Ahmed Aziz,another international student,was from Jordan.When we met vesterday.hemoved very close to me as I introduced myself.I moved back a bit,but he came closer to ask aquestion and then shook my hand.When Darlene Coulon from France eame dashing through thedoor,she recognized Tony Garcia's smiling face.They shook hands and then kissed each othertwice on each cheek,since that is the French custom when adults meet people they know.AhmedAziz,on the contrary,simply nodded at the girls.Men from Middle Eastern and other Muslimcountries will often stand quite close to other men to talk but will usuallv not touch women. As I get to know more international friends,I learn more about this cultural "bodylanguage".Not all cultures greet each other the same way.nor are they comfortable in the same way with touching or distance between people.In the same way that people communicatewith spoken language,they also express their feelings using unspoken"language"throughphysical distance,actions or posture.English people,for example,do not usually stand very close to others or touch strangers as soon as they meet.However,people from places likeSpain,Italy or South American countries approach others closelv and are more likely to touchthem.Most people around the wodd now greet each other by shaking hands.but some culturesuse other greetings as well,such as the Japanese,who prefer to bow. These actions are not good or bad,but are simply ways in which cuItures have developed.I have seen,however,that cultural customs for body language are very general-not allmembers of a culture behave in the same way.In general,though,studying internationalcustom s can certainly help avoid difficulties in today's world of cuhural crossroads!
