Grasscity.com Forums - Blogs - A stoners Guide: Moving to THe Netherlands by hippy_man99 http://forum.grasscity.com/blogs/hippy_man99/ Marijuana growing @ Grasscity - FREE marijuana pictures, photos, articles, tips, and advice on Cannabis Cultivation - Grasscity.com fights for legalization by teaching you to grow your own herb! en Tue, 24 Nov 2009 10:04:15 GMT vBulletin 60 http://forum.grasscity.com/images/misc/rss.jpg Grasscity.com Forums - Blogs - A stoners Guide: Moving to THe Netherlands by hippy_man99 http://forum.grasscity.com/blogs/hippy_man99/ Tales from an expat in Holland http://forum.grasscity.com/blogs/hippy_man99/1721-tales-expat-holland.html Sun, 28 Jun 2009 13:09:00 GMT It was the warm rays of the sun that peeked through my window and woke me gently this quiet Sunday. I heard the normal sounds, a bird chirping, the wind blowing, the crank crank crank of some old bike riding across the brick laid streets. I rolled out of bed to greet yet another long weekend.... It was the warm rays of the sun that peeked through my window and woke me gently this quiet Sunday. I heard the normal sounds, a bird chirping, the wind blowing, the crank crank crank of some old bike riding across the brick laid streets.

I rolled out of bed to greet yet another long weekend. It seems one of the most secular countries in Europe has the most public religious holidays... Seriously! We had a 4 day weekend a few weeks ago....
I guess the Dutch just enjoy taking breaks...

I rolled up an Amnesia spliff from the Goa Coffeeshop and puffed away in my Garden while my breakfast Omelet was cooking. I gazed up at the sky watching how much faster the clouds move here than back home. Off in the distance I hear a jet engine, no doubt landing or taking off from Schipol and I can't help but wonder.... who's on that plane? is it an old businessman, wearliy travelling yet again abroad for some board meeting... or a group of College kids, with cannabis leaves for eyes waiting to experience a unique drug policy and culture very foreign to them....

I hear jets very often, coming and going to and from all remote places in the world...
... and I'm rambling on a bit... see what Hazes do to me?

I finished my breakfast and got ready for the day... no specific plan in mind, I just set my Ipod to random and took off on my old rusty Dutch bike... weaving in and out of the tiny streets and alleys of Leiden, I come to the main market street to find a book market unbeknownst to me even after living here for 5 months! I wandered slowly through the booths, looking at all the books, new and old, fiction and non fiction, adult and children books alike.... Most were in Dutch, but i saw a few english, french and others mixed in the bunch.

I ambled around the streets weaving in and out until eventually hitting yet another market, a cultural exchange between Leiden and Japan, complete with akido demonstrations, japanese films, and parades down the narrow streets. As the pass I'm pushed closer and closer to the other walkers and I begin to remember about the population density of the Netherlands.... theres so many of us in such a small place...


After some gazing around I biked over to my favorite coffeeshop in town, The Leidseplein. I was going to sit and enjoy the scenery, but the shop was bustling full without a seat in the place. (this usually happens during the peak hours right after opening...) I grabbed 2 grams of Organic Northern Lights for 14 Euros... I really love the prices here outside of amsterdam, especially in the small local shops... I slowly meandered home and rolled up a nice northern lights fatty. The sun has gone below the rooftops of the houses near me and the day is cooling off.


what a lovely place to live...
This is the Amnesia from Goa... has a very distinct haze smell, but only when you open it up...

The next two are the Northern Lights from Leidseplein... really lovely taste and almost piney smell... Nice overall high too


]]> hippy_man99 http://forum.grasscity.com/blogs/hippy_man99/1721-tales-expat-holland.html Apartment Hunting in the Netherlands http://forum.grasscity.com/blogs/hippy_man99/736-apartment-hunting-netherlands.html Sat, 24 Jan 2009 09:15:55 GMT So the search for apartments is quite difficult with the housing shortage in the netherlands. There are just too many people for not enough land!... Especially in Amsterdam, expect to pay very high prices for very little space. Usually, you can find a single room in a large/ medium house... So the search for apartments is quite difficult with the housing shortage in the netherlands. There are just too many people for not enough land!...


Especially in Amsterdam, expect to pay very high prices for very little space.

Usually, you can find a single room in a large/ medium house where you share toiletries and kitchens.

depending on where you go, rooms come as cheap as 275 Euro ($360). THe only problem is you end up getting a literal hole in the wall at 75 square feet.

I'd expect to pay between 400-700 euros for a single room.

If you want something more private, an apartment will run you anywhere from 800 on upwards of 1500 euros per month. Again with very limited square footage.

Since the netherlands is very small, and the majority of their land space is reclaimed land. That means they are below sea level and have literally pumped the water out of the area.... you remember the old view of the netherlands, windmills and Dykes and wooden shoes.

The windmills actually pumped out the water from the surrounding area and the dykes keep it out.

But I digress, There is little space and lots of people. Most places will be thin and tall... watch out for those ridiculous staircases....


Things to make sure you ask:
What is included in price? ( many adds say inclusive or exclusive, the former being including gas, electric, heat, and maybe internet, exclusive is without these things)

Is internet included?


What are the regulations with garbage/ recycling?


and do all those other things you do when searching for an apartment.


Useful Dutch words:
Kamer- Room

étage- a single floor in a house, usually only available to girls

appartement- apartment (yeah thats easy)
voor vrouw- for women

voor man- for man

te Huur- to rent. (you'll see signs around the area over rooms on the street)


Recommended sites:

www.remax-netherlands.com
Yes remax is everywhere, and in the netherlands they are in the renting business. The agency has a fee when you sign your contract, usually of one months rent plus a bit. This is standard practice among almost all the housing agencies.

www.kamernet.nl
Now this is an interesting website. The specialize in cheap housing, especially small rooms. It's more a do-it-yourself kinda thing, and you can contact those selling the house directly. You can find a lot of deals on here, but make sure you watch out. The price is 10 euro for 10 reactions (each response you send is a reaction) and 13 euro for 20 reactions. quite cheaper than the comission fees of the agencies, but you do a lot of leg work.... and keep babelfish handy because the site is NOT in english.... It's in Dutch.


www.directwonen.com
another housing agency, same standard information.



Well, for a little update on myself, I've just rented myself an apartment in the Netherlands (Leiden) for about 425 euro a month inclusive for a 22 sq. meter room, and i'm quite happy about the arrangement. I start school in a week and am Livin the dream man!!


peace out,
hippy ]]> hippy_man99 http://forum.grasscity.com/blogs/hippy_man99/736-apartment-hunting-netherlands.html Flying Overseas for Cheap! http://forum.grasscity.com/blogs/hippy_man99/396-flying-overseas-cheap.html Thu, 03 Jul 2008 19:50:13 GMT One of the main obstacles of moving to the Netherlands, or any place in Europe, is getting there...

Flights can be outrageously expensive if you don't know where to look and how to search, Here i've compiled a number of useful tips and resources in order to help you all get the most for your money...

Here are the main websites I use to book my flights:

Kayak- an incredible flight search engine, it literally searches through almost every airline looking for the cheapest flights available. They are very good at booking transcontinental flights...
www.kayak.com

student Universe- If you're a student, they have lots of deals for flights here, but only if you're a student... they check on this
www.studentuniverse.com

Cheap Fare Guru- Another search engine like Kayak that sometimes can get cheaper flights, but its inconsistent
www.cheapfareguru.com

1.) Plan Ahead!
Whether you're travelling for a Short vacation or a permanent move, its essential to plan ahead of time.

Depending on when you decide to Travel, book your flights at least 2-3 months in Advance. Usually companies have a number of "cheap" seats that they sell in advance on flights. Getting to them early and booking them are essential. Once these tickets are gone... they're gone...

There are a number of websites that do specialize in
last minute cheap flights, but be warned that you're not going to get their deals until literally weeks before you leave, And there's no guarantee that you'll get the cheap flights... My advice, search around with enough time to change your plans if need be

2.) Choose your departure Airport carefully

International flights Usually leave from large Hubs around the US... Chicago, New York City, Boston, Philadelphia, etc..

NYC is one of the cheapest places to fly to europe I've found, It works best when flying to London.... you can get round trip tickets for about 100 bucks cheaper when you fly out of NYC (usually JFK airport)

A good way to save on transcontinental flights is to use these hubs as your starting point. They will always be cheaper than booking directly from your home airport.

That way you can get cheap flights from your home town to one of these hubs....


3.) Choose your departure day of the week carefully

When choosing a departure date.... its always best to leave on a tuesday-thursday. Any time you try and book on a friday/saturday/sunday, the prices automatically jump upwards at least 50-100 dollars. This can be the same for any kind of hotel as well... if you can minimize your weekends you'll end up spending a lot less...



4.)When to travel?


The best time to get a cheap flight is on the off season. Everywhere in Europe is cheaper in the Fall and the late winter. Their climate is much milder and therefore the winters are milder (if you come from like texas... don't expect to be in 86 degree weather.... unless you go to spain...it's comparable to maryland/ chesapeake bay area... in England and the netherlands.... )

Sometimes you can get deals in the spring, but try to avoid big holidays... and you can keep it cheap


5.) Once your overseas a really good way to get around... is to actually fly... There are a number of discount airlines that fly all around the continent....
check out these cheap airlines...

Easyjet.com
This company is based in england, (Luton Airport London) and flys to most european countries on the mid and lower continent... ( but not Ireland surprisingly.... maybe the brits still don't like them?)

For example.... Using the guides I put up before...leaving on a tuesday and returning on a thursday, I got quoted a price of 75 pounds, or 150 bucks.... which is 75 both ways


ryanair.com
I've heard good things and bad things about this company... I've never used them but people say they don't quote correct prices... you may find a deal there... but make sure your check ALL the taxes...


bmibaby.com

Another airline based in England... they have flights out of The east Midlands (a few hours north of london.... check out nottingham in england.... its right next to the airport... and theres some good green up there, I used to go to school there)



www.kayak.com

I don't want to be repetative, but I can't stress the importance of this tool. They not only give you all the airlines collected, but you can do more research and find smaller airline companies who have cheaper prices....




So these are my tips on travelling to, and around Europe...

Here's another example using the tips I gave above...booking a flight From NYC, to Amsterdam here we go

I picked a date at least 4-5 months in advance..... Chose a good day of the week...

say November 24th to December 2nd... Its not cold yet... stays warm....

I just got you a flight from NYC to AMS for 637 Dollars....and you're in amsterdam for the cannabis world cup....

not too bad eh? but beware... they change fast! it may already be gone!
try it yourself ]]> hippy_man99 http://forum.grasscity.com/blogs/hippy_man99/396-flying-overseas-cheap.html The Story behind the Blog http://forum.grasscity.com/blogs/hippy_man99/390-story-behind-blog.html Sun, 29 Jun 2008 03:07:49 GMT Here's the story behind my current path towards the netherlands. And for those who already heard it in my post on the real life stories... I apologize for repeating myself....


It all started in 2005!

I was a sophmore in college and doing a study abroad program at the University of Nottingam. My then ex-girlfriend now current girlfriend (i know it's complicated) had come up to visit and we decided to go to Amsterdam...

I was a little bit of a stoner hippy.... and she had puffed a few times... plus its a beautiful city with all kinds of history.... (we're history nerds... thats what we get for studying archaeology...)

We arrived on a Friday and were planning on spending 2 nights there.... The first night we had booked a room in a nice hotel... The second night we scrimped on a Hostel.... and we were in the Dam.... It was an incredible experience. The different languages, the different cultures... I Loved it. And of course the weed.... oh my how the weed was great..

Funny story actually. we arrived early in the morning and were beat... we get out of the trainstation and start to walk.We decide that a good sandwitch and cup of coffee and a place to sit would let us collect our thoughts and plan out our trip...
We were naieve to the ways of the Dam.... and found a nice little Coffeeshop off the main road............ and you can see where this is going..:smoke::smoke::smoke:

We walk in and get a blast of pot smoke in the face.... theres 3 people in there... 2 americans laughing their ass off, and some crazy african guy.... Us being a little wary and not to knowing abotu the city.... quickly walked out.... It was a little too early to get baked.... (9:30 AM)

So i know you all know this....but Coffeeshop means the green..... not a cup of joe...

(for the record in those early days I was not the daily pot smoker of my current self... Much more a curiosity and a weekend endeavour)


After spending 3 days and 2 nights of crazy adventures, we left in a whirlwind... barely cracking the ice of the massive wonder that is Amsterdam.

Trip number two and the promise... dun daaaaa!!!!

We fast forward a year and a half. I'm back with the girlfriend and I'm heading back to england for the summer to work on an Archaeological excavation...

It sounds more exciting than it really is... I'm sitting out in a british cornfield digging pits in the dirt.... verrrry verrrrry slowly....


But anyways.... I was heading to the dig in July, and I had a plane ticket for a week and a half before the start of the dig to england....

what better way to spend my time than to hop on an airplane and spend a few days in Amsterdam!

I email my british friend and ask her if she wants to take a long weekend and chill in Amsterdam.... and she was totally down....

I fly to England, spend a day chillin in London, then meet up with my mate... We hop on a cheap flight from London to Amsterdam and we're there on the MOST lovely day i've ever seen. Its 80 degrees, windy, sunny, and beautiful. I decide to stay for 5 Days and she's there for 4, (she had a real job)... So we settle in and start enjoying our time.... sit outside in the sun with a beer... smoke a joint then find some crazy tibetan food place.....relax in the depths of a hookah bar.....

It was a much more of a relaxed trip... 5 days is good to just relax and enjoy the trip. If you haven't heard it, Look up the Song Amsterdam by Peter bjorn and John....
http://youtube.com/watch?v=B7GU3msz72I

Its such an accurate portrayal of how the city feels...

So we fast forward to the end of the trip... my mate had left and I was alone in the city.... After accidentally booking a Hostel in the Red Light District.... (Its a story for another time.... word to the wise... check the address of hostels before you book)


I decided to travel out of the city and see some real dutch life. I looked on a map and picked a city at random.... a little town 30 minutes out of Amsterdam called Weesp..

I get on the train and travel out.... It is a small quaint suburb of the city, but its NOTHING like the suburbs of america... public transportation is everywhere, people walk, theres only a few cars.. and of course the bikes.... Everything is tighter and more accessible.. Walking down the tulip covered streets down to the Old Canal, I cross the bridge and follow the bike path out away from the city center. It's quiet as I go, occationally a few people walk by, or ride on a bike.

I stop and sit in the grass. In front of me is a row of suburban houses, with swans siting out in front of the lawn... real swans....

to my right, the path leading back to the city, and an Old windmill... To my left, the canal stretched out into the countryside...

As I sat there, smoking the joint I had rolled back in the coffeeshop earlier that morning.... I fell in love.

In love with a city, In love with a country.... I felt like I belonged there....

The Pact! ooh....ahhh....


As I sat there with a joint in my hand, staring at the beauty that lay before me.... I made a solemn oath....a pact with myself and that little canal..that someday... someday i would be back here.... back here to this spot... staring at the houses and the windmill...

I was going to Live in the Netherlands, and call this place my home...
Attached Thumbnails
Click image for larger version Name: DSCF0037.JPG Views: 49 Size: 320.4 KB ID: 181   Click image for larger version Name: DSCF0041.jpg Views: 156 Size: 193.5 KB ID: 182   Click image for larger version Name: DSCF0038.jpg Views: 143 Size: 99.0 KB ID: 183  
]]> hippy_man99 http://forum.grasscity.com/blogs/hippy_man99/390-story-behind-blog.html