How to Greet my german friend on his birthday?? Is KISS on cheek okie????

Question

I have this german guy frined who is really sweet, we met about a month ago and are still in and out of formalities, but now his birthday is coming up and i do feel affectianate towards him, the problem is I dont know if its ok for germans to kiss them on cheek when u greet them...i know greeks do it..but dont know about this..a handshake seems too formal to me..what do u think...o by the way he turns 33 on this bday!

Answer 1

My Dad is German. From what I've noticed from that side of the family, they are a little stiff and not very touchy feely. I'll hug and kiss them anyway and they are usually taken aback, but they aren't offended. My German teacher was the same way when I was in high school. I would give him a hug first and gage his reaction that way.

EDIT: I should probably clarify that I never tried to hug or kiss my German teacher. I babysat for her a few times and I noticed that her and her husband were a bit stiff around each other.

Answer 2

yeah, germans don't kiss on cheeks like other europeans.  they even handshake two or three times a day with the same person sometimes.  I have seen this.  It all depends on your friend and his upbringing and whether he has travelled much.

he could be liberal and open and worldly or completely the opposite.

us canadians and americans like to show our affectionate and hug colleagues and friends...germans don't.

Answer 3

It's always OK to kiss a person on a cheek on his\her birthday, no matter what your relationships are :) That's why birthdays were invented: so that people could have a legitimate excuse to show that they care about each other :)

I've never seen Germans greeting each other by kissing on a regular basis, even if they do, it's not as common as say in France, but you surely can do it on a birthday.

Answer 4

Go for it ;)

That would be a terrific birthday gift