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The Times & The Sunday Times
The Times & The Sunday Times
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Flemish only

In the town of Mechelen, instead of bilingual signs, as in Brussels, all signs and menus were in Flemish only
The Times
The Times

Sir, Patrick Ford’s letter (“Flemish students and Walloons”, June 24) is at variance with my own experiences. I worked in Brussels last year and frequently went north to the Flemish town of Mechelen. Instead of bilingual or trilingual signs, as in Brussels, all signs and menus were in Flemish only.

The first time I went there (and it’s only a 20-minute train from Brussels) I jumped in a cab and gave the address in French. The driver replied in English.

All the cafés expressed ignorance of the French language. My trump card was a friend who spoke fluent Afrikaans (ie, Dutch/Flemish), but the insularity was quite a shock to the system.

Martin Morris
Hitchin, Herts