We were recently in Netherlands and were able to take a few photos of stores and other pop culture sights.  We present them here in chronological order as we toured Amsterdam and The Hague.  Click through for larger versions.

 

The entrance of Stripboekhandel in The Hague draws passersby in with inexpensive games, cards, and the promise of more within.  It was the store with the most variety of any we visited in either Netherlands or Belgium.

 

 

A window display shows Conan and Red Sonja, along with material of closer provenance, such as XIII.

 

 

 

 

 

      

 

 

 

 

The U.S. comic display in Stripboekhandel offered a large selection of American floppies.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Manga at Stripboekhandel.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hobby games at Stripboekhandel included Magic:  The Gathering, Pokemon, and Yu-Gi-Oh!, much the same selection you’d see at a store in the States. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And the albums, from European creators.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Outside Lambiek, in Amsterdam, a pair engaged in high-spirited conversation from seats on the sidewalk.  Lambiek describes itself as the “first and most famous antiquarian comic shop.”  It was founded in 1968 and is famous for stocking comic volumes in many languages, and for its Comiclopedia, an online database of over 11,000 comic creators from around the world. 

 

 

 

 

A figure display at Lambiek.  Note the prices, €180 to €295, or around $250 to $400.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The main selling area at Lambiek, with many thousands of different comic volumes, in numerous languages.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Lambiek freight bike (bicycle is the most popular form of transportation in Amsterdam) and this type of rig for hauling small amounts of freight was common.  What was uncommon was the Lambiek paint job. 

 

 

We’ll wrap up with some great graphic design.

  Here’s the first of three.  A DNA tag is used as a theft protection tool in a few locations in Amsterdam.  It can be sprayed on command if there’s a crime in the area.  It stays on the body for 10 days or so, is difficult to remove, and shows up under UV light.  This sign lets people know the spray may be used.  We’re pretty excited that we live in a world with signs like this. 

 

 

 

Rock and roll posters on a well-tagged kiosk. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This was in the city museum of Amsterdam, and is a sign (from sometime over the past few decades, as the legal status of marijuana changed) indicating that pot smoking was forbidden in that location. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For "Pop Culture Photos--Belgium," click here.