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romance
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Meeting a special foreign man or woman who is charming and interesting may spark a romantic interest between you. He or she may be attentive and interested in your views, where you have been on your journey and where you are going. Suddenly you may feel a potential romance on the horizon. Exotic lands, meeting new and interesting people is a sure combination to spark anyone's fantasy and desire. Moonlit beaches, exotic foreign bazaars, roaming musicians playing in the cafes on warm summer nights, how could you not feel the romance in the air? It sounds like the storyline of every romance novel ever written. If you meet that special someone, you may feel it is destiny or fate that brought you together. The feelings of being in love seem so real in the moment. Love, infatuation, and euphoria fill your heart and mind. Many lovestruck travelers decide to journey with one another after they meet, promisimg to reconnect in the next city, or after they return from their trip. Romance vs. Reality The reality of travel romances ever transforming into anything more than just that, a travel romance, is generally limited. Lives, jobs, and sometimes existing girlfriends back home make long-distance love relationships not only down right risky but an extremely remote possibility. Most likely you will go your own separate ways, with tears, and promises to write and meet again. Looking For "Mr. Right" Or "Mr. Right Now" Marriage is the last thing most travelers have in mind when they set sail to go abroad. If you are looking for "Mr. Right," don't plan on finding him on your adventure. Most travelers are generally more interested in looking for "Mr. or Ms. Right Now." CASUAL SEX Sex has about as many meanings to people and cultures as there are countries in the world. Casual sex is not a universally-understood concept in many nations around the globe. Engaging in what you may label as casual sex may not be seen as casual to your partner. In fact, you may be inadvertently consenting to marry or be engaged to that man. If you do choose to have casual sex with people outside of your own culture when traveling, be sure that you have a good and clear idea of what the cultural norms, mores, and meaning of casual sex is in your potential lover's culture. Language barriers may create a communication problem between you and your potential partner. Be sure you are both under the same assumption that this is a casual sexual exchange and agree upon what precautions you will take to ensure "safe sex." Sex with strangers, no matter how hot and heavy you feel at the moment, may have life-changing results. The ramifications of casual sex with a stranger may be more than you bargained for the next day or in the years to come. Becoming pregnant or contracting HIV or STDs after one romantic interlude with a stranger may be devastating and deadly. Be wise and listen to your head, not your hormones. RAPE Protecting yourself from becoming a victim of rape is a high priority to any woman traveling at home or abroad. Sexual perpetrators and rapists may be those from your own country. Don't be naive and think only foreign men may accost and rape you when you are traveling. The emotional and psychological effects of being raped are devastating. Protect yourself and take measures to avoid being assaulted. Certain destinations or traveler's hotels get the reputation of being a place that offers "serious partying, drinking, and sexual activity." If this is not your idea of fun, then choose another destination. You may be partying with travelers from your own country and assume they are safe only because they are of the same nationality. Would you give the same amount of trust to a group of people you had just met in a bar or at a friend's party at home? Of course not. Don't give your trust to someone just because you are from the same land and assume they hold the same norms as you. How To Avoid Potential Rape Situations
HIV, AIDS, And Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs) The implications today of having sex with someone you do not know and trust may lead to HIV infection or contracting a sexually-transmitted disease. Unfortunately, today there still are many people who have not been tested for HIV or STD's and are carriers for these diseases. They may not have any symptoms presently, but that doesn't mean that they can't infect you. These people, for obvious reasons, are the most dangerous ones with whom to have sex. They may be telling you the truth when they say they were tested a year ago and were found not to have tested positive for the HIV virus or a carrier of any STDs. But somewhere in that year they may have had sex with a person who infected them and in turn they may infect you. Be cautious. Prostitution Prostitution is the oldest business in the world. The cities of Amsterdam and Bangkok are notorious for their prostitution and sex industries. Many men travel around the globe on organized sex tours to engage in sexual practices with men, women, and children. Depending upon the individuals involved safe sex may or may not be practiced. How might this affect you? If you plan on engaging in casual sex while traveling, your potential partner may plan on it as well and may have had sex with a prostitute. Although you may practice safe sex, your potential partner may not. Always use a condom when you don't know your partner well. Prostitution can mean big money for some women. In foreign cities such as Tokyo, Western women can make a lot of money being prostitutes. When in Tokyo, I remember seeing American women hanging out with Japanese businessmen and wondering what the connection was. Were they business partners? Foreign guests? When I asked my Canadian and Japanese friends who lived in Tokyo who they were, I was a bit stunned when they said American prostitutes. I quickly asked my Canadian friend if she was ever solicited for prostitution because she was Western. She had been, but told the guy off. SAFE SEX The 1980s introduced us to the catch phrase "safe sex" as a result of the growing AIDS epidemic. Before the ‘80s it was free love, swinging singles, and swapping couples. Sex has taken on a whole new meaning in the ‘80s and '90s. Getting pregnant was what young women worried about before the invention of the birth control pill in the 1970s. Today women have more access to and information regarding pregnancy prevention techniques and the option of oral contraceptives. Women today not only think about how to avoid an unwanted pregnancy, but also how to avoid contracting HIV and STDs from their partners. If you plan on being sexually active when you are abroad, plan ahead and take the appropriate measures to ensure you will be able to practice safe sex and avoid an unwanted pregnancy or unwanted STD. Safe Sex Item Checklist
Before you travel, consult with your personal physician or gynecologist as to how you can keep yourself sexually safe while traveling abroad. Planned Parenthood Locate and visit your neighborhood Planned Parenthood and request information they have on the prevention of unwanted pregnancy, birth control, and safe sex techniques. Planned Parenthood assists millions of women and men each year with their health and reproductive needs. Public Displays Of Affection Holding hands, kissing on the lips, hugging, and walking arm-in-arm may all be acceptable behavior between two consenting adults in Western culture, but is not welcomed or condoned publicly in other parts of the world. Being outwardly physical or sexual toward your mate in other more religious or gender-separated cultures will be frowned upon as inappropriate. Although you may feel you have the right to interact with your partner the way you want, be sensitive to the country you are in and respect their cultural norms and mores.
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