{"id":5532,"date":"2023-02-13T16:59:17","date_gmt":"2023-02-13T16:59:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2023\/02\/13\/cupid-is-real-and-he-works-for-contiki\/"},"modified":"2023-02-13T16:59:17","modified_gmt":"2023-02-13T16:59:17","slug":"cupid-is-real-and-he-works-for-contiki","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/entertainment.runfyers.com\/index.php\/2023\/02\/13\/cupid-is-real-and-he-works-for-contiki\/","title":{"rendered":"Cupid is real and he works for Contiki"},"content":{"rendered":"


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Many of us dream of that holiday romance you see in the movies. You know the ones: where the pair meet in Italy and fall head-over-spaghetti for each other? Well\u2026spoiler alert: it actually happens. When Texas native Ashley set out on Contiki\u2019s European Quest she never expected to meet the love of her life. She locked eyes with Brenton, a New Zealander with a strong Kiwi accent standing in line for a sandwich. How\u2019s that for a <\/span>meat<\/span><\/i> cute. \u201cI kind of avoided him at first because I was embarrassed\u2026 I couldn\u2019t understand what he was saying.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Brenton, meanwhile, spotted Ashley her first day on the coach, \u201cI was on my own personal journey. One of the cool things about travelling is that you don\u2019t know anyone: you can just chill out and be yourself. There\u2019s no sense of pressure or expectation. When Ashley came on the bus I was just like, \u2018why do I all of a sudden care more about what people think of me?\u201d What seemed like a rough start (because of Ashley\u2019s inability to understand his thick accent and Brenton catching a cold) the French riviera passed by in a blur.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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But while France is romantic in its own chic way, Florence, in its ancient, architectural glamour, is where flames ignite. The young travellers\u2019 night started with Trip Manager, Mike, leading the crew to a night of karaoke at the Red Garter. Maybe it was the fun vibes of belting out tunes with fellow Contiki travellers, or maybe it was Italy\u2019s faded elegance, but something sparked that night. Brenton and Ashley started chatting and walked back to the hotel through the city streets, \u201cWe never stopped talking after that\u2026 the next day in Capri, Brenton and I spent the whole day together, just us two.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Contiki<\/p>\n

Capri is an island off the Amalfi coast, known for mountainous views that meet the warm turquoise sea. With these impossibly romantic vistas, it\u2019s understandable that the couple fell in love so quickly. \u201cIt was a really cool first date,\u201d Ashley says about her island experience. They took chair lifts around the island to explore and sipped on fresh orange juice under the spotless skies.\u00a0 \u201cContiki can be very fast-paced but if you\u2019re spending time with someone, everything you\u2019re doing is an incredible event.\u201d\u00a0 We\u2019re inclined to agree.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve travelled to a lot of other places but Italy\u2019s been our favourite so far,\u201d says Ashley, who even has a print out of a Florentine map that reads, \u2018where it all began\u2019 hanging up in their home. \u201cThat\u2019s a testament to Contiki. They drove us around and showed us everything and we didn\u2019t have to worry about the language barrier\u2026 all of that made it so effortless for me and Brenton to get to know each other.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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When they said their goodbyes, Brenton wasn\u2019t sure he was ever going to see Ashley again. She lived in America; he lived in New Zealand. It seemed impossible. To commemorate their whirlwind romance on Ashley\u2019s last day in Rome, Brenton got a tattoo to match the one already imprinted on Ashley\u2019s wrist. Brenton insists that at the time it was meant as, \u201cA positive memento that good people were out there,\u201d whereas it gave Ashley pause\u2026\u201cHe must be serious,\u201d she remembers thinking.<\/span><\/p>\n

They continued to talk and promised they would visit each other. Two months later Ashley flew to New Zealand, \u201cMy family was like you met some guy in Europe for 3 days\u2026 you\u2019re insane.\u201d After Brenton showed Ashley where he grew up on the South Island, it solidified their feelings for each other. A few months later, Brenton visited Ashley in Texas for Christmas and proposed to her on New Year\u2019s Day. \u201cThis was all within 5 months of the Contiki,\u201d Ashley laughs, \u201cpeople thought we were absolutely crazy.\u201d (We personally think they\u2019re legends).<\/span><\/p>\n

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But what seemed to be happily-ever-after was interrupted by border control and the COVID Pandemic. \u201cThe process was kind of horrific,\u201d Brenton says. Ashley decided to move to New Zealand on a working holiday visa while they waited for Brenton\u2019s visa for the United States. \u201cCOVID, exploded and New Zealand shut the borders, so people couldn\u2019t come in and out. Ashley made it two weeks before the borders closed.\u201d Meanwhile the couple started the visa process for Brenton, needing, among other items, a signed affidavit confirming their love was for real.<\/span><\/p>\n

Who could provide such a document? To Ashley it was a no-brainer: \u201cThe best person to vouch for us meeting on the trip was Mike.\u201d Yep, remember Trip Manager Mike? The one who recommended the Red Garter karaoke bar in Florence where it all began?! \u201cI asked him and he was totally on board to do it.\u201d It\u2019s true: Trip Manager Mike signed an affidavit to confirm their love. Talk about going above and beyond for your travellers (we definitely didn\u2019t put \u201ccupid\u201d in his job description).<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Trip<\/p>\n

After a nearly two-year visa process Brenton finally moved to Texas in June 2021. And they were married one week later! \u201cWe invited Mike to our wedding but he couldn\u2019t come because it was peak COVID.\u201d Says Brenton. And although we\u2019re sad Trip Manager Mike couldn\u2019t be there for the wedding day, he helped make it all possible. (We reached out to Mike and he said he\u2019s been captivated whilst following their romance on Instagram every step of the way). We love you Contiki Mike!\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Ashley and Brenton now live together in Texas and will be celebrating their second wedding anniversary in June! They are actively travelling together and seeing the world with their next destination being Fiji <\/span>(though they say they\u2019ve also been eyeing up Contiki\u2019s Croatia Island Sail<\/a>.)<\/span> \u201cWhen we get to tell people how we met it\u2019s really cool that it was through something we\u2019re both passionate about,\u201d Ashley says looking adoringly at her hubby. When asked if they\u2019d recommend Contiki as a way to find love Brenton answered: \u201cAbsolutely! In terms of the variety of people you meet, if you go in with an open mind you\u2019ll make incredible lifelong relationships.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Somebody pass us a tissue\u2026<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Contiki<\/p>\n

\"Trip<\/p>\n