To be straightforward, my real destinations in Barcelona aren’t Sagrada Familia or Sónar but cannabis social clubs to get high. It’d be a real waste unless I share this experience of legal weeds in the city.
Recreational cannabis legalisations in countries and states are different. Examples of where I’ve been. Thailand has just decimalised ganja and is likely to promote it as a cash crop. DC complies with Initiative 71 (but on Federal land.) Basically, it comes as a gift when you buy other stuff such as digital arts. Canada is fully legal. You get to a dispensary, show your ID, and just score it. Here’s how it works in Barcelona.
Scoring it
Weeds are legal in Spain for personal use but not for trade or to sell. The way to get around is through non-profit associations, aka, cannabis social clubs. And they are clustered in Barcelona. You will have to be a club member to get in and get it.
I look them up online, pick a convenient one, send them an inquiry, and wait for a confirmation email. You’ll need a governmental ID for them to process membership. An annual fee is 20€. They only accept cash. Each club operates differently. Ultimately, choosing a club comes down to your preference: the menu, location, ambience, service, and so on.
This sets up the tone of the entire seven-week stay. I explore the city with stoned eyes starting on the first full day. The summertime vibe turns foggy, especially at dance parties. On top of that, watching Apichatpong’s Memoria in a cinema with its tranquillising quality puts me into a trance. That is a special treat.
Vaping it
There are many ways to consume cannabis: joint, bong, pipe, edibles, tincture, etc. My choice of method is dry herb vaping. Because it doesn’t burn the herb, you don’t inhale the combustion and get more flavours and more substances from the buds. Since the lockdown in 2020, I have developed a vaping habit.
Unfortunately, the vaporiser I got from DC broke before I left Bangkok. So, I have to smoke pre-rolled joints for the first few days until I get a new one. Those clubs don’t have it but one of them suggests e-cigarette shops. There I have it, a stoner’s toy. I don’t think it will last long but it will do for the time in the city.
Besides, you can make the most of it from vaping by-products—already vaped buds (AVB). You can infuse AVB in alcohol, oil, or butter. My way to deal with it is cannabutter. That will play a huge role when I get back to Istanbul later on.
Documenting it
When I decided to become a pothead, a self pledge was made—documenting it. In DC, I listed all the strains I vaped. In Bangkok, I jotted down timelines of AVB cannabutter to keep track of its effects.
In Barcelona clubs, similar to DC that have varieties of strains, I look at their menus and do quick research to determine which one I’d like to get and vape. And you can cross check which one I have already tried.
Recording personal health data: diets, exercises, drinking, and cannabis, becomes an essential routine. At least, I try the system as a price to pay for indulgences. You can tap into an idiosyncratic side of your brain and get lost in it. It helps me grounded, especially, when I’m on the move all the time. It could be useful in the future.
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