Originally Posted by
okapa 
What is normal and formal body contact between men and women in your country? What do you think of it in other countries?
I live in NYC,
With women, it is what you make of it, except for the Upper-East/West sides of Manhattan where everyone is supposedly "too high class" to engage in such vile behavior..
So, with girls you meet, it's perfectly normal & acceptable to start off the interaction with a warm friendly hug..
With guys, you can either settle for a handshake (try and avoid if in NYC, most guys will try and break your hand to assert their manly dominance), or you can go for a man-hug, which is almost primative, but fun and friendly, somewhat childish to it creates a different and more open vibe from the get-go..
I've been to Greece almost each Summer before Sophmore year in college started, after that I was too busy with school work, and I haven't been back there ever since..
With girls, it's the norm to hug and kiss on both cheeks, although kissing on one cheek shows that you're more friendly with that person and there's no need to be fake-polite and kiss on both cheeks.. Also, it's normal for guy-girl friends which are just friends, even if they just met and talked for 30 minutes or so, to kiss on the lips, just a peck.. It doesn't mean anything..
With guys, it's the norm to man-hug and kiss on both cheeks, and give pats on the back and shoulders..
There's generally a lot of touching, Greece is a very touchy-feely place and everyone is friendly and open.. perhaps too friendly and open for most people.. I'm agree, that it's a bit of a stretch outside one's comfort zone if you're comming from the States.. But, all the butt pinching, hip-hugging, holding, casual/fun flirting/teasing, hugging, and kissing.. doesn't mean anything.. (I know, it's hard to phathom), but it really doesn't mean anything..