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2014-02-08 -Short Attention Span Theater-
Prostitution Museum Opens in Amsterdam's Red-Light Zone
[An Nahar] Amsterdam's red-light district opened its first "prostitution museum" on Thursday, hoping to lure tourists who always wondered what life was like for those on the other side of the infamous glass windows -- but were too afraid to ask.
I dunno about you, but when I think "hookers" I don't think "museum quality," if y'know what I mean...
"How do they live? What happens in their world?" said Melcher de Wind, a founder of the "Red Light Secrets Museum of Prostitution" which showcases one of the Dutch capital's most famous attractions.

"I have always wondered what really happens behind those neighborhood windows."

Nestled between two famous brothels overlooking a canal, the new attraction seeks to offer something different to nearby museums on the subject such as the Sex Museum or the Museum of Eroticism.

"The other museums focus on sex and sexual performance. The new museum gives you a glimpse into the world of sex workers -- what it feels like to stand behind a window and the looks you get," explained Yolanda van Doeveren, who deals with prostitution for the Amsterdam municipality.

"Maybe tourists will get a chance to change their behavior and show a little more respect," she added.

Inside the small museum, a large television screen shows a woman performing a strip-tease. Visitors are then shown a film about the other side of prostitution -- women with families living everyday lives.

There are exhibits showing how both fashions and attitudes towards the world's oldest profession have changed over the centuries.

Visitors are shown a display of the tools of the trade -- condoms, lubricants and sex toys -- based on the experiences of former hooker Ilonka Stakelborough who advised the museum.

Prostitution in the Netherlands was legalized in 2000 and there are now around 7,000 people working in the industry in Amsterdam.
How many where there before legalization? I remember seeing guided tour groups being shown round Amsterdam's red light district back in the '80s -- several streets with women sitting in widows being photogenic until a serious customer came by.
Around three-quarters of the women come from low-income countries, mainly from Eastern Europe, according to Amsterdam municipality figures.

They pay 150 euros ($202) to hire one of Amsterdam's 409 "frames", which comes with a chair in front and a bed at the back.

Many women work 11 hours a day, six days a week with a visit to a hooker lasting around 10 minutes.

The museum depicts BDSM (bondage, domination, sado-masochism) practices, and also features a "luxury" room with mirrored ceilings, a bed lit from below, and a bathtub next to an open bottle of champagne.

By way of contrast, there is a small room with barely space for a single bed that was used by a Polish hooker when she was not with clients.

"We want to show all aspects of prostitution," Stakelborough told AFP.

"Yes, there are women who are victims of human trafficking, but prostitution is mostly a career many women volunteer for."
Posted by Fred 2014-02-08 00:00|| || Front Page|| [11130 views ]  Top

#1  "prostitution museum"

Bet the gift shop's a hoot.

Mike
Posted by Mike Kozlowski 2014-02-08 04:53||   2014-02-08 04:53|| Front Page Top

#2 Just sexual or ideological as well?
Posted by g(r)omgoru 2014-02-08 08:29||   2014-02-08 08:29|| Front Page Top

#3 During a casual walkabout there a few months back,, there was a noticeable amount of unsold 'frames,' not to be confused with those that were dimly lit and curtains closed.....
Posted by USN, Ret. 2014-02-08 11:06||   2014-02-08 11:06|| Front Page Top

#4 Well they got the legal dope you see, it's all connected like in strings theory.
Posted by Shipman 2014-02-08 12:08||   2014-02-08 12:08|| Front Page Top

#5 Well, I guess I mean I assume that's what string theory would say, not really up on it to be honest. Would string theory like Schrodinger's kittuah have a decent life for once? O' wow a 9/16th socket appears.

Posted by Shipman 2014-02-08 12:11||   2014-02-08 12:11|| Front Page Top

#6 
Posted by 3dc 2014-02-08 13:00||   2014-02-08 13:00|| Front Page Top

#7 Or in Deutschland:
Posted by 3dc 2014-02-08 13:18||   2014-02-08 13:18|| Front Page Top

#8 Or on the river:
Posted by 3dc 2014-02-08 13:23||   2014-02-08 13:23|| Front Page Top

#9 #5 Well, I guess I mean I assume that's what string theory would say, not really up on it to be honest.

Of cosmology, Hawking's the king!
Permit him to explain everything:
"At the point of creation,
After frantic vibration,
Cosmic cans can emit Silly String."
Posted by Zenobia Floger6220 2014-02-08 13:47||   2014-02-08 13:47|| Front Page Top

#10 You got to Love those "Fancy Women"

Posted by Au Auric 2014-02-08 14:49||   2014-02-08 14:49|| Front Page Top

#11 I think that was the point, AA. ;-p
Posted by Barbara 2014-02-08 18:51||   2014-02-08 18:51|| Front Page Top

#12 
Posted by OldSpook 2014-02-08 19:54||   2014-02-08 19:54|| Front Page Top

#13 Craftsman 9/16
Posted by OldSpook 2014-02-08 19:55||   2014-02-08 19:55|| Front Page Top

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