Hi, there!
I’m Cat – writer, grad school student, and future librarian. I’m a US citizen who is in a relationship with my partner, Lucas, who is from the Netherlands. We have been together for over two years now and with a new chapter of our life starting, Lucas encouraged me to pursue this new project.
He didn’t have to tell me twice.
Lucas has finished up the first half of his apprenticeship as a merchant mariner officer. The experience has added an entirely new layer to our already long distance relationship. I have made jokes that we have become long distance on top of long distance, and while it is said with humor, the reality isn’t too far from the truth.
In an attempt to try and prepare for this new aspect of our relationship, I tried to seek out support groups specifically for those with merchant mariner partners. Unfortunately, I was unable to find many resources written in English. While it’s a relief that support exists for others in my situation of having a partner at sea, it was difficult to find that there wasn’t exactly a space for me. I am apart of several long distance relationship groups, but the fact is there is a disconnect.
While I can relate to those with partners in the military, and I can relate to those who are in long distance relationships, I’m still hovering somewhere in the middle. Our situation doesn’t entirely fit in one camp, and it doesn’t entirely fit in the other.
Feeling that there have to be others in our situation and after the debating the idea of this blog for a long time, it was finally decided that now is the best time to move forward. So, here we are today – XO From Abroad is now in existence.
The hope of this website is to help others also in long distance relationships or have a merchant mariner partner in their life.
About Our LDR
We met amid the COVID-19 Pandemic, and have been together since 2021.
During the times Lucas is home, we are 3,708 miles apart (or 5,967.45 km). Our time difference is 6 hours apart, and we’re separated by an 8 hour flight across the Atlantic ocean.
Some of our favorite things to do when we’re apart is write together, play video games, or kick back and watch whatever we can. When we’re together, we enjoy partaking in food tourism, history museums, and trying to find things off the beaten path. There is also a healthy amount of spending time in cafes where we relax and do some reading and writing while just existing together.