If you’re an international, improving your Dutch skills can be a real challenge. It’s especially difficult if you live in a place where English is increasingly becoming the de facto language in cafes and other public places.

The Leiden International Centre is taking aim at the problem with Praat Nederlands Day, a new city-wide event set to take place on Thursday, October 9.

The agenda is packed with workshops, games, informal conversation sessions, and other activities to help those who want to improve their Dutch but have become discouraged or reluctant. Everyone is welcome regardless of their skill level.

“A complaint you often hear among internationals is ‘Oh, I’m learning and I’m trying, but I don’t have many chances to use the language’,” centre spokeswoman Sibilla Gosso told Dutch News.

“Often, the best spot is in the shops and cafes,” she said. “Internationals try to speak Dutch in them, but the staff switch to English because it’s easier and faster.”

The campaign is also involving local businesses, which will display signs to let attendees know they’re ready and willing to help them practice their Dutch. The centre has also created Praat Nederlands at Work, a digital package for local employers with international staff.

But will it help?

Leiden resident Hawys, originally from Wales, said she rarely has Dutch people switch to English with her. “I find that if I start in Dutch, people speak Dutch back, especially if I quickly say that I’m trying to learn,” she reported. “I managed a whole doctor’s appointment in Dutch recently.”

“In Leiden it’s the cafes and chain shops where English seems to be the go-to,” she said. “Having A2+ Dutch helps though!”

Katharine, from California, said her mixed heritage has helped make using Dutch less challenging for her. “Maybe it’s because I don’t look ‘American,’” she said. “My father’s from Thailand, so people don’t know if I speak English.”

“I’ve heard so much about the switching and I always feel good when I make it through a day when no one does,” she said. “I more frequently have the opposite problem, where I start in Dutch and then people start rambling and I don’t know how to tell them that I lost track of what they were saying five minutes ago.”

Struggle

Nevertheless, internationals who have fallen into the stereotypical ‘expat bubble’ have demanding work or familial obligations, struggle with learning second languages, often making it no further than learning how to ask for a receipt at their local Albert Heijn.

And that’s where one or several Praat Nederlands Days could prove useful. Gosso said the Leiden event hopefully won’t be the last.

“If it goes well, we’ll want to do it next year and maybe expand it,” she said. “It could go to other towns and cities as well.”