The Cannabis Cup

Amsterdam is famous for its canals, its red light district and its coffeeshops, where one can buy and smoke cannabis. Holland's liberal attitude towards soft drugs attracts people from all over the world, who feel that this is a place where they have a more relaxed kind of life, even if it's just for a weekend. Thousands of visitors to this beautiful city make a beeline for one of its 400 coffeeshops in order to legally purchase and smoke marijuana.

In celebration of cannabis and all its related businesses, High Times magazine holds The Cannabis Cup. During the event the coffeeshops get an opportunity to show off their wares as they compete in categories such as best marijuana, hashish, seed store and best hemp products. Visitors can see new hemp fashions and sample food from hemp burgers to cheese. Smoking paraphernalia of all descriptions is on sale. There's hemp jewellery, hemp oils and cosmetics and hemp hats - you name it, they make it from hemp.

Also making their presence felt are the various organisations that are fighting for the liberalisation of marijuana laws around the world. In the evenings people make their way to the Melkweg club for live music and talks by the visiting celebrity judges - and, of course, to continue to form their opinions on the standard of this year's entries.

This may not be the event for everyone, but it is undoubtedly part of Amsterdam's rich tapestry. There are many reasons to visit this city and the Cannabis Cup is just one.