most places: 1) prostitition 2) soft drugs and 3) assisted suicide.<BR><BR>You will not even be aware of these unless you seek it out. Smoking pot and/or hash is confined to "coffeeshops" which are very obvious and that you would not go into by mistake. The red light district is a fairly contained neighborhood and unless you want to go look around, you would not be aware of the prostition either.<BR><BR>Assuming you are a first time visitor to Amsterdam, I highly recommend the areas of Leidseplein, Vondelpark and the Jordaan as beautiful neighborhoods to stay in.

Eye Spy

Brenda,<BR><BR>Pot smoking is legal in the Netherlands but it is confined to certain areas such as a coffee shop that has a license from the government. However, with that being said, one wonders how much the government is able to control it since hard drug use has been on the rise for years and the government certainly can't go back now and change legislation now that the door is wide open. I mean, where will all the Americans be able to hang out when they go there?<BR><BR>As for the Dutch minding their own business, I have to say they are a people who have rejected their own culture (all the good things it used to have) and embraced everything and anything in order to be "open." My relatives don't appear to mind their own business: why they are about the most nosey people you can think of: standing by the windows of the living and watching this and that neighbor. And they love to criticize America and how "repressed" we are. Interesting concept coming from people who relied very heavily on America for liberation from Nazi Germany and now are so haughty, they think they know everything. People can go on and on about how wonderful things are there, but coming from a Dutch family my parents would never want to go back to Holland because there is no freedom there as most people think there is. The government taxes everything and there is no free medical care. If you make a certain salary, the government makes you 1) pay regular social security for healthcare and 2) makes you get private insurance because you earn too much? But the American press does not know this (or they refuse to print it or believe it). My gradmother had "free" medical care only to find out when she needed to go to the hospital for an operation, there was no room for here and she had to be put on the waiting list. She died 6 months later. This is analagous to paying your entire life for health care and then when you need it, not getting it (but everyone says you have free health care: believe me, it's not free). Would anybody put a deposit down for a service and then when they needed the service, not get it? How about taking your clothes to the cleaners, paying the owner, and then getting your clothes back dirty? Anyway, I have to stop!<BR><BR>Getting back to your question: other cities have their own red light areas but not as <BR>"famous" (is that an appropriate word?) as Amsterdam's: Rotterdam, The Hague.<BR><BR>As for a pleasant 6-8 hour drive, I suggest go south out of Amsterdam towards Rotterdam to "Kinderdijk" where there are 17 windmills you can see. It's about 45 minutes out of Amsterdam. Walk around there, have some coffee and then drive further south towards Ghent and Brugge (in Belgium), have lunch there, walk around and head back onto the highway to Amsterdam. Ghent is about 1 1/2 hours away from Amsterdam at most and it's a pleasant drive. My advice: Kinderdijk - Brugge - Ghent. Go into the cathedral of Ghent to see the famous Van Eyck triptych. You'll have no problem with English anywhere: everyone speaks it (well almost everyone: most certainly all people 60 and under).<BR><BR>Any other questions, just ask!

brenda

Thank-you Eye Spy.

Danna

I have to disagree with, and thank, Susan from Seattle. "Coffee shops" aren't obvious. We searched out coffee shops and had to ask about pot, even tho we had a map (from a different website) although the hemp sign is a clue I'm actually thinking of talking the hubby into a stroll thru the red light district, during the DAY. After so many visits, we should at least see it once. On the other hand, thanks Susan for your information on an out of town itinerary! I think we need to spend a few more days, than we have in the past, to go farther afield. We've been to Keukenhof, but a look at other areas is enticing!

Danna

oops.. the itinerary was provided by eye spy!... many thanks!

Casey

To Danna. Dont visit the Red Light district during the day time ,not that interesting. Go at night and watch the people that walk up and down the "Walletjes" looking in the windows.Go on a Friday or Saturday night when the place is packed with very loud tourist from Britain.

truth

Amsterdan is the drug capital of the world. Addicts will confront you several times each day. They will ask for money or try to take it from you. You will have the highest chance of being robbed in Amsterdam of any city in Europe. Prostitutes will follow any male in your travel group including your teen age children. They will also be robbed.<BR><BR>As for Holland in general its a good place for travel.

frank

"Truth" is a troll called "robbie" from another thread.He even cuts & pastes his stuff.I suspect "casey" is he also.<BR><BR>Holland is an area inside the Netherlands.The Dutch prefer you to use the same word as they do as it prevents confusion as to where you are actually talking about.<BR>I have seen American families walking out of the redlight area clearly stunned, but most of the city isn't like that.Amsterdam is a big international conference centre which is why the redlight is the biggest in the Netherlands.Few of the people there are Dutch.It is a safe area, if you want to see it go during the day, there are some good bars.<BR>Cannabis is sold in cafes licenced for the purpose.These are all over the city and are reviewed in most tourist guides.You will never be offered drugs in the street except by the coke sellers in the main redlight area.(DON'T)<BR>There was a problem with addicts hanging around Zeedijk many years ago but the police drove them out.

Jim Rosenberg

This is an interesting thread and hearing the varying descriptions reminds me of the old story about the blind men trying to describe and elephant. Each finds a different part and for each of them, that part describes the entire beast.<BR><BR>Amsterdam is like that, too. For an art lover, there are outstanding museums filled with world-famous works. For those who enjoy historic buildings, Amsterdam offers large numbers of wonderfully preserved structures. You can visit the hiding place of Anne Frank and her family, see fabulous churches or enjoy a leisurely boat ride on the canals.<BR><BR>I love walking in Paris, but a walk in Amsterdam is a singular experience in its own right; the canal houses, uniquene layout and the very human scale of things makes it a fascinating city to visit.<BR><BR>The Red Light District of Amsterdam and its ubiquitous "coffee shops" are another aspect of the city. But while a place like Las Vegas SCREAMS immorality at its visitors, Amsterdam generally *winks* it. Things are there if that is what you want and they easy enough to find, but these aspects are not generally not forced upon the uninterested.<BR><BR>No, Amstedam is not for the prudish. Still, I think even a prude could probably enjoy it if it a person that doesn't feel compelled to press their personal values upon those around them.

Jim Rosenberg

Pardon the typos. My kingdom for an edit function!!!!

Grasshopper

Jim, How well said. You have captured the spirit of Amsterdam, a city I have grown to love.

Sjoerd

I live in Amsterdam.<BR>Some facts:<BR>1. Drugs are NOT legal in the Netherlands. SOFT drugs (hashish, marijuana) are tolerated and can be purchased and used without fear for the police in coffeeshops or private homes. HARD drugs (cocaine, heroine) are just as illegal here as anywhere else.<BR>2. Drug use in the Netherlands is at the same level or lower than drug use in other European countries and other Westren nations such as the US. The conservative right-wing magazine The Economist actually used the Netherlands as an example to follow and made a case for the legalisation of soft drugs.<BR>3. The Kingdom of the Netherlands consists of 3 countries: The Netherlands, Aruba and the Netherlands Antilles. <BR>Holland is used as equivalent to the Netherlands but it is wrong. Holland is only the most densely populated and most visited Western part of the Netherlands. <BR>4. There are red light districts in every large city in the Netherlands. Amsterdam has three seperate RLDs. Utrecht has a large RLD on house-boats. <BR>5. The laws with respect to drugs and prostitution are the same everywhere in the Netherlands. <BR>6. Child prostituion is definitely NOT legal in the Netherlands. <BR>7. Most of the "heavy users" of drugs and prostitution in Amsterdam are foreign tourists. Many Brits and Americans. <BR>8. Don't listen to Eye Spy. A lot of the stuff he/she posts (for instance about health care) is nonsense.