It's amazing how attitudes towards marijuana have changed over the past decade. Ten years ago, the plant was still very criminalized, and most people saw marijuana as a hard drug. Now, people have begun to embrace its benefits, and dispensaries are opening up to sell marijuana legally. Visiting one of these dispensaries is sure to be a little surreal the first time, but it really helps to know what you can expect.

You'll be asked for identification.

States that have legalized marijuana do require that people are 21 years old to purchase the product. You must therefore show a government-issued ID before entering. Your driver's license or passport will work. If you live in a state where marijuana is sold for medical use only, then you will need to show your medical marijuana card to enter, too. Note that this is different than visiting a liquor store, where you can browse without ID but have to show ID to purchase. You need to show an ID before even entering a dispensary.

There will be numerous strains for sale. 

Once inside the dispensary, you might be surprised by the number of strains of marijuana being sold. There will be at least a few pure indica and pure sativa strains, along with a lot of hybrids. Certain strains tend to work best for different ailments. For example, indica-heavy strains tend to work well for anxiety, and sativas are good at relieving pain. 

You'll find lots of other marijuana products.

In addition to various strains of marijuana, you'll also see a lot of THC and CBD products. Vape cartridges have become really popular. You will probably also see some edibles, ranging from hard candies to classic brownies. If you're brand new to cannabis, then you will probably want to stick to the lower-dose products. Pay close attention to the labels, and look for products that contain just 10 or 15 mg of THC at first.

The budtenders can help you out.

Budtenders are kind of like bartenders, but also kind of like pharmacists. They're usually very knowledgeable about the products in the dispensary, and they can make some recommendations for you based on your cannabis experience and the ailments you suffer with. Don't hesitate to chat with them and pick their brains! Just leave a couple of dollars as a tip when you check out.

Hopefully, you now have a little better idea of what to expect when you visit a dispensary. Good luck!