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　　Hi. If you replied hi back, then you’re already well on your way to becoming a naturalized Canadian citizen.

　　在加拿大，如果有人對(duì)你說(shuō)“Hi”，你也自然地回了句“Hi”，好了!你可正奔馳在成為當(dāng)?shù)毓竦?ldquo;康莊大道”上呢!

　　I’m not kidding. Don’t let the hoopla about social norms and customs, so often important in places of rich history and beliefs, fool you. There are no weird mating dances here, nor intricatepheromones that have to be released when meeting someone.

　　我可沒(méi)逗人玩。千萬(wàn)別到了歷史悠久、信仰多元的國(guó)家，聽了有關(guān)社會(huì)規(guī)范、信仰習(xí)俗的種種宣揚(yáng)就被唬住。見面是正常自然的事，沒(méi)有人期待你跳求偶舞或釋放復(fù)雜的信息素。

　　Instead, Canada’s relaxed, and our handshakes are even more so. Though globalization has given rise to the slow absorption of American hardline business-speak and the tailored, meaningless responses shelved for efficiency sake (how are you? Good and you? Good), Canadian greetings have evaded pageantry and elegance.

　　相反，加拿大骨子里的輕松感也彰顯在見面問(wèn)候的閑適中。雖說(shuō)全球化的浪潮讓加拿大人漸漸浸染了美式高冷的商業(yè)辭令和簡(jiǎn)潔蒼白的回應(yīng)(How are you? Good and you? Good)，本來(lái)加式問(wèn)候也從未附庸風(fēng)雅。

　　THE BASIC HANDSHAKE

　　握手的基本法則

　　The universal formula is this: smile, handshake, say hi, and smile again.

　　通用的問(wèn)候方式有以下幾步：微笑、握手、來(lái)一句hi，再回以微笑。

　　It feels almost robotic distilling down such a simple introduction, but it’s necessary to avoid any awkward shuffling or unsolicited backrubs. Of course, there are nuances to the actual shake itself that a robot could never master – you don’t want to grip too hard, but then there’s nothing worse than a limp greeting either. Two hands can be a bit overwhelming; a clammy hand is never fun. Stick to these simple rules, and you’ll be fine.

　　把問(wèn)候提煉成這么簡(jiǎn)單的幾步，乍一聽，你以為是機(jī)器人在打招呼吧，但把問(wèn)候演繹成繁文縟節(jié)也大可不必。不同場(chǎng)合的握手會(huì)有細(xì)微差別，這些微妙之處機(jī)器人可做不來(lái)——握得像大力水手太過(guò)分，握得像海綿寶寶嚇到人。雙手齊上陣未免夸張;濕漉漉的手握起來(lái)讓對(duì)方捏一把汗。記住這些基本規(guī)則，大家肯定出不了錯(cuò)。

　　MULTICULTURAL GREETINGS

　　多元文化，多樣問(wèn)候

　　But beyond such simplicity – especially once you take into account Canada’s multiculturalism – there can be great flexibility. In distinct communities, almost anything goes during a welcome. Migrants in Ukrainian hubs will greet you with three alternating kisses on your cheeks. Same with Persians. Polish immigrants might just wave to you. Others will hug. And yet others will hold you so tight that you aren’t sure if you are merging with their flesh.

　　但考慮到加拿大的多元文化，在簡(jiǎn)潔的問(wèn)候方式外，更是百花齊放。每個(gè)群體都有自己獨(dú)特的迎賓禮節(jié)。來(lái)自烏克蘭和伊朗的親會(huì)行三次貼面禮。波蘭親可能只是揮手致意。有些親把擁抱當(dāng)成“見面禮”。還有些親的擁抱太過(guò)猛烈，別人怕是魂都被他擠出來(lái)了。

　　This is part of Canada’s inherent multiculturalism where individual nuances and cultural traditions blend in messy, blossoming ways. But one need not worry about the complexity. The expectation for knowing such intricate greetings is lax at best. Like a good math proof, the formula still applies. It’s the E=Mc2 of Canadianisms.

　　由此可以窺見加拿大多元文化的特點(diǎn)，個(gè)人習(xí)慣的點(diǎn)滴融會(huì)于文化傳統(tǒng)中，二者混合交織，發(fā)展繁盛。你不用擔(dān)心它的復(fù)雜性。還真沒(méi)人期盼對(duì)方把這套精細(xì)的禮節(jié)背成小九九。只要遵循交往的基本原則，你仍然可以“四海為友”。這也是加拿大精神不變的準(zhǔn)則。

　　LOOK OUT FOR QUEBEC

　　魁北克問(wèn)候方式一瞥

　　Admittedly, there are some differences in Quebec. Like its European counterparts where kisses flow like air, Quebecois differentiates their introductions to people. “Tu” is used as an identifying-noun when the person in question is a friend, whereas “vous” is used for people to signify respect and authority.

　　誠(chéng)然，魁北克飄滿了異域風(fēng)情。同見面吻如家常便飯一般的法國(guó)一樣，這里對(duì)不同人的稱謂也有所區(qū)別。“Tu”(“你”)用于指代朋友，而“vous”(“您”)用來(lái)體現(xiàn)對(duì)方的威望，表達(dá)尊敬之意。

　　But these are details, and in time, you’ll pick them up. Until then, let me extend another electronic handshake your way. I’m also smiling. I hope you are too.

　　假以時(shí)日，你就能輕松掌握這些細(xì)節(jié)。到時(shí)候，讓我再和你隔空握個(gè)手吧!我可正咧嘴笑呢，希望你也笑靨如花呀!

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