Let's try this growing thing! 🤓

[LoCoRocK]

@MrMonkey420

Nous apprenons le français à l’école depuis l’enfance

We take French in school… What is the depuis l’enfance??
It’s enforced?

[MrMonkey420]

@LoCoRocK

Your mom is from the Netherlands?

Nope, she’s just Belgian Okay, here’s the situation short: we have 3 main regions in Belgium: Flanders (where the poppies blow…) and where we speak Flemish which is actual Dutch but has a different accent then the Dutchies. Compare it to Brittish and American English. See, untill 1830 we were one country with the Netherlands. I’m from Flanders.

Then there’s Wallonia where they speak French. Hence the name French fries, which are actually Belgian. This misunderstanding happened when US soldiers who were here during the second WW, heard a lot of french here as well, going back home referring to the fries as “french fries”
And we have a very small German speaking region as well, in the east, next to the German border.
Here’s a little map for ya:

@LoCoRocK

Is growing weed totally legal across the board in Belgium?

It is definitely not. We’ve got a 1 plant tolerance policy for ages already. Same for the amount of THC weed you can carry on you. 3grams is tolerated. This means you probably won’t get prosecuted if they catch you. But they will take it from you. We also don’t have the “coffeeshops” but just drive to our Dutchie neighbours for that.

@LoCoRocK

We take French in school… What is the depuis l’enfance??
It’s enforced?

It means ‘since childhood’. Enforced yes, from the age of 10-11 if I remember correct. And English when we are 12.
See, what we do different in Flanders compared to a number of other EU countries is: we subtitle foreign languages on tv (and in 90% of the cases that is English). So from a very young age we hear english and see the dutch translation. All the movies, all the US series, … In Germany, France, Spain, … A LOT is dubbed. (original soundtrack replaced with their language). I think that’s the reason why Flemish and Dutchies their English is quite alright.

[LoCoRocK]

That’s a lot of lesson for me to forget man… LoL dutchies has a ring to it but where does the Belgium waffle play into all this then? Or a dutch oven for that fact!!
I know that the United States education is far lacking in comparison to EU nations. Us dumb yanks as the Brits say. I wish I would have taken Spanish instead of French but due to some of the same conjugation of verbs it’s quite similar. I have always got along great with the Spanish / Latin folks down here because I have a little bit better understanding of it, I’m not your average gringo. Thus my Loco tats and screen names… lol

[chavez78]

You definitely are NOT average, my friend! .

[TheMadFlascher]

OOOOOOhhhhhhh!

Touche @chavez78 !

Loco is here to add ‘color’ to our lives and he definitely does!
Rock On, LoCo !!

[LoCoRocK]

Average lunatic… Not your average whitey… LoL

[LoCoRocK]

I am almost sure I remember a conversation with a finnish cat that I joked about a dutch oven and he had never heard the expression! It’s pretty interesting what is considered slang that we Americans never contemplate.
So being Flemish do you all build your houses around a sauna also?

[MrMonkey420]

@LoCoRocK

I wish I would have taken Spanish instead of French but due to some of the same conjugation of verbs it’s quite similar.

Ah well, they’re both Romance languages, that’s why.
Opposed to English, Dutch, German, Norwegian, … which are germanic languages. That’s why English is also easier for me, I’m sure you would get away with Dutch real quick as well! Especially grammatically we have A LOT in common. But vocabulary-wise as well.

• Hij is een goede man. (He is a good man)
• Appel is een fruit. (Apple is a fruit)
• Ik drink twee glazen bier. (I drink two glasses of beer)
• Het is niet warm in de winter. (It is not hot in winter)
• Pardon, dit is mijn station. (Excuse me, this is my station)
• Dit is een oud huis. (This is an old house)
• Mijn vader is een dokter. (My father is a doctor).

I believe I’ve heard English speakers saying: Dutch sounds like drunken English

[LoCoRocK]

To drink is drink?? Really!! Thats nothing like boire… totally English. That’s funny… I can see the German in it as well. You have 26 letter alphabet?

[LoCoRocK]

@MrMonkey420

Pardon, dit is mijn station. (Excuse me, this is my station

So to add “not” it would just be :
Dit niez is mijn station
There isn’t nes pas between the verb or something similar rather splitting the verb? A “before” and “after” splitting it I guess is what I’m asking? I Always thought that was nutz w French having to add 2 words for not or don’t. - je ne suis pas

[MrMonkey420]

@LoCoRocK

I’m not your average gringo. Thus my Loco tats and screen names… lol

I guess we’re swimming in the same boat. Driving in the same in the water i mean. Heck, Driving same the swimming in the waWait. What? I mean I didn’t put up Monkey for no reason. I was born in the year of the monkey too according to the the Wangs & Li’s.

Straight Outta Belgium

[MrMonkey420]

@LoCoRocK

So to add “not” it would just be :
Dit niez is mijn station

Exactly. But with a ‘T’. Niet. Pronounced like neat.

Yeah, the Frenchies got it all mixed up.

[LoCoRocK]

Zut alors mon ami. Qui est facile

[LoCoRocK]

It sounds as though you have an extra syllable between dit _ niet ? I guess it’s the pronunciation of the niet … Regardless if that’s your voice - it’s EXACTLY what all dutch sound like… LMAO it’s like your DNA has a bass sounding chromosome.

[MrMonkey420]

@LoCoRocK

You have 26 letter alphabet?

Yep!

@LoCoRocK

It sounds as though you have an extra syllable between dit _ nie

It’s the ‘is’… This IS not my station. Dit IS niet mijn station.

@LoCoRocK

LMAO it’s like your DNA has a bass sounding chromosome.

It’s the Germanic/Viking blood mate… We’re all Ragnarssons deep down inside

Spreading of the Germanic Culture during the Ironage, ca 500 - 60 BC

[TheMadFlascher]

Thanks for the cultural briefing, Monkey !!

I do believe I’m going to steal that picture and utilize it when appropriate !
Much easier to post the picture than writing out ‘piss off’ !!!

[MrMonkey420]

It’s our beloved “Manneke Pis” statue , right in the heart of Brussels! Pissing man!

There’s a female also, same area. She’s called Jeanneke Pis.

[LoCoRocK]

I’m sure Oly has read all this? Pretty interesting all told. I know he’s a trivia junky and enjoys the factual tidbits here and there.
I’m almost willing to bet he probably already knew about Manneke Pis statue though. I never really thought about it having a name or meaning but I’m pretty dang gum sure I’ve seen it before. Looks like It’s from one of the Renaissance dudes? Hitler liked it and didn’t destroy it … LoL

Monkey answers… no my buddy Jerry down the street made that.

[MrMonkey420]

The one out in the street is a copy. The original is in a museum and was made in 1619. I know this only from reading Wiki just now as well. Didn’t know he was that old.

[Dog_Fart1]

You know, don’t ya think if you were the sculptor that little guy would have a stinger like a horse, not a wee wittle bee…“That’s my boy, gets it from his pops!”