Trying to Make a Long Distance Relationship Succeed

Fifteen months, ten days and a couple of hours ago I was fortunate enough to meet the girl of my dreams. We met in the most romantic of settings, Aix-en-Provence, a chic, bourgeois town buried deep in the heart of Provencal France. We were both British students spending the year sunbathing and sipping pastis under the pretence of supposedly studying French Law. Immediately smitten, I spent the next twelve months convincing her that she loved me as much as I loved her. The year passed in a whirlwind of adventures together experiencing all of French culture to its fullest.

Like all of the good things in life the mind-blowing year had to come to an end. After kissing 'The One' goodbye at Marseille airport, I boarded my flight back to sunny Scotland vowing never to let distance come between us. However I was aware that my cosy relationship in idyllic, sun kissed Aix-en-Provence had reached the end of its glorious chapter and a new, more challenging one was about to commence.

'The One' is from the Isle of Man, perhaps one of the toughest places to get to from my hometown of Aberdeen, especially for a financially stricken student. We had agreed to meet up every second weekend and damn it in the name of love I was not going to let my sweetheart down. Over the summer I found a job in an office and I spent my days answering phones and sending faxes in order to finance my romantic journeying. I blew every single penny earned in my first month to pay for two trips to the picturesque island known best for motorbike racing and cats with no tails.

I paid an absolutely extortionate price for the return journey from Glasgow to the island. For the princely sum I had paid I expected to be flown over in a swanky private jet. I am not fanatical about flying at the best of times so imagine my horror when I was ushered into an incredibly small, obsolete Airbus for the 50 minute journey. I think the Wright brothers flew in something similar back in 1903. I wasn't sure how myself and the other eight worried passengers looking to brave the flight were going to fit in, never mind how we were going to get airborne! My mind was reassured when I overheard the pilot tell the co-pilot that he would let her fly for part of the journey and "when it gets scary I'll take control again". For 50 minutes I prayed and prayed, petrified that the archaic propeller engine would cut out and that myself and the other passengers would be lost forever in the Irish Sea.

However after a somewhat turbulent journey we bumped down at the only airport on the Isle of Man. Happy to be alive, I was greeted by my smiling sweetheart at the airport's arrival gate. The first kiss after you have been apart for so long is the best part of a long distance relationship. It makes all the travelling and money spent more than worthwhile. It's always amazing. Like a young James Bond, I had completed my deadly mission of crossing the Irish Sea with my Manx princess ready to embrace me upon arrival. All I needed was a tuxedo.

In a long distance relationship (or LDR if you prefer) you can experience a real rollercoaster of emotions. You cherish the precious moments together and you loathe the time apart. Life feels like a permanent countdown. The days drag until you are back together, yet when you are reunited they are over quick as a flash.

However, worry not. After six months of living and loving my long distance relationship eagerly waiting for the next weekend, like a young child waiting for Christmas, I have concluded that LDR's are incredibly rewarding if you are willing to put the work in. Thanks to the magnificent technological age in which we live it is possible to keep in contact with 'The One' through phone calls, texts, emails and good old-fashioned romantic love letters. Constant communication is essential in keeping that fire burning brightly.

In an ideal world all long distance relationships would have their fairytale ending where the couple eventually live happily ever after in the same place. Fortunately for me, 'The One' has fallen in love with Aberdeen and applied to study here next year. Until then I have a few more perilous journeys to enjoy.