CDTraveler, I really think that you're overstating it. I usually fly through AMS and always try to have a long layover so I can go for a walk in the city. This happened some 30+ times and I've also visited the city on several occasions. There are some areas (e.g. some small alleys) where you can smell mj, but it's not nearly as bad as you make it sound. I have yet to see someone randomly puking or peeing in the street.

It's hard to make a comparison to "some of the areas" that you loved some 30 years ago. It may very well be that you don't remember very well or simply that times change and very few places on this planet are the same as they were 30 years ago. Often when remembering a place you link that to an experience, and the experience itself can make it good or bad. Going back to places I LOVED when I was a teenager, I saw them very differently as an adult. It could be that as well.