My last blog post for 2023 is the column I wrote for the December 2023/January 2024 double issue of the Tetbury Advertiser, written in the run-up to Christmas.
On my first trip abroad for over a year – only my second since before Covid – I find it refreshing to hear other languages spoken. My short break in the historic city of Bruges exposes me to far more than Belgium’s three official languages, French, Dutch, and German. The cheerful hotel receptionist who greets us in fluent English converses just as easily in Spanish with other guests. As we roam the cobbled streets, we catch drifts of Asian languages from tour guides leading walking groups.
