John Donaldson was in the navy at some point? Never heard of it before.
Uh oh...say it ain't so.
And an article from Jyllands Posten, Kongelig langrendsdyst: Den danske kronprins duellerede mod den norske - Indland
Basically telling us that Frederik came in on a glorious second place. - Of the two CP's.
After all Haakon was on home turf, and it would be un-sportsman like for Frederik to trash Haakon, right?
I think we are in for some Dutch Danish rivalry in the times to come!
Thank you Muhler for your defence of the Danish crown prince's second place: I imagine this has to do with the Scandinavian humour we were talking about last week (rivalry between nations etc.) but I could not help noticing that the Norwegian prince's legs are somewhat longer than his Danish counterpart so wonder if height has anything to do with ski success? BTW, does the race name mean 'legs of birch'? BTWx2: did you follow the Dutch election and the consequent DR2 newsbroadcast in Dutch?
Neither did I, is it really true? All I knew/know is that he was a Professor.
Of course this is the answer, Norwegians are the European kings and queens of snow....! I asked about the Dutch elections because I was curious why DR would decide to broadcast a news clip in Dutch and because I was entertained by the Dutch response, both of which you can view belowI fear Nordic is pretty close to the real explanation.
Norwegians have a natural advantage when it comes to skiing. It's the equivalent to cycling in DK - i.e. something everyone do as a matter of course.
But once the Norwegians venture down from their mountains and descend in droves on the West coast of Jutland, the endless sky overwhelm them!
So you will often see German tourists and locals sidestepping Norwegians who are covering in a fetus position. - That's just part of the scenery and they snap out of it when it gets dark.
And yes, I did follow the Dutch general election with interest. The nationalists everywhere are on the move. - And in two or three years in Canada as well.
my first language is Dutch so that I was entertained by the Danish version, which sounds very German to me, unsurprisingly of course! I was however anxious to know about the Dutch newsreader's Danish, so send out this challenge to the Danish speaking members of TRFHow is the Dutch version of Danish you hear in this clip?
Of course this is the answer, Norwegians are the European kings and queens of snow....! I asked about the Dutch elections because I was curious why DR would decide to broadcast a news clip in Dutch and because I was entertained by the Dutch response, both of which you can view below
Deens nieuws in het Nederlands: jullie taal klinkt zo leuk | NOS
Well, I tried my best to ignore the subtitles and as such only understood one word in ten - at best.
Without the subtitles to lead me in the general direction I would have had no idea whatsoever what she was talking about.
I have a feeling it was about the same with the DK host...
Quite a few Dutch have settled in DK, particularly as farmers. There is much more land available in DK than in the Netherlands.
Apart from that we Danes have a lot to thank the Dutch for historically speaking. It was a Dutch relief force that came to the aid of Copenhagen in 1659, when DK was basically reduced to Copenhagen and under siege by the Swedes. The Swedish king having promised his men three days of free plunder when Copenhagen fell. - And free killing of Danes! After which he would have presented the other European powers with a fait accompli. I.e Sweden being in total control of the Baltic Sea.
That however was not in anyone's interest, so the Swedes had to vacate most of Denmark. But the provinces and ancient Danish lands of Halland, Blekinge and Skåne were to be seeded to Sweden.
Before that Dutch settlers had been encouraged to settle on the island of Amager, just east of Copenhagen. Bringing with them much needed know how in regards to craftsmanship and farming, including the iconic mills that are now considered typical Danish.
Dybbøl Mølle for example being a national symbol. http://newsbreak.dk/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/Dybb%C3%B8l_M%C3%B8lle_02_foto_Elo_Christoffersen.jpg
Quite a few prominent descendants of Dutch settlers now officers, fought and died in a battle around that mill in 1864. - 200 years later.
But back to your question or challenge. I can read and understand the gist of a Dutch text, because it's close to German, but I can only understand very little spoken Dutch.
I firmly believe that if you can learn to pronounce Danish and Dutch correctly, all other languages on the globe is a piece of cake.
I can read Danish but doubt if I will ever be able to understand its spoken versions
