Zurich

Law Enforcement

Police often looked the other way if you were discreet. The lake felt riskier than indoors. If you did get stopped, people expected a ticket and a fine, and said under-18s could be held until their parents came. The newer Marijuana Laws section distinguishes small-amount possession from consumption, which the experiences here often blur.

Where to Buy Marijuana

“I live here. After 2004 there aren’t any more headshops. It’s so difficult to find anything now!”

Street buying around Langstrasse, Zürich’s red-light district, was risky. At Sihlquai, Wolf, an American who lived in town for several months, counted five to ten people selling hash by a pedestrian crossing. There was some grass, mostly miserable quality. From Hauptbahnhof, the route took you past the National Museum and over the Gessner Bridge across the Sihl. Before the headshops disappeared, they were another option. Some sellers had a habit of mixing in tobacco. Locals still swore by the hash.

Marijuana Prices

50 Swiss francs, about US$40 at the time, bought four grams of top-quality pot or around seven grams of good hash. Prices had stayed steady for the previous few years.

Types of Marijuana

Some of the Amsterdam names turned up, including Super Skunk and Northern Lights. Opinions ran from “only top quality” to Wolf’s “mostly miserable quality” grass on the street.

Switzerland, GMT/UTC+1, calling code +41.

Along the Sihl and through Old Town

Zürich is Switzerland’s largest city and its financial center. It also had a reputation as the most drug-friendly city in the country, with laws that felt relaxed enough for some people to smoke fairly openly.

Gabe, another American living in Zurich, recalled Langstrasse differently. “Sometimes you have to pay attention so you don't get robbed,” he said. “Remember, where there are drug dealers, there's also the police. Take care whatever you do.”

Langstrasse has more going for it than the red-light district. A post-smoke falafel hits the spot. Rents were relatively cheap by Swiss standards, and the immigrant neighborhood had plenty of good, cheap food. Keep a hand on your wallet.

At Helvetiaplatz on a Saturday, the Kanzlei flea market was mostly junk with a few bargains. Bürkliplatz by the lake had better junk at higher prices. Rosenhof was the upmarket choice.

Gabe’s advice: buy a tram or bus ticket at the machine. Getting caught without one could cost nearly US$10 at the time, and more if you didn’t pay on the spot.

Niederdorf, on the right bank in the Old Town, supplied the bars, street performers and expensive drinks of a more conventional tourist evening. The contrasts—finance and nightlife, polished streets and scruffy markets—gave the original account much of its character.

The Federal Office of Public Health and Federal Commission for Drug Issues were pushing for liberalization. The health office argued that cannabis had become a recreational drug for a large part of the population, worlds away from hard-drug use. The government was debating whether to allow personal consumption under an Amsterdam-style system or create a fully legal market.