Thoughts on Amsterdam

I sat in the smoky coffee shop and espied my reflection in the mirror facing the dimly-lit street. Smoked rose in layers illuminated by the candles. I felt like I was sitting in a speak easy in the 30's. Sneaking away from our dull, monotonous lives and stepping into a safe house. Full of people all in on the big secret. Walking through the streets, you hear the drum and bass rather than the trills of trumpets and flute floating through the air. The whole thing would seem so sleazy, but you become apart of that scene, that culture as soon as you walk in the door. It's like giving in to sin and never looking back. There's no reason to stand on the border, so why not choose one side or the other. Giving in is so much easier and disciple, self-restraint and moderation cease to be an issue of moral conscience. As I sat there, I wondered if other people feel the same way. Perhaps they don't see it as being so romantic. Coffee shops may be just a place to get high. As if they would walk in to have a cup of coffee in the morning. Or maybe it's like shine runners in the South. But I guess no one's ever romanticized that life, except the Duke's of Hazard. I can see why the States are so reluctant to legalize. It may not increase the number of users, it will increase the number of people who are exposed to it, making it impossible to deny how many people are using it. If all the people that smoke pot in the states did it in public everynight, instead of in the their homes, it would look like Amsterdam. I can't help but get nostalgic about this city. It's like the Europe that I dreamed of, but didn't see much of in Bavaria. It's the Europe that will always have the most beautiful, romantic vision of for the rest of my life. It's like the way Disney World will always perfect in my mind, because those vacations are some of my best memories of growing up. The music sounds newer here, fresher.