It’s important to keep the love life live, so doing new fun activities is essential for every relationship!
My husband and I have been living separately since we started dating. Back when I was still in college, I lived across the state from him, and sometimes we were a hemisphere apart. It was never easy to go on dates or be together. Our dates usually consisted of dropped or lagged Skype calls, and a lot of WhatsApp message notifications. The days that we did spend together, we had to make the most out of it. We would jam pack a few months in at a time. You could tell it would take a toll on us as soon as we had to leave each others side. Now that we’re somewhat much closer to each other, and more financially stable, we visit each other every weekend, and still make the most of our time.
Related: How To Stay Close ; Surviving the Distance
Whether you live together and see each other every day, or you’re miles apart, it’s always important to work at your love.
There’s no excuse to let your love life die because you’re just not trying hard enough anymore. You have to keep courting your partner because it shows you still appreciate them the way you did during the honeymoon phase. Everyone knows that the phase doesn’t last forever, and you get more comfortable with each other, but that’s why it’s so important! Here are a few ways that Sean and I keep our life together interesting!
Movie dates at home or at the theater
We really enjoy watching movies, but I really enjoy watching them in the comfort of my own home. Mainly because I talk a lot and ask a lot of questions (yes, I’m the annoying one, hush), but also if I get bored, then I can get up and do something else. Sean will continue watching, and then just catch me up when I come back asking a million questions. The only reason I like watching movies in the theaters here in Korea is because they’re more than just a theater. It is truly an experience to go to the movies here with all the random things inside the theater that you can do while you wait. Lastly, their popcorn is the bomb.com. It’s always nice when it’s free ninety-nine at home, but it’s also nice to spend a little cash on a real date to the movies.
Eating out at fun new restaurants pretending we’re Michelin reviewers
The budget can vary on this one depending on whether you do want to eat at a Michelin Star restaurant or if you want to eat in a dive bar. Sean and I usually pick a few pricey places to eat every now and then just because we rarely have the opportunity to dress up. If we do a staycation (stay tuned), then we’ll get dressed up and eat at a nice place. If we’re just at the mall or out in the city, we’ll look up recommended places to eat in the area and review it ourselves. Like Sean has mentioned in his introduction [click!], he values food. Meals is where people connect and learn about each other, so it’s very important to us to be able to communicate over a nice meal.
Staycations in hotels near our home
We love staying in hotels because it allows us to just enjoy each other’s company without having to take our fur children out, or having to cook or clean. Sean does a wonderful job finding 5-star hotels for cheap using the site hotwire.com. We call it “hotel roulette” and it’s probably the most daring game we play every time, because we never know what we’re paying for. So far, it’s worked wonders for us because we always end up in a beautiful hotel. We order room service or go out to their restaurant, and then we usually end the night with some drinks from the lounge bar. We always say we’re going to go swimming in the morning, and it’s only happened once. But swimming can also be a fun side date to your staycation!
Trips to Ikea to fantasize about the kind of home we want
Lately, we’ve been taking trips to Ikea, or even just online shopping for things to fill our home with. Recently it’s been a cute little four legged creature world where we’re trying to fill the house with beautiful things for our dogs. But when we go to Ikea, we’re usually there for hours just looking at the showrooms and saying things like, “this would be so great in the living room!” without realizing we don’t have a house to call our own. So fantasizing is all we have right now for a home. It’s nice to be able to imagine a home with your loved one because it gives you something to look forward to.
Playing video games we bought a long time ago
Sean buys a lot of video games. Sean lets a lot of time pass by before he plays the video games. Recently, we had bought Pokémon, and we were both stuck to our Nintendo Switches for hours on end. We would bond by showing each other what we caught, or how many badges we won so far. We would even battle each other online, (yes, I win each time). And no, he doesn’t let me win, I’m just better than him. Playing video games together can help you bond with each other by cheering each other on. It also brings the playfulness out in both of you which makes the entire memory a happy one. As long as you don’t let the game get the best of you that is!
Laying in bed still in our jammies binging Netflix
This is what we do most of the time when we’re at home. There have been days where we just both felt so lazy, and didn’t want to do anything but lounge around. We’ve gone entire mornings watching the same show, and we have to force ourselves out of the house. I love finding a show that Sean and I can watch together, because we both like very different things. Our most recent addiction is The Good Place starring Kristen Bell. She kills it in that show, and we’re loving it! We also watch a lot of anime shows, and our favorite happens to be about food, Food Wars! I love this type of date because it’s free, unless you decide to be extra lazy and order takeout!
Going to different cafes for a coffee or ice cream
There are hundreds of cafes located in Seoul! Every time we pass by a nice coffee shop, we say, “we’ll check it out one day.” To be honest, that list has grown an exponential amount. We have had a lot of coffee since moving to Korea. We love different coffee places because there’s so many ways to enjoy coffee. Plus being in a different country, there’s always a new kick the coffee. There’s a lot of animal cafes here. So while you’re sipping on your flat white, you can be staring at a wallaby or a raccoon. Or if you’re into music, there’s a really neat vinyl café where you can enjoy your cup of joe and any record you want.
Riding the subway to a random location
Exploring your city can be very fun because you never know where you’ll end up! Today we found out that there was a neighborhood near us that has strips of boutiques and restaurants that we never would have found online. You get to run into cool historical places, random knick-knack stores, and beautiful sights. If you’re located in a city where there’s easy access to the subway, we suggest this, as long as you are safe doing it! Safety is our number one priority, so don’t venture out into a place you know may be dangerous.
Going to a fun location to take pictures together
There are days where I really feel myself and how I look. On those days, I tell my husband that I’m going to get all dolled up and we’re going to go do a spontaneous photoshoot around the city. It’s taken a lot of time to build up my confidence of going out in public and posing in front of the camera, but it’s one of the most fun things we’ve come across. Since we’re both into photography, it helps us push each other to grow in our talent. This date is great because you get pictures for all of your memories and you can use them to fill your idea house from Ikea ;). It doesn’t even have to be a fancy camera! Just pull out your smart phone and snap away.
Road trips to different countries
We take a lot of road trips. This type of date is more like a vacation, and it doesn’t always have to be expensive, but it definitely is the most expensive one out of all the ideas. Road trips can be fun because you really get to know your partner. What else are you going to do while you’re sitting in a car for hours and hours with nowhere else to go? You are forced to talk to each other, unless you’re a crappy co-pilot that falls asleep! Shame on you! Being on road trips is fun for me because I love to sing in the car, and my husband has to put up with my awful singing. It ties in almost all of our ideas from food, photography, and hotels. When planned out correctly, it can be ballin’ on a budget!
Date night doesn’t always have to mean getting dolled up and going out. Date nights are for you and your partner to spend quality time together - whether that’s in a nice suit or your birthday suit. The key to a successful relationship is communication.