Sex shops line the streets. The number of "adult book stores" seems totally excessive, like Starbucks is in the US. Do we need that many choices for where to buy a dildo? Drug dealers dot every corner and aggressively push the harder drugs not found in the coffee shops.

It can be an experience that shocks the system.

To some, I bet *my* life seems "Other worldly."
I think my wacky life of late is affecting my experience in Amsterdam. Have I pushed my life too far? Have my experiences left me callused?

Or am I just lucky to be living the things that serve as system jolts for *other* people?