Canadians don’t say “Hello, friend.” Instead, they use many crazy expressions that don’t seem to make sense! Here is a list of phrases that friends often say to each other:
1) "[name of friend] how are you?"
or
2) "Hey, how's it going?" (The answer is usually "Good, how are you?" or "Good! You?")
or
3) "[name of friend] how are things?" (Usually people answer "Pretty good." or "Not bad", and then: "How are you?")
or
4) "What are you up to?", which means "What are you doing in life right now?"
If the two friends are women who haven't seen each other for a long time, the first one will say "How ARE you?" (emphasizing the "are").
After those introductions, the two friends talk about events in their lives. That could be where they live now, new jobs they have, or maybe new boyfriends/girlfriends/partners.
After talking for a few minutes, they may want to go for a coffee, or perhaps lunch. They'll say:
1) "Give me a shout sometime!"
or
2) "Let's keep in touch!"
or
3) "Let's get together! Send me a text."
Finally, they will close with:"It's so great to see you again! Have a great day/weekend!"