nog en keer (one more time?)
I have been trying to find out what the Dutch is for phrases and expressions that I use all the time. Things like Please and Thank You are easy enough (Sorry, Alstublieft, Dank u wel) but how and when they are applied in everyday are harder to figure out.
In Spanish, I found that I NEEDED things all the time. I need to practice, I need to find this product, I need to work. Necesito became my go to word for nearly every sentence, but not in a 'needy' way. Apparently, in Dutch the 'need' comes at the end of the sentence so it translates more literally as "I practice, necessary. I work, necessary. I look for this product, necessary." So one's own needs come at the end of everything. Socialism?
Dutch class is going o.k., but we really are starting at word one, and the teacher does not go over the homework (granted, the answers are usually in the back of the book. . . ). Apparently the more advanced section of Dutch that runs concurrently with our baby section is in revolt because that instructor does not speak enough Dutch. In our class, the instructor does not speak enough English -- plus he mumbles which makes Dutch all the more difficult to understand.
We have a small group of 6-8 students in class, depending on the day, from all nationalities. Italian, Brazilian, British, Armenian, and we recently had a French person added, but since he has a Dutch girlfriend, his language was more advanced so he has been promoted to the class in rebellion. We also have a Chilean woman, who speaks little English. There is a Dutch course set up for native Spanish speakers, so I am not sure why she was added into our section. Plus, our instructor does not know Spanish, so the rest of us try to explain the directions to the new girl in our multiple levels of Spanish.
On the job front: We have our residency cards! Which is great and means we can live in the Netherlands legally. The Embassy also applied for a work number on my behalf, which is taking forever. Apparently, I could have just gone to the city hall with my card, registered, and asked for a number. It would have been issued on the spot. If I had known, I would have done it no problem. But now that the Embassy is involved, I have to wait because it I do this on my own, I will end up with two numbers. Comparable to having two social security numbers. Not sure if that means I would have to pay twice the tax, or, get twice the benefits.
Not that I have a job lined up, mind you. I am trying to figure out what I am going to do here for two plus years without teaching/work. I still have my monthly student loan payment and will be repaying that until I am 66. The Irony is, if I was teaching at the old school in NYC, I would be wanting a sabatical. I may treat Holland like a two year sabatical if nothing else materializes, but that means I have to get off my can and REALLY start getting serious about writing/researching.
O.k. A better post later -- Now that the great freeze has lifted, all the pine trees and other pollen producers have released massive amounts of nonsense into the air. Does not do well for my allergies.
--K
In Spanish, I found that I NEEDED things all the time. I need to practice, I need to find this product, I need to work. Necesito became my go to word for nearly every sentence, but not in a 'needy' way. Apparently, in Dutch the 'need' comes at the end of the sentence so it translates more literally as "I practice, necessary. I work, necessary. I look for this product, necessary." So one's own needs come at the end of everything. Socialism?
Dutch class is going o.k., but we really are starting at word one, and the teacher does not go over the homework (granted, the answers are usually in the back of the book. . . ). Apparently the more advanced section of Dutch that runs concurrently with our baby section is in revolt because that instructor does not speak enough Dutch. In our class, the instructor does not speak enough English -- plus he mumbles which makes Dutch all the more difficult to understand.
We have a small group of 6-8 students in class, depending on the day, from all nationalities. Italian, Brazilian, British, Armenian, and we recently had a French person added, but since he has a Dutch girlfriend, his language was more advanced so he has been promoted to the class in rebellion. We also have a Chilean woman, who speaks little English. There is a Dutch course set up for native Spanish speakers, so I am not sure why she was added into our section. Plus, our instructor does not know Spanish, so the rest of us try to explain the directions to the new girl in our multiple levels of Spanish.
On the job front: We have our residency cards! Which is great and means we can live in the Netherlands legally. The Embassy also applied for a work number on my behalf, which is taking forever. Apparently, I could have just gone to the city hall with my card, registered, and asked for a number. It would have been issued on the spot. If I had known, I would have done it no problem. But now that the Embassy is involved, I have to wait because it I do this on my own, I will end up with two numbers. Comparable to having two social security numbers. Not sure if that means I would have to pay twice the tax, or, get twice the benefits.
Not that I have a job lined up, mind you. I am trying to figure out what I am going to do here for two plus years without teaching/work. I still have my monthly student loan payment and will be repaying that until I am 66. The Irony is, if I was teaching at the old school in NYC, I would be wanting a sabatical. I may treat Holland like a two year sabatical if nothing else materializes, but that means I have to get off my can and REALLY start getting serious about writing/researching.
O.k. A better post later -- Now that the great freeze has lifted, all the pine trees and other pollen producers have released massive amounts of nonsense into the air. Does not do well for my allergies.
--K