A pleasant dinner with three family members in an Amsterdam restaurant. We have plenty of material for animated conversations. After paying, I walk past the adjacent table where an (English) man and woman are sitting. The man speaks to me kindly: “Excuse me, but which language did you speak?” Somewhat surprised, I answer: “We spoke Dutch.” He looks as if he finds it very special that Dutch can still be heard in Amsterdam, and responds with: “Oh, it sounds beautiful!”
Readers are the authors of this column. An Ije is a personal experience or anecdote in a maximum of 120 words. Submit via [email protected]