Grab Bag Of Random Posts

[jakobg]

I have to admit when I met Ko ( Menno) in Nottingham a couple of years ago his english was so good he would pass as a native.

Yeah, I had a picture of Dutch people that they didn't speak English that well, or at least that it would sound funny when they try to (that picture probably coming from french and german people I've met, who have had a lot of accents in their english). However I found that English worked quite well in Amsterdam, even though it's not fair for the rest of Amsterdam to compare their english with Menno's.

[Kowalczyk]

Right -- enough now.

:oops:

K.

[Kowalczyk]

Yeah, I had a picture of Dutch people that they didn't speak English that well, or at least that it would sound funny when they try to (that picture probably coming from french and german people I've met, who have had a lot of accents in their english). However I found that English worked quite well in Amsterdam

Interesting that your expectations were so low... I think if you would ask the average British or American traveller the name of a country where almost everyone older than 10 and younger than 65 speaks at least reasonable English, they will (in most cases) name either a Scandinavian country or Holland.

Of course most people have a pretty thick Dutch accent when they speak English, but that's the same everywhere, I guess.

You see: English is much more than the 'language the English/Americans speak'. It's the number one global language. People designed a 'universal' language many years ago, named Esperanto, but the whole idea failed. Esperanto never became the standard. Why? Because English is our Esperanto already (that's the luck of the Brits, Yanks and Aussies: it happens to be their mothertongue, so they don't need to learn anything else).

More than anything else English is a global language. For some it's their mothertongue; for most it is not. But the bottom-line is that everyone has a different accent in English: an American accent, an Australian accent, French, Italian, Dutch, English -- whatever.

By the way: wherever I would move, I would immediately learn the language. Starting on day one. It's just something you do, if you ask me. But I have to admit: as a native speaker of English it's almost impossible to learn (and practice) Dutch when living in Amsterdam, because the locals will immediately switch to English as soon as they hear you're not a native speaker.

Dutchies are proud or even arrogant when it comes to certain things, but they're generally extremely humble when it comes to their language. It's almost an inferiority complex. If an American speaks Dutch (but you can still tell from his accent that he's an American) Dutchies will be amused more than anything else. And the only question on their minds would be: why? They will probably ask you something like: "Why in the world did you bother to learn Dutch? What's the point? Didn't you have anything better to do?"

It is always appreciated if foreigners try to speak to local language. Holland is no exception to that rule, but the Dutch definitely don't care as much as others.

K.

[666]

Every time I see our dutch prime minister on TV I yell at the screen: "Why? Why in the world did you bother to learn dutch? What's the point? Didn't you have anything better to do at Hogwarts?"

They will probably ask you something like: "Why in the world did you bother to learn Dutch? What's the point? Didn't you have anything better to do?"

[raymon]

Every time I see our dutch prime minister on TV I yell at the screen: "Why? Why in the world did you bother to learn dutch? What's the point? Didn't you have anything better to do at Hogwarts?"

They will probably ask you something like: "Why in the world did you bother to learn Dutch? What's the point? Didn't you have anything better to do?"

They act like they are under the Imperius spell anyway.. :sad:

But that is totally beside the point ;)

[jamcocteau]

By the way: wherever I would move, I would immediately learn the language. Starting on day one. It's just something you do, if you ask me. But I have to admit: as a native speaker of English it's almost impossible to learn (and practice) Dutch when living in Amsterdam, because the locals will immediately switch to English as soon as they hear you're not a native speaker.

Dutchies are proud or even arrogant when it comes to certain things, but they're generally extremely humble when it comes to their language. It's almost an inferiority complex. If an American speaks Dutch (but you can still tell from his accent that he's an American) Dutchies will be amused more than anything else. And the only question on their minds would be: why? They will probably ask you something like: "Why in the world did you bother to learn Dutch? What's the point? Didn't you have anything better to do?"

It is always appreciated if foreigners try to speak to local language. Holland is no exception to that rule, but the Dutch definitely don't care as much as others.

K.

Cheers mate, trying to make me feel guilty :D

Can read Dutch but as you say as soon as I talk Dutch with my Scottish accent they reply back in English. But now I have more Dutch mates, Ko, think my Dutch lessons will resume again, not a hint or anything mate.

What I also find funny is that a lot of Dutch girls say that cannot understand my Scottish accent as it is very thick. But funnily enough when I offer to buy them a drink, they always understand that ;)

[jakobg]

I think if you would ask the average British or American traveller the name of a country where almost everyone older than 10 and younger than 65 speaks at least reasonable English, they will (in most cases) name either a Scandinavian country or Holland.

Yep, don't know if we're lucky or not though. I mean, the reason for this is of course that our languages are so small we just have to learn a global language to be able to communicate with the rest of the world. The French, Italians, Germans among others probably think they don't have to. At least not as much as we do. With this comes of course that we get to/have to learn other languages, and now, after several years of studying I'm glad that I had the opportunity/was forced to learn other languages than my mothertongue, but I've always been jealous of the Brits/Americans who get to speak their own language where ever they go.

For me as a minority group (Swedish in Finland) I can't really speak my own language anywhere, apart from the small area in Finland that speak Swedish. Add to that that I also have a very different kind of dialect where I come from so I always have to switch when I speak to other people. Living in Sweden now, I've almost changed my way of speaking completely. It's not a problem anymore, but sometimes I feel like I could express my self better and much easier if I could speak the language I was raised with.

[DanK]

1. Australian - in its true sense is so far from English it has to be listed as its own language. Its the only language I know where you can say a whole sentence as 1 word.
2. English - this is what I use when I am overseas (to a degree) or speaking to non Aussies. Bascially its a slowed down version of Australian. (or as we say in Australia - Austraiyan)

French
Swiss French
Belgian French
Canadian French
African French
West Indies French

Cause well you know, they're all different languages....

LOL...:xyxthumbs:

Actually i put that one in there as so many people tell me that I speak another language and that Australian is not English.

So when enough people tell you that...

Actually we could get onto dialects...its funny how in Australia the whole country sounds the same (except for maybe farmers/city folk).

I love in Holland that you can travel 50KM and all of the sudden its totally different...brill.

[Kowalczyk]

And now for something completely different...

I am very excited because... my parka just arrived!!

I ordered an original M51 parka a few weeks ago, from a vendor in Hannover, Germany. The M51 is an original 'fishtail parka' as worn in the U.S. army in the 1950s (introduced in 1951, hence the name M51). It was replaced by the (not nearly as hard to find) M65 in... 1965 and has been out of production since.

The M51 has a cult status in the 1960s (and has had many revivals since, thanks to figures such: it was made famous by the mods. Jimmy, the main character in The Who's Quadrophenia, wore one, for example.

I ordered it many weeks ago, but when it arrived it turned out that it was way too large for me. I'd ordered an XL, but the parkas were originally designed to be worn over the complete army uniform (as an overcoat). The size of an M51 parka corresponds with the uniform size, so an XL M51 parka can be worn over the complete army XL-sized gear... In other words: they're enourmous. If you want to wear an M51 parka as a normal coat a person normally wearing size L or XL should order an S.

I sent it back and it took weeks and weeks, but now it's arrived -- and it's the f**king dog's bollocks, ladies and gentlemen. This parka is a classic. The real thing.

Oh well - just wanted to tell someone.

K.

[Over Pasanens Head]

Yeh, but does this mean that you are going to have The Who and the sign printed on the back plus buy a Lambretta? :headbang:

If you want a Scooter - I have one that I could sell you. :xyxthumbs:

[ajaxusa]

Truly bizarre... I guess they'll have to keep their voices down.

Dmatek's Elmo-Tech wins football hooligan monitoring system in The Netherlands

[Per]

I just read Menno's post in one of the other threads and recognized the expression "the old bill" (meaning the police if I don't remember incorrectly).

Where does that expression come from (and I'm not talking about the Football Factory ;) )?

Can any of the Brits come to aid?

[Over Pasanens Head]

I just read Menno's post in one of the other threads and recognized the expression "the old bill" (meaning the police if I don't remember incorrectly).

Where does that expression come from (and I'm not talking about the Football Factory ;) )?

Can any of the Brits come to aid?

Please see:-

http://www.met.police.uk/history/oldbill.htm

[Per]

I just read Menno's post in one of the other threads and recognized the expression "the old bill" (meaning the police if I don't remember incorrectly).

Where does that expression come from (and I'm not talking about the Football Factory ;) )?

Can any of the Brits come to aid?

Please see:-

http://www.met.police.uk/history/oldbill.htm

Thanks a bunch!

Turned out to be a complicated answer then.

[jamcocteau]

I just read Menno's post in one of the other threads and recognized the expression "the old bill" (meaning the police if I don't remember incorrectly).

Where does that expression come from (and I'm not talking about the Football Factory ;) )?

Can any of the Brits come to aid?

Bizarre, but that is the second time today somebody on a message board has asked about the name old bill - deja vu.

[Kowalczyk]

The Ajax babe was voted the 'Hottest', but to be honest I would have gone for NAC...

http://www.ajaxtalk.nl/portal/viewtopic.php?t=5834

K.

[carcajou]

The Ajax babe was voted the 'Hottest', but to be honest I would have gone for NAC...

http://www.ajaxtalk.nl/portal/viewtopic.php?t=5834

K.

Is the Feyenoord babe the Vigo tranvestite ???

:D :D :D

[Per]

Eeeeh, football and women.

I was always afraid of the explosion if matter and ant-matter came together ;)

[Per]

I just remembered something.....

Since I'm coming for the Arsenal game that would be an ideal moment to cash in on my victorious betting from two seasons ago.

Does anyone remember the prize?

[carcajou]

I just remembered something.....

Since I'm coming for the Arsenal game that would be an ideal moment to cash in on my victorious betting from two seasons ago.

Does anyone remember the prize?

The right to pay for the first round I guess it was...... :hypocrite:

[Kowalczyk]

I just remembered something.....

Since I'm coming for the Arsenal game that would be an ideal moment to cash in on my victorious betting from two seasons ago.

Does anyone remember the prize?

Oh f*ck... We better hurry...

K.

[carcajou]

For the Dutchies of the boards : It would be nice idea to send a bunch o' dike engineers to Louisiana, they REALLY could use it.

[raymon]

For the Dutchies of the boards : It would be nice idea to send a bunch o' dike engineers to Louisiana, they REALLY could use it.

As far as I know this was proposed by the Dutch government

[Kowalczyk]

Yeah - they sent a navy ship to Louisiana straight away (from the Netherlands Antilles) and the prime minister contacted president Bush almost immediately offering him help with both victim identification and dike reinforcement. That's what I read anyway.

K.

[raymon]

We probably even sent some dike's over there :D