DUTCH COPS PUBLISH RED LIGHT GUIDE

AMSTERDAM, Netherlands - City police said Friday they are
publishing a guide to help foreign tourists flocking to the Dutch
capital for sex and drugs do it safely.

The English-language "Police Red Light Guide," will be released in
time for this summer's peak tourist season, said police spokesman Arie
van Zandbergen.

The leaflet, written by agent Wim Schild, a 12-year veteran of the red
light district beat, gives pointers to tourists who come to take
advantage of permissive policies on drug use and prostitution.

The author, who also lives in the district, warns foreigners to avoid
street dealers and instead buy hashish and marijuana at so-called
"coffee shops," which are regulated by the city.

Anyone planning to eat "space-cakes," cookies laced with marijuana or
hashish, should make sure to drink lots of sweet liquids, he says.

And, the guide warns, many of the scantily clad prostitutes standing
behind the large windows of the district's canal houses may not be
what they seem.

"Pay particular attention to the places you enter," the guide says.
"Lots of tourists are taken by surprise when the lady they are
visiting turns out to be a gent."