Red Light District
This is my WS entry for this week.
Since I know that some of my blogger friends are interested to see the popular tourist spot- Red Light District in Amsterdam, I’ve decided to share some photos to give them or you who have never been there, an idea how the place looks like. My husband and I walked pass the area 2 weeks ago so that I can capture few shots.
The area is bustling with shops that sell sex toys, videos, garments..just about all paraphernalia that men can think of, you’ll surely find them there.
a ‘working girl‘ pays tax to do her work and yes, it is still legal in The Netherlands, but just few weeks ago, there was a news that the current Amsterdam mayor is making a move to close down the district. I am not sure if he’ll be able to do it though.
Below is one of the narrow streets where you can find windows from both left and right side…what are those windows for?…
it’s where men who visit the district choose their girls who usually would stand or sit behind the glass …yes, you can see their whole appearance
and if a girl is working, you’ll only see red curtain.
You can see all types of women here, different nationalities, old,young, sexy, pretty, not so pretty, medium built to heavy-set type…they really cater to every man’s fantasy. Photos are not allowed here so I made sure that I didn’t capture a single girl standing behind a glass.
How does it feel for someone like me, an Asian, to walk in this area? When I saw it the first time many years ago, I felt sad especially when I saw Asians behind the windows. But by educating myself and understanding why they do what they do, the feeling of sadness slowly turned into acceptance. Not that I agree with what they do but people sometimes have no other alternatives…besides, who am I to judge?
Have a good week, everyone! and btw if you find the time, here’s my other WS entry..thank you!
Call me Thess. Married to a wonderful Dutchman.
April 21st, 2008 at 12:26 pm
interesting post, thess! have a great week!
tin’s last blog post..WS 7: Rainbow Larakeet
April 21st, 2008 at 3:21 pm
Thanks Tin, have a good one too =)
April 21st, 2008 at 3:47 pm
There is an honesty about this that we don’t find in many other places.
SandyCarlson’s last blog post..Weekend Snapshot: Soft Women, Steely Men in Williamsburg, Virginia
April 21st, 2008 at 4:13 pm
personally, hindi ako sangayon sa prostitution as a “career”. pero sabi mo nga, sino tayo para mag-judge kung ito ang “napili” nilang gawing hanapbuhay. huwag lang papahuli ang asawa ko sa akin na pumupunta dito, hehehe!
salamat for sharing! *muah*
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April 21st, 2008 at 5:12 pm
nakakasad talaga sa una, pero tama ang sinabi mo, choice nila yun eh, let’s just respect what they want.
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April 21st, 2008 at 5:31 pm
di ako nagawi pala dyan nun sa keukenhof lang. oo tama sino ba tayo para i judge sila. dito nga consider na legal work nagbabayad sila ng tax.
maligayang lunes neybor
April 22nd, 2008 at 6:42 am
Interesting.. I’m wondering why the street is so narrow
Its interesting that you don’t see mannequins but real people doing a selling job
It must be pretty tiring showcasing yourself to the public the whole darn day 
bw’s last blog post..8 Random Facts ++
April 22nd, 2008 at 7:13 am
so yan pala yung the most-popular place in Amsterdam na napanood ko sa tv,it’s like Ermita(here in Manila) European version. :)
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April 27th, 2008 at 1:07 am
hindi ako nakasali sa WS last week. alam mo, everyone of our friends who has been to amsterdam would always talk about the red light district! medyo hindi talaga maganda ang image ng amsterdam. madami na rin kasi kaming kilalang nadukutan sa tren! hahaha! red light district ng frankfurt naman ang nakita ko na. hee hee. salamat sa mga litrato. ;)
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April 28th, 2008 at 10:35 am
I’ll be peeking through all those windows if I were there
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April 28th, 2008 at 4:53 pm
very informative, thanks for sharing thess!
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April 29th, 2008 at 2:45 pm
Thess, Pinky and I were fortunate to visit Amsterdam a few years back. It was beautiful. However, I must say that the Red Light district is one of the more popular “tourist” sites so I don’t know what the Mayor plans to do when he closes the site down.
We walked around the district and found it to be shocking at first. Those small windows/rooms plus the neon lights make the women look scary rather than attractive. After a while, naawa na rin kami because of their chosen profession. I’m sure most of them would have chosen a different “career” if they had a choice.
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