Hugs and Kisses!!!!

Interesting question!  I guess I haven't visited enough to see this but will eventually come across it to.  Hopefully, someone can come and enlighten us, haha.

Hi Schuttzie!  What part of IL are you in?  I grew up in the Schaumburg area, still have family out there.

We are in the Rockford area.  How cool is that?  The winters here are really getting to us and we need a change to a warmer climate.  PR is really on our radar.  We checked out Jamaica for quite a few years thinking it would be our retirement location but things have changed a lot there so it is out of the picture even though we still love Jamaica.

It sounds like your family is adjusting to PR.  Many blessings to you

About the hugs and kisses, Iet me try to explain the what and how.

Family, friends and colleagues are greeted with a peck on the cheek, that is if they are either both female or one is male and the other female. Men shake hands and especially the younger ones do a quick hug.

Those kisses are hardly real kisses most of the times. Women offer their cheek for a kiss and the man touches her cheek with his. One or both make a kissing noise and that's it.

If you're not very close or if you don't want to kiss stick out your hand firmly and keep the other person away, smile  and shake hands.

Now if you get to know locals and become friends there's no way around the greeting ritual. Just go for it, you  know, when in Rome. Especially if you, like I do, have a bunch or PR in-laws you should not avoid the kissing and hugging when you see them.

I hope this helps.

I noticed when I was there that whole thing kind of evolved naturally. After you get to know people it becomes a matter of looking for cues. You eventually learn who to hug and kiss and who to stay away from and who to give just a polite "hola". Give it time and just let it happen. Just don't be in a big rush to hug and kiss everyone before they get to know you. You might give a hug and a kiss to a woman and some Macho might come up and beat the crap out of you. Let people get to know you and you will eventually be able to know what to do (and in some cases what not to do). I rather enjoyed those types of greetings. But most of the people I associated with were the young "Hippie" types. So it reminded me of my old Hippie days.

Coming from a Puerto Rican family, I know that we hug and kiss alot. We do so when we greet each other, even if we just saw each other the day before. This is the way it is. We are very loving especially to family.  Sometimes to acquaintances old and new.

I had the occasion to meet my grandson's new friends when they came over(mind you this is the first time that we met them} and they each came over and gave me a hug and kiss, which I did not expect but graciously accepted. They greeted my husband with a handshake.

The next time, they came over, they each gave me a hug and a kiss and asked me for the benediction( which is the blessing} which you simply say God bless you, which was nice. My husband still says that to his mother. I never grew up doing that but definitely the hugs and kisses always.

I met the Director of the school but he did not hug me, simply shook my hand/ Maybe when you see someone like that often, they feel that they have to show you a greeting like that.

Just Welcome to Puerto Rico, that is the way it is here. They mean no disrespect by it.

I think it is a wonderful custom and look forward to experiencing it.  I have an affectionate family, too, so I can relate.  I seem to start to calling people "Hun", haha, it just sort of slips out.