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That's true for the country as a whole, but in Amsterdam lots of people don't even speak Dutch at all. It was a rather bizarre experience for me to go to a coff
by thijsvandien 6y ago
That's true for the country as a whole, but in Amsterdam lots of people don't even speak Dutch at all. It was a rather bizarre experience for me to go to a coffee place and order in my native language, only to get frowned upon—English only!
- dep_b 6y agoEspecially given the words for the coffee you order are exactly the same. Koffie <-> coffee And the rest is Italian, French or English anyway "Mag ik een >koffie< en een >croissant<?" - why do I have to repeat myself in English to ask for a >coffee< and a >croissant<?
- ksec 6y ago>but in Amsterdam lots of people don't even speak Dutch at all Why? Am I missing something? I assume they are not Dutch but foreign worker?
- thijsvandien 6y agoNatives are becoming a minority. Newcomers have no reason to learn, because English is the norm.
- izolate 6y agoPerhaps the person you encountered was a recent migrant who hadn't mastered Dutch yet? The poor individual is probably just trying to earn an honest living in your country's increasingly globalized city.
- thijsvandien 6y agoI don't know if they were learning or not. They simply expected English. Nothing against that particular individual; my point is that in Amsterdam, English is the norm.