When everyone switches to English

You're at a family get-together at your partner Mads's parents' house. Mads's cousin, whom you haven't met before, comes over to say hello.

Medium · 4 min

Your partner's cousin switches to English when he hears your accent. Keep the conversation in Danish, politely.

Scenario: Du er til familiekomsammen hos din kæreste Mads’ forældre. Mads’ fætter, som du ikke har mødt før, kommer hen for at hilse på dig.

Hej! Du må være Mads’ kæreste. Jeg er Rasmus, hans fætter. Nå, hvor længe har du så boet i Danmark?

Hi! You must be Mads's partner. I'm Rasmus, his cousin. So, how long have you lived in Denmark?

Rasmus

Your response:

Hej Rasmus, rart at møde dig! Jeg har boet her i to år.

friendly

Hi Rasmus, nice to meet you! I've lived here for two years.

How the conversation starts

One way it can go. Play the conversation above to choose your own replies and see where they take it.

Rasmus

Hej! Du må være Mads’ kæreste. Jeg er Rasmus, hans fætter. Nå, hvor længe har du så boet i Danmark?

Hi! You must be Mads's partner. I'm Rasmus, his cousin. So, how long have you lived in Denmark?

You

Hej Rasmus, rart at møde dig! Jeg har boet her i to år.

Hi Rasmus, nice to meet you! I've lived here for two years.

Rasmus

Nå, two years! Nice. So what do you do here?

Oh, two years! Nice. So what do you do here?

You

Jeg er sygeplejerske. Jeg arbejder på Hvidovre Hospital.

I'm a nurse. I work at Hvidovre Hospital.

Rasmus

Nå, sygeplejerske! Respekt. Min mor var også sygeplejerske i mange år, så jeg ved godt, hvor hårdt det er med alle de skæve vagter. Har du mange nattevagter?

Oh, a nurse! Hats off. My mum was a nurse for years too, so I know how tough it is with all those odd shifts. Do you do a lot of night shifts?

You

Undskyld, du må gerne tale lidt langsommere. Jeg fik ikke det hele med.

Sorry, could you speak a little more slowly? I didn't catch all of it.

Rasmus

Ja, undskyld! Jeg sagde: Min mor var også sygeplejerske. Så jeg ved, at det er hårdt. Har du mange nattevagter?

Yes, sorry! I said: my mum was a nurse too. So I know it's hard. Do you do a lot of night shifts?

Vocabulary in this conversation

The key Danish words and phrases that appear in this dialogue.

øve

practice, rehearse

langsom

slow

fætter

(en)

cousin (male)

sygeplejerske

(en)

nurse

kaffe

(en)

coffee

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