Act like a local
| • Observe the local’s attitude if you don`t want to face unexpected reaction. • So we don`t like touching or kissing too much. Men usually shake hands to greet each other or to say goodbye. Girls are kissing or hugging only very close friends or family members. • Latvian women can be quite strong, but they enjoy men helping them with heavier tasks or holding doors open for them • Women walk in high heels, men wear sport suit. • About the taste the locals say: “Every man to his taste.” • We have got plenty of beer marks and the live beer “Latgales alus” too. • When we are drinking, we don`t say only “Prieka!” (in Latvian), but always look into the partner’s eyes while hitting glasses. We believe: “The eyes are the soul of man”. If you look into them, you see a man’s soul. If you don’t look into them, it means that you are hiding something or lying! • If you really want to act like a local, you need to go out of the city and drink beer while cooking “sashlik” (barbecue). • We use both languages – Latvian as a state language and Russian in our everyday life. • For walking or sleeping on the public lawns in the city center you can get a fine up to 70 EUR. • Public drinking is forbidden, but especially in the summer, you can see locals sitting down with a beer in a park and enjoying the rare sunny days in Latvia. • Smoking in public places is forbidden too. |
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