When in Rome, kiss like Romans do...

Living abroad means one learns new customs. One of the most important customs I've learnt is about greeting. As experts say, the first impression is the most important thing. One needs to know how to properly greet others and like it or not, in some cultures it sometimes involves kissing.

In most of English speaking countries, the standard greeting would be a handshake, while in Asian countries one bows or waves. But it's different in many European and Latin American countries, it involves kiss(es) on the cheek. Sometimes people kiss you even on the first meeting!

Being friends with people from these countries can lead into some (fun) confusion among us. Do I kiss them according to my family's customs (mine give each others two kisses, but I can’t say the same for other Indonesians), Dutch customs or their customs? Is it one, two, or more kisses?

Germans rarely greet with a kiss, while Chileans prefer to give a mixture of handshake and hug.

In USA, a single kiss is acceptable. But I guess this is more applicable in the big cities, as for the rest of the country you can’t go wrong with a brief hug. Single kiss is also done in Argentina, Peru, Mexico and Switzerland. I even heard that a single kiss right on the lips is done in some Middle Eastern countries, but of course not between men and women.

In Spain, Austria, Sweden, Britain you can expect to get two kisses.

Triple puckers are done in Egypt, Lebanon, and Russia. Belarusian also gives three kisses; but then again I met all of my Belarusian acquaintances in Holland, it was probably according to Dutch customs.

With the French it's a bit tricky. It depends on where they come from. Here are some examples: in Paris it is two, in Bordeaux it is three, in some Southern parts of France it is four kisses! Oh la la… I heard there is a saying in French: if you kiss only one cheek, the other one will be jealous. So I think you'll be fine by giving your French friend at least two kisses.

How about in Holland? Most of my first meetings with a (new) Dutch friend started with a handshake and we kiss when we depart. Of course when I meet some close friends of mine, I kiss them in both accounts. I've learnt that more and more Dutchy kisses three times, though some of them (mostly those who live up North) still prefer to do two kisses. They say it is too much to do it three times.

As for now, I give by default three kisses in Holland, two kisses (to some people) in Indonesia and do what ever I feel like in the rest of the world.

ps: Turns out Belarusian normally give two kisses.