I Met My Travel Soulmate in Singapore

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Gia and Jon in Santorini. (Photo: Gia Kristel De Guia)

Name: Gia Kristel De Guia and Jon Algie

Where: Singapore

When: 2013

Relationship Status: Dating

(As told to Brittany Jones-Cooper)

I’m originally from the Philippines, but I was working in Singapore as a civil engineer. I had a lot of foreign friends in the city, so when I was invited to a party, I knew that I would probably meet some new and interesting friends. Nevertheless, I never predicted that I would meet the man who I would one day travel the world with.

The party was pretty casual, so when I was introduced to Jon it wasn’t really anything special. There were no major sparks, but we had a bit of a chat where I learned that he was from New Zealand was teaching in Singapore. However, before we parted ways at the end of the night, we exchanged Facebook profile names.

After that, we started chatting on Facebook a lot and we really connected through the messages. He had upcoming trips to Laos, and I had upcoming trips to Vietnam, so we shared a passion for exploring different cultures. He told me to bring him back a souvenir from Vietnam (I bought him a sleeping bag!), and we made plans to hang out when I returned.

Visiting John’s home country of New Zealand. (Photo: Gia Kristel De Guia)

We met up for a coffee, and after that we had a few dates. He was so different than any other guy I had dated in the past. He is from New Zealand, so dating him was a new cultural experience. He introduced me to new music and movies, and we had fun talking about our traveling adventures. Every time we hung out it felt like something new, and after five or six dates, I started to realize that I really liked him.

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We continued to see each other, and in November we went on our first trip as a couple to Phuket, Thailand. We stayed in southern Phuket, and it was the first time I really got to see what he was like while traveling. I was starting to really fall for him.

In March 2014, we took a very important trip to the Maldives. By this time, we both realized that the relationship was something that we wanted to continue. The issue was that Jon’s teaching job was almost over and he had planned to travel around the world for a year. After talking, he invited me to go along with him, which was a relief and also terrifying at the same time. I was glad that he wanted me by his side, but I also felt uneasy about quitting my job and leaving the life I made in Singapore behind. Still unsure of what I would do, I started to save a little money.

In the Maldives (Photo: Gia Kristel De Guia)

At the end of April, Jon’s job was over, and he left for China. We knew that the distance between us would be hard, but the separation was more difficult than either of us had predicted. After a month he came to visit me in Singapore, and that’s when I decided that I would make the leap and travel with him.

But first, I made him promise that we would go to the Philippines and explain the situation to my parents.

So in June we went to the Philippines in order for my parents to meet the man I would be traveling around the world with. Needless to say, they weren’t very enthusiastic about my decision. In fact, they were furious that I wanted to leave my job and security to go on such an adventure. But at the time I was 27, and I knew that if I didn’t go, I never would. Plus, I saw a future with Jon and I wanted to see where things would lead.

On September 30, 2014 we officially began our year of traveling, started a blog, and headed to Nepal. Our goal was to see the Himalayas, and they were more impressive than we had imagined.

The couple at Chichen Itza. (Photo: Gia Kristel De Guia)

After that we went to Europe — visiting Italy, Hungary, Greece, Spain and Portugal.

We visited Morocco for 2 weeks, before stopping through Thailand on the way to New Zealand.

New Zealand was an amazing visit because I had the opportunity to see where Jon was from and meet his friends and family. After a really great three weeks, we flew to Hawaii before spending a few days in Las Vegas.

Related: Global Nomads — They’re Traveling the World for Love

Up next was Mexico, which we loved! From there we traveled by bus to Guatemala, El Salvador, Nicaragua Costa Rica and Panama. Soon enough we were off to Colombia and Ecuador.

We are currently in Peru, and plan to visit Bolivia, Chile, and Argentina before heading to Hong Kong where we will transition back into our working lives.

Standing in front of Machu Picchu in Peru. (Photo: Gia Kristel De Guia)

For us, traveling together for over a year has taught us how important it is to accept a person for who they are instead of trying to change them. We’ve learned how to push each other buttons, and we’ve adapted to the other person’s habits and quirks.

Most importantly we’ve learned how important it is to be independent from each other and dependent on each other.

Our hope is to one day soon buy a guest house in the Philippines near a beach.

That way, even when we settle back into a routine, we’ll always have a place to getaway.

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