News of: Thursday, July 16 2009,
The official Amsterdam City boat that will take part in the annual gay pride parade, will depart from Amsterdam West.
Mr Ahmed Marcouch, chairman of the Slotervaart neighbourhood council in the west of Amsterdam, has arranged this. Mr Marcouch, himself a muslim of Moroccan origin, has always made the point that gays deserve the same respect as everybody else.
Marcouch repeatedly made the headlines (also abroad) with his self-appointed mission to increase tolerance within (particularly) the muslim community in Amsterdam.
One of his wishes was that the annual Gay Pride canal tour would start in his neighbourhood, Slotervaart.
Slotervaart is an Amsterdam neighbourhood where many muslims live.
The mayor of Amsterdam, Mr Job Cohen, will be on the boat. The boat will depart from the lake Nieuwe Meer, because from here the centre of Amsterdam is easily reachable by boat. Coincidentally, right next to the lake lies recreation park De Oeverlanden, a well-known cruising park/meeting place for gays.
The standard route of the Amsterdam Gay Pride tour is along the Prinsengracht canal. The event usually draws several hundreds of thousands of spectators.
The Gay Pride tour is always on the first Saturday in August, which is this year August 1. The tour starts at 2pm.
Here is a map with the route of the Amsterdam Gay Pride tour.
