Brussels lies within the Dutch-speaking part of Belgium, but is, for official purposes, bi-lingual: all advertisements, written notices and street signs are in French and Dutch. That said, French is by far the most widely used language in the city, and it's rare to hear Dutch spoken, except when you're pretending you didn't understand the French-speaking shop assistant when she said, 'the shop is closing and you have to leave'. Even in that case she tried English before resorting to Dutch. When you've been told in three different languages to get out, then it's probably wise not to push your luck. On Wednesday, however, I was approached by a lady at a zebra crossing who asked me something in Dutch. My somewhat paradoxical response was: 'Ik spreek geen nederlands'. Fortunately, being told in one language was enough for her and she headed on her way.
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