A year after we met, J was able to book a flight to visit me in Canada in late September of 2017. Looking back, it's probably the weirdest of our visits because I was starting my third semester of university that month, which meant his visit overlapped with my classes. The years following our first visit, we planned more accordingly, with visits usually happening during my school breaks.
During his first visit to B.C., I took J to places within a ~3 hour drive or less of my town. I found I grew a new appreciation for my local surroundings while I was planning activities for his arrival as I felt I needed to show him all the good stuff on both the local and more touristy side of things. I had made a list prior to J's flight landing of all the things we had mentioned in passing over the months of anything he wanted to try or see: be it food, a local area, an activity, etc. I found that this list really helped for when we wanted something to do, but weren't quite sure what.
We did local hikes, went to museums and an aquarium, walked through markets and along beaches, visited local tourist stops, and enjoyed each other's company!
With that said, this first visit (and the rest to follow) were also very home oriented or mundane. We had just spent a year without seeing each other, so of course we wanted to spend time together just being together. This consisted of watching TV in bed, playing games, and going for small walks. Just being a couple, ya know?
When I picked J up from the airport I was INCREDIBLY nervous, but also so excited. It was J's first time on a plane, he was flying solo, and coming to a new country. So prior to his departure, we spent a lot of time looking up lists of airport "Do's and Don'ts, making back-up plans should his phone not connect to the wi-fi upon landing, and general information about flying that eased his mind. And on my end, I made sure someone at home knew when I should be home, and kept in touch while waiting for his flight to land and before leaving the airport with J. The actual meeting was so natural and easy. I remember seeing him exit the security doors and realizing that he was actually here. It was a really awesome moment for us and it ended in a huge hug in the middle of the arrivals area.
The visit itself went smoothly and about as amazing as we had pictured it to be. There were a few bumps along the way (mainly my class schedule), but overall, we were just happy to be together so nothing could wreck our fun.
One tip I would suggest is to be prepared for airport security to ask you questions when arriving, especially if it's your first time flying somewhere and/or your first visit with your partner. When J went through security the first time, he was super nervous and the TSA agent he spoke with asked him questions about his visit, as well as about me as it was his first time meeting me in person. There can be some skepticism in regards to who you are meeting, and while this may seem uncalled for on your end, remember that airport security is doing their job to keep you (and others) safe. And for us, even though J forgot the name of the university I was studying at because of his nerves, he made it through security eventually and things worked out.
In the end, our first visit in 2017 was everything we had hoped for. We had gone from being friends online, to a long distance relationship, to finally meeting each other in person. I only wish I had taken more pictures of us together during that first trip!
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