Do's and Don'ts....

I'm reading a recommended book titled "Culture Shock! Ukraine" and thought I'd share this list of "do's" and "don'ts"

DO...
Check your coat at the opera and at restaurants. Many places will not seat you if you insist on keeping your coat on.
(I always keep my coat because I'm always freezing!)
Avoid tap water
Remember the rule: boil it, cook it, peel it or forget it
Bring small gifts when invited to people's homes
Remove your shoes when inside people's homes
(Hurray! I hate shoes!)
Avoid cabs when you see the driver accompanied with a friend. This could be a set up.
(Good to know!)

DON'T....
Admit smoking bothers you , if someone is kind enough to ask
(Yikes, I hate smoke-better pack the Visine!)
Shake hands over a threshold
Shake hands with gloves on
Whistle Indoors
(Apparently you'll whistle away your money)
Keep your hands in your pockets
Sit on steps or on the ground
(This is how you can catch a cold)
Sit at the corner of a dinning table
(Or a woman will not marry for seven years)
Give flowers in even numbers
(You bring even amounts of flowers to funerals and odd for everything else!)

I spoke with Elliana this morning and mentioned some of these and she said most were superstitions but that the flowers are bunched in odd numbers so not to worry about that.
She also told us she found a place in Denpro for $30 a night with a new washing machine! Whootwhoo! No Internet, so we have to go to an Internet cafe to post and check emails but that no Internet is pretty standard. I was thrilled with the price. And this is for a TWO bedroom unit with a living room and kitchen. Our facilitator, Oxona will be in the 2nd bedroom and that will be especially nice when James has to get back to work and I'm all by myself!
I actually talked to Elliana on Skype this morning. We didn't video conference-I was in my gym clothes and Elliana was in her robe-but our voices were clear and just as fast as if we were talking face to face and she's in Canada! This Skype thing....pretty amazing!
I really have a million things I should be doing to prepare to go and to pull off the Relief Society Birthday Social tomorrow night, but what am I doing? Posting and checking blogs!
Here's to outside whistling, glove-less handshakes and odd bunches of flowers!
Please feel free to comment with any other social rules of etiquette I might need to know!