Greetings Differences

Ignorance of differences in the style of a handshake can lead to a lot of funny and awkward situations. The British, Australians, New Zealand residents, Germans and Americans usually shake hands when they meet and say goodbye. Most Europeans shake hands several times during the day. It was estimated that the average Frenchman shakes hands half an hour a day. Residents of India and other Asian countries, as well as Arabs, hold their hands after the handshake has ended. The Germans and the French energetically shake the interlocutor’s hand once or twice. The British shake hands with a handshake three to five times, and the Americans - from five to seven times. The most interesting thing is to watch the handshakes of delegates from different countries at international conferences. To Americans, the Germans, with their short handshakes, seem cold and detached. The Germans, on the contrary, are amazed at the American habit of shaking the interlocutor’s hand for a long time, as if pumping up an air mattress.
When it comes to welcome kisses, the inhabitants of the Scandinavian countries are limited to one kiss, the French - two, and the Dutch, Belgians and Arabs - three. People in Australia, New Zealand and the countries of North America are very embarrassed if they have to kiss when they meet, which leads to comical nostril collisions. The British are trying by all means to avoid kissing, stepping back. If dodge fails, then they use the traditional European double kiss. In his book “The View from the Top”, Everest's conqueror Sir Edmund Hillary recalls his first meeting with the conductor Tenzing Norgay. At the meeting, Sir Hillary quite in English shook the hand of the conductor. But Norgay embraced and kissed the Englishman. This is the traditional Tibetan greeting.