Originally Posted by
Jim from Boston
Today I went to the dry cleaners to pick up something and the proprietor said she had seen me riding in the cold that week; it was about 15 to 20 degrees. "But it's so cold" she said. She has an Easten European accent, and when I asked where she was from, just as I suspected--from Russia.
I spent close to four years in Russia and Ukraine combined, including a few winters. I dressed more lightly than anyone I knew there, and they all thought I was crazy for not wearing more -- mostly out of an irrational fear that cold air alone causes sickness, in my experience anyway. It may be cold in Russia, but they dress correspondingly and then some - to the point of overdressing all the time by my standards.
Long story short, Russians (or Ukrainians) are not likely to be walking around in a tee shirt if it's 0C outside, just because they're Russian or Ukrainian. More likely than not, they'd wear twice as many layers and clothes as you would and think you crazy for not wearing more -- as your experience showed you.