Un Beso!

I find U.S. culture more fascinating now that I am outside looking in. I can see a major British influence now much more than ever. Certainly, there is a mesh of cultures colliding but the base of that is English. Many of the manners, the behaviors, the privacy or the taboos are rooted from the English culture. Plus, because people are so accustomed to so many cultures and traditions hitting them at once, many times the result is to separate.

I’ve always sensed something missing in the U.S. from our general interaction. I am an extremely affectionate and loving person. This is strange in my country. You might see more of this in small town U.S.A. but not to the degree that I have been searching for. My closest friends in my life usually come from Italian, African or Latin families. There is something there that I love. There is something with in these cultures that makes me feel more comfortable.

I am not saying that the Argentinean people are extremely affectionate, they are many times not. But when they love, they express their love. Men will hug each other with gratitude and kindness. I will see two older women walking down the street holding each other’s hands. Or, of course, romantic affection is extremely dominant. There are many, many couples kissing at restaurant tables or street benches.

But there is one thing here that I have never received so consistently my whole life. It is 'un beso'! (one kiss)

For example, in Buenos Aires, if you are walking into a room full of strangers at a party, you should go around the entire room and give everyone a kiss on the cheek while saying your name. Everybody here, even the children, give ‘un beso’ (one kiss) on the cheek to everyone they meet, when they enter or leave a room.

In the smaller towns that I have visited, I noticed that the men did shake hands. Later, I found out that, for men, shaking hands was more common in the smaller towns unless they were very close.

This is even a tradition at jobs interviews or professional meetings. Practically, nobody shakes your hand! In every situation when you meet someone be prepared to give ‘un beso’ on the cheek after and before you meet. Even at the end of my yoga class, we all give 'un beso' to the intructor before we leave the room! Now, I am already thinking about how I will adjust back in the U.S.?

That brings me to this. I give a lot of credit to the people, that I know, who have had to adapt in the opposite direction. The U.S. must seem so cold to people who are from Argentina. I can just imagine, getting a job in Chicago and accidentally giving your new boss a kiss on the cheek.