CULTURE SHOCKS *when i moved to latvia*

Hiya! I wanted to share some of the culture shocks I experienced before and after moving to Latvia, I hope you enjoy! Please leave me a like on the vid if you liked it or found interesting :) x
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#latvia #culture #shock #food #education

[@tomsrudzitis4942]

I once heard a good take on the matter of politeness regarding Latvia and US/UK. In Latvia people just don't fake the politeness, we still are, we just don't go out of our way to be polite just for the sake of seeming polite, if there is a reason to be polite we shall be, for example if we needed some help and one provided it, we will be thankful. We just keep it more real and more honest, if we mean something we will probably say it, but not in the sense that you should feel bad about it, it's just a cultural difference.

[@mean_and_talll]

The better way in my opinion! I don’t want to force small talk, I hate that 😅

[@edgardale4501]

The same when a Latvian is asked “how are you?”, you will find out all their problems.

[@ainis232]

@@edgardale4501 no you won't we say normal

[@MultiTsai]

@@ainis232 Haha just like Estonians... 😁

[@Raventooth]

Cracked up at "we shall be". So Latvian.

[@nipperjarvis]

I moved here about 18 months ago to live with my Latvian wife. I also drive here. In the UK you are constantly raising your hand if someone gives you the right of way or let's you into a place, but here, "nothing" they look at you or have a double take. I have this weird feeling that if I continue to do it it may rub off :) I learnt to say, Visu labu, (all the best) and when I say this they seem to be pleasantly shocked. I live in a very rural place a little village where I am known as the very freindly Englishman. :)

[@chris-2496]

I hope it rubs off! I've also that attitude and I'm sure all the small pleasantries will make the days nicer for my fellow Latvians and they'll feel encouraged to share positivity as well.

[@markjim478]

No one's day is made better by empty gestures you think like a foreigner

[@mean_and_talll]

That’s really sweet! I’m sure everyone appreciates when we try out the language best we can :)

[@iggyblitz8739]

​​@@markjim478it's not empty, waving after someone has let you in when driving is just a non verbal way to say thank you, the wave is not a hello wave but a thank you wave.

[@iggyblitz8739]

​@@mean_and_talllIt's interesting in Australia I don't wave to anyone that stops at zebra crossing normally because a driver has to stop by law if they see a pedestrian waiting, so yeah I normally only wave if it's not a zebra crossing and they have slowed to let you in front in slow traffic.

[@IKsmille]

I'm latvian and I would nod and do subtle smile as thanks for the car that has stopped (to be honest, I establish eye contact more as a way to be sure, that driver has noticed me and has intention to stop and it is safe to cross, but I usually smile as well). I would never wave. As a driver I would nod as sign, that people are welcome to cross the street. As a driver I would also blink emergency lights once if some other car lets me merge into traffic in tricky place (I think that is very common way for drivers to say thank you).

[@dacebeinare100]

Small talk is like torture for a Latvian 😅. But regarding saying thanks on streets I disagree. I wave and say thank to a driver who stops. 🙂

[@inetaanikejeva1337]

Lovely video ! Welcome to Latvia🙂 I lived in UK for 18 years and last year returned to Latvia. Even I’m having some cultural shock, since I’m now used to English politeness, I still show: “ thanks for stopping “ 😁

[@mean_and_talll]

Thank you so much! 😄 It’s funny how mannerisms get imbedded into you without you knowing 😆

[@davidrussell8689]

After many visits to Latvia ( not just Riga ) I’ve come to understand the “ Latvian way “ : by British standards they are rude and crude but this attitude is no better or worse , just different . Openness or friendliness are not appreciated outside a circle of immediate family or close friends . Basically speak only when spoken to .

[@ines_uk]

Yes, the famous English politeness is not always understood in Latvia, but having lived in the UK for last 17 years, I’m so used to it that I can’t “switch it off” when I go back to Latvia. And I don’t try too hard either. I think it’s nice to be nice. 😀 I greet all my neighbours and say thanks to drivers, and smile at random strangers even sometimes… The last one is the weirdest one because while in England it’s quite normal to smile and say hi to a stranger passing by on a track somewhere, it’s kind of weird in Latvia. But I think the younger generation gets it. It’s the older generation that is more conservative.

[@TotalRookie_LV]

I guess lack of small talk makes not just Latvia, but whole Northern Europe friendlier to neurodivergent people, as small talk might sometimes feel like a burden (if not even as torture in more severe cases). I mean, why would one bother strangers for no reason?! And yes, I would not risk ordering more than one dish at a time in a local restaurant, as even that might prove to be a bit too excessive for one meal.

[@liesmazarina7578]

That's so interesting to hear those cultural shocks! About saying thanks to the cars that let you cross the road - sometimes I do it with the gentle nod with head, but mostly when there were a line with cars that didn't stop and then one stops. Yeah - at shops we don't do small talk. I've heard about one Latvian who went to UK and shop assistant there was saying "How do you do" and Latvian started answering how she was doing even if she thought it was strange. :D But to say Thanks is normal enough.

[@dreamthedream8929]

Where do people do small talk in shops? Ive been to and lived in 20+ countries and nowhere people spoke to strangers in shops. Its very normal not to do that. In the uk i too never spoke to anyone and didnt see people doing it there in shops or whatever. Im from riga and currently live in colombia and its the same

[@reseboutique1]

Your voice is so calm...Great video, its good to hear about other countries & cultures ❤️ keep up the great work. I enjoyed watching

[@mean_and_talll]

Thank you so much! It means a lot to know that some of what I’m saying is interesting 😁

[@alp196]

I'm from USA and i lived in Latvia for 3 years. Most of the time in Kuldiga.I liked Latvians especially their songs.and movies.You have to remember they have been under Soviet rule so long i think themselves little bit culture Schock and depressed. My only culture Schock was my neighbor's full grown German shepherd dog always barked and attacked me after my forest run but thank god to fans between houses.Even when they were outside dog did samething and no warning to the dog from owner. Here in U.S dogs only allow do that to strangers. Thanks for sharing. It brings back my memories.

[@mean_and_talll]

Hi! Yes Latvian music is so good, I love listening to old songs, sad but beautiful!

[@johanw.johnsen2405]

Same thing with crossing the road here in Norway, only tourists wave at drivers for stopping for them. Same when waiting in line at the cash register, no talking! :)

[@mean_and_talll]

Glad it’s not just me! :D That’s cool to know

[@Anna_Fortunka]

So pretty much Latvia is like my Poland :) I really want to visit one day. Pictures of Riga are so beautiful!

[@raitiseglitis5231]

Thanks for the observations! I’m a native Latvian and the waiving to cars is ok at least in the bigger cities. Maybe your husband is from countryside or more of an introverted person so it can influence his views. Small talk is ok if there is a purpose - for example, if you like the service or attitude, but if it’s formal - then Latvians will frown :))

[@mean_and_talll]

That’s interesting to know! You’re right my husband grew up entirely in the Latvian countryside so I’m assuming the mannerisms are different there compared to the cities :)

[@rutabaltvilka1352]

I've never seen a single person wave in Riga at cars. And i've lived here almost all my life. Unless you wanna get microbus to notice to stop at the bus stop.

[@raitiseglitis5231]

Ruta, nice to meet you! I wave at cars in Riga :) I have lived all my life in Riga.

[@anime5552]

@@raitiseglitis5231 Yup, I have always waved and gotten waves, at least when some other car lets your car in front of theirs. Another way how we say thank you while driving, is by pushing the emergency lights so it would blink one or two times. It is very common here. As a pedestrian, you would probably nod your head or would do a little wave if a car lets you cross the road or something. Of course not all do it, but I would say that the bigger half does. And it is practiced everywhere in Latvia. 😉

[@MrsAngle_]

I never realize how we never say thank you in Latvia when a car lets you pass until I moved to New Zealand where I saw my partner do it all the time and then I just adapted it

[@indrajukame]

How we figure out the expenses here in Latvia? Well, until now you've probably noticed that the salaries are way lower than in many European countries. The staff in restaurants get paid less, the people in factories, at food processing get paid less and people growing the products get paid less.

[@Vort317545]

As a Latvian American. I envy you! I would instantly go home to the most beautiful country and people on the face of the Earth if I could afford the move. Latvia! :)

[@Vort317545]

Vegan in Latvia? LOL Good luck. You'll have to deal with Latvian Grandmothers force-feeding you five courses of perogies! Cause you to skinny and might die soon. So eat! Eat! Eat! They'll say in tears of concern. It's considered Rude if you refuse! :)

[@loonie137]

im 14 from latvia and we don't make small talk but we say please, thank you, hello etc, also we always wave for cars so its odd how in other people dont, i guess it depends on the person/place. maybe i just learnt it from my parents haha also the language thing, most people including me know 3 languages but alot of people know 4,5 or even 6, we start learning russian / german in 3rd grade also its interesting how you think its super cheap here, my parents always complain how expensive it is here so we buy things from poland alot of the time great video!

[@mean_and_talll]

Hi! That’s so weird, because I thought everyone in LV didn’t wave to cars but maybe it’s just regional 😄 I know what you mean though, all of my Latvian in-laws buy stuff from Poland and go there to go shopping 😆 but for me from England, Latvia is cheap so I can’t imagine how cheap Poland is!

[@riproar11]

Many tourists and expats don't understand that it is rude to comment that things are "super cheap in Latvia" to Latvians when their economies of scale are much higher than what Latvians earn for a living.

[@loonie137]

@@riproar11 yeah, its cheaper here because alot of people make less but people don't realise that when they come here

[@Raventooth]

I also wave when someone stops at the Zebra. When I waved at a car my Latvian wife said, "Wow, you just went above and beyond" as if it was the end-of-the-world. I love when you go to the shop and when you are finished paying they say 'Ludzu' before you can even say 'Paldies'. Mayonnaise in a bag was a big shock for me. Also, that cold smoked chicken that my wife eats makes me quite leery. My wife is also intimidatingly smart but would never admit it.

[@jerulew3547]

I enjoyed that presentation. Glad the food was tasty and economical. Food is costly in U.S.

[@drznx]

The nose ring looks so good.

[@janka4820]

schools in latvia are VERY different from the ones in the UK for example the ''finals'' or an equivalent to the GCSE's aren't exactly as big of a thing as in the UK as you have to take tests throughout the year, your grades are calculated as an average of those and there are several classes that just teach stuff important for life like ''sociālās zinības'' teaching how to deal with money, how taxes work, why they work, everyday safety, etc or ''dabaszinības'' teaching about nature and how it works (very important in latvia)

[@SuperYankis]

hmm... if you have a sister, such nice and calm as you, I am ready to come from Lithuania to Latvia, and, instead of stealing the car, take her to Lithuania! :))

[@dreamthedream8929]

Im from Riga and currently live in Colombia and its the same. Nowhere people do small talk in shops. In the uk too, i lived in london and edinburgh and there was no culture shock regarding that. Been to 20+ countries and everywhere its the same. Pretty sure if i would go to japan and thailand people there too wouldnt do small talk in shops. Just buy stuff that you need and go. In new zealand too people didnt talk to me and i didnt talk to them in shops and didnt see others doing that. Perhaps thats the thing of the past because now people have smartphones and audiophones in ears and even in cafes do not talk to each other all around the world. In the past i guess this kind of small talk was more popular, perhaps some 100 years ago in shops and cafes

[@gisawslonim9716]

In France and Italy you still chat in shops and cafes with staff and fellow diners or shoppers, especially in small towns but also in Paris and Rome. I had a nice discussion with a waiter in a restaurant in Paris who hoped I would not go up to the second floor of the restaurant (nobody else was up there yet) as his knee was bothering him and he did not want to keep climbing the stairs until I had finished my meal. I told him I quite understood as I had had my knee replaced and he wanted to hear all about it as we headed to a more convenient table on the ground floor. In Italy I have often found someone reading my newspaper over my shoulder as I scanned the headlines which of course always leads to some remarks in the nature of "Bandito!" if it is political, or "Brava" if it is about some woman taking her sugar daddy to the cleaners.

[@Dream-bebe]

We do small talks in Texas. 🇺🇸

[@steadylearner1]

Coming to Latvia!

[@KrisjanisBuk]

I have the same curtains. I live in Latvia.

[@michaelcox7377]

My ancestors are from Latvia my mother's maiden name is Riga would love to visit one day

[@118Shadow118]

I don't think this counts as a culture shock, but when I visited London (I'm from Latvia), I kept looking to the wrong side when crossing the street. Since in UK you drive on the left, but in Latvia you drive on the right. I was automatically looking to the left when crossing the street. Did you experience something similar when first coming to LV?

[@mean_and_talll]

Yes, after a year here I still sometimes slip up and look the wrong way when crossing the road :)

[@PaconskY]

I don’t know about looking in the eyes, but I raise my hand kinda like “hi” as a way of saying thank you at a pedestrian crossing. I really dont like it when people start saying that all this politeness is fake and stuff like that. I lived in the us, and I can say for sure that it was not fake from me. Its just a way of thinking, you start to think more how your actions affect other people. I think its hard for people to admit that the ethnical group they associate themselves with, is less considerate about others in their daily life. But I truly believe that unfortunately Latvians are less polite than people in US, on average.

[@paula2657]

I'm latvian 🇱🇻

[@Dream-bebe]

Thank you ! 😊 for this video. I won’t visit Latvia 🇱🇻 I avoid cold and rude people.

[@opportunity3278]

im a latvian, and our experiences seem to be very different. it might be because i'm a native but yeah.

[@mean_and_talll]

Yeah I’m not native and have only lived in Latvia for 1 year

[@opportunity3278]

@@mean_and_talll i hope you have a very good life in latvia with your husband!

[@rihardsvitolins]

The first its ot true. In my town everybody except old dudes waves to say thanks

[@JanisGrinvalds]

1. You thank drivers if they let You pass when You have no first hand. Where pedestrians have first hand, on passes, on corners, etc. it is too much to thank for it - I always show thumb-up in such cases - no drivers will thank You for letting them drive where they have first hand. Right? Our politeness includes also putting pedestrians in the first place. :) 2. not true about the small talk..it all depends on temperament. My relatives always were quite open to talking..father, mother, grannies - no problem. Maybe we here are a little shyer. 3. Food is mostly a peasant style, but with a large influence from germans, poles, and Sweden. Seaside - fish, as usual, inland - more meat, and dairy. 4. You can diverge education starting with college/trade school, but it also has a high school program included, it's just You learn longer and have a qualification. Then most Latvians under 50 speak 3 languages. 4. the average salary here is incomparable, that's why restaurants are cheaper, otherwise there would be just a couple of them for bankers, pilots and programmers only.

[@a.l.7337]

Thank you for sharing your thoughts and experience, but please that music needs to go. Paldies!

[@MESSY-AF]

english girl dating latvian guy, that's rare. It happens a lot with latvian girls tho. p.s. food is cheap, because they pay low salaries to restaurant staff

[@mean_and_talll]

I think the surprise for me were low prices but high quality food! Sometimes in uk, low prices = low quality 😅

[@OlgasBritishFells]

I am from Russia but I have now lived in the UK for more than half of my life. It's similar in Russia as in Latvia as it's also a post Soviet country. I think if I go back now, I will find it really strange because I am now so used to the British ways. However, the younger generation in bigger cities like Moscow and St-Petersburg are becoming different - more smily and chatty with strangers - more polite. By the way, everything you are talking about, is not just Latvian - it's more post USSR and Eastern Europe countries.

[@mean_and_talll]

I understand that maybe what I’m saying is not only specific to Latvia but I have only ever lived in Latvia or Uk so I haven’t experienced other European countries

[@OlgasBritishFells]

@@mean_and_talll I know what you mean

[@MyZirgs]

Beautiful girl, 1:22 my husband, turned off the video ;). (I'm joking) Novēlu visu to labāko Jums ar vīru, video patika!

[@mean_and_talll]

Liels paldies! 😄

[@elizabethberman4179]

I like western european politeness. I am Latvian but by nature I act as a westerner and people looked at me as a naive moron fool. Unfortunately it is very depressing.

[@mainlineto5988]

Have you learned any Latvian yet?

[@sandrisjansons1515]

Nez kāpēc visi latvieši raksta latvietei angļu valodā .Akcentu ( kurš nav ne no vienas grāfistes UK ) nenoslēpsi ! :) Queen's English arī atšķir no vietējiem jorkšīriešiem , koknejiešiem , skauseriem ,velsiešiem , skotiem utt. :)

[@Tvensky86]

how about the idea that your guy is weird, because we all are different... we say thank you all the time.. :D all over the place.. to drivers and those who ask for directions! :)

[@aleksisgabliks3881]

Do we live in the same country?

[@mxweng]

I will be there in 3 weeks. The weather seems to be much colder than UK or where I live. I heard Latvian women are the tallest on earth so I will be wearing my Nike Alphafly next % with 5 cm heel. Culture and food should be similar to Slavic nations (Belarus and Ukraine).

[@chillygangster3497]

How easy was it to move to latvia? What is the process normally?

[@sandisermics4920]

forši aizkari, atgādina bērnību

[@riproar11]

I really wanted to watch this to learn but the music is too distracting and your voice is very muffled in this recording.

[@mean_and_talll]

Hey, sorry about that! Hopefully I will get more skilled with my editing over time

[@OlgasBritishFells]

Strange, I didn't even realise there was music until I read your comment. My sound of the conversation was fine.

[@arisplugis5197]

your face. you look very Latvian. only your queen's English accent can tell that you are not.

[@mean_and_talll]

That’s a big compliment to me, thank you very much ☺️ but yeah I sound extremely British!

[@rihardsvitolins]

Second. Do u care how is their day on check out. Its not polite to ask and evemd dont care. Always, hallo, thank u, bye. In other situatians some small funny chat

[@romanlihin6239]

You dont sound like a native British speaker

[@ItsOttis]

Living in a foreign country makes people lose their accent