GANJA GLOBETROTTING
Around the world in 420 days. It's SKUNK's global-scale coverage of the marijuana scene.
by Niski Quezada, Ramoy
Ajamihk, Alun and Dean from the Original Sensible Seed Company, Toni of
Eva Seeds, Harry Resin, Johnny Vee, Ed Rosenthal, Green House Seed
Company, Moose and South Bay Ray
PRAGUE HAS ALWAYS BEEN the gem
of Eastern Europe. The city is the gateway between East and West, which
is reflected in the stunning architecture. It also happens to be an
absolutely perfect city for walking around blazed-out and getting lost
in its myriad of small, winding streets. Prague is not the first city
that comes to mind when talking about the global cannabis scene but
thats changingfast. The owner of one of the local growshops mentioned
that every day there is an increase in people coming in to get grow
gear. This is a great indication of how things are going. More and more
people deciding to grow their own; a new scene is emerging.
Prague recently hosted its first Cannabis and
Hemp Expo this past September. The show was held in an old warehouse
space that had an old, romantic vibe to it. The ceilings were arched and
at least 30 feet high, giving a classic feel to the space. The expo
halls were packed with plenty of booths devoted to the promotion of
cannabis and many of the larger companies based out of the Netherlands
were there, like Advanced Nutrients Europe, Canna and Plagron. The
massive equipment wholesalers were there as well, serving notice to how
big a cannabis territory the Czech Republic is quickly becoming. There
were also a ton of local grow shops and head shops representing the
Czech Republic. Most of the seed companies were in attendance as well.
From Sensi to Green House; they were all there claiming their stake.
The space itself allowed only tobacco smoking,
so a tent was set up outside in front of the venue where you were able
to smoke ganja. It seemed open, as people were blazing away all day on
Friday, the first day of the show. Having visited Prague a few times, I
was aware of the fact that they had decriminalized personal possession
up to twenty grams. On previous trips there was open rolling and open
consumption of joints as we walked down the streets. It never really
felt like there was an issue. One of the bigger dance clubs even let us
smoke on their terrace. Therefore, it was quite a shock when on Saturday
the news spread that Soma had been arrested.
A Dutch magazine called Essensie had decided to
use the expo to launch their Czech-language version. It featured Soma on
the cover and he was scheduled to speak on Saturday. During his
lecture, he handed his girlfriend his joint and passed the hash pipe
around after he had finished speaking. Some burly-looking, old-style KGB
types followed Soma from the stage and through the expo. As he walked
towards one of the booths, the two men approached him, flashed a badge
and told him he was under arrest. As the weekend unfolded, we would come
to learn that Soma was arrested for promoting Cannabis. We were told
that passing a joint can be considered trafficking suddenly an air of
caution descended upon us. We were still smoking, but a little more
carefully.
Read the rest and more in SKUNK volume 6, issue 7
