Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Sprinkled across the city are plenty of “smartshops,” little grocery stores selling mind-
bending natural ingredients. They're clean, well-lit, fully professional retail outlets that sell
powerful drugs, many of which are illegal in America. Prices are clearly marked, with brief
descriptions of the drugs, their ingredients, and effects. The knowledgeable salespeople can
give you more information on their “100 percent natural products that play with the human
senses.”
Their “natural” drugs include harmless nutrition boosters (such as royal jelly), harmful
but familiar tobacco, and herbal versions of popular dance-club drugs (such as herbal Ec-
stasy).Marijuanaseeds,however,arethebigsellers.You'llalsoseemind-bendingtruffles,a
recent trend that caught on after the EU forbade the retailing of hallucinogenic mushrooms.
(Truffles grow underground—so they're technically not mushrooms.)
Still, my fellow travelers,
caveat emptor!
We've grown used to thinking, “If it's legal, it
must be safe. If it's not, I'll sue.” Though perfectly legal and aboveboard in the Netherlands,
some of these substances can cause powerful, often unpleasant reactions.
TheNetherlandsissosmall,level,andwell-coveredbytrainsandbusesthattransportationis
a snap. The easy-to-navigate airport is well-connected to Amsterdam and other destinations
by bus and train. Use the comprehensive transit website
www.9292.nl
to plan connections
inside the Netherlands by train, bus, or both.
Amsterdam is the country's hub, but all major cities are linked by speedy trains that come
and go every 15 minutes or so. Dutch rail schedules are online at
www.ns.nl
(domestic) and
www.nshispeed.nl
(international).
Amsterdam Central Station
Amsterdam'sCentral Station isbeing renovated—a messy construction project that'sexpec-
tedtolastthrough2014(see“ArrivalinAmsterdam”on
here
formoredetailsonthestation).
The station's train-information center can require a long wait. Save lots of time by getting
train tickets and information at a small-town station (such as Haarlem), at the airport upon
arrival(wonderfulservice),oratatravelagency.Youcanbuyticketsaheadoftimefortravel
the next day.
If you have a railpass, it's quicker to validate it when you arrive at Schiphol Airport than
in Amsterdam's Central Station, where ticket-counter lines are long; you can stretch your
