You wake up at 6 am, You are too excited to sleep any more. You have been learning Dutch for some time and it is finally the day to go out and socialize with the local people. They say immersion is the best way to learn a new language. You have made a list of all the things you want to talk about, and you’re ready with all of the important sentences.
Don’t forget to bring your *tas* and *jas*, it might rain today.
[[Let’s go out.]]
In the hallway, you see a tall man entering the apartment with a woman. The tall man goes inside the house while the woman stops to check the mail. You are ready for your first conversation:
**"De broer van de lange man is ook lang!"**
You say this with a smile on your face!
The woman seems to be confused, but you don't have time to explain. [[Adventure awaits.]]
As you are walking out of the apartment, you see someone carrying a large box, nothing is better than starting the day with a compliment:
**"Je bent sterk, net zoals een olifant!"**
[[You walk by happily]]It's a beautiful day, the cafes are open and people are sitting outside.
You are ready to start a dialogue about food. You go to a group who just got their food. You notice there is fish on one of the plates, you know just the thing to say:
**"Vis zijn vrienden, geen eten."**
The people look at you with confusion, maybe it’s my accent, you think. Let’s try another one:
[[''Sommige dieren eten geen vlees''.]]Now one of them gets up and comes toward you. “I’m making my first friend now” but before they get to you, the waiter comes and points you toward the next-door cafe. It’s a vegan restaurant, you want to say you are not vegan but the waiter is gently pushing you now.
You are now standing in front of the vegan cafe.
You see the manager approaching you. It is the best time to practice your formal Dutch:
[[''Meneer, Uw thee is hier.'']]The manager repeats the word thee, smiles, and invites you to sit down.
You are enjoying your tea but you are willing to continue talking.
You see a couple passing by, they pause in front of the cafe, checking the menu.
You want to talk to them about your tea:
**"Het thee is duur."**
The couple walks away after hearing this. [[You are disappointed. ]]
On your way, you see a museum, this is a great time to learn about the art and culture.
You go inside but the man at the reception tells you that it is not open yet. He points toward the brochures on the table for more information. You see an open guest book on the table. It might be time for you to practice your writing, since you haven’t seen the exhibition yet, you want to write something about the kind receptionist.
**"Ik zie jouw vrouw. Wij hebben haar."**
You pick up the book and give it to the man with a proud smile on your face. You are sure he won’t notice that you are not a native speaker.
[[You leave the museum]]After a few minutes, you see your neighbor with her kid walking down the street, the neighbor greets you and asks you to watch her son while she unlocks her bike.
You are standing next to the kid and thinking of something you can say.
**"Willem, ik ben jouw vader.
Je bent zwak, maar ik ben sterk."**
[[The child starts crying.]]
You go into a book store, wanting to buy a couple of language books.
Two people are standing next to you, a young man seems to be flirting with the person next to him.
You want to showcase your knowledge about books and the language while supporting the young man.
[["Hij leest alle goedkope boeken."]]
In the cafe, while you’re waiting for your order to come, you see a young couple sitting next to you. They ask you for the menu and you give it to them. You have to also say something else to not be rude:
**"Ik ken haar.
Haar vader is een slechte man."**
The girl seems angry, but [[your order is here and you walk away.]]
You go for a walk in the park, and you stop near the duck pond for a bit. Someone is standing next to you, They start talking to you, you want to find a friend and keep talking.
**"Ik zie je niet."**
They seem to be pointing toward the ducks, You say:
**"Misschien ben je een eend."**
[[The person walks away after this.]]
You are tired of all these social interactions, maybe it’s time to go home.
You sit on a bench and start thinking about all the things you practiced today.
A turtle climbs up the bench. You also know something about turtles.
**"Schildpadden zijn dieren."**
The turtle nods in agreement. You are happy that someone finally understands you.
[[You made your first friend.]]
You see a group of people protesting women’s rights. You know that you are not fluent enough to engage in such important topics. You want to pass by quietly but one of the protesters notices you and comes to you with a microphone, a camera person is looking at you. The protester asks you something about women. You remember something that you learned about women in your lessons.
**“De vrouwen eten rijst"**
The interviewer puts the microphone away in silence and the protestors let you pass. You know that you have to say more next time, but you are still happy that you could show your support even [[in another language.]]You see a cat crossing the street, you want to pet her so you get closer and let her sniff your hand. You notice "{name}" written on the collar. The cat instead jumps up, grabs your list, and starts chewing on it:
**''{name}, Nee!''**
You say! But the cat keeps eating the paper, you know that cats are the boss of humans, perhaps you should talk in a more formal way:
**"Dat eet men niet!"**
The cat looks at you for a second and walks away, leaving the paper behind. You grab the half-eaten list and [[keep walking.]]
Just a few steps away, you see some litter next to a garbage can, you know it’s bad for the neigborhood to have litter lying around so you go to the can to put it away. You see a deformed orange with a greenish color and white marks all over. The orange looks rotten and you want to put it in the can, but then you remember an important sentence from your lessons:
**"Mijn sinaasappel is niet oranje."**
You have to keep the decaying orange with you. [[It is a great conversation starter.]]
You feel hungry again. Maybe it’s time to eat something.
On your way to the cafe, someone stops you in the street and asks you the way to the Grote Markt, you are bursting with joy and the thought that you are already one of the local people, while you’re thinking about the best way to answer him, someone else comes to you both and tells the first person to follow him as he’s also going that way. You have one chance to say something now:
[["Mensen zijn zoals schapen."]]
On your way home, you take out your list to check your progress so far.
No! I forgot to mention the most difficult word that I know. I have to go back tomorrow and talk about a **neushoorn**. I’m sure I can find a way to make it into a conversation naturally.
You are very proud of your day, maybe just a little more work on your listenning skill and then it would be perfect.
After all, you remember this sentence that you learned:
**''Nederlands is niet moeilijk.''**
***
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Hello, and welcome to the *speak like a native* course. Today, you have the chance to practice all of your essential communication skills in real life.
Before starting the day, please introduce yourself:
{text input for: 'name'}
**"Hallo, Jouw namen zijn Willem en Saskia!"**
For more information on this course and many other opportunities, visit our website.
[[Let’s start the day.]]
After a nice breakfast, you are taking a walk by the canal. When you have to cross the street, you see someone who is already waiting for the lights to turn green. As you stand behind her, you know what you have to say. But then, the lights turn green and she starts walking. You also cross the street and follow her direction, hoping for a chance to say your sentence. She stops in front of a store, but her phone starts ringing, now you also have to stop and wait politely until her conversation is over. She continues walking but at a faster pace, you have to keep up. Finally, she reaches another red light. Now is your time to say:
**"Ik ben achter je!"**
You can now [[turn back]] to the location that you had in mind in the first place.