Red Light District

Screwedupworld · 31/01/2023 11:33

It personally wouldn’t bother me in the slightest if they were just looking.. I trust my partner to not do anything.

geeteetoo · 31/01/2023 11:36

I love going to the red light district! It fascinates me. My partner and I always have a walk around.

If he went with friends etc I wouldn't care as I trust him!! It's not like he'd go in and pay a sex worker!

discobrain · 31/01/2023 11:38

Wouldn't bother me. I'm currently single, but I would be fine with it and if I were there (obviously not on a stag do) I'd take a look myself. Some of my friends are sexworkers, and I wish it were safer for them as it is in Amsterdam.

rwalker · 31/01/2023 11:38

Thought everyone one went it’s one of the sights of the city

even in laws in there 70’s went for a look lol

PousseyNotMoira · 31/01/2023 11:38

It wouldn’t occur to me to be bothered by this, tbh. I’ve visited it during a hen. It’s a really fun area, I’m in favour of legalised and safely monitored sex work, and my husband isn’t going to cheat on me.

GoodChat · 31/01/2023 11:39

Walking down the street? Fine. Entering any of the premises? Deal breaker.

Palmfrond · 31/01/2023 11:39

I found it unspeakably grim, but I know for many men a hole is a hole, and visiting (using?) prostitutes on lads’ weekends away is nothing more than a jolly jape and a bit of banter fodder.
Only you can say what your partner is like, and in reality the red light district in central Amsterdam is nowadays very limited and is as much as anything a spectacle for tourists to gawp at.

FuckabethFuckor · 31/01/2023 11:40

Because of where it is and how Amsterdam is laid out, often you need to go through it to get to other parts of the city anyway. Especially if you’re arriving into Centraal station.

Palmfrond · 31/01/2023 11:45

PousseyNotMoira · 31/01/2023 11:38

It wouldn’t occur to me to be bothered by this, tbh. I’ve visited it during a hen. It’s a really fun area, I’m in favour of legalised and safely monitored sex work, and my husband isn’t going to cheat on me.

Fair enough, but you don’t have to scratch the surface by much to find the baseline of organised crime which underpins much of the touristy areas of Amsterdam. The Dutch pretty much painted themselves into a corner with some of their more liberal legislation. Amsterdam is such a gorgeous city, but from about midday onwards the central part becomes pretty fucking gross. In my opinion.

Divebar2021 · 31/01/2023 11:46

I would assume every stag party in Amsterdam will go there and everyone will also smoke.

SquigglePigs · 31/01/2023 11:47

DH has wandered through before on a trip with mates before we were married. It didn't occur to me to be bothered or to worry. It's not like I thought he would partake of any "services" so not sure what there is to be concerned about really.

SquigglePigs · 31/01/2023 11:48

FuckabethFuckor · 31/01/2023 11:40

Because of where it is and how Amsterdam is laid out, often you need to go through it to get to other parts of the city anyway. Especially if you’re arriving into Centraal station.

That reminds me that DH did say they seemed to accidentally walk through it a few times that weekend just going from one place to another - they were teasing one of their mates that he was doing it on purpose!

mindutopia · 31/01/2023 11:49

Do you mean going into a brothel? Or walking through? It's pretty hard to walk around the nightlife areas of Amsterdam and not wander through the red light district. It's seedy, but not seedy in a way that it's only punters looking for a sex worker. When I was there, there were families wandering past on the way home from dinner and entire tour groups of pensioners meandering through. Dh has been on a stag do in Amsterdam and it wouldn't have even occurred to me to ask if he'd gone or not. I did as well when I went on a work trip.

PousseyNotMoira · 31/01/2023 11:56

Palmfrond · 31/01/2023 11:45

Fair enough, but you don’t have to scratch the surface by much to find the baseline of organised crime which underpins much of the touristy areas of Amsterdam. The Dutch pretty much painted themselves into a corner with some of their more liberal legislation. Amsterdam is such a gorgeous city, but from about midday onwards the central part becomes pretty fucking gross. In my opinion.

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You’re certainly entitled to your opinion, but not sure why you’re telling it to me?

Kolakalia · 31/01/2023 12:03

Visit? Wouldn't bother me in the slightest. Whenever I've been to Amsterdam I've walked around it too.

If by visit you mean 'pay for the services of a sex worker' then obviously for me that would be divorceworthy.

Scienceadvisory · 31/01/2023 12:04

Perhaps all those posters who think the red light district is a bit of fun should actually do some reding into what actually happens there. The fact some of you are getting enjoyment from the sex trafficking of women is disgusting.

AngelDelightUK · 31/01/2023 12:05

Wouldn’t bother me. I went with a female friend and we went to a sex show. My ex didn’t mind at all

SallyWD · 31/01/2023 12:18

I would have thought the only reason men go to Amsterdam for stag does is to visit the Red light district. I'd be amazed if my husband and the other stags DIDN'T go. That's not to say I'd like it. I wouldn't. I'd imagine that out of a group of men, several would pay to use prostitutes if they were there. I really hope my husband wouldn't but I feel you can never be 100% sure what goes on in someone else's head.

Palmfrond · 31/01/2023 12:19

PousseyNotMoira · 31/01/2023 11:56

You’re certainly entitled to your opinion, but not sure why you’re telling it to me?

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Because you seem to be under the impression that the red light district in Amsterdam is fun and wholesome and without a deeply unpleasant underbelly which includes human trafficking and the distribution of hard drugs such as heroin.
The women in the windows might not be trafficked, but you can be sure their pimps/enforcers are deeply linked to organised crime.
Im not attacking you personally, it’s a commonly held belief that the drug and sex trades in the Netherlands are fun and fluffy and wholesome. They’re absolutely not.

Neverhand · 31/01/2023 12:24

Sort of depends.

How old he was, had he been before, who with etc?

To be honest though, visiting Amsterdam with a bunch of men/lads/stag night is going to end one way for at least some of them. I say this as someone who has been many times and has also worked there on and off.

Weed (for me in my time too!) and sex are big attractions. And it's naive to think sex in some form wouldn't be on some of their agendas. Doesn't mean they're all going to sleep with a prostitute but.. some probably will.

I have spent some much time there and actually have mostly managed to avoid the red light district. You can do. It upset me so much.

I understand why anyone wants to go and look once. But if youve been, the only human reaction is horror really. So wanting to go back to gawp I think, especially over the age of say, 25... is grim to me.

Can't bear this gawping freak show attitude- many of these women are young, trafficked (yes, even in Amsterdam), abused. Christ, it's the biggest con, liberals using it as some sort of proof sex work can be more civilised. Fucking gross.

Neverhand · 31/01/2023 12:30

So guess it depends on your view on sex work per se. My partner has been many times. Before me. I know men he was with slept with prostitutes. I have to trust he didn't with no other evidence. I know many "right on" men that have done there too (often married leftie academics), but somehow wouldn't in the UK. Holiday mentality is it?

I actually wouldn't like it if my partner went now. Not because I necessarily think he would do anything himself, but I'd be wondering why his group of mates chose there and what sort of middle aged men would chose that destination. Wouldn't take a genius to be fair. Not sure id be into that sort of attitude now. But I'm an uncompromising old feminist. Don't give a shit anymore, I'll call it out, and also the cool girl attitude that encourages, or least enables, this shit.

TreesAtSea · 31/01/2023 12:34

Scienceadvisory · 31/01/2023 12:04

Perhaps all those posters who think the red light district is a bit of fun should actually do some reding into what actually happens there. The fact some of you are getting enjoyment from the sex trafficking of women is disgusting.

This

PousseyNotMoira · 31/01/2023 12:36

Palmfrond · 31/01/2023 12:19

Because you seem to be under the impression that the red light district in Amsterdam is fun and wholesome and without a deeply unpleasant underbelly which includes human trafficking and the distribution of hard drugs such as heroin.
The women in the windows might not be trafficked, but you can be sure their pimps/enforcers are deeply linked to organised crime.
Im not attacking you personally, it’s a commonly held belief that the drug and sex trades in the Netherlands are fun and fluffy and wholesome. They’re absolutely not.

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How very patronising. Every major city in the world has ‘a deeply unpleasant underbelly which includes human trafficking and the distribution of hard drugs such as heroin’. Every major city has organised crime. Yet we don’t cower in our homes. At least I don’t.

Again, my response to OP:

Amsterdam is fun and a lot of the nightlife is centred around the Red Light District.
I am in favour of legalised and monitored sex work.
I am not worried about my husband hiring a sex worker, so the existence of legalised sex work wherever he happens to be isn’t a major concern.

So, thanks for your input.

Naunet · 31/01/2023 12:38

I’d find it pretty disgusting that someone’s idea of entertainment is to go and gawp at trafficked and exploited women, ‘for a laugh’.

https://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/appalling-truth-about-amsterdams-red-light-district/A4RMWQUM5RWIAY6RNDHKRWJAQ4/

2bazookas · 31/01/2023 12:41

I went there with DH.

Trust me, visiting the red light district in Amsterdam bears the same relation to naughty sex, as watching David Attenborough in Africa is related to killing lions for fun.