Should We Have Left It as a Holiday Romance?

I recently read an article about holiday romances and why you should leave them behind. It mentions that, on holiday, you are attracted to people you wouldn't normally give the time of day as being on holiday impairs your judgment, you can easily be swooned by a sexy accent, you're on a high when travelling, everything is exciting and intoxicating, hence, love is inevitable. However, once you return to reality, it usually tends to go south as ultimately, it is impossible to maintain the same excitement and intoxication that lead to you falling in love in the first place.

My current long-term relationship is a product of a holiday romance. We met in Australia almost 6 years ago, we both had just finished with our previous relationships and decided to go travelling. We met after a night out while everyone was queuing for taxis to head home. We simply caught each other’s eye, he came over to speak to me, we exchanged numbers and the rest is history. We travelled together for another 6 months, after which, we decided that we would both move to the UK, where he is from. We were apart for several months before I was able to move, so the hype of our little holiday romance escalated even more, and we became even more in love with each other. This feeling lasted for about another 6 months after I finally moved in with him.

After this point, as the article states, things started to go south. At first, it was just little arguments here and there, which was quite normal. But then reality started to kick in—he was fired from his job, I kept moving from job to job, and we had to move house, so we were struggling financially. We started arguing more and more and taking all our worries out on each other. At this point and about 3 years after this, we argued now and again, but we were happy with each other. We did a lot of things together—we were training together in the gym, out together almost every weekend, and going on little holidays when we could afford it. We also got a dog together, which was great, as it revived the excitement in our relationship. Apart from the fact that we both adored our dog, it also gave us more a reason to spend time with each other, training, walking, disciplining him, etc. Overall, our relationship was doing ok.

Another year down the line, and things just got worse. We argued almost everyday, and it was as if we resented each other. It got to a point where we just didn't bother with each other anymore. We struggled to find anything that we were both interested in, we stopped doing things together and lost all excitement in our relationship. We were still civil with each other when we weren't arguing but became pretty much two separate individuals living under the same roof.

I went on holiday to America for a couple of weeks, and after I came back, things were a little bit better. I, then, unexpectedly, fell pregnant. After finding out, things started to change between us. Not back to how it was on holiday, or even when I first moved in with him, but a lot better. We were both making a conscious effort to avoid arguments and communicate more, and it gradually kept improving from there.

Fast forward to today, nearly 6 years together and with a little baby, and our relationship is good. We still have our arguments now and again, but nothing like it was a few years ago. We're training together again, walking the dog and the baby together, going on holiday and out on little dates when someone has the baby.

Nothing can and will ever compare to the thrill and excitement we had when we were falling in love on holiday, but then again, nothing can and will ever compare to the excitement and love we both felt for each other when we were welcoming our son into the world. It's different types of excitement.

Bottom line is, I agree to a certain extent about things going south after holiday romances, but would I have left our relationship as a mere holiday romance? No, I wouldn't. Because, although, times have been hard, and we have both wanted to give up numerous times over the years. We never did. We kept fighting for the raw, genuine love we once knew, and it's now given us the chance to feel a new sort of thrill and excitement on a whole other level that is irreplaceable.