Amsterdam. English.
December 14, 2008
Dam Lovers
If my hand were as sharp as my comedic timing, I might have gotten this photo right. But I have to pull a “you had to be there” moment and spell it out. The lovers boat was FULL. The canals were FULL of LOVERS boats. FULL of the most depressed tourists I’ve ever seen! Dude, chins saddled in hands, the forlorn faces were priceless! Maybe because they were stripped of their freedom and forced to listen to some bonehead tour guide. I’m never going on a lovers boat.
Pity the fools
But the Lovers get to another point – the english! Not the people. The language. Here. Everyone speaks english here. That’s a given. So expect everyone on a quiet train to understand you. (Which is more than I can say for city hall). But the way english has saturated the culture … speaks a lot to the how America has touched the world. I feel dirty. This is probably not news to you. But living it, rather than just knowing it, has given new depth to my understanding of american pop culture and its global reach.
a healthy command of english, by the kermis fair
Basically, everyone I ask says they learned english from TV. They all grew up watching Seinfeld, Friends or the A-team or something. It’s crazy. They all sound like BA Baracas! So. Everyone (or gen x and y) speaks english and has a common nostalgic spot for things 80s. English manifests in the media, on buildings and in my photos via cheezy slogans, corporate names, branding and ads. Is this what the english language is to the dutch? A catchphrase? A sales pitch? As if Eve were a car salesman. Bite one get one free? Hip hop lingo is everywhere too. Basically if you listen or watch enough, you’ll hear and see english phrasologies everywhere. Earlier this week I shared a laugh with a guy at the pool, as rambunctious kids bounced off the walls and filled an otherwise mellow pool hall with noise. At first he didn’t believe me when I said they were screaming in english. He said, “No, they’re speaking hip hop.”
