People may think that meeting people globally has been something that started when social media impacted our world. In reality, long distance relationships started centuries ago and persisted to modern day, although the most notorious way of contacting others is via the Internet. Nowadays there are millions of ways to get into long-distance relationships.

The feeling of being reached internationally by someone who can relate to them, in their music tastes and/or their preferences, is an unbelievable experience expressed by some of the students who currently have long-distance friendships around the world. Manuel Garcia, who is currently keeping in touch with his friends back home in Mexico. “Since I’ve moved from Mexico I have been losing a little connection with my friends back in Cancun, but that isn’t a reason to stop talking to them. Unlike many, I try keeping my friendships longer for many years to come. Like many others, nowadays long-distances relationships go from e-mails to even text messages, getting away from paper and pencil.”

Many who left their homeland are more common to have long-distance relations with people they left back home.

Fulana Perez said, “I have one friend, Alexis. We grew up together back in Puebla, Mexico. We are constantly messaging each other on Facebook. I like to have our friendship last. Even if we are like thousands of miles apart, I would like to have many more years to come with him.” Priscilla Fernández, a student from Ciudad Evita, Argentina, also shares to us how she feels on having a long-distance friendship, “Many times I have known people on social media, and never know that they are away from my land. The longest long-distance friendship that I currently have is two years already. He is from Mexico and I am from Argentina and it is really easy to keep our friendship due to social media. Even if we are a million miles apart, he would always be special to me… Nowadays finding a friendship like his is merely impossible. Even if we don’t ever see each other, I just can’t imagine the day that this would be over. It would make me feel an emptiness inside my heart.” Talking more with Priscilla, and asking if Carlos has ever send her anything besides a text message, “Yes, Carlos has sent me like 4 or 5 letters, but they are like 3 or 4 pages long, front and back. The moment I see one of his letters in the mail I totally panic with emotion and rapidly began to read it.”

Many people who have long-distance relationships are more common to continue them. Juan Jose Torres said about his experience with his friends back in Mexico, “I still keep in contact with all of my friends from Zacatecas. We often video chat with each other. It feels as it was yesterday when I left home, when I left them. The good news is that I am able to go back home and visit them. That is something that I aim for.”