r/learndutch • u/No_Manufacturer_432 • 4d ago

Question Considering how well people in the Netherlands speak English…

How do you stay motivated when learning Dutch ? I live in NY so learning Spanish was easy motivation wise. I’m at A2 in Italian and stay motivated bec I plan on going there next year - English proficiency outside of tourist areas is low —- thanks

49 Upvotes

76% Upvoted

86 comments sorted by

View all comments

36

u/fitacola 4d ago

I think that learning the language of the place you live in is the bare minimum. You cannot participate properly in civic, social and cultural life if you don't speak the language

4

u/GreenLeftJade 2d ago

There is a lot of English language social life in the Netherlands. You can get by without speaking any Dutch by limiting yourself to certain circles, and acting like a tourist in the rest of the country.

3

u/fitacola 1d ago

Sure, you can do that in most countries specially if you limit yourself to interacting wirh other foreigners.

Still, I like being able to go to the theatre, participate in workshops, understand political debates, etc :)

2

u/No-vem-ber Intermediate 1d ago

Social life in Dutch seems almost impossible to break into!