One of the few things that slightly irritates me while living in the host country is that when people here are quick to assume that I do not speak Dutch and would speak English to me right away. This is irritating because it reminds me that I do not belong here. Why do they assume that I do not speak Dutch? What gave it away? Is it because of the colour of my skin?
I live here for quite a while now and yet I do still feel a newcomer. To be honest, I do still find the Dutch language to be intimidating even though I speak the language relatively well despite of my strong foreign accent.
The Baklush Phenomenology Blog 