Why Russians Do Not Smile At You

Why Russians Aren't Smiling At You In Sochi -- Marina Koren, National Journal

The first rule about smiling at Russians is you do not smile at Russians.

When Ed Leigh arrived in Sochi to cover the Winter Olympics, something struck him as odd: None of the Russians there returned his smiles.

When Leigh asked a native why that was, the man told him, "In Russia only two types of people smile: idiots and rich people—and rich people don't walk on the street."

For Russians, a smile in public is not the polite expression that Americans reflexively offer strangers on the street. A smiling person must have a good reason for doing it, and it should be obvious what that reason is. When people smile without hesitation—for no reason—Russians find those grins artificial or insincere. And they think those people have a few screws loose.

Americans, on the other hand, seem to smile for any reason at all. The "American smile" has a long-standing bad reputation in Russia, explained Michael Bohm, the opinion-page editor of The Moscow Times, in an in-depth 2011 story on the matter.

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My Comment: There is a lot of truth in this story. My nationality is Russian .... and I cannot recall my father ever smiling. My uncles and male cousins do not smile .... my Russian aunts and female cousins do (but they are the exception). As for myself .... I experienced this shocker a few years ago. I rented a villa by the ocean on the Big Island (Hawaii) where I invited everyone in the family to show up. I had a routine when I was there .... I would wake up at 6:00 AM and walk to the coffee shop to have a coffee and read the paper. At 7:00 AM I would walk to the beach and swim. By 8:00 AM I was back and reading my email and messages. By 9:00 AM I was making breakfast for everyone. But on one particular morning everything was going super-duper great. I woke up feeling great. The coffee was fantastic. The sunrise was beautiful. The newspaper was filled with positive international news. The swim at the beach was warm and comfortable. Going back home I read my email and I learned that I scored a major business deal. And in such a happy and positive mood .... I walked into the kitchen to make everyone breakfast. But while making breakfast both my mother and brother came up to me with a concerned look .... they were wondering why did I look so angry!!!!!

Sighhhh ....

Update: My GF just confirmed to me that I rarely smile .... which is unfortunate because (according to her) she loves my smile. Grrrr ..... you just cannot win.