THE NETHERLANDS - Best of Europe 2014 - page 1324

Sex Museums
Amsterdam has two sex museums: one in the Red Light District and another one a block in
front of Central Station on Damrak street. While visiting one can be called sightseeing, vis-
iting both is harder to explain. The one on Damrak is cheaper and more interesting. Here's a
comparison:
The Erotic Museum in the Red Light District is five floors of uninspired paintings,
videos, old photos, and sculpture (€7, not covered by Museumkaart, daily 11:00-1:00 in the
morning, along the canal at Oudezijds Achterburgwal 54, tel. [phone]).
The Damrak Sex Museum tells the story of pornography from Roman times through
1960. Every sexual deviation is revealed in various displays. The museum includes early
French pornographic photos; memorabilia from Europe, India, and Asia; a Marilyn Monroe
tribute; and some S&M displays (€4, not covered by Museumkaart, daily 9:30-23:00, Dam-
rak 18, a block in front of Central Station, tel. [phone]).
Old Church (Oude Kerk)
This 14th-century landmark—the needle around which the Red Light District spins—has
served as a reassuring welcome-home symbol to sailors, a refuge to the downtrodden, an
ideological battlefield of the Counter-Reformation, and, today, a tourist sight with a dull in-
terior.
Cost and Hours: €5, more for temporary exhibits, Mon-Sat 11:00-17:00, Sun
13:00-17:00, tel. [phone], www.oudekerk.nl . It's 167 steps to the top of the church
tower (€7, April-Sept Thu-Sat 13:00-17:00, closed Sun-Wed and Oct-March).
Marijuana Sights in the Red Light District
Three related establishments cluster together along a canal in the Red Light District. The
Hash, Marijuana, and Hemp Museum, worth ▲ , is the most worthwhile of the three; it
shares a ticket with the less substantial Hemp Gallery. Right nearby is Cannabis College,
a free nonprofit center that's “dedicated to ending the global war against the cannabis plant
through public education.” For more information, see “Smoking in Amsterdam” on here .
CostandHours: Museumandgallery—€9,daily10:00-23:00,OudezijdsAchterburgw-
al 148, tel. [phone], www.hashmuseum.com . College—free, daily 11:00-19:00,
Oudezijds Achterburgwal 124, tel. [phone], www.cannabiscollege.com .
Northeast Amsterdam
Central Library (Openbare Bibliotheek Amsterdam)
This huge, striking, multistory building holds almost 1,400 seats—many with wraparound
views of the city—and lots of Internet terminals, not to mention Wi-Fi (€1/30 minutes, sign