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HomeGrown Cup 2015 Results

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Header picture: Entry #10, not 16. Apologies. Nicole Dry Sift Rosin Marimberos genetics in concentrate category.

posterhgc

Shout out to our partners Sensi Seeds, Vaposhop, Grace Glass Bongs and Pollinator Company for making this possible!

Since HIGH TIMES wasn’t coming back to the Netherlands in 2015 for the annual Cannabis Cup, the HomeGrown Cup organization felt there was a gap that needed to be filled. With the HomeGrown Cup, they lean on an old tradition of celebrating the annual agriculture harvests at the end of the season.

The HomeGrown Cup emphasizes the benefits of growing your own cannabis for personal use and sharing with friends; recreational, medical and therapeutic.

The HomeGrown Cup is strictly an invitational competition. Only competitors and organizers are permitted entry to the judging session, held at a secret location.

Vaporizers are on site, encouraging healthy cannabis use.

And so we’re pleased to announce the first edition of the HomeGrown Cup happened last weekend and we are able to present you the results! We will be able to share more information with you soon too, for now enjoy the entry shots!

Winner Outdoor Category HomeGrown Cup 2015:

#4 Cannabis Social Club Amsterdam with Dutch Passion’s Shaman strain

Dutch Passion Shaman

Winner Indoor Category HomeGrown Cup 2015:

#7 Coffeeshop Toermalijn Tilburg with Marimberos’ Nicole strain

Marimberos Nicole

Winner Concentrate Category HomeGrown Cup 2015:

#14 Ambrosia Extracts with Lemon Cookie Dough (Lemon Bubble x Hypro) BHO Nug Run

Ambrosia Extracts with Lemon Cookie Dough (Lemon Bubble x Hypro) BHO Nug Run

Trophies for first place concentrate, indoor and outdoor category #HGC2015 #cannabiscup #homegrowncup #cannabis #710 #420

Een foto die is geplaatst door HomeGrown Cup (@homegrowncup) op

You can find the full gallery of entries on the HomeGrown Cup Instagram page.

And a big shoutout to everyone involved! More to follow…

The post HomeGrown Cup 2015 Results appeared first on The Stoned Society.


Dab-A-Doo Barcelona 2016 In Review

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Top image: Derrick Bergman / G0NZ0 Media

Dab-a-doo was created by Mila Jansen and her Polinator crew and has since grown from Amsterdam to editions in Barcelona, San Francisco, Boston, Valencia, Denver and even Uruguay.

As the name suggests, Dab-a-Doo is all about dabs: solvent (BHO, CO2 etc), solventless (ice-o-lator, dry sift etc) and with rising popularity: Rosin. Dab-a-Doo has since inspired many other events, including our own HomeGrown Cup and remains one of the most important hash extraction competitions, especially in Europe.

Picture: Derrick Bergman / G0NZ0 Media
Picture: Derrick Bergman / G0NZ0 Media

I was introduced to Mila at the last High Times Cannabis Cup in Amsterdam in 2014 and was able to attend my first Dab-a-Doo last year in Barcelona. From last year, I remember being overwhelmed by the sheer amount of high quality hash extractions around. Luckily, thanks to that experience I knew what to expect for this year’s edition and was much better prepared.

So how does Dab-a-Doo work?

Companies, organisations and individuals are able to to compete in the various categories, resulting in this year’s whopping 35 different entries.

The entries, labeled with numbers and letters, are judged on appearance, smell, taste and effect from 5 pm until around 10 pm after which the winners are announced.

Everyone who is attending is a judge, with rigs and dabstations (like e-nails) available on site.

Picture: Derrick Bergman / G0NZ0 Media
Picture: Derrick Bergman / G0NZ0 Media

Dab-A-Doo Barcelona 2016 Complete Entry List

Picture: thestonedsociety.com
Picture: thestonedsociety.com
Picture: Derrick Bergman / G0NZ0 Media
Picture: Derrick Bergman / G0NZ0 Media

The Dab-a-Doo Experience

Whereas most people attending dab-a-doo at the beautiful NPK club were of Spanish nationality (of course), a quick look around proved the international cannabis culture is able to find their way, including cannabis celebrities like Bubbleman, Tony Verzura, Jorge Cervantes and the crews from Marimberos (who won our HomeGrown Cup indoor category), DNA Genetics and House of the Great Gardener for example.

Bubbleman in the house! Picture: Derrick Bergman / G0NZ0 Media
Bubbleman in the house! Picture: Derrick Bergman / G0NZ0 Media
Tony Verzura showing off his cutting edge terpenes. Picture: Derrick Bergman / G0NZ0 Media
Tony Verzura showing off his cutting edge terpenes. Picture: Derrick Bergman / G0NZ0 Media
Tony Verzura dabbing out Dab-A-Doo winner HQ with terpenes infused dabs. Picture: Derrick Bergman / G0NZ0 Media
Tony Verzura dabbing out Dab-A-Doo winner HQ with terpenes infused dabs. Picture: Derrick Bergman / G0NZ0 Media

Our crew got in around 7, having just arrived after a short flight to the city of Barcelona and we managed to huddle up around one of the tables. The place was packed, with with attendance numbers close to 300 judges and VIPs.

A beautiful sight to see was when food came around that time and those dabbing away on their sugar levels, hurried to the table to fulfill their munchies.

I also stumbled upon familiar friendly faces, like the 710 crew, who invited us over to try their entry on the e-nail. Dabbed out on their remarkably smooth 24k Cannatonic L.R, I ventured further onto the site, which was half out in the open. Here we also found the Smoking Gear Functional Flame Off underway. A spectacular sight to see live glass blowing in action!

Smoking Gear Functional Flame Off underway! Picture: Derrick Bergman / G0NZ0 Media
Smoking Gear Functional Flame Off underway! Picture: Derrick Bergman / G0NZ0 Media

Dab-a-Doo Barcelona 2016 Winners

After the raffle (every goodie bag contained a number), the celebratory ceremonies could kick off around 10.30, as Mila and Jorge Cervantes handed out the Dab-a-Doo plaques.

Awards ceremony with Tony Verzura, Mila Jansen and Jorge Cervantes. Picture: Derrick Bergman / G0NZ0 Media
Awards ceremony with Tony Verzura, Mila Jansen and Jorge Cervantes. Picture: Derrick Bergman / G0NZ0 Media

Non Solvent Category:

  1. HQ Barcelona with Tiger Melon Ice Water Extraction
  2. El Plaer de la Vida with Girl Pleasure Cookies
  3. Club Anesthesia Barcelona with Violator Kush

Solvent Category:

  1. Oil Hunters with OG Gangstars
  2. 23 Oils with Mango OG Live Resin
  3. Kippax Concentrates with Mother of all Dawg

Rosin Category:

  1. Carroll Leds Genetics with Super Orange Haze Rosin
  2. Serious Seeds/House of the Great Gardener with Warlock Rosin
  3. House of the Great Gardener with Barb Drysift Rosin

Final Words

A huge thank you to Mila, the Pollinator Crew and NPK Club for the hospitality!

Goodie bag edibles! Picture: thestonedsociety.com
Goodie bag edibles! Picture: thestonedsociety.com

We also had a lot of fun taking the Dready Labs 150mg BHO (with organic edible oil) on our flight home.

We hope to see you all again at future events and hope to welcome some of you at the HomeGrown Cup 2016 edition!

The post Dab-A-Doo Barcelona 2016 In Review appeared first on The Stoned Society.

Alcohol Is So 2014. Try Kava

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Picture: @AndrewArnett

by Andrew Arnett

I’m at Kavasutra and there is an Ed Shell double shot of kava with a wedge of pineapple in front of me. I’ve been instructed by the bartender to raise the kava high, utter the traditional toast “bula”, and drink the whole thing down in one gulp.

Picture: @AndrewArnett
Picture: @AndrewArnett

“Sometimes,” the bartender says, “If you don’t drink the entire shot in one gulp, you can’t finish the rest.”

Kava produces a tingling on the lips and tongue, followed by a mild numbness in the mouth

Kava has a gritty bland flavor. The pineapple is a nice touch, cleansing the palate while leaving a sweet aftertaste. Kava produces a tingling on the lips and tongue, followed by a mild numbness in the mouth. This is due to kavalactones, the main active ingredient in kava.

Kava is derived from the kava plant which is consumed throughout the Polynesian Islands. Studies have shown that kava is effective in treating social anxiety and may serve as a natural replacement for anti-anxiety pharmaceuticals like Xanax. It has been shown to promote sleep, relax muscles and reduce convulsions.

Within minutes I feel the mellow tranquilizing effects take hold.

Kavasutra opened in 2015 and is the first and only kava bar in New York City. It serves other herbal drinks as well, such as the psychoactive kratom, but it serves no alcohol. As the sign in front of the bar says, ‘Alcohol Is So 2014. Try Kava.’ Kava can, for some, become a lifestyle.

Picture: @AndrewArnett
Picture: @AndrewArnett

The interior design of the bar is tailor made for that “rooted” feeling, a term denoting the tendency to want to stay put after downing a few shots of kava. A TV behind the bar shows animal documentaries and Tiki art adorns the walls. Ambient music is streamed through Pandora.

Picture: @AndrewArnett
Picture: @AndrewArnett
Picture: @AndrewArnett
Picture: @AndrewArnett

“The lights are always turned down low here,” the bartender tells me.

“Do you think kava will catch on with the public at large?” I ask.

“It’s already blowing up,” he says. “In North America in the last six years it’s gone from five or six kava bars to like 30 or 40. Just ask John, he is a kava farmer.”

John is sitting next to me nursing a kava shell.

Picture: @AndrewArnett
Picture: @AndrewArnett

“Kava grows on tropical, volcanic islands,” John tells me, “There are soil solidity, rainfall and shade issues you have to deal with. A decent amount of underground water, not so much surface ground water, because you don’t want the roots to grow out and get thin.”

“Sounds like Hawaii would be an ideal place,” I offer.

“That’s where my farm is,” he says. “From a small plant, you get a tiny amount of roots. If you wait ten years, then you get a whole shitload of roots and it is only from the roots of the plant that you get kava, so you want big, fat, thick, heavy roots.”

Also available at Kavasutra is kratom, a psychoactive leaf derived from Mitragyna speciosa, a deciduous, evergreen tree native to Southeast Asia and is a member of the coffee family.

Picture: @AndrewArnett
Picture: @AndrewArnett

There is a gentleman sitting at the bar named Larry. He is drinking a tea made from kratom.

“It [Kratom] enhances work, sexual performance and it helps withdrawal from hard drugs.”

“Kratom gets you in the zone,” Larry explains to me, “What I mean by that is, if you’re sitting down watching TV, it gets you into the zone. Same thing with work, if that’s what you’re doing, it gets you into the zone.”

I order myself a glass of kratom tea. Within minutes, I feel a warm, calming sensation take hold. Its effects are even more distinct than kava.

“It is a healthy alternative to hard drugs,” Frank tells us. “It enhances work, sexual performance and it helps withdrawal from hard drugs.”

Kratom acts as a μ-opioid receptor agonist similar to the opium plant which means it is excellent at neutralizing pain. Because it is not an opioid, it has been used effectively to treat opioid withdrawal and addiction.

“To be honest,” Larry continues,  “I don’t think the kratom community wants people to know about it. Kratom so good they don’t want the general public to ruin their good thing.”

It may be too late to keep kratom under wraps. Recently, the New York Times and Business Insider published articles that were critical of kratom, citing its potential for addiction.  But these stories have the feel of the Reefer Madness anti-marijuana hype from years past, inciting fear with little basis in scientific research.

The fact is kratom and kava have been used for centuries with no ill effects and there have been no reported cases of death by overdose in the United States.

The fact is kratom and kava have been used for centuries with no ill effects and there have been no reported cases of death by overdose in the United States.

Though kratom is considered not dangerous, there are side effects which may result when taking 10-20x the recommended dosage. It can cause dizziness, fatigue, nausea or constipation. There have been some reports of a “Kratom Hangover” the morning after consumption which is indicated by a headache, anxiety, or irritability. A tolerance to its effects may develop and it could be habit forming over long periods. One should control ones use and, like all psychoactive herbs, moderation is the key.

“Kratom is legal everywhere except where it’s produced, in Thailand,” the bartender tells me, “The only reason it’s outlawed in Thailand is because kratom is used to come off of opiates. If you know anything about Thailand then you know their government is heavily funding the heroin production.”

The bartender does a head count, then announces “Everyone gets a free shot of kava.”  The drinks are served and we all raise our kava shells in unison saying “bula!”

At this point I’m feeling perfectly enmeshed with my tropical surroundings. And why not? We are, after all, living on an island. The island of Manhattan, right?

Kavasutra Kava Bar is located at 261 EAST 10th STREET – NEW YORK NY, 10009. More locations can be found on the Kavasutra website.

The post Alcohol Is So 2014. Try Kava appeared first on The Stoned Society.

Cannabis Liberation Day: Holland’s most relaxed festival

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AMSTERDAM – Holland’s biggest cannabis and hemp event Cannabis Liberation Day kicks off in Amsterdam on Sunday June 12th. The free protestival is organized by the VOC, the Union for the abolition of cannabis prohibition. Visitors from all over Europe will celebrate the world’s most useful and controversial plant. Motto this year: Home cultivation free, back door open!

Rick Simpson, who plays a key role in the rediscovery and rise of cannabis oil as a medicine, will receive the Koos Zwart Award from Dutch coffeeshop union PCN

Biggest draws of this 8th edition are the Canadian cannabis oil pioneer Rick Simpson and the British band Will and the People, whose members are known as major cannabis enthusiasts. Rick Simpson, who plays a key role in the rediscovery and rise of cannabis oil as a medicine, will receive the Koos Zwart Award from Dutch coffeeshop union PCN. Simpson also participates in one of the debates in the movie tent, Europe’s largest mobile Ger (Mongolian nomadic tent).

Other speakers this year: Tom Blickman, drugs expert at the Transnational Institute (TNI), Nol van Schaik, cannabis entrepreneur and activist from Haarlem, Has Cornelissen, founder of the Legalize! foundation and Frans van Laarhoven, brother of Thailand detainee Johan van Laarhoven. Musically there is much to enjoy: juicy raps by the Rupelsoldaten from Antwerp, African sounds from DraMali, Utrecht blues artist Van Piekeren and poetic pop from Iris Penning, who will open this edition. Various artists will pay tribute to Armand in honor of this legendary Dutch protest singer and cannabis activist.

Besides music and speakers, there is a large Hemp Market, the Cannabis Film Festival with documentaries, comedy, debates, a Mascotte Hang Out and catering options to satisfy munchies of any kind. At the Hemp Market some 50 cannabis and hemp related businesses and NGO’s are represented, selling their products and message. Visitors can see the latest innovations, from vaporizers and hemp plastic to a wide range of products with CBD (cannabidiol), the non-psychoactive, medicinally active ‘sister’ of THC. Four authors / photographers will be signing and selling their recently published books on cannabis in the bookstall: Nicole Maalsté, Steef Fleur, Marrika of Beilen and Panayotta Korini.

“The state won’t arrange it, grow your own weed!”

By launching the campaign “The state won’t arrange it, grow your own weed!” we will commemorate Joep Oomen (1961-2016), one of the founders of the VOC who unexpectedly passed away in March. And we look back at 40 years of tolerance policy, with a large video screen, music and a very special surprise guest. Cannabis Liberation Day is free for all ages and nationalities. Sale of alcohol is not allowed, but small amounts are tolerated for personal use. Member of Parliament Vera Bergkamp (D66) has called Cannabis Liberation Day “the most relaxed festival I have ever visited”. Newspaper Het Parool wrote last year: “If there was a diversity award for festivals, Cannabis Liberation Day would win.”

Cannabis Liberation Day, 8th edition
Sunday, June 12, 2-10 pm, Flevopark, Amsterdam
Admission: Free. Website: www.cannabisliberationday.org

The post Cannabis Liberation Day: Holland’s most relaxed festival appeared first on The Stoned Society.

Everything you’ve always wanted to ask Rick Simpson

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Rick Simpson on stage at Cannabis Liberation Day Amsterdam 2016. Picture: Steef Fleur

Picture in thumbnail by Steef Fleur.

My colleague Derrick Bergman and Rick Simpson in Breda. Picture by The Stoned Society.
My colleague Derrick Bergman and Rick Simpson in Breda. Picture by The Stoned Society.

Rick Simpson contributed like few others in the dissemination of knowledge on medicinal cannabis oil. Many people call this oil even “RSO” Rick Simpson Oil. After he had swallowed years of heavy medication against cancer, Simpson decided in the late nineties to make highly concentrated oil-based cannabis. The results were so impressive that he has since devoted his life to this natural medicine.

Smoking or vaporizing is not necessary; a few drops under the tongue is sufficient sothat the plea is also applicable for the elderly and children. The amazing results of cannabis oil in severely epileptic children has received much attention in the US. His native Canada, Simpson said goodbye; He has since been living for a few years in Croatia. His videos, especially the documentary Run from the Cure: the Rick Simpson Storyhave been viewed millions of times on the Internet.

Rick Simpson was a guest at the recent Cannabis Liberation Day (Cannabis Bevrijdingsdag) in Amsterdam, where he received the Koos Zwart Award (as seen in the video above), participated in the ‘Cannabis Oil: Miracle Cure?’ debate (embedded below) and I was able to have a personal chat later with him in Breda together with my colleague Derrick Bergman.

During the debate over the effect of cannabis oil, Rick Simpson was joined by Wernard Bruining and a representative from Medical Social Club Suver Nuver (two Dutch medical cannabis experts and producers). The debate was directly followed by a Q&A.

The questions I asked Rick Simpson (inspired by friends and colleagues), I’ve included below.

Rick Simpson with the Koos Zwart Award at Cannabis Liberation Day Amsterdam 2016. Picture by Steef Fleur.
Rick Simpson with the Koos Zwart Award at Cannabis Liberation Day Amsterdam 2016. Picture by Steef Fleur.

The Stoned Society: What do you know about Cannabis and Traumatic Brain Injury?

Rick Simpson: A friend of mine had a very bad motorcycle accident and got Traumatic Brain Injury. The doctors said he would never recover, but he recovered fully and ended up writing a book about it. James Martinez, Cannabis as a Medicine (or something like that, i’m not completely sure).

The Stoned Society: What about Chron’s disease?

‘Only use cannabis oil from THC heavy Indica plants. Don’t mix it with pharmaceutical poison!’

Rick Simpson: Works like a charm. But don’t smoke it! You will loose too many cannabinoids. Make oil instead.

The Stoned Society: What is your recommended solvent?

Rick Simpson: When I use solvents I still prefer to use Naphta. Alcohol takes too much clorofile out of the extract. It boils at a lower temperature and isn’t as explosive if done well.

The Stoned Society: I recently encountered a deadly cancer in my family, as my aunt passed away in March. She did use (some) cannabis oil, but in combination with the regular pharmaceutical therapies. Would you recommend people to combine regular therapies or only use the oil?

Rick Simpson: Don’t do any of the pharmacutical therapies, whether it’s chemo or radiation. Only use cannabis oil from THC heavy Indica plants. Don’t mix it with pharmaceutical poison!

Want to learn more from Rick Simpson? Make sure to visit the only official website at phoenixtears.ca.

Rick Simpson at Cannabis Liberation Day. Picture: Steef Fleur.
Rick Simpson at Cannabis Liberation Day. Picture: Derrick Bergman

The post Everything you’ve always wanted to ask Rick Simpson appeared first on The Stoned Society.

Transcending Beyond Festival 2016

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Photo by: iljahuner.com

All pictures used in compliant with the photographers. Header picture: iljahuner.com

Having visted festivals ranging from big mainstream pop festivals like Rock Werchter (Belgium) to Sziget (Budapest, Hungary) to Cannabis Liberation Day in Amsterdam and everything in between (whether smaller or bigger), there was one type of festival definitely lacking in my experience: the community gatherings.

(…)there was one type of festival definitely lacking in my experience: the community gatherings

What I mean by that, are festivals you may have heard from: Burning Man (original one in the Nevada desert), Boom (Portugal) and perhaps the original: Woodstock (back during the ‘summer of love’ in 1969).

And so I’m happy to report I’ve finally attended one: Beyond festival 2016 in Liempde!

I had heard about the festival from friends in Amsterdam and was pumped to find out they (luckily) were forced to move out of Amsterdam to Liempde, a very small village nearby my operating city.

Due to insufficient funds thanks to an impulsive trip to Berlin a couple weekends ago and not being able to decide whether to go to the first Burning Man in the Netherlands or settle for Beyond festival, I was lucky enough to obtain tickets during the week before the festival through a friend of mine volunteering at Beyond.

I found one impulsive fellow relatively fast, being joined by the third on Saturday. Off to Beyond we went!

Photo by: iljahuner.com
Photo by: iljahuner.com

Transcending Beyond Festival 2016

I remember this freeing moment during which we were coupled and one of us had to wear a blindfold while the other person guided you through the field

We ended up arriving just in time for the opening ritual on Friday and as such were able to participate in the ‘denaturalization’ ritual on Saturday. I remember thinking on Friday ‘I haven’t taken enough drugs to do this’, after which I quickly realized how bullshit that thought was. Because I absolutely loved the rituals even though I was hesitating at first. It became relatively easy to quickly learn new friends and really let your ego go, which was the whole point of the exercise.

I remember this freeing moment during which we were coupled and one of us had to wear a blindfold while the other person guided you through the field. This became very natural, until I was actually asked to just run for a couple of meters. It blew my mind, only to be guided towards the ‘tunnel of love’, which were two groups of people creating a tunnel of hugging and touching individuals. At the end, I walked straight into a hug with what turned out to be this cute and lovely girl.

Photo by: iljahuner.com
Photo by: iljahuner.com

Organizations are able to participate in the festival by building a stage themselves.

At the festival itself, there was basically no timetable present like you would find at regular festivals. Instead, organizations are able to participate in the festival by building a stage themselves. This ranged from a reggae/dub stage (with King Shiloh and the always lovely Covenant Soundsystem), to Acid/Techno with the Zodiak Commune, a stage where you could hang out and jam on instruments yourselves, weird artsy objects, 24/7 electronic music at Betoetert, the Berghenk experience (making fun of the dreadful queueing at the Berghain club in Berlin) and of course a warming campfire accessable for the camping goers.

 

The Berghenk Experience. Photo by: iljahuner.com
The Berghenk Experience. Photo by: iljahuner.com

I really learned to (finally) love reggae too, dancing at Covenant Soundystem and later listening in while laying in the field with direct access to the sun. There, I was able to freely manipulate the sun between my fingers and continue staring at the trippy henna tattoo on my hand.

Picture: @theroadtoeverywhere
Picture: @theroadtoeverywhere

But one of the most beautiful experiences for me personally, was Camp Zero: a dome build with life vests from actual refugees escaping war zones to safer havens.

Picture: @theroadtoeverywhere
Picture: @theroadtoeverywhere

Both on Saturday and Sunday, there was live music of a combination of Syrian, Turkish and more nationalities combined with Dutch musicians, bringing to life a transcending vibe easily surpassing any kind of limitations whatsoever. We danced, sang, laughed and in doing so bridged gaps between people and cultures. I remember writing in the log I kept in my notebook: ‘For this moment, everything is perfect (and I’m here to witness it)’.

Photo by: iljahuner.com
Photo by: iljahuner.com

‘This is where i want to be!’

Countless joyful moments were experienced at the campfire every night after the main festival area closed and the tribe gathered around seeking warmth and company. I can read back in the log I kept in my notebook things like ‘This is where i want to be!’ and ‘INTENSE HAPPINESS’. Later I would write I couldn’t believe I could ever be so happy with just a bucket, as we jammed on them like drums together with 6 other individuals long past sunrise.

During all this, we would sit around and you would hear the techno music playing in the back of your head, coming from a DJ area nearby. Until you basically couldn’t take it anymore and just had to dance it off. My god I felt alive!

Photo by: iljahuner.com
Photo by: iljahuner.com

The spirit of Beyond Festival

But it really was until Sunday, after Camp Zero, when it dawned on me the true spirit and idea of the festival. Much I recognized in fact from the 80’s movie ‘My dinner with Andre’ (that I really recommend watching, it’s actually fully on YouTube), in which Andre explains the theatre being a metaphor for life and his experience with a beehive (best explained in the embedded video below).

Because it’s a participating festival, it is the audience which is both the entertainment and the entertainer, a dualism which was constant throughout the festival and reminding me of countless quotes ranging from Ghandi (Be the change that you wish to see in the world) to Jim Morrison (There can’t be any large-scale revolution until there’s a personal revolution, on an individual level. It’s got to happen inside first).

Jam stage by Huiskamer_onzin_fissa. Photo by: iljahuner.com
Jam stage by Huiskamer_onzin_fissa. Photo by: iljahuner.com
Picture: @theroadtoeverywhere
Picture: @theroadtoeverywhere

And while much I haven’t covered in this piece, and really experience it yourself, you’ll just have to come yourself next year!

So I would like to hereby thank the organization for this beautiful lasting memory, my friends (for tolerating ending up as my tripsitter), everyone I met and spoke, everyone I haven’t spoke but would have loved to get to know, always wonderful Covenant Soundsystem and of course last but not least my good friend for the two tickets!

Until we meet again, my dear cosmic travellers!

Photo by: iljahuner.com
Photo by: iljahuner.com

The post Transcending Beyond Festival 2016 appeared first on The Stoned Society.

Second iteration of the Homegrown Cup announced

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The organisation behind the HomeGrown Cup announced earlier this week the second iteration of the HomeGrown Cup will take place on December 17, 2017 in Eindhoven.

Founder Mauro Picavet told Leafly:

“We want to highlight the benefits of growing your own cannabis for personal use, whether it’s recreational, medical, therapeutically, or a combination of all those,” he said. “Anyone can enter, even if you only grow one plant in your garden.”

The HomeGrown Cup is strictly an invitational competition. Only competitors and organizers are permitted entry to the judging session, held at a secret location.

To rollingstoned.nl, Holland’s biggest cannabis website, Mauro said:

The first meetings have taken place. Most importantly, the date has been announced and potential participants and sponsors can contact the organisation at info@homegrowncup.nl.

More information can be found at the website: homegrowncup.nl.

The winners from last year have been embedded below. For the complete gallery of entries, visit the HomeGrown Cup Instagram page.

Winner Outdoor Category HomeGrown Cup 2015:

#4 Cannabis Social Club Amsterdam with Dutch Passion’s Shaman strain

Winner Indoor Category HomeGrown Cup 2015:

#7 Coffeeshop Toermalijn Tilburg with Marimberos’ Nicole strain

Winner Concentrate Category HomeGrown Cup 2015:

#14 Ambrosia Extracts with Lemon Cookie Dough (Lemon Bubble x Hypro) BHO Nug Run

The post Second iteration of the Homegrown Cup announced appeared first on The Stoned Society.

Festival Review: Psy Fi 2016

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Much until up to this summer we’ve mostly covered cannabis friendly festivals and cannabis culture events. But after all, we’re The Stoned Society and we can’t forget about our psychedelic side. So after we already covered Beyond festival earlier this summer, Psy Fi was the psychedelic festival everyone was buzzing about.

Much to our delight, we were welcome to do a report on the 2016 edition. Because we only got tickets for the weekend, this report is based on not only our own experiences, but also conversations with experienced psytrance festival goers, volunteers and the organisation. Together with a photographer, we try to capture what you’ve missed (or didn’t see).

Dancing in front at the Main Stage
Dancing in front at the Main Stage. Picture: @inge_dekker

Festival Area

These spaced out roofs are a spectacular sight to see, while air still flows through and so can and does the sun and rain

The festival terrain was easily accessible. Arriving by train and being able to take the shuttle bus for only a couple of euros, was very welcome. Of course there were some hiccups when everyone started to arrive for the festival (I heard), but then again what do you expect. More worrisome were the car searches done by the security. Although when the festival was underway, we didn’t experience any uncomfortable moments with the security. Too because we hired lockers to store our bags (5 euros a day). The camping was well packed, had a good atmosphere and in some parts parties going on all night. But you could very well catch your peace and quiet if that’s what you sought. This year also saw improvements for the toilet and showering area, which I didn’t use myself much but people seemed happy to queue and use the facilities.

Entering the festival area, you stumble upon the supermarket first with the main stage to your right. These spaced out roofs are a spectacular sight to see, while air still flows through and so can and does the sun and rain. But even the latter was welcomed, with temperatures constantly over 30 degrees Celsius for this edition (except for Sunday).

Sunset over the Psy Fi roof
Sunset over the Psy Fi roof. Picture: @inge_dekker

Going to the left at the supermarket, you would head to the silent disco stage which had a different theme every day and continued all night long.

Music

Just when we arrived, RITMO was playing a wicked set on the main stage.

PsyFiMainStage
The main stage DJ’s point of view. Picture: @inge_dekker

‘the most beautiful thing about this festival is how you can easily walk around here barefeet’

Talking to an experienced psychonautic traveler, arguably the only downside was the relatively low volume and early closing hours for the night. There was little choice for the organisation, as neighbors and local political parties voiced complaints. They didn’t mind the music for a few days, but 5 days 24/7 Goa music was simply too much. Even Leeuwarden’s Mayor came to visit the festival, which deserves a hat tip to the organisation. One of the quotes I picked up was ‘the most beautiful thing about this festival is how you can easily walk around here barefeet’, referring to how clean the festival area is.

Honorable mentions music wise are there for Astrix, Ace Ventura, 1200 Micrograms and Juno Reactor. The latter’s show was limited by the size of the stage unfortunately though.

Main Stage at day time
Main Stage at day time. Picture: @inge_dekker

Late at night, you could choose to head for the silent disco, random parties at the camping or join one of the many drum circles going on. Especially the drum circles at the Spirit Gathering area receive hereby a worthy shout-out!

Digeridoo!
Digeridoo! Picture: @inge_dekker

Food, Drinks and Market

Continuing your walk past the main stage, following the water,  you’d stumble upon the market first. The market offers a variety of vendors, with of course a lot of psychedelic clothing and jewelry. If you wanted, you could even get yourself a piercing or tattoo.

Food wise, you certainly wouldn’t starve. There’s plenty of affordable food, ranging from the most healthy, vegan options to meat, fish and things like crepes. And of course breakfast options. The price was definitely on average lower than you’d expect at Dutch festivals. A big plus.

PsyFiFoodDrinks
One of the colorful catering stalls. Picture: @inge_dekker

Because of the heat, free water was supplied and there were places where you could refill your bottle. Beer was fairly expensive though, at 3 euro’s a glass. Then again, not a lot of beer is consumed and it’s a mind narrowing drug anyways.

Bhang on the other hand, you could actually find on the market too. I drank one portion, but didn’t feel much though. Perhaps my tolerance level is up too high…

Shout-out too to Laih Laih ‘s Happy Belly, a familiar face from the Cannabis Liberation Day in Amsterdam catering. We had an excellent, joyful lunch there on Saturday!

The Psy Fi market by night.
The Psy Fi market by night.  Picture: @inge_dekker

Love

There’s inherently so much love going around at Psy Fi, it would be difficult not to be elevated after you have done a tour of the festival area.

Whether people would be hugging, (naked) swimming, taking their kids with them, doing intimate yoga: everywhere you would see, feel and enjoy love.

If you’re in a sad place right now, check out the slideshow below and maybe the fever catches on!

Drugs

Of course, we need to talk about drugs. As mentioned above, Bhang is out there for people who want to try. But there’s actually a full-on Smartshop (Repelsteeltje) onsite, selling various trippy products…

Smartshop onsite at the Psy Fi festival area
Smartshop onsite at the Psy Fi festival area.Picture: @inge_dekker

Important to mention in this section are the Psy Care facilities, ran by the German Drug Scouts. I learned they travel from festival to festival, averaging at about 150 cases per festival. Drug testing in the Netherlands isn’t allowed by law, which they do offer at other festivals. Googling the organisation, I found this Q&A on Reddit worth reading in case you want to learn more.

Psy Care facilities, in case you go 'bad'.
Psy Care facilities, in case you go ‘bad’. Picture: @inge_dekker

There were various ceremonies going on on the festival terrain as well, with and without drugs.

PsyFiMagicMushroomsRitual
Magic Mushroom Ceremories and lectures at the Mushroom Tipi. Picture: @inge_dekker

Whether you’d be into Yoga, meditation, lectures, sweat lodges and whatnot, there’d be something interesting going on somewhere at the festival area.

PsyFiRituals
Yoga ritual at the Spirit Gathering. Picture: @inge_dekker

It can be quite a challenge to actually get to the right place on time, but that’s up to you of course.

Hula Hoop dancing sessions on the sacred island
Hula Hoop dancing sessions on the sacred island. Picture: @inge_dekker

Last words

Psy Fi festival 2016 was an experience to never forget. The festival area (De Groene Ster) was the utmost beautiful terrain imaginable and I can only hope Psy Fi is allowed to return here for many years. Deep down it fits the spirit of the Friesland province too. Freedom really is here…

And if you buy tickets between now and January 1st 2017, tickets are only 80 euros. For a 5 days festival, that’s a bargain.

 

The post Festival Review: Psy Fi 2016 appeared first on The Stoned Society.


HomeGrown Cup 2016 Results

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S
ince HIGH TIMES wasn’t coming back to the Netherlands in 2015 for the annual Cannabis Cup, the HomeGrown Cup organization felt there was a gap that needed to be filled. With the HomeGrown Cup, they lean on an old tradition of celebrating the annual agriculture harvests at the end of the season.

hgc_flyer_32The HomeGrown Cup emphasizes the benefits of growing your own cannabis for personal use and sharing with friends; recreational, medical and therapeutic.

The HomeGrown Cup is strictly an invitational competition. Only competitors and organizers are permitted entry to the judging session, held at a secret location.

Vaporizers are on site (thanks to VapoShop), encouraging healthy cannabis use.

2015 saw the first edition of the HomeGrown Cup, leaning on an old tradition of celebrating the annual agriculture harvest at the end of the season.

The 2016 edition was held on December 17, 2016, in Eindhoven (the Netherlands).

And so we’re pleased to announce the second edition of the HomeGrown Cup happened last weekend and we are able to present you the results!

Congratulations to Organic Earth, Lady Sativa Genetics, Toermalijn Tilburg, Accelerator Seeds, Brother Extracts, Dutch Passion, New Balance Zwolle, Royal Queen Seeds, Amsterdam Genetics, Karma Genetics, Ambrosia Extracts, DNA Genetics, Rare Dankness and Nugg Run Extracts!

The HomeGrown Cup is the first cup in the world to publish the score counts online for complete transparancy. Download them here (link valid until December 25). Bedrocan, the only licensed producer for medicinal cannabis in the Netherlands, was entered anonymously and finished 20th of 27 entries in the indoor category. Another world first.

And of course a huge thank you to all of our volunteers, judges, VIP’s and sponsors: Amsterdam Genetics, Spliff Seeds, Sensi Seeds, Vaposhop, Dr Dabber, FireFly Vaporizer,  Dutch Passion, GreenGo, WeedMaps and House of Smart (prizes).

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We attended a 3 course THC infused dinner: Medicated Cuisine

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medicated cuisine

Pictures by The Cannabalist.

Meanwhile already two weeks further, this is kind of the follow-up to our 4.20 in Amsterdam piece. Normally I would’ve continued with The Elite Cup results, but the results are yet to be uploaded online…

Medicated Cuisine

a THC infused dinner

Something that was done well and deserves coverage however, is the dinner that followed after the ‘smoke out’ on 4.20 organised by The Golden Green Team by their Golden Green Bakery, called Medicated Cuisine.

Like you would assume, considering the name and timing, this was indeed a THC infused dinner.

medicated cuisine
Preparation of the first Medicated Cuisine course. Picture by The Cannabalist.

The dinner itself consisted of 3 courses. After a little waiting, which made the anticipation for the unknown rise, we started with scallops, vegetables, caviar and most importantly: a small syringe of THC oil that you could dose yourself.

First course: scallops, vegetables, caviar and syringe of THC oil

Medicated Cuisine
First course: scallops, vegetables, caviar and a small syringe of THC oil. Picture: The Cannabalist.

I decided to go the full monty

I started with just half of the syringe (with in the back of my head the High Cuisine dinner). Not long after, I decided to go the full monty and just drape the whole syringe over the first course. Admittedly, it wouldn’t be my first pick as a first course in a regular restaurant, but I finished my plate and it certainly was a joy to start with.

A friend of mine, of whom I know he pretty much only eats meat, decided to skip the dinner entirely. Scared of healthy food, I presume…

Main course: seabass, vegetables and potatoes, THC infused sauce

The main course consisted of seabass, vegetables and potatoes, bathing in a THC infused sauce. I’m not really a fish eater, but again I managed to finish the course in no-time. Perhaps infusing dinners is a good way to get people to eat more culinary foods.

Medicated Cuisine
Main course: seabass, vegetables and potatoes, bathing in a THC infused sauce. Picture: The Cannabalist.

Meanwhile in the room, the atmosphere shifted to a more higher conversation topics and everyone was genuinely having fun. Between the courses, the plates would be quickly removed to make room for the bongs and joints.

Dessert: ice cream, fruit and cookies bathing in THC infused sauce

But that didn’t take too long, because we still had a dessert to go. The dessert was called ‘Green Tea Cake’, consisting of ice cream, fruit and some sort of cookies with you guessed it: oral THC oil.

Medicated Cuisine
‘Green Tea Cake’ dessert: ice cream, fruit and cookies bathing in THC infused sauce. Picture: The Cannabalist.

This course was also eaten much faster than I would in a regular restaurant. A friend of mine even went as far as licking his plate clean…

At the end of the evening, our whole table was filled with satisfied and high, smiling attendees. As well as a table of Italians from the Accelerator Seeds crew who took multiple wins that day. After I thanked the organisation, I decided to head back to the city center with two dinner attendees.

I slept like a baby that night…

I expected to be unable to talk or even find my way home, but it wasn’t that bad at all. Others were clearly more under the influence, which shows for me they were spot on with the dosage. After all, I slept like a baby that night…

Points of improvement

But there are some points for improvement too. It would’ve been nice to have a complete menu (also for the pictures and as a souvenir), with the dosage on there in mg. Also, it would’ve been nice to know if what kind of THC oil it was.

Which, after checking with the organisation, it turned out to be Lemon Haze Rosin of which the 3 courses combined, 100mg THC was administered.

To continue with the edibles, you may have spotted our Amsterdam Edible Review already, with as of yet published our review on the Rainbow Kush Cake by Amsterdam Edibles Connection and the infused Gummy Bears by The Golden Green Bakery. Next week, planned is a 250mg infused milk chocolate bar review…

The post We attended a 3 course THC infused dinner: Medicated Cuisine appeared first on The Stoned Society.

The Stoned Society 5 Year Anniversary

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2 days after the registration (May 13) May 15 2012, our website went live. An early version of the website is shown above.

The Stoned Society started as a multipurpose cannabis and psychedelics blog back in May 2012.

The Stoned Society started as a multipurpose cannabis and psychedelics blog back in May 2012

Ever since, it grew in size and contributors to a complete magazine with multiple posts per day, but sadly also shrunk back to a single person run blog.

In part because we’re about to turn 5 on May 15th, we are again dedicated to bringing original content to our readers on a daily basis.

Much thanks to all the friends we made (and lost) over the years

Looking forward to whatever the future may bring!

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LONGREAD | Married Micro-dosing

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Text by Jade Cox. Opening artwork: @pinealcolada

Introduction

First of all, a little bit of an introduction about who we are. We had been married for almost 2 years when the experiment began. We decided to embark on this experiment, mainly out of curiosity, but also because we were having some problems adjusting to life together in a foreign country. D was having more difficulty than J as a result of being unemployed and having few friends to spend time with and this was causing tension between us. We wanted to see if this experiment could help D with the depression she was developing. We attempted to dose at the same time each day but it wasn’t always possible as at the time our sleeping patterns were a bit irregular since we were on holiday, with no particular commitments.

Artwork by @pinealcolada

We had been married for almost 2 years when the experiment began

1p-LSD was chosen as, at the time, it was possible to get accurately dosed 100µg tabs that were made in a lab as opposed to street LSD which can be variable and always has a level of uncertainty in the dosage. We cut the 100µg tabs into 8 pieces and took a piece each on each day. This was not necessarily the most accurate dosing method available to us but it was the easiest. A system of volumetric dosing with water would have been more accurate.

It might have been an interesting experiment to refrain from all other substances during the time of the experiment but we decided to just see how the days go and treat each day as an ordinary day where we could do what we might normally do.

Thursday

17:00 – 12.5µg 1p-LSD

Today was a beautiful sunny day and after dosing we decided to go down to a local park and relax with some friends.  It was a relatively uneventful day but we were both noticing a very slight shift in consciousness and added energy throughout the day. J was noticing some colour enhancement and very slight visual distortions but this was not a distraction and, if anything, just made the world a little more beautiful, and funny, to look at.

Throughout the day at the park we had a few alcoholic drinks each, J was on the beer and D was drinking whiskey and coke. Although, in our experience, alcohol usually distracts from an LSD trip, it was not a huge issue and the effect was still present. Most of our time was spent talking to friends and J was juggling a lot. J loves to juggle on a full-blown LSD trip as it creates a mind-state for him that is almost meditative and a level of flow to his patterns and transitions that can often surpass his sober state although the effect of this was not even close to the effect from a usual LSD trip.

Artwork by @pinealcolada

All in all it was a very enjoyable day and we had good fun at the park

Towards the end of the night we met several people we hadn’t met before and conversation flowed easily. Both of us did a small bump of speed off one of these people because D was a little drunk and wanted to do so which is very unusual as usually neither of us are into speed. D had some good conversations regarding relationships and Mediterranean food with an Italian guy we met around the fire at night and exchanged numbers with a woman we would meet again a few days later. All in all it was a very enjoyable day and we had good fun at the park.

Friday

13:00 – 12.5µg 1p-LSD

J was much more open than usual and this made D very happy, this was definitely a good thing for us as J is not so good at speaking about his feelings and D is like an open book when it comes to emotions

After we woke up D was very hung-over and hungry. We decided to go out and get some food. As we were walking down the street away from our house some friends walked towards us with a huge 5kg bag of pork ribs asking D to make them. At this point, D had completely forgotten that she had invited them over for ribs on Wednesday. She spent most of the day cooking and smoking joints. We didn’t speak so much earlier on but did have a hearty conversation about her family that she was missing as they were in another country and she hadn’t seen them for over a year. 

The whole day J was feeling a lot of love towards D and kept joining her in the kitchen to have a cuddle and just hold each other. Around 17:00 J had a laughing fit for approximately 15 minutes for no apparent reason, but it felt like an LSD laugh, a deep, hearty, uncontrollable belly laugh that makes you feel ecstatic inside. 

After they left, we sat on the sofa and had a long talk with each other about our relationship and some issues that had arisen in the previous 6 months. J was much more open than usual and this made D very happy, this was definitely a good thing for us as J is not so good at speaking about his feelings and D is like an open book when it comes to emotions. Around 02:00, another friend, T, came to visit and spoke about some of his problems with D but left after about an hour and a half as we went to bed.

Saturday

13:00 – 12.5µg 1p-LSD

After waking up we took our dose and popped into town do some shopping. We bought a few clothes for the festival we would be going to in a couple of weeks’ time. We went to a local place for some fried fish and fries and ended up in a competition that required us to choose what we enjoyed most out of a selection of approximately eight activities such as travelling, visiting family, etc. If they matched each other we won free cocktails, we won a couple of martini and tonics, yay!

Artwork by @pinealcolada

J felt that D was very distant for most of the day and was not particularly engaging with anyone except for the aforementioned conversation with T

After shopping we went to a local coffeeshop and sat there smoking and planning what to do next. T appeared and that’s when D realised she had forgotten she had invited him over for lunch. She didn’t think it would hurt his feelings as it was an honest mistake, possibly the effect of the LSD or maybe because it makes her concentrate more on her emotional state and forget other commitments. But she sat him down and spoke to T regarding how every small infraction should not be treated as a hard-core criminal offence. She explained to him that mistakes happen and it should be dealt with amicably unless someone deliberately caused you sadness. He was a bit emotional, as he had just taken some MDMA, but after that day she believes that she and T became closer than they ever were before and she knew she had a friend in him, someone who would understand and not just make her feel worse.

After our conversation we headed straight to a food festival where we spoke further and aired more T and her problems. We sampled a few of the dishes available at the festival and D particularly liked some coconut pastries she had. We danced and had lots of fun but ended the night quite early, after the festival was over, as D was tired and didn’t want to stay out. We got home at 00:00 and put a movie on but we were both tired and uninterested so went to bed.

J felt that D was very distant for most of the day and was not particularly engaging with anyone except for the aforementioned conversation with T.

Sunday

14:00 – 12.5µg 1p-LSD

J has always had problems displaying his feelings for people and came to the conclusion that he needed to show his love more, in the form of spontaneous gestures, especially at this time while we were in a foreign land together without our friends and family

Woke up and started cleaning the house. D was feeling down again while cleaning, missing her family. We had a long talk and J came to some realisations. J has always had problems displaying his feelings for people and came to the conclusion that he needed to show his love more, in the form of spontaneous gestures, especially at this time while we were in a foreign land together without our friends and family. This may seem obvious to many people but it is not easy for J. He can’t be afraid of giving love. D can return that love like no one else he has ever met and no reasonable person will ever think less of you for showing love to your wife, quite the opposite.

T came over around 18:30 and we hung around the house for a bit before walking out for some ice cream. On the way from the ice cream parlour to the coffeeshop we ran into some friends. T was acting a bit strangely and decided to leave after we met our other friends. We went down to the park quite late and stayed there talking until around 02:00 the next morning. J did a lot of juggling and someone passing by asked to make a video of it which he was happy to oblige. After getting home we watched a movie and headed off to bed.

Monday

16:00 – 12.5µg 1p-LSD

Woken up at 07:40 because a plumber arrived to do some work on our house. However, we missed him because he didn’t hang around for long after pressing the bell. D was not happy about him leaving so fast and J went down to do some washing up and clean the kitchen. 

Around 18:30 we went for a great shower together where we washed each other and cuddled a lot, this made us feel even closer and was a somewhat spiritual feeling

We were both very tired still, so at 11:00, we went back to bed. We awoke around 15:30, shortly before our dose.

D made a lovely meal with salmon and harissa sauce although J couldn’t finish it and seemed quite distracted with a lot of pacing around but we were both feeling closer this day. Around 18:30 we went for a great shower together where we washed each other and cuddled a lot, this made us feel even closer and was a somewhat spiritual feeling. After the shower we went for a movie, we were back by 22:00 when E came over. D had a long chat with E about life, the universe and everything and we went to bed.

Artwork by @pinealcolada

Tuesday

13:50 – 12.5µg 1p-LSD

This was both the most difficult day, and the most rewarding of the whole week. We got up around 11:30 and D said her muscles were aching. J tried to help her get back to sleep by scratching her head but she was in a very bad mood and said it wasn’t being done properly. J was very groggy from being woken up and so D got up and did some housework. 

This was both the most difficult day, and the most rewarding of the whole week

She was determined to not let him sleep and came into the room and opened the blinds. By 13:00 the poor start to the day had really got to D, she was shouting and screaming and J went out for a walk so that both of them could cool off. While sitting in a nearby square J wrote the following:

“I want to go home but I know she won’t be calm by now. I tried to help her this morning but she says it was useless and that I didn’t try hard enough. I don’t know what to do or what else I could have done. She asked me to scratch her head but how I did it was not right. I am confused.”

Artwork by @pinealcolada

In hindsight, this was the wrong thing to be worrying about for J but he is not very good with dealing with people due to being on the autistic spectrum. For a bit of perspective, this is what D wrote on the same day:

I am scared and a bit helpless for being so open about my feelings. I never told anyone how I felt before and when I finally did I got no reciprocation. This confused me and in turn I am now having difficulties again.

  1. Scared
  2. Can’t trust
  3. Want to leave
  4. Feel betrayed
  5. Want my own peace
  6. I would love it if I went back home or on a holiday so I can think it through as to whether or not I want him.

This would be the last day of the experiment for us

J got home at 13:25 and swept and mopped the kitchen while trying to speak to D. She did not want to talk to him. When we started talking again it was 13:50 which is when we did our dose. We headed off to the shops to get some more items for the festival we were heading to in the next few days. D was very emotional and we didn’t get much done we and spent a lot of the time sitting at the side of the road and talking. We made some plans to meet another friend but, after the roller-coaster of a day, we didn’t feel like it and headed home. This would be the last day of the experiment for us.

Conclusion

Artwork by @pinealcolada

We are writing this nearly a year after the experience took place and looking back on it now it’s much easier to put into perspective. We are still together and both doing a lot better now. J is much better at understanding D’s needs and D is a lot better at controlling her anger. We have come a long way and are now expecting a baby as well. Bring on the next challenge!

From D:

“I don’t get as angry as I used to in the past. I had to teach J how to show love and reciprocate love at times instead of ignoring my feelings and just saying I love you at times. For me, being in this relationship and making it work for the future has always been my first priority and I expect the same from J. One year on and I feel we have come a long way together and feel proud that J shows me love rather than just saying it. It took some time but it was well worth the effort. I think this experience, along with both of us wanting to make things work even through this difficult time in our life, was a beneficial one and it helped us to release some of our demons and enjoy our lives together all the more.”

From J:

We have come a long way and are now expecting a baby as well. Bring on the next challenge!

“I am a lot more aware of D’s needs these days and this experience was something that really was a turning point for us. Although I am not very emotional, I think I understand her a lot better and am able to keep her happy most of the time. She is not a difficult person to keep happy, she likes the simple things in life. If our pregnancy had happened when we did this little experiment, we would undoubtedly be in a worse place than we are now. This experience added depth to our relationship and helped us work through some things that we had difficulty working through under normal circumstances.”

Thank you LSD!

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Space Safari 2017: Festival Review

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Same like our warm-up article, we start with a little history first before we delve into the 2017 edition. If you already read our warm-up article, click here to jump to our write up on Space Safari 2017.

Space Safari 2017
Main Stage by day. © The Stoned Society

History

While it was only the second edition of Space Safari, they’ve been running parties and festivals for years before they found these grounds. Most of the crew are actually from Belgium and more specifically: Ghent. If you haven’t been to Belgium or Ghent before, I highly recommend a visit to this great city and enjoy the food, beers, scenery and generally lovely people.

Lost Theory Festival

I had been to the Lost Theory parties they throw at their Chinastraat location before, where as of recently they still host parties and have a workshop to be able to work on decoration. Even before they hosted their first outdoor parties, they already started a record label called Lost Theory Records. Their first outdoor party in 2010 was a big success and people clearly wanted more.

AT IT’S PEAK, THE FESTIVAL HOSTED AROUND 8000 PEOPLE

But because Belgium is far from the ideal place to organise these kind of festivals, they opted instead to organise it in the (back then recently joined EU) Croatia. At it’s peak, the festival hosted around 8000 people. But because the festival wanted a permanent location and was being troubled by the (corrupt) Croatia, they moved to Spain and found a perfect location nearby Salamanca. About a two hour drive from Boom Festival, here they did find a local government willing to work with them. This year there’s no Lost Theory Festival, but there will be again in 2018.

Space Safari 2016

Because the organisation wanted to do something close by home, they tried it in their own country. But as mentioned earlier, Belgium simply isn’t the place to be for these festivals.

THE LOCATION IS PERFECT, IN PART BECAUSE THE LICENSE GRANTS YOU PERMISSION TO PLAY MUSIC ALL NIGHT LONG

Luckily they found the Beekse Bergen willing to host Space Safari, which had it’s first edition last year in 2016. Familiar with big festivals like Decibel and Best Kept Secret (50.000 visitors), they were actually pleased with Space Safari and it’s kind visitors that didn’t cause nuisances like the bigger festivals. It was only small, unlike it’s bigger brother Lost Theory, but showed a promising future.

Space Safari
Space Safari 2016
Space Safari
Space Safari 2016

Space Safari
Space Safari 2016


The location is perfect, in part because the license grants you permission to play music all night long. Which is actually very difficult to get in the Netherlands, as you could’ve read in my Psy-Fi festival 2016 report.

Space Safari 2017

Because we were blessed by a visit the day before the festival would start, everything went smooth sailing when we arrived around 5pm at the festival grounds.

One of the jugglers at the festival. © The Stoned Society

It makes such a big difference if you’re going to a festival with what I’d call a family that looks after each other, eats together, but also lets you loose when you want to break free

The festival was already open since 2pm which resulted in a queue if you arrived early, but for us it only took about 15 minutes. Festival visitors could stay in the car and received a simple paper with instructions on where to go and the request to stay in the car until you had gone through the checkpoint.

We found our friends at the camping area and put up the tents, which after everything was said and done, we were able to start on our deliciously prepared Lamb Curry heated up in our friends camper van. From this moment on I knew things would be much easier than other festivals. Besides from Space Safari 2017 being a ‘home match’ for us (only 30 minutes drive), it makes such a big difference if you’re going to a festival with what I’d call a family that looks after each other, eats together, but also lets you loose when you want to break free.

Space Safari 2017
Space Stage chillings. © The Stoned Society

Space Safari 2017: Friday

But while I had done some walking around on the festival grounds, when we made it to the festival area through the tunnel and security point, I still managed to make a wrong (early) left turn. This lead to some 100-200 people including the security to be lead the wrong way. Hilarity ensued of course and because it was already dark, we made it straight to the main stage.

Space Safari 2017
Entrance to the Main Stage. © The Stoned Society

(…) I lead some 100-200 people including the security to be lead the wrong way, hilarity ensued

As expected and recommended, from the first day I remember Whrikk’s set as incredibly trippy at that point.

I hadn’t seen the main stage at night either, which had blacklight all around the dance floor. This obviously worked very well with the trippy clothes people wear. Same with the Grassroots hat I picked up earlier this year. If someone did want to find me, they could. And then there was the laser projection on the main stage, while the roof above you was trippy as fuck.

Space Safari 2017
Main Stage in the dark from a distance. © Suzy Seeds
Juggling Jaxx in action! © The Stoned Society
Space Safari 2017
Main Stage at night. © Interminded (click link for more incredible pictures).

And then there was the laser projection on the main stage, while the roof above you was trippy as fuck

Whrikk was continued by Derango ft. Purosurpo until 4 at night and continued the trippy, beating vibes. After that, music on the main stage stopped and we made it to the Space Stage to see if there was any music going on. There was, but not very loud. So we made it back to the camping and continued our own party and those who needed it, slept a bit to get some energy for what would be the craziest day of the weekend.

Space Safari 2017
No words for this… © The Stoned Society

Space Safari 2017: Saturday

Waking up to a a lovely sunny day, not too cold not too hot, we fixed ourselves up with a shower and toilet visit (which weren’t your usual Dixies, but proper toilets that functioned all weekend). Having had breakfast, we ate some more of the excellent Lamb Curry, smoked some and took our drops before we would find ourselves back on the dance floor at the mainstage.

Space Safari 2017
Main Stage by day. © The Stoned Society

I think when we finally made it, Atmos was already playing by then. Overjoyed by the people around me and possibly the mix of substances by then buzzing, I was for a while convinced I saw a girlfriend of mine which after a closer inspection of course wasn’t so. The next day I met her again and we laughed about it…

Space Safari 2017
Chilling at the main stage. © The Stoned Society

Dancing away the happy, primitive people dance as I like to call it. Why don’t we always dance like this?

I spend most of my time around the main stage dance floor, getting a taste of the great pizza and where we had a couple chillums while dancing away. The happy, primitive people dance as I like to call it. Why don’t we always dance like this?

When the mainstage was done for the day around 4 again, we regrouped at the Space Stage and had a Chai Tea before we would find ourselves back at the camping for a dabbing session for the after hours. It was already daytime for a couple hours until I gave in and went horizontal for a couple hours for the final day.

Space Safari 2017
After Hours… © The Stoned Society

Space Safari 2017: Sunday 

This day was spent mostly at the main stage again, where I bought a trippy t-shirt from psychedelic artist Neil Gibson that I hoped would come in handy for the night. However, the after party was cancelled due to noise complaints and Hashashin finished the weekend at the space stage at (sadly enough) minimum volume.

Space Safari 2017
Space Stage by day. © The Stoned Society

This day was spent mostly at the main stage again, where I bought a trippy t-shirt from psychedelic artist Neil Gibson

I had made some new friends by then and was formally adopted by a new family. Together we had a session and made it to the camping grounds, where with the darkness, light rain started to fall.

I figured it was time to say goodbye and go back to my family for The Stoned Society After Hours session.

After the sun had come up, it was time to get our act together and pack everything before 2pm when everyone was urged to leave. Luckily I got some help with my ‘2 second’ tent and cleaned up our area before we got home.

Hit it… © The Stoned Society

Conclusion

Space Safari 2017 was an adventure never to forget.

Sending out smoke signals, we shared love, peace, unity and respect

For me, it didn’t require more visitors, but there’d still fit a couple more. Still, I saw people from all over the world, including Native American looking people which can confuse the fuck out of you if you’re tripping. Sending out smoke signals, we shared love, peace, unity and respect.

As such, I would like to thank the Space Safari organisation for a wonderful job, my family and extended family for a mission into space that was summed up by a friend as the Space Safarian Stoned Project. I wholeheartedly agree.

Me doing the happy, primitive people dance as I like to call it 😀 © The Stoned Society

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Sonica 2017: Festival Review

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SONICA 2017

Text & Pictures by Jade Cox.

Set in the province of Tramotti di Sotto in North-Eastern Italy, the first thing we noticed as we headed to the Sonica 2017 site was the stunning natural beauty of the surrounding area. It is a mountainous area and the festival itself was in the bottom of a valley carved by a crystal-clear river. Access to the site from the north, as we were travelling, was via a 20km winding mountain path that was outstandingly beautiful, with countless shades of green, if a little hairy to travel on!

Sonica 2017
© The Stoned Society.

On arriving at the festival grounds, we parked up outside the gate and were able to unload from there before moving the car round to the car park. After a little confusion at the gate about our access, we entered and set up our camp. Since we had arrived a day early we went for a nap in the shade under a tree to be nice and fresh for the start of the party since the 14-hour drive had been quite tiring.

After our nap, we headed to the festival area, past the swimming area of the river, to check out the stages and the market which were still being built and gave a hand with putting up a tipi for one of the stalls. Some of the art around the Gaia stage was under construction but there was one prominent piece, a wooden sculpture of a troll, that was already finished.

Sonica 2017
© The Stoned Society.

This was in the late afternoon and the food stalls were not open for business until 9pm but we spoke to some people at an Indian food stall who gave us some delicious Indian sweets and set the tone for a great festival with very open and friendly people.

Sonica 2017
© The Stoned Society.

Sonica 2017: Day 1

The music was scheduled to start at 6pm so after a much-needed long sleep we got up late and went to look around the (now completed) market and met our neighbours at the camp site.

Their food was outstanding and many people we spoke to were saying it was the best Indian food they had ever had outside of India

Our neighbours were a group of Austrian guys who we would end up spending a lot of time with over the festival. We went to eat at the same Indian food stall (Dharamsala) and the owner Emrik refused to take payment from my pregnant wife for the entire festival, this is something that we are very grateful for and something you don’t really see at the bigger festivals. Their food was outstanding and many people we spoke to were saying it was the best Indian food they had ever had outside of India. At 6pm we went for the opening of the main (Solaris) stage where Flooting Grooves opened with a great live flute set which set a wonderful energy on the dance floor ready for the other artists follow up sets.

Sonica 2017
Sonica 2017 Main Stage daylight © The Stoned Society.

We stayed at the dance floor until the early hours of the morning when we went to bed for a fresh start the next day.

Sonica 2017: Day 2

On awaking, we headed off to the far end of the camp site as we had been told there was a restaurant there which is used for the camping ground and so is a permanent structure. Nearly all the other food stalls were completely vegetarian and since we are not vegetarians, we thought we would check it out.

The rest of the night was spent between the Solaris and Gaia stages

They had several Italian dishes such as pasta, gnocchi and pizza, all nice and simple but very tasty, as Italian food should be. We chilled at the camp site and met some Australian girls who were camping next to us and spent some time chatting before heading off to see Static Movement at the main stage. The rest of the night was spent between the Solaris and Gaia stages but there was a bit of a problem with the sound at the Gaia stage and a few people were complaining about it.

Sonica 2017
Sonica 2017 GAIA Stage at night © The Stoned Society.

The highs and lows sounded fine but the midrange was a bit over-powered and hard on the ears. A highlight of the night for us was the set from Diksha at the Solaris stage at 23:30, he totally killed it.

Sonica 2017
Sonica 2017 Main Stage at night © The Stoned Society.

Once the tempo at the main stage increased at around 1-2am (from full-on to dark and hi-tech) we headed to bed as the hard, fast end of psytrance is not really our cup of tea. On our way back, we were blessed with a meteor shower so we lay outside watching the sky for some time which was really the icing on the cake for a tremendous day.

Sonica 2017: Day 3

Met a member of the Eco-Team and discussed the efforts made by them on-site. They did a really good job of keeping the site clean and provided both general waste and recycling bags to everyone, including a portable ash tray as seen at most of the other festivals these days. Although, it was a bit strange that the portable ash tray didn’t come with a lid. They were also responsible for looking after the toilet and shower facilities which, for the most part, were extremely clean for a festival and were always well stocked with their natural, lotus flower soap which we were asked to use to prevent pollution of the river. The bars were also offering a glass full of beer for a glass of cigarette butts.

Sonica 2017
Sonica 2017 campfire at market© The Stoned Society.

Sonica 2017: Day 4

We had run out of cash by this day and decided to take a trip into the nearby village. It was only a 15-minute walk up a hill from the festival entrance and was a typical small, Italian, mountain village with colourful architecture and very friendly residents.

Sonica 2017
© The Stoned Society.

After going to the ATM, we had a beer in a biker restaurant and went to the local store to get some food. On returning to the festival we hit the dancefloor for another night of full-on energy and great vibes.

Sonica 2017: Day 5

We spent a lot of time at the stages this day, soaking in the atmosphere and dancing. We left an inflatable bed at the dancefloor since, with her pregnancy, my wife needed a comfortable place to sit. We happily walked around the market while leaving it at the stage, safe in the knowledge that people may use it but it’s unlikely that anyone would take it since the festival was so full of awesome people.

Sonica 2017: Day 6

Final day, must get plenty of dancing and juggling in! Tristan was scheduled as the final act on the Solaris stage at 18:30 and he played a brilliant set to end the festival including some encores.

Sonica 2017
Sonica 2017 Main Stage © The Stoned Society.

Once the main stage had finished, the Gaia stage was still active into the night. We set ourselves down at a clothes stall near the stage and had a long chat with the owner of this and the Indian restaurant we mentioned previously.

Departure

Such a sad day, the end of a journey. We have met many wonderful people and had many enjoyable times. We didn’t hang around long in the morning and just headed off as soon as we were all alive and well. The journey home was uneventful but that is usually a good thing after such an eventful week at Sonica 2017!

Dharamsala Feature

We met Emrik, the owner of the Indian restaurant Dharamsala and his team on the very first day we arrived as we were searching for a food stall.

Sonica 2017

He presented us with homemade ladoos (besan and motichur) and asked to come back for dinner at 9pm. He had made dal and rice with salad. I chatted with him for a while and he told me what his plans were for the whole festival. He intended to keep no menu but to serve something different every single day, and boy did he do a good job!

He intended to keep no menu but to serve something different every single day, and boy did he do a good job!

To name a few of the curry’s he was serving were potato fenugreek leaves, potato capsicum, red kidney beans, lentils and vegetable noodles. A plate full of rice and curry always came with poppadum and raita (cucumber and carrots with yoghurt). For the people who love chillies, they had something special waiting, a paste of green chillies with garlic and onion also known as green chilly chutney. Throughout the day people could savour samosa with chai or just chutney and salad. All the dishes were vegetarian and the samosas were a consistently available snack until they ran out on the 6th day of the festival.

He had gulab jamun and coconut sweets along with mango lassi throughout.

If you find them at any festival then do not forget to try out his food

His generosity can not only be spoken of, but also seen, he gave me food for free the whole time for any amount and any time of the day. He even shared his samosa recipe with me, which I will be preparing soon. I am just so overwhelmed and happy that finally at this festival far away from home I get a taste of home after 2 and half years. I will be forever thankful and wish him all the luck. Emrik and his team have stalls at many of the festivals around Europe, especially in the vicinity of Vienna. If you find them at any festival then do not forget to try out his food. Trust me, you won’t be disappointed, and this is coming from someone who criticizes food every time she eats out.

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AUM Ritual 2017: Festival Review

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AUM Ritual

Pictures: Mystical Pics.

It had been 10 years ago since the legendary Forgotten Ritual was organised in the Swiss Jura Mountains. But this year saw the return of familiar and new faces to these sacred grounds for AUM Ritual. We were lucky enough to attend and what follows below is a written recollection of memories based on my notes and conversations.

AUM Ritual Day 0: Thursday

We arrived late in the night at the festival grounds, where we had to leave the car behind and be driven by a shuttle up the mountain. We had to pay 5 euros/francs fee each for this nightly trip, but it turned out you had to pay this each time you would make use of the shuttle services. From a visitor point of view, this can be very annoying, but organisation wise I understand why they choose to do so. Having constant traffic up and down the hill while people are indulging themselves, is also a particular safety measure. It would be nice however if after you paid the fee, next trips would be free of charge.

Moving on to the camping area, it took us a while in the dark to find a horizontal place on the mountain to put up our tents. But we managed and got some sleep before the festival would start.

AUM Ritual
AUM Ritual camping by day. © MysticalPics.ch

AUM Ritual Day 1: Friday

After having woken up, a seemingly estranged being was moving himself quickly over the camping grounds and as he got closer, turned out to be a friend of ours. We catched up and decided to go for a walk along the festival grounds. Here we met DJ Milosz, one of the main organisers and who would play when the night kicked in.

But not before we had the opening ceremony, in which Milosz himself reminded us to set our intentions firsthand.

AUM Ritual
Opening ritual. © MysticalPics.ch

Musically we started off with Robert Rich’s chillout set however, which left many people wandering around or simply getting ready for some dancing later in the night. It added up perfectly to the magical feeling you would get high up on the hillside.

AUM Ritual
Robert Rich at AUM Ritual. © MysticalPics.ch

At the top of the hill at the back of the festival grounds, we found a beautiful, huge tree stump that would easily fit 4 people. Perfect spot to make a sunset chillum and sharing it with some new friends we made.

We had dinner at the Italian pasta and crepes place, which took a while but was explained by the absence of a second Italian catering team who were supposed to come with a pizza oven. While there was also a vegan catering, this also meant there was no meat available at the festival. A big loss for some, for others it didn’t matter. Either way I’m sure someone will fill in this gap next year.

AUM Ritual
Crêpes and pasta at the Italian foodstand. © MysticalPics.ch
AUM Ritual
Vegan food. © MysticalPics.ch
AUM Ritual
AUM Ritual bar. © MysticalPics.ch

The first night continued with DJ Milosz, Takaaki Itoh and more techno well into the next day, with no musical breaks.

AUM Ritual
DJ Milosz opening the night.

I believe around sunrise I went back to the camping for a fire, some more food and sleep.

AUM Ritual Day 2: Saturday

Waking up around 11, we had some coffee and a sugar cube with our breakfast after we ventured back to the festival grounds. The camping and festival grounds were on the same piece of land, only divided by a little house from presumably the owner. There was only one security guy here usually, pointing out you couldn’t bring glass on the festival site for example. But otherwise you weren’t bothered.

‘You can’t always get what you want’

Meanwhile, Gaudi was playing on the main stage. Apart from the main stage, there was only a chillout stage. Of course, some people might like to see more stages, but this meant everyone was on the same level and with a lineup like this, it would always be good anyways.

AUM Ritual
Gaudi at AUM Ritual.

Gaudi’s live performance was terrific and ended up with the highly ironic ‘You can’t always get what you want’ for the enthusiastically dancing crowd.

After a refresh and some food, coffee and beers at our campfire we would head back to the festival grounds for Atriohm’s set around 1.00. We catched up with him at the Italian food stand and it was interesting to witness how a DJ gets ready.

AUM Ritual
Atriohm at AUM Ritual. © MysticalPics.ch

His set was phenomenal and one of the highlights of the festival for me. But what happened afterwards is difficult to remember, only that around 7.30 AM I had to lay down for a while.

AUM Ritual Day 3: Sunday

I woke up either from the heat or the clanging bells of the neighbouring field of sheep and with music still going on at the mainstage. It would’ve been nice to take a shower, but much more than two buckets to clean your hair wasn’t available.

AUM Ritual
Showers © MysticalPics.ch

Some people brought sun showers, others just continued on their ‘no shit, no shower, full power’ mission. Toilets, especially the eco toilet at the festival grounds, were fine however.

Around 15:00, an interesting ritual took place at the main stage as a collective jam session united people in joy.

AUM Rituial
© MysticalPics.ch

Not much later, I finally got to meet Whrikk who would play later early in the night. Here too we found a funny Belgian collective from Ghent we met before.

Somewhere this afternoon I leveled-up after eating Super Mario’s favorite treats, which was great for that afternoon but sadly enough also made me so tired around the night I managed to miss Kindzadza, which my friends liked to point out long afterwards as the musical highlight of the festival. Or maybe I just blew too much of my energy on dancing during Whrikk…

AUM Ritual
Whrikk at AUM Ritual. © MysticalPics.ch

AUM Ritual Day 4: Monday

I thoroughly enjoyed this final, extra day. I got back to the dancefloor after the morning ritual around 12:30, where DJ Milosz and his brother Carol played roughly throughout the day. I especially liked this set Carol played around 18:00 and the D&B in the afternoon!

AUM Ritual
Carol playing Monday afternoon. © MysticalPics.ch

The festival would finish around 20.00, but not before blasting the beautiful and unexpected Atom Heart Mother from Pink Floyd.

We hung around, conversed with the new friends we had made, said goodbyes and eventually made it back to the campsite before leaving the next day.

AUM Ritual
Last moments and goodbyes.

AUM Ritual 2017: Last Words

Intentions and rituals are keywords of the thoughts I’ve been having since AUM Ritual. It is important to set your intentions first and make them clear, not just for this festival but in general. The same with rituals. Festivals are one big ritual, composed of many smaller rituals whereas it be making food, coffee, dancing, love…

Intentions and rituals are keywords of the thoughts I’ve been having since AUM Ritual

I was happy to be able to see Milosz and have a quick chat before we left too. He reminded me this wasn’t a psytrance festival as I wrote in the warm-up article, but rather a rave. I liked it very much actually and the various music genres that passed, I think everyone who likes to party would enjoy. Through this building up and shuffling from acoustic/chillout to dub, to techno, tekno, Psytrance and Old School Goa, you aren’t left seeking other kinds of music as you sometimes have with other festivals. Everything was present and diverse!

As promised, the water upstream was clean and none of us got sick after regularly drinking from it. A good reminder why we should be more careful with our water reserves and nature in general.

Clean water from the mountains. © MysticalPics.ch

Milosz also reminded me to be honest in my review and there are certainly points of improvement, but I believe they’ve really set the base for what has to become a 3 year project.

Big thank you to Milosz, Carol and the dedicated crew who made this all possible. And if you attended the festival, considering making a donation because while the atmosphere was incredible, more people were expected to show up. Fore more pictures of AUM Ritual, visit the Mystical Pics page. There’s many more festival pictures up there too. Like to continue reading? Check out some of our other festival reviews

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Analysis: Legal ‘Cannabis Light’ in Switzerland

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We were in Switzerland this summer for a festival and as such, while we’re there, we also figured it was a good idea to pick up some ‘Cannabis Light’: cannabis with less than 1% of THC and instead, CBD.

Cannabis Light: available in supermarkets?

Having heard much about them, we stumbled upon an empty package at first at the festival. It weren’t cigarettes however, much more a package for rolling tobacco. What caught our attention immediately were the typical tobacco warnings on the package. Someone tipped us off they were available at a grocery shop chain, COOP.

Cannabis Light
CPure by Biocan. © The Stoned Society.

As such, having left the festival, we ended up in Lausanne and decided to walk into a small COOP supermarket. It turned out to be a rather small one and they had no Cannabis Light stocked up. So the myth of the Cannabis Light being available everywhere, was immediately debunked.

The cigarettes themselves were flying off the shelves and they were all out of stock

But only a couple doors from the COOP, we found a tobacco shop that did grant success. I immediately saw some packages under the glass counter, but decided to ask in my best French for some ‘Hanf’ (woops… meant Chanvre!) Cannabis Light. As it turned out, the cigarettes themselves were flying off the shelves and they were all out of stock. The woman behind the counter explained this was for her the reason to delve into the subject matter of CBD.

What was available were about 10, maybe 15 different kind of Cannabis Light products. They all varied in packaging, branding and in the end I simply picked 3 of which CPURE by BioCan, SOMA by CBDistrict and Black Widow by Future Grow. For a more detailed individual review of these products, make sure to click through.

Cannabis Light
Soma by CBDistrict © The Stoned Society.

They weren’t exactly cheap, as I found out when wanting to pay. For 3 grams of CPure you pay 25 Swiss Francs (21 euros), the 1.2 grams of Soma by CBDistrict 19 Francs (16 euros) and for the 1.68 grams of Black Widow you pay 24.90 Francs (20 euros). Then again, the average income in Switzerland is around 3000 euros a month. About double the average income in the Netherlands for example.

They weren’t exactly cheap

Opening the package of SOMA and CPure, immediately gave a nice smell and good looking buds. Which I found to be more odd than the actual Swiss CBD cigarettes, considering these are bought at a tobacco shop. Only the Black Widow disappointed: after opening the package the buds are still in a baggie. Whereas you would think they’d move on from ‘drug paraphernalia’…

Cannabis Light
Why the baggie?! © The Stoned Society

it is also a little bit boring

But the SOMA and CPure were actually not bad at all. However, it is also a little bit boring. You don’t share a a CBD cigarette with a friend for example. There’s no point. They do burn just fine. Mixing with tobacco (like a joint) is a no-go.

In addition to it being ridiculous, considering it’s branded a tobacco replacement, it also doesn’t taste good with regular tobacco at all.

Cannabis Light
CPURE by Biocan. © The Stoned Society.

So Cannabis Light: Yay, or nay?

Coming from a Dutch, quasi legal, point of view: this Cannabis Light is more like a gimmick. For the Swiss themselves though, it is a huge improvement for the normalisation. People are buying it and using it. You can also see how they can easily make the switch to serve THC too.

Cannabis Light should be considered a wake-up call

For the rest of the world, it should be considered a wake-up call. The tobacco industry in Switzerland is huge, you see fields everywhere, and this seems very much like a testcase of how they can play a role in the cannabis industry.

Especially for the Dutch styled coffeeshops, but also for Cannabis Social Clubs and dispensaries, they should take into consideration the possibility of a future without neither. The tobacco industry is more than capable to cultivate and distribute cannabis. They already have the logistics, farmers and outlets selling products everywhere…

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HomeGrown Cup 2017 Winners

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HomeGrown Cup 2017 winners

After a successful second edition in 2016 and a try out in 2015, we’re proud to present the results of the HomeGrown Cup 2017!

It was a very close competition that saw a great variation of winners. The big winner was Lady Sativa Genetics, taking home the Mostly Indica Indoor (Super Orange Glue), Mostly Sativa Indoor (Orange Diesel v3) and second place in the Solventless (Marmalade) categories.

Considering these wins, but also checking out the other categories and flavors, you may very well conclude that orange is the new black indeed…

We hereby would also like to thank all the competitors, location, team and the sponsors who made this event possible.

So big thank you to Amsterdam Seed Center, Heatex Glass, Greengo, Biotabs, Vaposhop and Flowermate. And prize/media sponsors Dutch Passion, International Highlife and Abscent Bags Europe.

Now without further ado…

HomeGrown Cup 2017 Winners

Hint: use the right arrow to scroll to the right, or open the link in Instagram.

It was a very close competition that saw a great variation of winners. The big winner was @ladysativagenetic, taking home the Mostly Indica Indoor (Super Orange Glue), Mostly Sativa Indoor (Orange Diesel v3) and second place in the Solventless (Marmalade) categories. Considering these wins, but also checking out the other categories and flavors, you may very well conclude that orange is the new black indeed. We hereby would also like to thank all the competitors, location, team and the sponsors who made this event possible. So big thank you to @amsterdamseedcenter, @heatexglassbong, @greengoproducts, @biotabsorganics, @vaposhop and @flowermatevapes. And prize/media sponsors @dutchpassionseedcompany, @international_highlife, @abscent.eu & @thestonedsociety. Pictures to follow shortly 👊 #HomeGrownCup #HGC2017 #CannabisCup

Een bericht gedeeld door HomeGrown Cup (@homegrowncup) op

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4th HomeGrown Cup Registration Has Been Opened

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We are proud to announce that the registration for the 4th annual HomeGrown Cup has been opened. As of today, the new website went online and here you can find all the information you need to know how you can participate in the 4th edition of the HomeGrown Cup on December 15 in Eindhoven.

Several questions are already answered on the website itself, but a couple of things are new or improved compared to previous editions.

Registration process

HomeGrown Cup 2018
Visit homegrowncup.nl to register!

Registration is done entirely via the website. This is accompanied for the first time by an entry fee of 50 euros. This transaction takes place when your registration has been approved. Only then is your registration complete.

Mostly, registrations are approved, but the organization reserves the right to reject a registration. For example, because we are not convinced that you are professional enough to enter the solvent category, or because you are not a registered company and still want to join the CBD category.

Solvent category

Not entirely coincidentally we take those two examples of the 8 categories in total. You can join all other categories, as long as you have the necessary equipment. In the solvent category, you can not just join in. Among other things, because we fear (too many) impure products when people start producing BHO in their kitchen.

We also do not want to encourage people to a potentially dangerous process with a possibility of blowing up. So if you do not have the equipment, there are 6 other categories that you can join.

CBD category

Because we can not test in advance (you take your entry on the day itself), we can not guarantee that the weed is really CBD weed. This category is new and is a trial, in which the jury panel consists of a number of CBD weed users from abroad where CBD is legal. They can best tell whether the cannabis (guaranteed by the seed banks) is really CBD and can describe it better.

All other 6 categories (Outdoor, Indoor Mostly Sativa, Indoor Mostly Indica, Drysift Hash, Nederhash, Rosin) you can join. The quantities required are listed on the registration form at the bottom of the website.

No longer free

the registration fee is also meant as a security, so that participants actually appear on the day itself

With the registration fee, we want to ensure that we do not have to save on things like making t-shirts for every participant. We could only do it for the crew in the past. We are working together again with Whrikk for the graphics, so expect a real must have! In addition, the registration fee is also meant as a security, so that participants actually appear on the day itself.

For the time being, we can further report that a new location has traditionally been found (but we are going to look at a few more possible options before we make the decision where it takes place). BiotabsGreenGo and Heatex Glass have already pledged to be the first sponsors we can welcome back. Sponsors can also still join via the website.

Testing and further reading

After two failed attempts at testing the entries (at least the winners) afterward, we hope to make it happen this year. Once it went wrong due to family circumstances at a lab tester, the second time because we were dissatisfied with the test method.

For the rest, expect a lot from the same. You can read what you can expect in the articles linked to at the ‘HomeGrown Cup in the Media‘ section on the website.

Wil the warm weather really has done well this year or has it done more damage? We are going to see it on December 15 in Eindhoven!

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