while kissing was in fashion (well before covid)… there was a large village funeral… the square was full of local families and their friends and I knew practically all of them…
so… there I was doing the usual tour… a gentle smile, greeting, exchanging kisses if appropriate.
one group was obviously pleased to see me and I was delighted to see them…
so I kissed them one after the other…
Suddenly I did a double-take… as I realized I’d just kissed a man I didn’t know…
aghast, I could feel myself blush at my wantonness… and I started to stammer my apologies…
my pals roared with laughter and introduced their cousin who beamed at me and thanked me for making him feel so welcome… at this sad time…
No-one kisses me unless I am in agreement… such an attempt by a grotty person would be swiftly knocked aside… (and I’ve been assured that my “fierce look” could stop a rhino in its tracks…) so a mere man has no chance of survival…
No gorgeous strange man has yet attempted such liberties… well, not in the last 50 years…
When you do la bise you do NOT hug!! That is what foreigners do - we just do a peck on the cheek, no other contact except possibly a hand on an arm to avoid getting too close.
Presumably, you are talking about the social-kiss… not the warm greeting among friends…
Obviously differs, perhaps depending on age groups… but we do get hugged and kissed by our French pals… but we do know them very well…
