Because of historical circumstances and geopolitical position of the Netherlands, the country, and its capital in particular, provide plenty of opportunities to learn European languages, especially English. Almost everyone in Amsterdam has good command of English and usually speaks more than a smattering of German and French as well. If you nevertheless intend to learn Dutch, bear in mind that there is no direct logic in the language and it does not have basic rules, which makes learning it a considerable challenge. There are, however, many professional language schools that teach the basics of the Dutch language, grammar, spelling and pronunciation. With regard to other languages, a number of language institutes offer tailor-made courses of varying levels and duration. The educational programmes are taught exclusively by native speakers.