A Dutch speaker would never, ever, in a million years ask anyone in a foreign country whether they speak Dutch. (If you were trapped in a Chinese prison, talking to your Chinese-looking cellmate, but you didn't speak a word of Chinese, would you try addressing her in Hebrew first, or would you go straight to English?)

The real question is why she started with French rather than English, but I actually buy it--it's 1982, and English is just starting to become the international language it will eventually be, so English or French is six of one, half dozen of the other as a lingua franca. And her French is probably better than her English.

-J