De Wallen, Amsterdam!

De Wallen is the largest and best known red-light district in Amsterdam and a major tourist attraction. Our hostel was located in this area so this is the kind of stuff we saw walking around everyday. It is located in the heart of the oldest part of the city. De Wallen consists of a network of alleys containing approximately 300 tiny red lighted one-room cabins rented by prostitutes that are out all day and night. The area also has a number of sex shops, sex theaters, peep shows, a sex museum, a cannabis museum, and a number of coffee shops that sell marijuana. 26 coffeeshops in the De Wallen area will have to close their doors between September 2012 and August 2015. As part of new restrictions which came into force in 2012, a Dutch judge ruled tourists can now legally be banned from entering cannabis cafes. Prostitution is legal in the Netherlands, with the exception of street prostitution, but work permits are not issued for prostitution. More than 75% of the prostitutes are foreigners that are victims to sex trade, pimping, and human trafficking. The government is doing all they can to stop this, closing 320 windows in 2009 due to suspected criminal activity. 

Dutch word of the Day:
Slecht meaning Bad

PEACE & LOVE,
Kevin & Amanda