Globetrotting, at its finest.
Loni James was a woman on a mission: to travel the world and date a local in every country she visited. Her solo journey, while seemingly happy, was actually born out of tragedy. James watched her mother battle with Alzheimer’s when she was 48, and watched her pass when she was 63.
Since her mother’s passing, James decided to seize the moment and launch her adventures. It took her two years of working to gather the funds she needed, and she had to move to a cheaper apartment and got a roommate to share the bills.
Now, after traveling to 19 countries and going on 34 dates in the past year alone, James has had her fair share of good and bad experiences. From a night out with a French and British dual citizen at a pub near the Tower Bridge that spanned into five hours to a 13-hour date in Cairo during Ramadan to a disastrous date in Turkey with a man who left her for hours in a storm because she refused his advances, James shared with CNN that each date has taught her something.
Romance comes in many forms, she told CNN. There is no straightforward formula that makes romance happen on one date. “For me, it’s when there’s connection and intentionality. It is the person who listens to you, who seeks to make you feel special, who wants to bring a smile to your face with a thoughtful gesture, and the person who wants to know what you think and seeks to truly get to know you,” she said.
Image credit: Loni James