With this last journal entry we are wrapping up the great adventure that Tinggly Valentine’s stories was. Tinggly team would like to thank all the travel bloggers who have contributed to the project, we had a great time doing this!
Moreover, do not forget that tomorrow is the Valentine’s Day and Tinggly’s Facebook contest will end. Hurry up to win two Tinggly premium vouchers!
Bridges and Balloons
bridgesandballoons.com
How long have you been traveling together? How did it happen?
We’ve been a couple for about seven years, and for four of those years we’ve been travelling together almost full-time. But travel was a big part of both our lives before we were a couple too. In fact we got together in Barcelona on a trip that we had planned together “as friends”.
What was the biggest challenge you faced as a couple?
Because we work while we travel, we often struggle with getting a good work/life balance and often end up working too long. We have to be careful as if one of us starts working too much then so does the other one – bad habits are contagious! We’re also not well suited to a long-distance relationships so we struggle when Steve has to go off filming for long stretches of time – we miss each other a lot. Now we try to limit those times to no more than a month.
What was the most romantic moment in your travels?
Steve proposed in the Grunewald forest just outside Berlin while we were living in the city back in 2014. There isn’t much that can beat that – although our honeymoon in South Africa comes near. One highlight was having a picnic in the middle of the bush where we’d seen lions, elephants and rhino not too long before!
What would be the quote for your (travel) love story?
“Home is wherever I’m with you”
Love and Road
loveandroad.com
How long have you been traveling together? How did it happen?
Back in 2013, we build a house, we got married and went to Turkey & Ukraine for our honeymoon. Everything seemed to be perfect but one month later we were depressed. We had to talk and both agreed that we can not stay in one place, we were not ready to settle. We crave for discover new places, meet new people and try new things. After 6 months of planning our Love and Road project was born. Now it has been almost 2 years of full time traveling. That means 24hs together.
What was the biggest challenge you faced as a couple?
Not kill each other? LOL, just kidding. We are very alike, which makes everything easier. Our challenge is to find a balance between work & personal life. We are all the time with the blogger mood on, so we take pictures of everything, take notes, talk to the manager of the place…. And sometimes we forgot to take a break, to have a moment for ourselves, to enjoy a bit.
What was the most romantic moment in your travels?
Hard to choose only one. Simple moments were memorable. Like the sunsets in Boracay, Philippines. Around 5:30pm we would stop everything we were doing and head to the beach to watch the sunset. Just sit in the sand, side by side and contemplating nature.
What would be the quote for your (travel) love story?
“Travel brings power and love back into your life”, Rumi
Luxe Adventure Travel
luxeadventuretraveler.com
1. How long have you been travelling together? How did it happen?
Tim and I have been traveling together nearly as long as we have been together, which is 16 years this year! We were just 20 at the time and were living in Las Vegas, where I was a working college student and Tim was stationed at his very first base in the U.S. Air Force. Neither of us had very much money, but we still managed to make travel happen and took our first trip together for a little getaway to San Diego about two months in to our relationship.
2. What was the biggest challenge you faced as a couple?
Communication. I think communication is a challenge a lot of couples face and it’s something you need to continually work on. Even after 16 years when you can practically read each others’ minds on some things, it’s important not to just assume your partner knows what you’re thinking or what you need.
Since we work together as a writer and photographer for our blog, communication is even more important. I’ve got to make sure I communicate what story ideas I’m thinking about so that Tim knows if I need specific shots to help visualize my writing.
3. What was the most romantic moment in your travels?
We think that any place can be romantic when you’re with the one that you love – even when you’re dirty and gross from hiking or camping. But if we had to pick one incredibly romantic moment, it’s hard to beat staying in an over water villa with your own private pool in the Maldives. It’s such a sexy destination!
4. What would be the quote for your (travel) love story?
“Travel is like love, mostly because it’s a heightened state of awareness, in which we are mindful, receptive, undimmed by familiarity and ready to be transformed. That is why the best trips, like the best love affairs, never really end.” – Pico Iyer
Nomadasaurus
nomadasaurus.com
1. How long have you been travelling together? How did it happen?
We’ve been travelling together pretty much since we met, back in 2008. I was working in a hostel bar in Vancouver, and met Alesha on my very last shift. We hit it off, hit the road together, and the rest, as they say, is history!
2. What was the biggest challenge you faced as a couple?
Travelling full-time while running a popular and successful travel blog has been the toughest thing for us. Over the last two years we’ve been backpacking through some remote and isolated regions across Asia, and being in each other’s space 24/7 definitely wore us down. Combined with the stress of having an online business really took its toll.
3. What was the most romantic moment in your travels?
Getting engaged inside Hang Son Doong, the world’s largest cave! Less than 500 people had ever seen the inside of that cave when we explored it! At the bottom of a collapsed ceiling, with a beautiful sun beam pouring into the cavern, I got on one knee and asked Alesha to marry me! Thankfully she said yes!
4. What would be the quote for your (travel) love story?
“We travel not to escape life, but for life not to escape us.”
Travelling Weasels
travellingweasels.com
1. How long have you been travelling together? How did it happen?
We have been together for nearly 10 years, and have been travelling for the past two and a half years. After Laura finished university we decided to have a gap year, and after one year we’d fallen so in love with travelling that we decided not to stop.
2. What was the biggest challenge you faced as a couple?
For the first few months of our relationship Tanbay lived in Germany and Laura lived in England. Living in separate countries at the beginning made us appreciate how much we love being together and how much we never want to live in separate countries again!
3. What was the most romantic moment in your travels?
When we got engaged in Australia!
4. What would be the quote for your (travel) love story?
‘Love is touching souls’
With Husband in Tow
withhusbandintow.com
1. How long have you been travelling together? How did it happen?
Amber and I have been traveling since July of 2012. During that time we’ve lived in Ubud, Bali for 18 months, taking some trips throughout that time, and are currently calling Bangkok our “home base” for 2016. Simply put, we didn’t want to have 30 year long careers or what we like to call, “the predictable life” (house, children, career, retirement).
2. What was the biggest challenge you faced as a couple?
In addition to traveling together and blogging together, we run a few business together. Our businesses range from selling products on Amazon to providing social media consulting for hotels. Working this closely can be stressful and intense. Disagreements happen, but because it’s just Amber and I, we have to try to find a way (for the most part) to quickly address those disagreements and resolve them.
3. What was the most romantic moment in your travels?
Taking time off is actually a challenge for us. We don’t do sitting still very well, but we did take a day while in Bangkok to treat ourselves to a nearly 4 hour spa treatment (http://www.withhusbandintow.com/couples-spa-day-in-bangkok/) at a spa we really like. It wasn’t candles and roses, but there’s something romantic about being shrink wrapped with you partner.
4. What would be the quote for your (travel) love story?
“Couples who travel together, stay together”
The World We Travel
theworldwetravel.com
1. How long have you been travelling together? How did it happen?
We have been traveling together for 9 years, we start dating and a few weeks after we bought a ticket to Argentina where we fell in love and decided to spend the rest of our lives together.
2. What was the biggest challenge you faced as a couple?
The biggest challenge has been finding balance in what Victor wants to do and what Mariana wants to do, but honestly it is not such a big challenge.
3. What was the most romantic moment in your travels?
I think every travel have very romantic moments but if we have to choose one it will be in Rio de Janeiro, every sunset we went to Pedra do Arpoador in Ipanema Beach, watching the sun hiding behind the sea, the sounds of the waves and the vibe of the place made it an unforgettable and romantic experience.
4. What would be the quote for your (travel) love story?
“Our greatest adventure is traveling this life together”
Wild Junket
wildjunket.com
1. How long have you been travelling together? How did it happen?
Alberto and I have been traveling together since we met in 2003. We were both doing an international student exchange program at the University of Miami and we met through friends. We got severely bitten by the travel bug and traveled all over the US and Caribbean hand in hand. After our short six-month stay in Miami, we had to head to our separate homes (mine in Singapore and his in Spain) to finish our degrees but we made the long-distance relationship work. In 2005, we took off to London right after graduation to find work and travel all over Europe. Since then, we’ve traveled to over 90 countries together – from climbing a live volcano in Guatemala to volunteering in Tanzania and exploring North Korea and honeymooning in Madagascar.
2. What was the biggest challenge you faced as a couple?
In the 12 years we’ve been together, the biggest challenge was probably being apart. We spent about a year and a half apart when we had to finish our studies in Spain and Singapore. It was the hardest time for us – even harder than starting a new life together in London, or having a baby together.
3. What was the most romantic moment in your travels?
I think it was the moment when I realised he was proposing to me on my blog. It was Valentines’ Day 2009 and we were home after dinner – I was actually angry with Alberto for making us rush home so early and I couldn’t understand why he kept asking me to check my email. He knew the first thing I would look at was my blog and I was seriously shocked to read the post he had written for me. It was the sweetest and most romantic thing he’d ever done.
4. What would be the quote for your (travel) love story?
If you’re meant to be together, nothing – not even thousands of miles – will stand between you.
Nuventuretravels
nuventuretravels.com
1. How long have you been travelling together? How did it happen?
We have been traveling together for over a year and a half (since June 2014). While we were dating, we dreamt of long-term travel for years together. Our hiking conversations always consisted of, “When we go travel, what will you pack in your one backpack?” So, the day after our honeymoon we sat down and figured out our budget with the sole goal in mind of traveling long-term together. We watched as our friends started having kids and we started getting tugged in that direction. We snapped out of baby talk, looked at each other and said, “Now or never!!!” and the long-term travel train started moving! In three months we were packed up and traveling!
2. What was the biggest challenge you faced as a couple?
The biggest challenge has been having solid community surrounding us while we are on the road. We all have heard we are the combination of the five people we spend the most time with. Well, we were down to one: each other. Traveling has propelled us in our relationship with one another by years since we have spent 24/7 with each other for 19 months. However, we have learned we need others around us to stay sane and provide new commentary to our same ol’ conversations. So, we have learned to be intentional by taking the time to connect with friends and family back home, building friendships on the road, and even building a digital community of folks through blogs and social media.
3. What was the most romantic moment in your travels?
We hadn’t taken showers in over four days while we were campervanning on the North Island of New Zealand. We were on our way to meet some new folks who would later become great friends. I was getting crabby with Adam because I just wanted to be clean before meeting new people! As we rang the doorbell on their apartment building, someone sat down at the local public piano and started playing Yiruma’s A River Flows in You. I walked down the aisle to this song on our wedding day and hearing the song immediately snapped me out of my crabby state and I rolled over laughing at myself! The song reminded me these adventures, our journey and the spontaneity of life together is so much bigger than getting caught up in the frustration of the moment. And, it all worked out! Our new friends offered me a shower when we got in (hopefully, it wasn’t my stench that caused their polite hospitality).
4. What would be the quote for your (travel) love story?
“It’s not wrong, it’s just different.” Adam and I are complete opposites. We approach everything and anything the exact opposite of one another. We’ll get to a fork in the road and its guaranteed Adam picks left and I pick right. For a bit on our travels, we both would get so frustrated that the other would do something (like the laundry or cutting an apple) totally different than the way we would do it (hello, the “right” way!). Finally, we realized we originally fell in love with one another because the other was so different, so exotic than ourselves. These differences were now causing us frustration because we weren’t doing things the right way! It took awhile, but we realized being opposites is a strength of ours and we need to appreciate other perspectives instead of shutting each other down with frustration.
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