hello,

I'm an 18 year old belgian guy/kid
and I'm considering studying Russian, I don't know if it's any different abroad, but in Belgium studying Russian is a rather weird choice.
so all the people having doubts whether it is the right thing to do have given me second thoughts about studying Russian.

so if someone could answer a few questions for me to make me feel certain in my choice?:

- I think history class has given me an incorrect image about russia, it's said to be weak & subdue to communism, russian are supposed to be poor, and rude: I'm quite certain some people would like to refute these statements?

- is there a need of interpreters English/Dutch/French <-> Russian

- can someone estimate the percentage of russians who are able to speak a foreign language ( such as dutch/french/english ) ?

- could a Dutch speaking person stay in Russia for lets say.. 1 year and be able to speak russian as if it were french? ( if u're Dutch and you spend a year in France you should be able to understand & communicate with the french )

- let's hypothesize Russia falls apart & the Russians move to europe, would they be able to learn the european languages without being tutored or would they still be speaking russian and will I consequently still have a job?




these might look like dumb questions but it's what's on my mind and I'd like them to be cleared before I make my final decision.
feel free to add me to your MSN ( rechtersok@hotmail.com )

thank you.