what language to speak?

I like to make an effort when I%26#39;m abroad to speak the language. I don%26#39;t like to be one of those tourists who just expects everyone to speak in English!

I am English but can speak basic German, Spanish and French.

I know in Bruges they speak Flemish, dutch or French. But what is the best language to speak to the natives in? Would i be better just speaking in English rather than French?

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They do not speak French in Brugge, except to tourists. The local language is Dutch (Flemish if you prefer, but it%26#39;s the same thing). After that they would prefer to speak English to foreigners. It would definitely be better to use English rather than French, unless of course the person you are speaking to says otherwise, maybe because they %26quot;immigrated%26quot; to Flanders from elsewhere in the country.

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Thanks, that%26#39;s really helpful. I really didn%26#39;t want to make any language faux-pas.

Do locals appreciate it if you use a few Dutch words to show that you%26#39;re making an effort. e.g. hello, goodbye, thank-you or is it just better to stick to your own language?

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Well of course they appreciate it if you attempt the local language! I would be tempted to say %26quot;as they would in UK%26quot;, except that a poor foreigner who could say no more than hello and goodbye in England had better be with an accompanied group.

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It may seem like an obvious question but I have been to some places where I have received contemptuous looks and comments when I%26#39;ve attempted the native language.

I%26#39;d rather ask than just guess as I would have also thought it was OK to speak French there too.

Thanks for your responses.

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As stated above Dutch/Flemish is the language of Brugge. So unless you are fluent in Dutch I would go with English. Trying to speak Dutch in Brugge or French in Paris may lead to more problems if you are not fluent. People you are addressing may think you in deed speak their language and continue in their language, which means at one point in the conversation you will be very lost.

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We just spent 5 days in Bruges and found that nearly everyone spoke English. Some people will speak French, and we rarely heard much Flemish/Dutch. A quick %26quot;bon jour%26quot; followed by %26quot;do you speak English%26quot; was usually met with an English reply. The people are so incredibly friendly and helpful, I doubt you will ever have a problem, except possibly in a remote grocery or other spot usually frequented only by locals. We went to the Spar (food store) and had a bit of difficulty using the credit card machine for our purchase, but with a combination of English, French, and sign language were able to resolve the problem.

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Walking into a shop in Brugge and saying a quick %26quot;bonjour%26quot; is like walking into a shop in Minneapolis and saying a quick %26quot;Buenos Dias%26quot;. In Dutch it%26#39;s %26quot;goede morgen%26quot;, but if you pronounce that as it looks to an English speaker, you might as well stick with English in the first place.

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Many years ago, on my very first visit to Brugge, I asked a waiter %26quot;Do you speak English?%26quot; He looked at me with utter contempt and snapped back %26quot;Yes, of course - do you speak Flemish?%26quot; Since then I%26#39;ve been back many times but have never dared ask that question again. (I%26#39;ve wished ever since that I%26#39;d responded by asking him whether he spoke Welsh, which is in fact my own native tongue.)

I have always found that the vast majority of people living in Brugge speak perfect English - presumably my bad tempered waiter regarded my innocent question as patronising.

I would never speak French to someone in Brugge, unless of course I was trying to communicate with a French person. Like you I always make an effort to speak in the local language when travelling abroad, however somehow I sense that any attempt at Flemish would not go down too well in Brugge, so I make an exception here and just stick to English.

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Thank you all for your advice.

I%26#39;m off to Bruges next week and can now save a bit of space by not packing a French Phrase Book!

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