What Playing Poker in Amsterdam Taught Me About Making Friends

"On one of my long walks I stumbled upon a casino in Amsterdam and, on a whim, sat at a full table of locals playing 2-5 No Limit; I bought in for the minimum, outed myself as a foreigner when I asked the dealer to repeat something in English, and that curiosity led to friendships that made me feel like a local rather than a backpacker. The table—and later the routine of returning—taught me basic Dutch phrases, kept me up late, and helped finance nice meals, museum trips, and cannabis; at the same time the area felt dark and empty when we left, which made me initially wary of being robbed. Those after-hours gatherings connected to the casino also had a tragic side: Greg used to have people over after the casino closed, word spread, a robbery occurred, and Greg was shot and killed, a loss I still think about often." - Matthew Kepnes