I’m actually put off from going to NL not because of their authorities but the journey back and UK Border Force, they are going to be way suspicious of a 40 year old chap who understands Dutch, likes trance and helps run a rave website and lives alone in a coastal area.
Even age/maturity makes no difference now, especially since the economic depression and authorities being well aware there is a culture of stubborn disobedience spanning centuries in EA.
A white English dude in Norfolk in his mid 60s went with his wife (of a similar age) to one of the hotels near the Ibiza club zone. He took with him his ham radio equipment (a hand held Japanese radio, spare batteries and a portable antenna) and his Ofcom license, which ES are perfectly happy with as its all approved for the whole EU and beyond, the Japanese work with the ITU-R international authority so this kit is allowed worldwide with the license.
he knew it would be way too hot for a couple of their age to spend loads of time on the beach, so his wife would be in the hotel room with fans/air conditioning. but it was at a high level with a balcony, which is a good place to use radio equipment (he made some impressive contacts across Europe and even to the USA).
When he got back to Blighty, UKBA took him aside, went through all the couples luggage and made him switch on the radio equipment and checked all the spare batteries. what they were checking is that the batteries were indeed all batteries and not shells which could be used to transport drugs in either direction.
This was a new Japanese set no bigger than UKBA’s own Airwave terminals, about the size of a late 90s mobile phone. you’d barely have got €100 of pills into each battery case, certainly not worth him going to the oldies wing in HMP Norwich for. There are of course folk from their 50s to 80s involved in smuggling controlled drugs but if they’ve survived that long they wouldn’t be pissing about with small quantities.
