Forums Passport Bros & Dating AbroadThinking about moving to Medellín after my last trip, anyone actually build something real there?

Thinking about moving to Medellín after my last trip, anyone actually build something real there?

Mike Hernandez

17 posts

Mike Hernandez

I just got back from Medellín and I can’t stop thinking about it. I’m 34, Black American, and I’ve been toying with the whole passport bro thing for a while, but this was the first trip where I actually felt like I could see myself living somewhere else for real. I was staying in El Poblado, mostly meeting people off Bumble and a couple from a language exchange meetup near Laureles. The vibe felt way more relaxed than back home, and honestly I got more genuine conversations in one week than I usually get in a month in Atlanta. That said, I’m not trying to romanticize it. I know a vacation is not real life. A few of the women I met were cool, but I also got the sense that some were curious about the foreigner thing more than me specifically. I’m trying to figure out if anybody here has actually moved to Colombia or somewhere similar and ended up in a real relationship, not just a string of dates and nice Airbnb stories. How do you even tell early on if somebody is into you for you and not just the idea of dating abroad?

Mar 14

2 replies

Rachel KimBASIC

#1 · Mar 14

Man, I feel you on this. I spent two months in Medellín last year and had the same exact experience. The city makes it easy to start feeling yourself because people are friendly, the weather is perfect, and dating apps move fast. But yeah, once the novelty wears off, you start seeing the real picture. My advice: slow it down. Don’t lead with expensive dinners or trying to impress. I had better luck doing normal stuff like grabbing coffee in Provenza, walking around Parque de los Pies Descalzos, or just hanging out after Spanish class. The women who were still interested after that were way more solid. If they’re cool with your regular life and not just your tourist mode, that’s a better sign.

Sarah M.BASIC

#2 · Mar 15

I’m gonna give a slightly different take. I dated a woman in Medellín for about 8 months, and it did get serious, but it only worked because I was honest about what I wanted and didn’t pretend I was moving there forever on day one. She worked in marketing, had her own apartment, and wasn’t impressed by me being American at all, which I actually liked. The big thing was family and expectations. Cross-cultural stuff sounds cute until holidays, money, and future plans come up. If you’re serious, ask real questions early: where does she see herself in 2 years, would she ever move, how does she feel about long-distance, what does she expect from a man? It’s not sexy, but it saves you a lot of headaches.