hi Ian!  i live in a small Sardinian town that is actually the island on the island, it's true the sun shine, the weather?!! ....not point to talk about  ..it's hot.   but then ........internet appeared!    wow!... i can talk with people living to the other side of the world.  but.....how.??? .     i speak only Sardinian and Italian!  how can i make it? so.... we move from our hot sunny country to go in england, ireland or the states. sometime it's hard and feels like want go back,  but those who keep going get a gift. they speak and hunderstand a new languagge. in the end... some of them choose to stay in the country that gave the gift, others get the gift and go back home.  do you know how to keep the gift on save????   ...i do !.............    chatting

well we use facebook for news, and not for chat ...i remember British girl woes complaining about Denmark,that its difficult to get friends, what to do danes don't like to go to pubs they drink at home. Actually this tradition of pubs- don't bring anything more than bad habits....

Well, it is very simple. They are trying us to get there, so their economy would prosper and they would have the chance to meet us in their pubs to change the known array of faces. And I would have to say, that all the above-mentioned usually applies to ladies. Haven't heard them working that hard on European guys.

I also find facebook to be good cause of the games, when a friend sends you something it means they are thinking of you :)

Have you tried European chats or American?
I can understand your situation and it could be that getting out to some nicer place than a pub is not easy. At least everything is quite close here in Riga, I mean to go out and meet people in social events - and I think there is a lot to do outside, too. Also, in my opinion, Latvians, don't have this habit to chat - they go to a site to put out their thoughts and share them but mainly they have friends to chat with. Well. there is some cases, like when they want to date, then they can make an effort :).
I would prefer reading books or, at least, watching TV. I know you have funny program's on TV - like on Channel 4. I could watch them everyday! But if I chose to chat, then I would choose other sites - English, Danish, American, etc.