A Brit who travelled 6,000 miles for a second date was stunned to discover she grew up round the corner from him.
Content creator Grace Kelly was travelling in Taiwan when she met a guy in a hotel bar.
The 34-year-old didn’t think it would amount to much as she was due to head back to the UK, and the handsome stranger had his own travel plans.
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But the pair stayed in touch and, despite meeting halfway across the world, discovered they actually grew up just an hour apart.
“We hit it off straight away,” Grace, from Warwickshire, told What’s The Jam.
“That first night, we were enjoying each other’s company so much that we decided to stay up all night and make the most of the few hours we had.
“We were literally talking about our ideal futures and living on a farm in Scotland with dogs and chickens, and goats within hours of meeting.
“He’s from the UK too and grew up just an hour away from me.”
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Grace even missed her flight home just to spend a few more hours exploring the new connection.
She said, “He’s a chef and owns a restaurant out in Taiwan.
“The day we met, he had just flown out the day before, for his work.
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“The hotel bar was closing, so he suggested we go to his restaurant at midnight to make pasta from scratch, which felt like something out of a movie.
“When 4am came and I was supposed to leave for the airport I decided to be spontaneous and miss my flight so we could have a proper first date the next day, which happened to be Valentine’s Day.
“I rebooked my flight 24 hours later, and we had an amazing day together.
“He picked me up, we got coffee and he drove me out to see the mountains and then took us for a massage, dinner and drinks.
“Then I flew home and we spoke constantly for three weeks on different time zones.”
But the distance was too much for the couple, and Grace eventually decided to fly 6,000 miles from London to Taiwan to meet him for a second date.
Grace said: “I was so nervous going out there, but I’d arranged my own hotel just in case things didn’t go to plan.
“But as soon as I arrived there, he’d arranged for flowers to be waiting in my hotel room, and he swooped me up as soon as the hotel elevator doors opened.
“He’s super traditional and romantic.
We spent five days in Taiwan.
“We ate and drank and explored the night markets and spent time by the pool chatting for hours and getting to know each other.”
After the second date, they both had commitments on different sides of the world.
Another six weeks of speaking over the phone followed.
Grace said: “Then he flew back to the UK and we spent nine days up in Scotland and then decided to have a mini road trip around Italy over his birthday which was insanely fun and romantic.
“We met each other’s families after that, and they’re all super excited for us.
“We both rarely meet anyone who we click with this much and whose lifestyle matches each other so well.
“We both travel all the time which is perfect as we need someone who can join along with that and understand it.
“I plan to spend most of the year up in Scotland with him, and he’s planning a hiking trip to Nepal for us before we fly back to Taiwan for the winter.
“He’s so refreshing, insanely skilled and definitely the most intelligent man I’ve ever met, but also really funny and down to earth.”
Grace shared the couple’s love story on Instagram where it has gathered almost 60,000 views.
In the clip, they can be seen hugging, kissing, drinking wine together and travelling.
Grace captioned the post: “March: Flew 6,000 miles for a second date.
“May: Road tripping around Tuscany.”
Since posting, it has gained over 2,000 likes and hundreds of comments.
Hollie said: “This looks like it was taken right out of a romcom – love love love it.”
Hayley added: “Love Love LOVEEEE.”
Jess said, “Wow, what a launch, go girl!”
Gemma added: “I LOVE this.”
Elise said: “Ahhhh, how exciting!”
