An ongoing series on Cannabis Culture around the globe. Visit our homepage for more!
California, the first state to approve medical cannabis in 1999, was expected to be the first to legalize recreational cannabis in 2010. Rec legislation wouldn't, however, become law until Proposition 64 California 2016. California has a long and often tumultuous history with cannabis dating back to the 1960s, and even though Washington, Oregon, and Colorado all got there before The Golden State, it is positioned to be a pioneer in cannabis tourism.
I had the good fortune to travel to Colorado and California and visit several high-priced cannabis stores. There are several brands with unique packaging. The fact that none of their products were pebbly and hard like the so-called "Cali" in the UK STRANK me right away. Their weed had a pretty typical UK appearance; the only distinction, in my opinion, is that it was undisturbed (you could practically see the THC clusters still standing up with the naked eye) and smelled more pleasant.
First of all, here are the main rules and regulations right now:
You must be 21 or older to have, purchase or use recreational cannabis. This includes smoking, vaping, and eating cannabis-infused products.
You may possess 28.5 grams of cannabis plant material (about an ounce) and 8 grams of concentrated cannabis.
It is illegal to give or sell retail cannabis to minors.
It is illegal to drive under the influence of cannabis.
It is illegal to consume, smoke, eat, or vape cannabis in public. It is illegal to open a package containing cannabis or any cannabis products in public. This includes but is not limited to parks and sidewalks, and business and residential areas.
It is also illegal to consume cannabis in other locations where smoking is illegal, including bars, restaurants, buildings open to the public, places of employment, and areas within 15 feet of doors and ventilation openings.
Even though it is legal under California law, you cannot consume or possess cannabis on federal lands such as national parks, even if the park is in California. Among the areas that are federal lands in the San Francisco Bay Area are the Presidio, Alcatraz Island, the Marin Headlands, and Ocean Beach.
You can consume cannabis on private property, but property owners and landlords may ban the use and possession of cannabis on their properties.
It is illegal to take your cannabis across state lines, even if you are traveling to another state where cannabis is legal.
Only state-licensed establishments may sell retail cannabis products.
Where the legal and social systems of the East Coast can't quite reach, the West Coast has traditionally been a site where the counterculture has thrived. In the 1960s, hippies first appeared in the Pacific states, bringing with them a broader acceptance of numerous drugs that affect the mind, including cannabis.
If you haven't visited the cannabis-related cultural landmarks in California, you can't call yourself a serious cannabis aficionado. Here are a few places in the state that you just must see if you want to feel relaxed and West Coast-y.
Bay Area Cannabis Tour
In many respects, the Bay Area served as the epicentreepicenter of the start of pot acceptability in the US. California, one of the first states to prohibit cannabis at the turn of the 20th century, turned a blind eye when Ron and Jay Thelin established the first head store in San Francisco's Ashbury district in 1966. San Franciscans might purchase weed at the Psychedelic Shop in a judgment-free environment. The San Francisco Buyers Club debuted as the first open-to-the-public cannabis dispensary in the United States in 1992 after California's unfair cannabis laws were repealed over the course of the next two decades.
It's essential to see the Bay Area appreciate California's cannabis culture. In San Francisco, guided tours will take you to the most well-liked dispensaries and give background information on the laws that are in place across the city and state. A tour that visits a cannabis greenhouse or serves cannabis along with wine and food may also be available. The Haight-Ashbury neighbourhood, also known as Hashbury, is where you should go on your own to pay tribute to individuals who created the cannabis culture and battled for its legalization.
High Yoga - Weed Yoga In California
The adoption of cannabis as a recreational drug in the 1960s amongst white Californians came alongside experimentation with other so-called “Eastern” practices — most notably yoga. In India, yoga developed as a spiritual practice to assist practitioners in the ultimate goal of liberation from mental and physical suffering. Some of the most popular early yoga practices in America were established at studios in San Francisco, some of which, like Magana Baptiste’s, still exist.
One of the best ways to connect with your body and spirit through yoga is to practice the meditative movements while stoned. There are several high yoga studios around California, where you can smoke or enjoy edibles before and during your practice.
Cannabis Farm Tour: California
A municipal greenhouse or small-scale grow facility may be visited, but a full-fledged cannabis farm is a very other experience. The climate in California is ideal for cannabis cultivation, and as a result of its laxer laws, the state is home to some of the biggest cannabis farms in the country. Glass House Farms south of Santa Barbara, which has over 200,000 square feet of indoor growing area stocked with Dream Walker, King Louie, and Super Silver Haze strains, is the largest in the state as of the most recent measurement. However, Humboldt County, which has the ideal balance of heat, chilly, dryness, and humidity, is a region where cannabis farms are more numerous. On a journey to growing northwest of California, you may see a variety of growing operations and experience a climate that is somewhat different from what you are used to in California.
Cannabis Cup California
If you're anything like the majority of us in the 420 worlds, you knew sooner or later that your preferred pastime will be regarded as a sport.
This takes us to the Cannabis Cup, the world's most prestigious cannabis competition. Everything from cannabis cultivation to the production of edibles and concentrates will be covered. Visit The Taste of Cannabis Competition while you're there, where elite cannabis chefs square off to produce the tastiest meals for getting high.
Kush enthusiasts may test their smoking prowess at this event, or they can simply unwind and take in the rich cannabis culture.
The Cannabis Cup is an annual contest amongst cannabis cultivators, edible producers, and other inventors to identify and honour the best-tasting, most powerful weed delicacies. Although the contest was founded in Amsterdam, the inaugural U.S. cup was hosted in Southern California in 2010 to honor the area's vibrant cannabis subculture. Being a part of SoCal's Cannabis Cup is a particularly transcendent experience you shouldn't miss, filled with lectures from renowned figures in the cannabis industry, cannabis craft and cooking classes, bud samples, and more. Now that almost every city with legal adult-use weed has its own Cannabis Cup qualifiers. Hopefully, Cannabis Cup activities will resume in 2021, allowing you to start preparing for your trip then.
Regardless of whether you reside in Los Angeles or are planning a trip to California, you need to include a trip that is primarily centered on 420 in your travel plans. Cali pot tourism is especially enjoyable because of the West Coast's extensive history with cannabis, which has developed into respect and sophistication.
If you're anything like the majority of us in the cannabis world, you knew sooner or later that your preferred pastime will be regarded as a sport.
This takes us to the Cannabis Cup, the world's most prestigious cannabis competition. Everything from cannabis cultivation to the production of edibles and concentrates will be covered. Visit The Taste of Cannabis Competition while you're there, where elite cannabis chefs square off to produce the tastiest meals for getting high.
Kush enthusiasts may test their smoking prowess at this event, or they can simply unwind and take in the rich cannabis culture.
California Cannabis Lounges
OJAI, Calif. —Imagine dining in a place where you could order cannabis-infused dark chocolate or choose a pre-rolled joint from the menu before lighting it up at your table. Imagine your local Starbucks or dive bar, except with cannabis on tap.
Although it may seem like Amsterdam, these companies seem to be a part of California's emerging cannabis sector, which is still seeking methods to compete with the state's sizable black market four years after legalization.
In West Hollywood, San Francisco, Palm Springs, and other locations, these cannabis lounges are opening (or reopening after the epidemic shutdown). Additionally, several smaller Californian governments are contemplating permitting them to boost tax income and attract visitors, including Ojai, a well-known tourist destination 90 minutes from Los Angeles.
Minutes before the Ojai City Council voted last week to discuss permitting cannabis lounges, Councilman Ryan Blatz said, "This is fairly plainly the way things are going to go in the future, and I don't want to be left behind."
Not everyone likes the concept. Even though legalized cannabis was legalized by California voters in 2016, local jurisdiction was kept under the legislation, and many elected officials oppose cannabis sales in their areas. Large communities including Bakersfield, Anaheim, and Fremont are among the 62% of Californian towns and counties that ban cannabis sales in any form.
In particular, cannabis lounges bring up a slew of new regulatory issues that experts predict won't be simple to resolve. Brad Rowe, an adjunct professor of cannabis policy at the University of California, Los Angeles, stated, "These represent a whole new frontier."
The Ojai City Council decided to allow three shops to sell recreational cannabis in the town of 7,500 shortly after California legalized it. Ojai, a picturesque valley in Ventura County, has long been a popular destination for Southern Californians who want to indulge in a spa weekend or go wine tasting.
On a recent Sunday, several tourists strolled around the town carrying ice cream cones or sipping beers on shaded patios. "Let's Get Baked," read a sandwich board on a lonely road a mile from the throng, inviting vehicles to the city's dispensaries.
The three pot stores have brought Ojai hundreds of thousands of dollars in taxes from both local and out-of-town consumers despite being located in an industrial area. Owner of one of the stores, Shangri-La Care Centers, Jeffrey Kroll, said that weekend customers account for 20% of his revenue.
Customers may now purchase cannabis goods to take home, kind of like a weed grocery shop. Officials in Ojai, California, are thinking about allowing its shops to build areas in their current sites where consumers may use cannabis on-site by vaping, smoking, or eating edibles. (If you're curious, cannabis lounges do not permit alcohol.)
According to Ojai municipal employees, Port Hueneme, a beach town 30 miles from Ojai, recently became the first community in Ventura County to authorize lounges. Seven other states also permit them. In other words, lounges could maintain Ojai's tourism-related competitiveness.
Who wouldn't like to relax in a hot tub while smoking a few joints and wearing cucumbers on their faces? said Bob Solomon, a professor at U.C. Irvine who specializes in cannabis law.
However, several issues exist, according to specialists. A consumer may not be able to smoke a joint at a lounge because of California law restrictions on indoor smoking. Additionally, Rowe said that laws exist to safeguard workers from working in smoke-filled spaces.
He also said that edibles may take hours to take effect, meaning that customers may be leaving a cannabis café just as they start to experience the benefits. Then there are the questions of where these lounges should be placed in a city and how many should be present in a given neighborhood.
According to Rowe, this industrial sector is "in the infancy of its infancy." The surface hasn't even been touched yet. We need to figure something out.