WHEN HOLIDAY ROMANCES WORK
WOMAN'S OWN|August 22, 2022
For these two women, a chance meeting led to something special
EIMEAR O'HAGAN
WHEN HOLIDAY ROMANCES WORK

‘My friends and family didn’t think it would last’

Kirsty Firat, 28, is a support worker and lives in Edinburgh with her husband Ismail, 28, who works in hospitality.

Dancing in my husband’s arms at our wedding, I felt so proud of us both. Against the odds, our holiday romance had blossomed into a marriage.

It was on the last night of my stay in Marmaris, Turkey, in April 2018, with my mum, that I first laid eyes on Ismail.

STRONG FEELINGS

He was a waiter in a restaurant we were dining in, and we kept looking at one another and smiling. I thought he was handsome, but because he was working, there was no chance for us to speak.

On the flight home the next day, I couldn’t stop thinking about this guy whose name I didn’t even know. Days later, I saw a post of his on a Marmaris Facebook page and recognised him from his profile picture. Nervously, I messaged to say hello and asked if he remembered me, wondering if he would even reply. To my delight, he did.

We started messaging – I spoke some Turkish, he spoke some English and we relied on Google Translate a lot! Within weeks, we were speaking on the phone, then video calls. The more we got to know one another, the more I was desperate to see him again. After a few months, I told friends and family I had strong feelings and wanted to visit Ismail.

My mum was supportive, but my dad was worried and didn’t want me to get hurt.

In October 2018, I returned to Turkey with my parents and a friend. That was when Ismail and I became a proper couple, going for meals, talking for hours on the beach and finally being intimate.

هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة August 22, 2022 من WOMAN'S OWN.

ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.

هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة August 22, 2022 من WOMAN'S OWN.

ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 9,000 مجلة وصحيفة.