Как дела?
The phrase "Как дела?" is only used when you know someone, but it is not not use when you are talking to a stranger.
So... if I am in the middle of Saint Petersburg or Kiev and I want a girl/girls to be my new friend/friends? What should I say to her/them? How should I start a conversation with her/them? Is it possible, perhaps probable, for me to say to her/them "Привет! Как дела?" to start a conversation with her/them?
This case also applies for guys: Let's say I want a guy to be my friend but I do not know him. What should I say to him?
Moreover, how is it that Russians/Ukrainians start a conversation with a stranger? In my country it is common/normal to start a conversation with "Hello, how are you?" It is however, not the only way to start a conversation with someone.
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Corrections · 5
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I have no idea what people here are talking about but starting a conversation with the phrase "привет, как дела?" is absolutely normal and very common in Russia. The thing is that it might not work. Your "new friends" may simply ditch you. =) Almost nobody says "привет, можно с Вами познакомиться?" as Marina said, especially my generation. But the phrase "привет, как дела?" would definetely not work for old ladies in which you're not interested, I suppose.
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You should be a little bit inventive to start a conversation with a stranger, especially a girl. I don't think it is only in Kiev or in Saint Petersburg like this. If you make up a reason to draw her/his attention then you can start with "Привет" and continue with the invented issue.
There are no appropriate and common phrases for such a task like "to make a new friend". It depends on circumstances.
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No, this phrase isn't necessarily used only when you know a person you're talking to, you can say it to a stranger as well. It just sounds quite informal and you shouldn't use it to greet people older than you (unless they are your relatives or, for example, neighbours whom you know well) or use it in formal situations. It's quite ok to start a conversation with a girl. The more formal way to say 'how are you' is 'как Вы поживаете?'
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I think you are right , the phrase "как дела?" Is better to use when you know somebody. But when you want to have a new friends. I I think you may use phrase .. For example - привет , можно с Вами познакомиться ? (Hello, can we become acquainted ?) and tell stranger something about yourself or causes of your desire to be friends with her or him.
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"So... if I am in the middle of Saint Petersburg or Kiev" <--> Or in any countries where Russian is widely spoken like Belarus or Kazakhstan
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