As the world is slowly easing up to the idea of the legal herb, Canadians are enjoyed their first day of legal cannabis day in the only appropriate way.
Thousands of Canadians are getting high in the street after their country became the world’s largest legal marijuana marketplace on Wednesday, after a two-year push to legalise the drug by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government.
Photos show people’s excitement as they queue up in their hundreds to get their hands on the now legalised drug.
In Toronto, people smoked joints as soon as they woke up in a huge ‘wake and bake’ celebration.
The government website that sells cannabis products crashed in Alberta due to the volume of people trying to place orders.
The new law allows Canadians who are 18 years old or older to carry and share up to 30 grams of marijuana in public.
They will have access to items including pre-rolled joints, cannabis oil, and dried flowers in shops and online.
Across the nation, at least 111 cannabis retail outlets were expected to open yesterday, with many more anticipated to open soon.
Ian Power was first in line at a store in St. John’s, Newfoundland but didn’t plan to smoke the one gram he bought after midnight.
Power said to Clydebank Post:
I am going to frame it and hang it on my wall. I’m going to save it forever.
Tom Clarke, who dealt cannabis criminally for three decades, opened a retail cannabis shop in Portugal Cove, Newfoundland.
Clarke told the Clydebank Post:
This is awesome. I’ve been waiting my whole life for this.
I am so happy to be living in Canada right now instead of south of the border.
Another excited reveller, Ashley Maclsaac said outside a government run pot shop in Nova Scotia:
I don’t need to be a criminal anymore, and that’s a great feeling.
And my new dealer is the prime minister!
Medical marijuana has been legal in Canada since 2001 and Trudeau’s government has spent the last two years working towards legalising it for recreational purposes in order to reflect society’s changing opinion about marijuana and the dangers of the black market.
Corey Stone was among the first to buy pot legally, and he explained:
It’s a once-in-a-lifetime thing – you’re never ever going to be one of the first people able to buy legal recreational cannabis in Canada ever again.
The shops look like a modern clinic with identification checks upon entry. The products are displayed in plastic or cardboard packaging behind the counter while a small team of employees answer questions but don’t make recommendations.
No stores will be opening in Ontario yet, including Toronto as it is still working on its regulations and doesn’t expect stores to open until spring.
If you have a story you want to tell, send it to UNILAD via stories@unilad.co.uk
