Remember this disgustingly attractive Instagram couple?
Ugh. The worst, right?
They took photos together, always in this pose, whilst traveling all over the world (it seems like mostly to beaches?) looking gorgeous.
A few months back, this world travelling Instagram millennial couple made news because they charged up to $9,000 for a sponsored Instagram post. Which honestly makes me just want to vomit. But that’s not what this post is about.
Look at these assholes. They’re travel bloggers/Instagrammers who basically just do the above and get paid for it.
Sidenote: WHO IS TAKING CARE OF THE PUPPIES WHEN THEY TRAVEL?
They’ve been together for just over one year. I know because of this Instagram post:
There are so many cringe-worthy levels to this photo. But here’s what I want to talk about: this couple’s relationship is a lie.
Because here’s something none of these traveling Instagram couples will tell you: traveling with a significant other is really difficult. It’s not always waterfalls, kissing under hot air balloons and splashing around at the beach like these Instagram couples might have you believe.
Traveling can be stressful. It doesn’t matter if you’re a solo traveler, with a spouse or with friends. There’s the culture shock, the homesickness and navigating every day tasks in a different language, it’s all very overwhelming at times. It raises the stress levels and for a lot of people (including me), that makes them irritable. It creates a sort of heightened sense of urgency and importance about things, things that might not even matter that much.
What these couples aren’t showing you is the bickering they got into about what metro route is fastest. Or the argument about what to eat for dinner. Or the the frustration when neither of them could decide whether to eat out or stay in.
Like I’ve mentioned before, my boyfriend and I don’t always get to see each other but since we’ve been in Taiwan our time together has been multiplied like five-fold. Which was great! At first.
You know by now that I have no other friends (except for my boyfriend) so we see each other a lot. All our time is spent together. Working at home, even my work hours are spent in proximity to my boyfriend. So, we’re together allllll. theeee. timmeee.
Being with one other person, almost all the time, can drive anyone crazy. We all need alone “me” time. As an introvert, my alone time is precious. It’s what recharges my batteries and makes me feel sane.
There’s that moment when habits you’ve never noticed before turn blood boilingly annoying. This moment is when you hit your limit of being with only one other person and not having alone time.
But these Instagram couples seem to be with each other all time (except for the poor third wheel that’s taking these photos, though my money is on a tripod and self timer).
Sidenote: If a giraffe came though my window to eat my food, I would be fucking terrified.
If they’re really traveling this much and especially in locations where the predominant language is not English, I seriously doubt they’re meeting others or that they even have friends outside of the relationship. Swimming in waterfalls and lunching with giraffes leaves little time to meet people.
Not only do they not seem to spend much time apart, but they also don’t seem to have friends.
I can’t get everything I need from one person. For one thing, it’s SO annoying to try and explain why I’m excited I picked up a new Korean beauty product to someone who doesn’t even understand the importance of face cleansers! My friends at home would get it right away.
More than that, relationships are difficult to navigate and part of how I figure it out is through talking it out with my friends. Now, that they aren’t around, who do I unload my feelings to? How do I debrief what’s going on in my life?
If this is truly how this Instacouple’s relationship is, and if that’s working for them, then cool. Good for them. But being in a slightly similar situation (I’m just a million dollars, abs and a tan short of their situation), I just can’t see how this works in a healthy, positive way.
I have been traveling with my boyfriend for a few months and it’s been an opportunity for us to get closer, not just as a couple but as friends. We’ve been together for four years but with our opposite work schedules, it’s been difficult to form a constant, consistent feeling of connection. So being together more often and experiencing a life changing decision together, has been really good for us. It’s also helped me to grow and become a better person. Knowing only one person (read more about how I have no friends here) makes me want to/need to compromise, be more relaxed and let things go.
It’s been great to share this experience with someone but it’s not all the waterfalls, giraffe brunches and kissing in hot air balloons that Instagram couples might have you believe. That’s important to remember.