How traditional is cheek kissing in your part of Europe?

[Llywarch Hen]

Originally Posted by Carnyx

I sometimes notice men with a weak handshake can also be shy, insecured about themselves, shifty, lacking of character, maybe with problem of low self-esteem.

Aye, but the worst case I ever felt was of a former colleague of mine. No squeeze, no movement... Creepy!
He wasn't a bad fellow, but he wasn't really anything! Absolutely lacking in character, and never contradicted anyone to their face. A weak man. I never knew such people existed before!

Originally Posted by Tennyson

Or maybe they are just physically weak. Strong men have usually strong handshakes and vice versa.

I'm not very strong, but I make an effort in this department.

Originally Posted by Carnyx

As long as you just don't shake fingers.

Hehe, but it's awful when you're not fast enough, and the other man's hand closes before you're fully in place! I always feel like saying "No! That's not what I normally do it like! Let's start again!"

Strong guys don't shake your hand, they crush it.

The happy medium should be neither soft nor too strong.

Aye - I hate it when it's done as an obvious competing thing, as though they're testing your power against theirs.

But here's a curious thing - the Muslims I knew at school [Pakis by ethnicity] always shook hands when meeting each other, but did it a bit like my old colleague above - just a light touching of palms. It sickened me, and seemed rather effete. Do the Turks in Germany and the North Africans in France do the same thing?

[Theobald]

Originally Posted by Carnyx

Strong guys don't shake your hand, they crush it.

The happy medium should be neither soft nor too strong.

Indeed. I like rather strong, "sincere" handshakes, les yeux dans les yeux, but I can't stand those guys who try to destroy your hand like they would tell you "I'm stronger than you". These ones have problems of self-confidence as well. Men who are really strong do not feel the need to show or prove it.

[Theobald]

Originally Posted by Llywarch Hen

But here's a curious thing - the Muslims I knew at school [Pakis by ethnicity] always shook hands when meeting each other, but did it a bit like my old colleague above - just a light touching of palms. It sickened me, and seemed rather effete. Do the Turks in Germany and the North Africans in France do the same thing?

No I have never seen such things. The North Africans I have known all had strong handshakes.
As for the Turks they generally use both hand-shaking and cheek-kissing (I mean, when a Turk greets another Turk). Oh, actually they don't really kiss each other's cheeks, I don't know how to say it in English... Ils se tapent la tempe l'un contre l'autre deux fois, de chaque coté... LOL even in French it's hard to explain. Carnyx ?

[Susi]

Originally Posted by Carnyx

You'd better be very afraid of weak handshakers.



This or this

I'm more afraid of that guy in the truck. *shiver*

Originally Posted by Ferran

I prefer Bush's style.

"Jedi Mind Tricks: Bush: "There WERE weapons of mass destruction in Iraq" Journalists: "There WERE weapons of mass destruction in Iraq""

Originally Posted by Llywarch Hen

Aye, but the worst case I ever felt was of a former colleague of mine. No squeeze, no movement... Creepy!
He wasn't a bad fellow, but he wasn't really anything! Absolutely lacking in character, and never contradicted anyone to their face. A weak man. I never knew such people existed before!

Was he... gay?

Hehe, but it's awful when you're not fast enough, and the other man's hand closes before you're fully in place! I always feel like saying "No! That's not what I normally do it like! Let's start again!"

Awkward with a capital A.

Aye - I hate it when it's done as an obvious competing thing, as though they're testing your power against theirs.

"I'm not insecure at all!"

[Carnyx]

Originally Posted by Llywarch Hen

Aye, but the worst case I ever felt was of a former colleague of mine. No squeeze, no movement... Creepy!
He wasn't a bad fellow, but he wasn't really anything! Absolutely lacking in character, and never contradicted anyone to their face. A weak man. I never knew such people existed before!

Pissing contests are quite boring and exhausting at long. I just pretend I don't give a damn nowadays, so that @ssh*les and idiots tend to let me in peace (don't talk to me please, don't you see I'm not interested in what you could say?) -and Gods know there are many of retards on this earth. Sometimes I prefer nice weaks to loud mouthed retards who speak for nothing and stand up for BS and sometimes I wish nodding people could be more persuasive.

Hehe, but it's awful when you're not fast enough, and the other man's hand closes before you're fully in place! I always feel like saying "No! That's not what I normally do it like! Let's start again!"

Ho, I know that feeling.

the North Africans in France do the same thing?

Actually, I've shaked very few of those hands in my whole life. Arabs touch their heart after hand shaking, that's about anything I can say. I knew few a Turkish guys before, I didn't notice anything special. Maybe your Pakis were some free masons of the High Tanduri Lodge?

Originally Posted by Theobald

Ils se tapent la tempe l'un contre l'autre deux fois, de chaque coté... LOL even in French it's hard to explain. Carnyx ?

Oh this... People have to see it to understand... It's indescribable.

[Carnyx]

Originally Posted by Ferran

I prefer Bush's style.

Well tried.

[Theobald]

Originally Posted by Carnyx

Arabs touch their heart after hand shaking, that's about anything I can say.

Yeah I knew some guys in my school who did this. They were either born in Algeria or "very Muslim" fellows.

Originally Posted by Carnyx

Oh this... People have to see it to understand... It's indescribable.

Well, perhaps if some German reads this thread he will be able to explain it.

[Susi]

Originally Posted by Theobald

Yeah I knew some guys in my school who did this. They were either born in Algeria or "very Muslim" fellows.



Well, perhaps if some German reads this thread he will be able to explain it.

I kind of understood the French but wasn't sure

So they kiss each other on the forehead twice on each side?

[Carnyx]

Originally Posted by Susi

So they kiss each other on the forehead twice on each side?

Not the forehead, the temple. Like kissing but being worried about a mouth contact with the cheek.

[Susi]

I thought the temple and the forehead were the same thing. My bad!

Thanks.

[Exeter]

It's only common between men and women in the British Isles and Scandinavia. Men don't kiss like that. I think it's considered gay.

Do Greek men kiss each other on the cheek?

[Gavril]

Originally Posted by Exeter

It's only common between men and women in the British Isles and Scandinavia.

I have never done it, couldn't, won't, and I don't know any Danes who do it.
Where have you seen this in Scandinavia, Exeter?

[svin]

I've been reading detective novel by Icelandic writer Arnaldur Indridason (novel title is "Voices") and he mentioned cheek kissing between man and woman.

[Exeter]

Sweden and Norway although you know things change quickly when people get very drunk. Guys have an excuse to show more emotions when they get drunk. They start to hug each other and some even kiss on the cheek. I have seen this bonding among young British with a public school background.

Whether people kiss on the cheek is in my experience also a matter of social background in England and Sweden. I got the impression some perceive it as sophisticated (= French?) although it isn't if you think of two very masculine looking Turkish guys with big moustaches kissing each other on the cheek.

It might be the case those Italian guys who kiss on the cheek are simply more comfortable with showing affection.

Originally Posted by Ljubomir

I have never done it, couldn't, won't, and I don't know any Danes who do it.
Where have you seen this in Scandinavia, Exeter?