As in love as you may be with your significant other, your relationship changes in a new environment. There’s just something about going into a new place, the anxiety and the vulnerability you feel, that draws the two of you even closer. You have to trust them to keep you safe in this unknown environment, and believe me, that makes all of the difference. You get to see the wonder and the excitement in their eyes upon arriving there, and it is refreshing to be able to be with them and only them while the only other people around you are strangers in this new place. In every new adventure, you fall more in love, and these are memories that you will have together for the rest of your lives. And that is the beauty of it, someday you will have a family of your own together and these are the stories you will tell them about Mommy & Daddy’s love story.

Derek and I started dating only 10 months ago. Actually, our first date was the night before I was going on a trip with my family. Traveling with family, with friends, or even on your own are not the same as traveling with your significant other. On any trip I have ever taken before Derek came around, I have only dreamed about making these memories with the man I would someday marry, especially during this trip. Now, at only the age of 21, I finally have the relationship and the opportunity to make these dreams a reality. One month into our relationship, we decided to spontaneously drive over five hours away to stay in Boston for the weekend. Neither of us had ever been there, yet we both had always wanted to. This changed everything. Getting to wake up next to him, getting to fall asleep next to him, and getting to see this beautiful new city next to him seriously changed my life. Two months later, Derek and I went back to Boston, this time for a longer period of time. Two months from this trip, we went across the country to Los Angeles. Biking along the beach, riding the Santa Monica Pier, lifting at the world famous Muscle Beach, hiking Runyon Canyon, and seeing Rodeo Drive were all things I never thought I would see unless in a picture. Three months from the California trip, we went to Disney World. There is nothing quite like being in the happiest place on earth with the one person that makes you the happiest. In just a matter of eight months we had already went on four trips together.

So many people say that good luck is how we have the ability to do this. It is not luck at all, and everyone is fully capable to do this. Neither of our families helped us out with these costs, so it was not a matter of us being spoiled kids, which we are not at all. Both of us are full-time college students, and work part-time making minimum wage. We save our money, and don’t waste it on the newest gadget that will start collecting dust in a month or two. We don’t go out and buy extravagant things, because they are not necessary—all these things are only good for showing off. We don't go out on the weekends and blow a bunch of money on drinks. Decades from now, both of us want to be able to share the stories from all over the country, and eventually all over the world. I do not want to grow up and only have old iPhones, purses, shoes, and a memory of Instagram followers to talk about. I want to have experiences, I want to be cultured, I want to have a beautiful love story, and I do not want to wonder what else is out there.

Everyone, please, I beg you all to travel with your significant other, when you find that special person. Good relationships are so hard to come by these days, and traveling with your significant other only strengthens your relationship more. Not only that, but it opens your eyes to different cultures and different ways of life, and you better yourself in the process.