The Party of Incomprehension

On Friday night, my Dutch teacher (er, she's Dutch and she teaches Dutch so maybe I can call her my "Double Dutch" teacher... ha! I kill me... ) hosted a party for our class. We all brought food from our respective countries -- I baked brownies -- and we mingled and chatted and even danced a little. There was only one rule for the evening:

We must speak Dutch to each other at all times.

This was all well and good -- a nice non-class exercise for our language skills -- but after the night was over I started thinking about what it's like to hang out with a bunch of people and chat with them all night in my second language. (and for some in my class, their third or even fourth language...) And, really, when you think about it, it's like a skit from SNL or an episode of a sitcom.

Me: I think I might go out in the city after this party and get a drink with by boyfriend.

Random Turkish Man (he understands): Do you want to go get a drink with me and be my boyfriend?

Me (confused as to why he's now grinning luridly at me): In what part of the city do you live and how long does it take you to get to the school?

Random Turkish Man (thinking this is his lucky day, understands): How long will it take us to get back to your place?

Me (thinking): Wow, he is so friendly. But hmmm... why is he now standing so close to me? Maybe it's a cultural difference thing.

Me: How did you like my brownies?

RTM (understands): Would you like to taste my delicious brownie?

Okay, so the above conversation never really happened, but it's really not that far off the mark. I biked back to town with a Japanese girl from my class and I asked her (in English) if she'd understood the departing remarks of our teacher when we were pulling out of her driveway. She looked at me in all seriousness and said "I have absolutely no idea. In fact, I haven't understood you for the last five minutes."