Hi y'all, I'm trying to decide where to stop in for about 4-6 weeks before returning to the US, after initially spending some time in Chile (potentially with a brief return stop in Argentina). Initially I was hoping to go to Peru, but it appears that is not an option due to work constraints.
However, each of the countries above (plus Colombia) are countries that have nomad visas, and therefore my company will allow me to go there and sponsor me in that regard. I'm looking for a place that is at least more affordable than the US in terms of housing, ideally with decent nightlife, with at least one legit city to base myself in. If there is decent public transit/walkability, food, nature/parks, and not very hot weather (my standard is don't be 100 degrees Fahrenheit every day) even better. My favorite cities I've been to so far in my travels are Mexico City and Buenos Aires, for reference.
On paper, Colombia would be the pick if I weren't scared off by the stories of scopolamine, rampant sex tourism, and general violence against tourists. It seems like there is ample coworking/coliving spaces there, great nightlife, and a few different cities that are worth checking out. I've heard good stories in addition to the bad. However, reading about the problems with both scopolamine and child sex tourism in particular disgusted me, I have no desire to be around that. Additionally, I am a young single guy, and while I do not travel to countries purely to date/hookup, it is something I tend to do while I'm there. Given that, and the fact I like to go out at night to bars/clubs, it seems like it's a no go due to fear of being in the wrong place at the wrong time, or around the wrong people, but if someone wants to try and change my mind go for it.
Costa Rica seems like a beautiful country but I feel like it doesn't fit because it's too expensive and doesn't really have a decent size city to base itself out of outside of San Jose, which I have yet to read a good thing about for whatever reason. I'd love to know why it's bad frankly, though I get that it's not on the beach which is the main thing there. For someone like me who wants nightlife and more things to do, it seems like a beautiful country to visit briefly, not base yourself in. Again, I'd welcome someone trying to change my mind.
Given that, Panama seems like a better version of CR because of having a legit city (and also having great connectivity to the rest of LatAm for weekend trips), supposedly better nightlife, but I know very little about it outside of that. Uruguay I hear is boring and expensive - I don't know what they're using as a frame of reference there - though it also apparently is safe with great beaches, solid food (I tried a Chivito sandwich in Argentina and loved it) and I like that it's close to Buenos Aires if I ever did want to pop over for a weekend.
Anyways, I know very little about these countries, but want to make the most of my time before having to return to the US, so I'd welcome any recs or knowledge here! If you have recs for accommodations or coliving those would also be much appreciated

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Russian forces are making a push, animal testing ramps up for H5N1, and over 365 days of temperature records…
Last Week in Collapse: May 5-11, 2024
This is Last Week in Collapse, a weekly newsletter compiling some of the most important, timely, useful, soul-crushing, ironic, stunning, exhausting, or otherwise must-see/can’t-look-away moments in Collapse.
This is the 124th newsletter. You can find the April 28-May 4 edition here if you missed it last week. You can also receive these posts (with images) every Sunday in your email inbox with Substack.
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Earth experienced its largest CO2 concentration increase over a 12-month period, scientists say, from March 2023-2024. It was a jump of 4.7ppm more of carbon dioxide, blamed on deforestation, fossil fuels, and El Niño. Experts are saying that El Niño has peaked, and will transition to La Niña within a few months. La Niña lasts about 1-3 years, and it generally cools the Pacific Ocean, and brings more rain to India & Bangladesh, among other changes. Earth also experienced its greatest atmospheric moisture for the month of April.
Venezuela has lost its last glacier, the Humboldt, which was reclassified into an “ice field.” It is the first modern nation to lose all its glaciers. Scientists believe Indonesia, Mexico, and Slovenia are next in line to see the extinction of their glaciers. Colombia is also rapidly losing its remaining 6 glaciers.
Wildfires in Chile have killed about a hundred people, and injured & displaced thousands. Flooding in Afghanistan. And climate change is ruining cotton crops, and livestock, in Chad. Plus, flooding struck the DRC, overflowing rivers and latrines—affecting some 500,000 people. And some climatologists think we have been underestimating how much climate change is driving greater rainfall & flooding; the worst is yet to come.
The first week of May saw so many temperature records broken; some are claiming that it might be the “most record breaking month in climatic history”—until June, that is. Earth has been seeing 13 months of monthly records being broken for global sea surface temperatures. Literally 365 days of record-breaking ocean temperatures.
A study in PNAS examined North Pacific “warm blob” heat waves from 2010-2020, and concluded that China’s reduction in aerosols, which cleaned the air but also removed the sun-reflective particles, incidentally probably caused marine heat waves which killed fish and resulted in algae blooms.
Bees are having difficulty acclimatizing their nests to rising temperatures. The dugong, while still rarely seen in parts of the world, has been declared extinct inside China, having gone 24 years without a known sighting. In Florida, the suburbification of land under development is pushing the Florida panther closer to extinction; some 100 panthers remain in the sunshine state.
Siberia’s Batagaika crater—I prefer its alternative title, “megaslump”—is expanding by about 1M cubic meters, every year. Scientists naturally blame the rapid permafrost melting on climate change.
A cruise ship entered New York City with an endangered 44 ft {13.4m} dead sea whale stuck on its bow (front). Investigators are looking into whether it was already dead when the ship hit it. A study in Conservation Letters looked at the 100 largest Marine Protected Areas (MPAs)—which cover 7.3% of all ocean area—and found that almost 60% of this area is not in range of meeting the 2030 preservation goals.
Part of India broke May records already; the Maldives, too. Eastern Ukraine ended a far warmer & wetter April than usual. And a heat wave in Mexico scorched previous May temperature records across 10 cities, as well as small regional blackouts. North America felt its all-time hottest May temperature...
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AstraZeneca is pulling its COVID vaccine from the EU over a rare blood clooting side effect. Nevertheless, some experts claim that vaccine saved over 6M lives. Whatever U.S. CDC data on COVID is still available points to “a small rise” in cases later this summer, mostly from the growing KP.2 “FLiRT” variant.
COVID patients and immunocompromised individuals are still using lots of healthcare resources, and the rise of resistant superbugs is developing alarmingly fast. According to the article, “It only takes about a year on average for bacteria to grow resistant to treatment, when they used to take 21 years to evolve back in the 1960s.”
Engineers and medical professionals remain concerned about nanoplastics, between 1-1,000 nanometers wide. One grain of sand is about 500,000 nanometers, and one strand of DNA is about 2.5 nanometers. A single wavelength of light ranges from 400-700 nanometers.
South Africa’s water shortage is projected to worsen through at least 2025. Nairobi’s water shortage continues, despite the city’s dams being filled with floodwater. Costa Rica is facing a Drought so bad it’s rationing electricity. Mexico City—the second-most-populous city (by metro area: 21.8M; São Paolo is #1, at 22M) in North America— is seeing more than 20% of freshwater sources exhausted, and rationing is not enough. It’s almost like we’re living at unsustainable levels of consumption…
As Latin America warms (and suffers flooding), disease is becoming more common—as well as heat stroke & serious hunger. Benin is refusing Niger the permission to use its port to export oil, as a result of a border dispute.
A paywalled study in Nature Water tested a new method for removing PFAS foam particles in water, with “near-complete destruction of PFAS in various water samples contaminated by the foams.” The process involves “ultra-violet (UV) light, sulfite, and a process called electrochemical oxidation” and does not require heat or high pressure. The number of U.S. states phasing out PFAS is growing.
As forcible repatriations of thousands of Afghans continue, millions of Afghans are suffering from lack of humanitarian aid—aggravated by recent deadly flash floods in the beleaguered, landlocked, failed state.
Yeasty superfungus Candida Auris infections were detected in 77 cases in Germany last year, authorities say. Candida Auris was only identified 15 years ago, but its three separate genetic variants (each on a different continent) have stealthily and stubbornly grown to pose a stealth threat to humankind. It is incredibly resistant to antifungal drugs, and it survives at higher temperatures than most other fungi. The WHO has listed it on a shortlist of top fungal pathogen dangers.
3 cats died from H5N1 in the United States last week. Some health professionals are getting more worried about a future H5N1 jump to become human-to-human transmissible, and claim that we are not ready as a species. Experts say we are not doing enough testing, and may already be in the prologue of a much more devastating pandemic. Scientists still say it is unlikely that a strain will make the critical mutation necessary, but the similarities between human and cow (and other mammal) flu receptors present potential complications.
The world is supposedly being divided into three general trade blocs: U.S., China, and the non-aligned states. For better or worse, globalization is crumbling, and governments are imposing tariffs, attempting to reshore industries, and restructure debt & credit flows. What will happen when the people, long-trained to expect high returns, find their profits wanting?
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Two camps for internally displaced people near Goma, DRC were bombed, killing 12+ and injuring 20+. The perpetrators and their motives are unclear.
Rising crime. Drinking water. Closing the Darien Gap. These were the issues propelling Panama’s president-elect to a victory last Sunday. The arrival of rain is also improving conditions on the Drought-choken Panama Canal, expected to return to normal for at least a month or two.
A wave of Chinese espionage, much of it several years old, is sweeping Europe. Of particular concern is a hack of British military personnel information uncovered on Tuesday—which China denies. Similar espionage against the U.S. has reportedly cost the economy hundreds of billions per year.
Kenya’s mission to stabilize Haiti is inching forward slowly. The Pentagon has ordered its 1,000 troops to leave Niger. At least one Saudi villager was killed to make room for The Line, and reports claim Saudi forces have been given the green light to clear other people who get in the way of the development. Germany’s Defence Ministry is seriously considering recommending conscription for its 18-year olds later this summer.
Displacement in Myanmar has spiked over the past six months—and now counts 3M+ people since the February 2021 coup which sparked more open resistance.
Tunisia ejected ~400 migrants into Libya. Kazakhstan is expelling Tajik migrants in far-ranging sweeps. In Lebanon, vigilante attacks against Syrians have become more common. Mauritania is conducting military drills along part of its border with Mali, after reports emerged of Malian soldiers attacking border settlements.
In Sudan, over 200 witnesses corroborated reports of a massacre last June, where RSF insurgents piled up and shot” at least 17 people, most of whom were children. A lengthy report from Human Rights Watch, complete with timelines, testimony, war crimes, and other horrors from Sudan is over 150 pages. I did not have the fortitude to skim much of it.
A Hamas attack on Sunday, which killed 4 Israeli soldiers, reportedly pushed the Rafah invasion ahead of schedule. The IDF took over the Egypt-Gaza border, and is scaling up operations in southern Gaza. In response, the U.S. paused arms transfers to Israel. Any chance of a ceasefire, if there was ever really a credible chance, will have to wait. Diarrhea is soaring in Gaza, due in large part to a critical water shortage, caused by the destruction of wastewater treatment plants, the damage to water infrastructure, and large-scale displacement. A new evacuation order has commanded over 1M people in Gaza to leave before a more comprehensive invasion of Rafah begins.
A day after President Putin was inaugurated for his fifth term, he ordered a wide strike at Ukrainian infrastructure across seven oblasts. Most of the missiles and drones were shot down. And another plot to assassinate Zelenskyy was foiled. Lithuania is considering sending military trainers into Ukraine. Putin announced that Russian forces would target Western soldiers deployed in Ukraine, and begin drills simulating nuclear weapons if Britain’s involvement grows. Already, Belarus conducted a military drill with missiles & planes capable of using nukes.
In addition to extending Ukraine’s mobilization by another 90 days, the government has also allowing some convicts to fight on the battlefield in exchange for reduced sentences. Poland is allegedly considering repatriating thousands of draft-eligible Ukrainian men, and Germany is emphasizing the need for Ukrainian refugees to work.
Japan is boosting investment in a hypersonic missile interceptor project with the United States. A large-scale Russian offensive has begun across the front-lines, particularly around Kharkiv. And Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs is beginning talk of a “genocide” in Moldova, which could provide the pretext for another special military operation in Transnistria—and perhaps beyond.
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Things to watch out for next week include:
↠ The IDMC is releasing their 2024 report on Internally Displaced People (IDPs) on Tuesday, with estimates for total figures by nation & region.
Select comments/threads from the subreddit last week suggest:
-High temperatures are going to ruin food—and a lot of people’s health. This thread about the contamination of bánh mi in Vietnam sheds some light on the interconnectivity of our problems. Add in some heat wave-induced power outages, loose government regulation, and hospital problems, and you can imagine how this slow-moving disaster can cripple a community.
-“Microforests” may help mitigate some of the effects of ecosystem collapse and desertification—as well as boosting your property value, judging by this thread and its comments.
-One Collapsenik published a free ebook & audiobook satirizing American Collapse—and I’m not just linking because this newsletter was apparently a source of Doom inspiration. If you write an 80,000 word novel about Collapse, featuring some 300 references, I’ll share it too. Maybe one day I’ll have the time to write one…
Got any feedback, questions, comments, complaints, upvotes, movie recommendations, good off-grid land deals, locust broth, etc.? Check out the Last Week in Collapse SubStack if you don’t want to check collapse every Sunday, you can receive this newsletter sent to your (or someone else’s) email inbox every weekend. What did I forget this week?

I couldn't find much information on the web before our cruise, so I figured I'd post some notes about our trip.
Cost: $360 CAD for a guaranteed balcony room, all-in for 2 adults. We had $50 shareholder OBC which covered our gratuities and some happy hour drinks.
Reason for trip: We live in Vancouver and were planning to take a trip to Seattle this Spring. This 1-day itinerary left on a Friday and we figured it was a fun way to get down there. The cruise was cheaper than than a night in a Seattle hotel. We did stay another night in Seattle, then caught the Amtrak Cascade train back home again.
Embarkation: There were 2 ships in port at Canada Place, but getting on the ship was a walk-through experience. No lines whatsoever. Not sure why, but no complaints here!
Ship: We've sailed on one other HAL ship before (Koningsdam), and the Eurodam is noticeably smaller. Although older, it seemed to be in very nice shape. Our room was fine, and we enjoyed having a balcony. I was amused by the tiny bathtub in our bathroom.
Food: Buffet salad lunch, MDR dinner, and MDR breakfast were all nice enough. I wondered if there would be anything special for the 1-day itinerary, but not so much - pretty typical fare all around. The desserts were disappointing, which we also noticed on our previous HAL cruise.
Sail-away: There wasn't much in the way of pomp & ceremony for this sailing. We never met our steward, and the disembarkation instructions were in our room when we arrived. Maybe there was a sail-away party, but we opted to sit on our balcony with a coffee to watch Stanley Park and Lion's Gate go by. It is a beautiful port to depart from. Spotted an Orca on our way out of English Bay, which was a real treat!
Vibe: It seemed to be a mix of people who tacked this leg onto the previous sailing (Panama?) and/or the upcoming sailing (Alaska), and people like us who were out for a fun weekend. We met some couples who took the train up from Seattle and were sailing back home again. This short itinerary certainly skewed younger and louder than a typical HAL trip - a bit louder, and a bit drunker.
Scenery: The weather was fair and waters calm. Other than sail-away we didn't see too much, since it was dark by the time we finished dinner and a show. When we woke up, we were docked in Seattle.
Entertainment: There was a typical song/dance show on the main stag (All That) which was fun. The jazz band at Ocean Bar was a nice background to to enjoy a drink to. The pair at Billboard Onboard put on a couple of great request sets - that was the highlight for us.
TLDR: It was a unique part of a weekend trip from Vancouver or Seattle, but nothing stood out about the cruise itself. I wouldn't recommend anyone go out of their way to try it, but for locals it's a fun weekend and I'd certainly consider it again!

Hey all! I am a fairly seasoned solo traveler and I’m planning my first overseas trip since the start of the pandemic. I’d love to hear what you all think.
About me: early 30s from NY, I am a gay/queer man
Time: one week-ish, September or October. I started a new job in March so I’m not exactly sure how long I’ll be able to take off, but should manage a week at least.
Budget: a step or two above backpacking. I love hostels, but I get private rooms.
What I like to do: I like cities, soaking up the local culture, markets/shopping, street food. I’m not a very touristy person, and am happy just finding a good cafe and people watching.
Destination: Mexico City, possible trip to Guanajuato City -or- Northern/central Vietnam, Hanoi/ Ninh Binh or Phong Nha/ Hue or Hoi An
I’ve been wanting to visit both for a long time, and I’m having trouble deciding :/
Pros of Mexico City: closer to home so less time wasted on flights, less packed itinerary than Vietnam and easier to fit within a week, a more recognized LGBTQ culture, metro/subway makes it easier to get around, never been to Latin America, one of the worlds most exciting cities, history/culture/food/shopping all in one city
Cons of Mexico City: flights for that distance are expensive (~$550 compared to ~$350 to fly to Houston, Panama, Bogota, San Jose), higher costs in CDMX compared to Vietnam, not truly overseas, safety is a concern (maybe blown out of proportion in the media?), I consider myself to have an eccentric style and like to stand out (though most of my wardrobe is thrifted and not expensive) from what I’ve read I t seems bettesafer in CDMX to blend in
Pros of Vietnam: overseas, I’ve traveled in China, Thailand, and Cambodia before with ease and enjoyed them all very much (Thailand being one of my favorites ever), affordability of vietnam, flight is good deal for distance (~$1000), night markets, Vietnam seems safer from a crime perspective, will have access to cities, historical sites, and gorgeous scenery, also food
Cons of Vietnam: duration of trip may be too short to fit itinerary, LGBTQ rights not as established, Hanoi metro is not nearly as extensive as CDMX so will need to rely on foot or ride share, travel between destinations in Vietnam will be additional costs and time, while Vietnam would be a new country, the region is not new to me.
Sorry if this is a lot! I’d appreciate any tips or suggestions!

I'm starting my own garden and have been browsing seed websites for new herbs and veggies. what are the asian vegetables and herbs that you all tolerate? i found some unique ones I want to try. but with limited space and short growing seasons I wanted to prioritize the foods that are most likely histamine friendly. I grew up eating mostly indian and asian food but sadly I haven't been able to eat it since I came down with MCAS.

• malabar spinach (not related to spinach, but not sure if its a night shade)
  
• amaranth (leaves can also sub for spinach, and seeds are edible too!)
  
• snake gourd
  
• loufa gourd
  
• mustard greens
  
• culantro (i tried it in Panama and tolerated it better than cilantro)
  
• lemon balm
  
• curry leaves
  
• tulsi basil
  
• taro plant
  
• anise hyssop
  
• lebanese za' atar
  
• molokhia
  
• mexican terragon
  
• yard long beans (string beans)
  

I'm starting my own garden and have been browsing seed websites for new herbs and veggies. what are the asian vegetables that you all tolerate? i found some unique ones I want to try. but with limited space and short growing seasons I wanted to prioritize the foods that are most likely histamine friendly.

• malabar spinach (not related to spinach, but not sure if its a night shade)
  
• amaranth (leaves can also sub for spinach, and seeds are edible too!)
  
• snake gourd
  
• loufa gourd
  
• mustard greens
  
• culantro (i tried it in Panama and tolerated it better than cilantro)
  
• lemon balm
  
• curry leaves
  
• tulsi basil
  
• taro plant
  
• anise hyssop
  
• lebanese za' atar
  
• molokhia
  
• mexican terragon
  
• yard long beans (string beans)
  

I’ve been spending my 35th bday week traveling to Panama. I am staying in Casco Viejo and I have enjoyed every bit of despite the closing and no selling of alcohol this has been a great trip with awesome local food places. Nazca 21 is my favorite so far. I have about 3 days left and wanted to know if there are any must visits in Panama?

In this Timeline Teddy Runs was reelected in 1908, taft became a Supreme Court Judge, so Teddy Picked his Secretary of State Elihu Root to run In 1912.
With No split vote, Elihu Root became president in 1912
Without Wilson, the racism and segregation in the US would be less severe, and the Federal government would be weaker. No prohibition. No FED.
Root would declare war on Germany in 1915 after the sinking of the Lusitania. However, he would have lobbied to join since the beginning of WW1 and provided weapons and supplies from the beginning to the Entente. As Britain didn't requisition two ships from Turkish manufacturers The Ottman Empire would remain neutral in WW1. With the early entrance of the US Germany would surrender at the end of 1916, with a shorter WW1 The Versayes Treaty would be less severe like Giving Helolang to Britain, Alsace-Lorraine to France, some parts of Eastern Prussia to Russia (Kaliningrad), Germany African colonies would be reduced. Their territory would be split between France and Britain. The Pacific Colonies would be Given to Japan and Australia, and the US would Get German Samoa and Nauru.
Japan would get all the central powers' Chinese concessions. (Kiautschou Bay) and northern Pacific islands.
After WW1 the Kaiser would remain in power, but their power would be heavily reduced.
With his victory in WW1, Root was Relectec in 1916 with more than 400 EVs. Even winning Oklahoma, and Tennessee.
Austria-Hungary would be reformed in the Habsburg Realms, Austria, Hungary, and Croatia.
Serbia Would gain Boznia.
The Ottoman Empire would survive with most of the Arabic Peninsula under their control (Minus the British parts) Now the Ottomans would get massive oil reserves.
The Armenian Genocide Never happened.
In 1920 Leonard Wood obtained the support of Both Root and Teddie and Became President with Calvin Coolidge as His VP.
During the 20s The Progressives republicans kept the house so regulations would pass lowering the damage of the great depression added to lower loans in WW1 the world recovered way quicker. The crack of 29 would still happen but it will be less severe,
After WW1 Russia continued its industrialization and expansion in Asia annexing Mongolia, and turning Xi Xiang into a puppet state, and later annexing it would create tensions between Russia and Britain, meanwhile Britain got a spare of influence on Tibet.
Thanks to Teddie, and Elihu the US had become a massive naval superpower.
In this Timeline, there is No USSR or Nazi Germany. Maybe just either Mussolini, Franco, or Salazar.
Argentina would have never decayed from its position as a wealthy country.
Mainly because their main training partner the UK has a bigger population also Israel, Japan, Korea, and Germany, which became the destiny of their food exports. So they need Argentina to not be dependable on Russia/China for their food supplies.
With the British fear of Russia the Anglo-Japanese alliance would survive, so Japan wouldn't become a militaristic dictatorship.
Without the Russian Revolution, there would be no CCP in China, Rather a monarchist Faction would Rise in Manchuria, causing a Civil War, in the 1930s the Russian empire would create Machuko Russian Puppet. This added to the expulsion of Jews, The Slavic Racism against trucks of Central Asia, and Internal rebellion in Poland and Finland supported by Germany, Poland failed, but Finnald succeeded thanks to his climate, as well as the Fear of an Industrialized Russia, will create an alliance of Britain, Germany, the Ottoman Empire, and the US, against Russia (the last one fearing that Russia would try to reconquer Alaska).
The Balcan States would unite to Create Yugoslavia.
The Spanish Civil War would still happen, even without fascism and communism, Spain was very unstable at this time. But this time it would be Britain who exchanged/stole their gold.
With the expulsion of the Jews the Idea of a Jewish state would get more support, however doing Palestine would be impossible, and since the Rejection of southern Kenya before WW1, instead, the British proposed that the Jewish state be in Africa (Likely Southern Namibia). After WW1 Britain divided Namibia and took everything south of Walvis Bay, Namibia will be divided in the 22° 40′ S.
Without the Rise of Communism, fascism also never rose. So Juan Peron either never rose or Rose with a more liberal and less nationalistic ideology.
The holocaust never happened.
Modern Israel will be settled in Southern Namibia With an area 15 times bigger.
There would be no fight between the Jewish and native Populations because the natives would be too small and the area would be around 332000 km2 there would be enough land for everyone.
With the Russian expansion, many Jews migrated to South America mostly Argentina, Making Buenos Aires wealthier.
Russia would attack Japanese possessions, Like either Korea, Port Arthur, or Karafuto, So Britain, the US, and Germany would give an Ultimatum To Russia to cease Fire, Tsar Alexei would refuse causing the start of WW2 around the 40s. (It would be like the Crimean War or the Russian-Japanese War), Yugoslavia joined WW2 to the Russian side. but It will retreat after some defeats.
Italy will Join against Russia in exchange for concessions of lands.
after nearly 2 years the 2nd War would end, Either with the Tsar's surroundings or the Tsar being overthrown, or with Germany Thearting of Nuking Saint Peterburg (In this Timeline Einstein, and Many scientists stayed in Germany), so Germany would obtain the Nuclear weapon first. As well as having an army even stronger than the Nazis, Same with Italy.
After WW2, the Russian monarchy would be restored, and Germany would Recover their territories lost in WW2, but also as compensation for their losses in WW1, it would get the territories in the Baltic region (Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia), as Well As Russian concession in Tianjin. Meanwhile, in Europe Finland (Finland would have all the territories lost to Ussr) and Poland Would become buffer states, ruled by monarchies, in the middle east The Ottoman Empire would Get some territories in the Caucasus (Armenia, and Azerbaijan), And Georgia would become a buffer state, America would obtain some islands in the Bering sea, and Japan would get all Sakhalin, as well as parts of south Manchuria (Where there is Korean Population), without Soviet Policies Russia would have higher birthrates (in this timeline Northen Sakalin would have a population around 800k to 1.2M), Without Manchuria Japanese settlers would have made Taiwan a part of Japan, Same With Port Arthur (It would bigger), and Kiautschou Bay.
Uygurstan would become a buffer state.
Britain would get some territories in the north of India and some islands in the Arctic.
Japan Would still be a Traditional religious Shintoist and Buddhist But with a large Orthodox population with higher birthrates than the rest of Japan, and conversions mostly in the northern part of the country.
Habsburg Realms Would dissolve, and despite everything their internal division would make it hard to remain united.
The Kingdom of Austria Would Unite with Germany, Making Germany a Super Power. Germany is now the biggest country in Europe (minus Russia), with an area around 880000 km2. (The Second Holy Roman Empire).
The world would still be colonial and with strong religion Europe would have more men to fight Rebelions.
Some parts of the British empire like South Africa or India would become Dominions.
Britain would still be a great power.
With The Reunification of China (Minus Tibiet, Uygurstan, and some parts of Southern Manchuria), the European Powers, Portugal, Japan, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Belgium, Germany, and America will create the military defensive alliance, APTO (Asian Pacific Treaty Organization) instead of NATO, to dissuade China from taking Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, Etc.
there would be more cities like Hong Kong independent from mainland China.
Russia would still be a part of the civilized world and Joined APTO to make sure that China don't reconquer Outer Manchuria or Mongolia.
Without Communism, the Christian Socialist would rise upon Europe transforming Russia into a practical Theocracy,
With The Growth of China. Japan, and Korea influenced by America and Britain would be more open to accepting more migrants mainly from European/American East Asia Colonies, Parts of China that are in their sphere of influence, Thailand, and Russia, to counter China's demographics.
In this Timeline, The Far East region of Russia would have around 50-70M inhabitants, because, without the USSR, Russia would maintain a higher birthrates.
Japan's Corporate structure would never existed, because it was never destroyed after WW2, instead, it would have a structure that been more productive, and friendly to the workers as well as a more solid financial system, adding to massive amounts of oil and Gas. not only oil from Sakhalin but also from the East China Sea (Renamed West Japan Sea), and Became in one of the greatest oil producers in the world with higher Oil and Natural Gas reserves than Canada. So his birth rate would remain High and his suicide rate would be low.
Japan Would Remain the most powerful Power country in Asia.
Japan would never have a lost decade.
Ireland would still be a part of the UK.
Britain would keep their territories in the Middle East and Guyana Granting them massive amounts of oil.
With fewer deaths from the world wars and Religion remaining prevalent Decolonization would never have happened.
After WW2 there will be a Cold War between China vs The West and Japan. Not because of ideology, but instead because of Western vs Eastern civilization (Even though Japan would be on the west side).
No League of Nations, UN, or EU.
With the influence of the West Many countries in Asia will take some ideas from Christan socialism, especially Japan where The orthodoxy managed to convert around 10% of the population at the of the end 20th century.
Japan would become a superpower with a population of around 200-220M. The Population of Brazil in an area similar to Thailand.
Many Chinese Companies like Like Alibaba or Tsingtao Brewery would be either Japanese or Korean.
Without the fear of communism, the world would have larger social programs.
Indochina and Indonesia Would get independence in the 70s, simple for simple sheer numbers, but the Dutch would keep western Papua, and Japan would Take advantage of this to expand their sphere of influence against China.
India to protect its borders and Influence in Tibet from China would Join APTO.
The US, UK, and Japan would take advantage to take Spartly and Paracell islands respectively.
After the independence movements, Japan would become Korea into a Kingdom, with a monarchy ruled by the emperor (basically a monarchist commonwealth) but would keep some islands in the southwest of the Korean Peninsula, after several Separatist movements.
Korea Would have an Area similar to Ecuador.
The US would remain an isolationist nation capable of fighting with any empire.
The Middle East would be more peaceful. There is no radical Islam.
The US would keep the Gold standard.
The 1st word would have higher birthrates.
The world view of Religion and Progress in Europe and the US would remain, as well as the Hays Code.
America would Keep the Panama Canal.
Well, what do you think?
The Presidential line of succession would be like this.
Teddy Roosevelt:1901-1912
Elihu Root:1913-1920
Leonard Wood:1921-1927
Calvin Coolidge:1927-1933 (He Runs again in 1932).
Charles G. Dawes:1933-1944

I hear a version of this CONSTANTLY from some folks:
“There is no evidence for anything, foul play or a lost scenario.”
The problem with this, is that we actually DO have evidence and we need to zoom out to include all available evidence to come to a conclusion. In this case, it is unlikely that we will ever know exactly what transpired from moment to moment because the only two people who know that, are gone.
The VERY fact that we know they went on that hike immediately suggests that if they never came back from said hike, it is likely they got lost.
I am going to use US data because I cannot find worldwide data (the US, by the way is extremely dangerous, we have many serial killers and unhinged psychos stalking our streets)…but over 300 Million people go on hikes each year. About 600,000 people get lost or go missing on hikes each year. And…about 240 people are murdered while hiking each year. This is just simple Google search, if anyone can link numbers for Panama that would be awesome!
So right here, we know that it is much more likely to get lost on a hike, than to be murdered on a hike. Not to say it does not happen, because it does. But what usually happens is that murderers will just attack someone and get the heck out of there — no witnesses and no cameras in the jungle, etc what they do not do is set up an elaborate “lost” scenario. It just makes no sense. I could find nothing similar while researching.
If in fact they were merely scared off the trail…and they did in fact escape their attackers (or potential attackers) — which I find unlikely, then they got away, right? But how likely is it that these two young girls outsmarted these assailants in unfamiliar territory, where to “run” through the jungle and going off the trail you need a machete (at least to get through that fast) and also got through so silently and hid so well that they were able to evade these men who are likely much more skilled, have machetes, and know the area well. No. They would have been found, raped, murdered and left wherever. It makes no sense…so these “bad guys” just went eh, just let them go…? You can’t have it both ways, either they got away or there was foul play, right?
Some have suggested that the killers came upon them at the night photos. Ok…so, elaborate searches couldn’t find the girls but an opportunistic bad guy did find the girls (while they were already lost, injured, dying) and thought AHA, finally I can kill these dying girls and no one will ever know…). Possible, but still unlikely.
My theory:
We know they hiked the Pianista because we found photos detailing their hike up the mountain. That is evidence. Concrete proof that they were on the hike. We also know that they ventured beyond the Mirador because we have evidence. Photo 508.
This is the BIG question mark, right? What happened in between 508 and those first 911/112 calls? At this point there are no more photos until the night photos eight days later. Why? Photos are for happy occasions, not for tragedy. You don’t give a shit about taking photos if you are lost or injured — all focus is on getting out. They were not being attacked by a human — because that person/people would have grabbed their phones and chucked them deep into the jungle. Easy.
Either A. They went in search of something cool to see and became disoriented and lost , B. Something did scare them (perhaps they heard something — I’ve been scared and sent running by animals in the wild — fighting raccoons (sounds so scary!!), cows crunching and snorting and walking toward me, snakes, the sound of Howler Monkeys…) and they tried to move away from it, or C. They suffered an accident in an unknown location — either they slipped in all that mud and fell off a cliff or they slipped on rocks, or off the monkey bridge and possibly got dragged by the river at that point —> which can happen in shallow water. Water is incredible powerful and heavy.
“Currents in rivers and streams can be strong enough to knock you off your feet and sweep you downstream in as little as six inches of water.”
Here, people assume that if they tried to cross the monkey bridge that they would have just fallen straight down and stayed right there - to be easily seen. No. They would likely have been pulled/dragged by the river deeper into the jungle. Here they could have been launched into a tree or slip slided off a cliff or scrambled to pull themselves onto a rock. We just don’t know.
Or it could have been a combination of some of the options above. Either they heard something/saw something that scared the shit out of them, enough to send them running and slipping off a cliff while holding on to each other, they went exploring down the river and were pulled/dragged and injured that way or they realized they were turned around after two hours and simply lost at that point.
I could very much see Kris, being the more dominant personality — suggesting more adventure. Let’s explore! You don’t know what you don’t know especially at that age. At 21 and 22, you have virtually no life experience at that point. You feel invincible. Strong and sharp. Had I gone on my hike at that age — I may have made even worse decisions — I was 30 though. More life experience + less intrigue in doing dangerous things just for the hell of it. People don’t often understand how TWO people could get lost, well it only takes one person to suggest more adventure with that person having the dominant personality.
It’s my theory that they went exploring and got lost. Call attempts at realization of lost. I believe they were pretty far off the path at this point or they would have been found. If they were just lost at that point, I still believe there was an accident involving both girls (possibly the monkey bridge as that would be a welcome sign of civilization)— likely on day three, after three to four days with no food, you are getting weaker and likely making poor decisions due to sheer terrofeadesperation of being lost in the jungle — they made a very bad decision out of desperation and both fell/slipped and got injured at that point. It’s my belief that Kris was likely injured in more fatally than Lissane and at least unconscious by the time her phone is not accessed with a pin.
During that time, the girls were likely immobilized and there were attempts at creating SOS signals using whatever they had/could find close to them. They used the bottom of a Pringle’s can to act like a mirror, they created a signaling flag out of red plastic and branches. They ripped up a white map/brochure and possibly spelled out SOS. Great ideas. Evidenced by the night photos. This IS physical evidence of lost/injured. What kidnappemurderer would A. Let them live this long and B. Let them create things that will help them get rescued? It makes no sense.
Why didn’t they write a note in their phones to explain what had happened? We don’t know the extent of their injuries — they could have broken their arms, hands, fingers or simply wanted to hang on to hope of rescue.
Why didn’t they call 911/112 more? In my experience, it was not possible to call 911 when I was trapped on a jungle hike. My phone had disabled the action all together and instead rudely displayed “no service” instead. Now, it’s possible that the girls phones were oscillating between one bar and no service. Once they moved deeper into the jungle, I can only assume they lost all ability to call — just like I did. Bars on my phone change constantly even in my house so it’s not unlikely that there was some oscillation between being able to attempt and absolutely no capability.
Photo 509. Camera glitch? Maybe…photographers have said that cameras skip numbers quite often. Also…maybe Lissane took a photo of something she didn’t want to see/be reminded of because it made their situation too real. Have you ever immediately deleted a creepy photo off your camera/phone? I have. Or — did the family want to ensure this photo never got out? Maybe? Was the camera removed, the bad guys deleted one photo and then put it all back to be discovered? It’s far fetched.
The night photos. It is clear that the person taking the photos (I believe Lissane) was taking the photos from a laying down position — photographing the things around her. I don’t think she was signaling exactly. If so…why wouldn’t she have been doing that every day/night? It’s my opinion that Lissane was hearing things that night, likely terrified trying to see what was happening around her which maybe turned into a desperate attempt to do anything to be seen. My deeper theory is that she was hearing a dying Kris. People often make horrible noises as they die (the death rattle) — I see two photos of Kris. The hair and the chin photo. In the hair photo — you can see Lissane’s Brown hair in the corner — telling me that they are lying very close together. It’s not the back of Kris’ hair because she has very long hair — it appears to me as though Lissane has brushed Kris hair across her face so as not to have to look at her dead/dying friends face. I’m fairly convinced I can see eyes, nostrils and teeth through the hair but the orientation absolutely eludes me even after reading many posts trying to explain it. Lissane could have also been hearing animals trying to come for Kris body at that point, or just hallucinating.
Poor Lissane was likely alive for another three days in and out of consciousness as she lay dying from injuries/hypothermia.
Hypothermia can occur in warmer temperatures, such as above 40°F, if a person becomes chilled from rain, sweat, or submersion in cold water. Hypothermia is caused by prolonged exposure to very cold temperatures, when the body loses heat faster than it can produce it. The lower the body temperature, the higher the risk of death. Death may occur at body temperatures below 88° F (about 31° C) but is most likely to occur below 83° F (about 28° C).
Injury can exacerbate hypothermia. Hypothermia is a common condition in trauma patients, and traumatic hemorrhage can aggravate it. This hemorrhage can lead to hypovolemic shock, which can cause a lethal triad of hypothermia, acidosis, and coagulopathy. Hypothermia can also worsen through environmental exposure.
More evidence to suggest lost: their belongings were found along the river banks after having been dragged by the river. Wet with drag marks, containing sediment from the river. Money in tact. Some of their bones were found along the river. This all suggests lost/injured/succumbed to the elements. Eventually rains washed their decomposing bodies into the river and they were dragged, eaten, scattered by nature.
If their bodies were found buried — this would have suggested foul play.
In order to disprove the lost theory, which all evidence suggests —> you need evidence to suggest it is not a lost theory. The evidence fits with nearly every other lost/injured on a hike case ever. You don’t need further evidence to prove a lost theory (unless most evidence suggests Foul Play, which it doesn’t) —> say they were last seen at a party and we had no evidence to suggest they went hiking, especially past the Mirador — but all of their belongings and bones were found there — this would suggest foul play. Or say we had evidence that they went on the hike but their bodies were found buried elsewhere — this would suggest foul play.
There are oddities because there are and will always be unknowns - don’t confuse “oddities” with indication of foul play. It’s not the same thing.
If one shred of evidence comes to light that suggests foul play — I would be interested and take it in to consideration, of course!
Anyhow, here is my loose theory on lost/injured using all of the evidence we have. Please let me know if I missed anything :)
Thank you for reading!

I wrote this initially to reply to this comment
https://www.reddit.com/KremersFroon/s/Kz0NR7AJoL
but it got too long so I chose to just make it a post since I’m curious to hear ya’ll inputs about it.
Hi! So I guess although I belong to the “foul players” group that you snakily implied I'm definitely not in the group of those that are coming after you, even though we have had a pretty long discussion already.
And I do have something to say about this experience.
First, it was indeed a scary experience! I’m glad you are safe. Have you posted about this somewhere else here on Reditt? I have the feeling that I have read it before, I think it was on the sub "AppalanchianTrail"? I don't remember exactly where but I remembering reading (I believe I saw this on a comment, not a post) and found really interested, enough to upvote it. lol Good for you and your friend that you only spent hours lost and that you were able to be found before this experience became something way more traumatic or even fatal to you. And, of course, that you didn’t cross any ill intentioned man/men in your path.
K&L unfortunately weren’t so lucky.*
But what I'm here for is to say that it seems to me that you (and most of the "Losters" - payback!) think “Foul Players” can’t believe in a lost scenario because they don’t know or don’t find it possible that

• one can lose sense on a theoretically easy trail and that they can’t make a "terrible mistake that" will "lead to a bad outcome",
  
• or that the jungle is, literally, wild especially for those that have no experience,
  
• or that: “unexpected things happen very quickly out in nature with no access to help in any form, no way to contact anyone, no medical, no phones, no maps, no way to access food…basically nothing. Things can go from bad to worse in an instant in often treacherous and unforgiving nature"
  
• or that "almost any bad, split second decision could mean the difference between life and death out there.
  

Those are all legit facts and we ("foul players") do believe it's very much possible. At least, I do.
I can't speak for those that are coming for you, but I wouldn't have any problem to believe that K&L got lost if the evidences proved solid facts and provided answers and if the investigation hadn't been negligent (searches way too limited, persons of interest weren't properly investigated, fingerprints, DNAs and other vital steps were missed, etc etc), inefficient and full of inconsistencies. I wouldn't expect that a top notch A+ CSI investigation would've taken place because it's Panama, a very poor country with very limited resources. Still, more could've been done even with such limitations, this is unquestionable.
The key point (as there are many other factors) for me that makes me lean to a foul play scenario is that it's in the files that some potential witnesses (like Guide P and his hilking group of 4, two European women that Guide P claimed to have seen when he took back his first statement (that he saw K&L) with the justification that "European women all look the same", a couple at the entrance of the trail (to go past the Mirador) that Guide P claims to have observed) could've seen K&L at the Mirador which puts them in the same place and time as the girls and makes these witnesses supposedly the last ones to have seen K&L alive, however there were no searches for the people seen by Guide P and no closer inspection or interrogation on Guide P himself. Why? Doesn't that raise any suspicion for you?
For what I understand, at first it was considered that their case could've been a crime, even Guide F suggested something like this. So why is there this big gap in the investigation when these highly relevant people could provide so many other inputs and insights?
And you say:
"Wild rumors and speculation will always be fuel for mysterious events when we have absolutely no access to every detail of said event. It’s a mystery because how everything unfolded is not knowable."
which I agree with, but I'm not talking about wild rumours and speculations. This comes from statements given by witnesses that are in the file. And it doesn't matter if you believe and agree with the official conclusion that K&L were lost, it is still a very much heavy speculation what you "losters" do as well, as to why they left the main trail, how one/both suffered accidents and got injured, etc. Yet, many, if not all, seem to find it impossible that something other than being lost could've happened to the girls. **
To finish this very long post, I'd like to leave here some important questions that the book SLIP brings up and that I find to be crucial to have a better understanding of this case but have not been answered yet:

• Why do neither the clothes nor the bones show signs of abrasion by the river?
• Why were no DNA profiles taken from the finders of the backpack to compare them with those analyzed in the NFI?
• Why were no DNA samples taken from the shoes found?
• Why were mattresses found not forensically examined?
• Why did the police not inspect the red pick-up truck?
• Why didn't the residents of the Pianista know the truck or crew?
• Why were the Dutch dogs not allowed to search behind the Mirador?
• Why was Betzaida Pitti removed from office?

TLDR: people who don't believe in the lost scenario don't do it because they don't believe to be possible, it is because the evidences don't concretize this theory as they don't provide solid answers for that and there are big important gaps in the files that could indicate that something else happened but that weren't properly investigated.
ETA: * K&L weren’t so lucky to make it out alive of their experience as the OP on that post, not that they weren’t lucky because they ran into someone ill intentioned, as this is not known. Just want to make clear to avoid misunderstandings.
** When someone comes up with a foul play theory you misjudge and dismiss the pov and claim to be impossible that one might have abduct the girls, faked actions to make a cover up of a lost case, impossible that someone would lose time or put in so much effort to create those evidences, impossible that every weird or change of pattern are nothing but simply explained.

Live Music

• Chillakaya, Marina Munch, 12:00 pm – 4:00 pm
• Lonesome Bert's Thick and Thin String Band, St. Augustine Brewers Fest 2024, 12:00 pm – 1:30 pm
• Christian Powers, Pierre's Pub, 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm
• Chase Fouraker, Pierre's Pub, 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm
• Trevor Compton, Backyard Island Cafe at Meehan's, 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm
• Joshua "Tennessee" Worthy, DJ's Clam Shack, 5:00 pm – 8:00 pm
• Smokin' Joe Schauer, Mellow Mushroom — St. Johns, 6:00 pm – 9:00 pm
• ZaZa Flamenca, Pierre's Pub, 6:00 pm – 10:00 pm
• Craig Hand, Hurricane Patty's Bar and Grill, 6:00 pm – 9:30 pm
• Brian Rowland, Pusser's Bar and Grille, 7:00 pm – 10:00 pm
• Str8up Band, A1A Ale Works, 8:00 pm – 12:00 am
• Blistur, Tradewinds Lounge, 9:00 pm – 1:00 am

Marineland Market

• Ragga Surf Cafe presents the Marineland Market on Saturday, April 6, 2024, from 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
• The Marineland Market offers fresh local produce, local art, a variety of food trucks, and live music. With everything from farm-to-table delights to hand-crafted artisan goods, the market offers a wide variety of coastal-themed products. Guests can explore a range of handcrafted items, from eye-catching jewelry and artwork to custom home furnishings and clothing. The market also serves as a monthly festivity that honors creativity, community spirit, and Marineland's distinct coastal culture.
• Admission: Free event
• When: Saturday, May 4, 2024, from 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
• Where: 9650 N Ocean Shore Blvd. in Marineland, Florida 32080

Amphitheatre Farmers Market

• The St. Augustine Amphitheatre Farmers Market offers visitors a variety of goods such as local fresh produce, handmade arts and crafts, baked goods, plants directly off the farm, freshly-caught seafood, cheeses, and more. The farmers market makes for a morning of family-friendly fun with live entertainment on select dates.
• In addition to the impressive variety of organic produce offered by local farmers, a number of local artists and craftspeople also display their wares at the market.
• Admission: FREE
• Where: St. Augustine Amphitheatre located at 1340 A1A South St. Augustine, FL 32080.
• When: Every Saturday morning from 8:30 am - 12:30 pm.[](tel:+1 (904) 315-9252)

GTM Research Reserve: Guided Exploration Hike

• On the first Saturday of every month, the Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve (GTMNERR) will host a Guided Exploration Hike.
• During the hike, guests learn about the cultural history of the Guana Peninsula, as well as the natural biodiversity of the research reserve.
• A GTM naturalist will lead the hike and discuss the peninsula's 5,000 years of human history, including how Native Americans made use of the estuarine resources, what European plantation life was like, and current efforts to save the estuary's resources.
• The 2.2-mile hike follows the GTM Research Reserve's yellow trail and takes approximately two hours.
• The event is free, but reservations are required since participation is limited. There is also a $3 per vehicle parking fee. To reserve a spot on the Guided Exploration Hike, please call.
• Admission: Admission to the Guided Exploration Hike is free, but there is a $3 parking fee.
• When: First Saturday of every month from 9 a.m. - 11 a.m.
• Where: GTM Visitor Center is located at 505 Guana River Road, Ponte Vedra Beach, FL 32082. Guests will meet at the GTM Research Reserve's Trailhead Pavilion, located West of the Guana Dam. Wear comfortable closed-toe shoes.
• GTMNERR is a protected stretch of land consisting of wetlands and estuaries on Florida's East Coast that actively works to maintain and help preserve the natural landscape of Florida. The GTMNERR's volunteers and employees are dedicated to the preservation of an unspoiled and undeveloped natural treasure, supporting a vibrant ecosystem and subsystems.

Fort Mose Militia Muster & Training

• Fort Mose Historic State Park hosts Militia Muster and Training on the first Saturday of each month — except for July.
• The Fort Mose Militia bring the 18th century back to life by practicing their firing drills, and by teaching new members historic weapons use and safety. Park visitors witness the weapons demonstrations, which include musket firings. This unique experience provides great photo opportunities and is a wonderful way to spend a day enjoying a state park.
• Admission: The program itself is free. Admission into the Visitor Center is $2.00 for adults and free for children under six.
• When: The first Saturday of each month (except July) from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m.
• Where: Fort Mose Historic State Park is located at 15 Fort Mose Trail, St. Augustine, Florida 32084.

Unidos en la Música (United in Music): A Latin American Festival

The Annual Unidos en la Música (United in Music) Festival celebrates Latin American art, music, dance, sports, games, and food. The all-day festival will be held from 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. on Saturday, May 4, 2024, at Francis Field.
Unidos en la Música features a spectacular variety of art, live entertainment, quality merchandise, dance workshops, and great food. The family-friendly event showcases games, Latin dances, and award winning-musical performers.

• Fonesca
• Baba Caiman
• LPT
• Myrandas
• Papayera la Arenosa
  • Live Entertainment The Colombian musical artist Fonseca headlines the 2024 Unidos en la Musica. Fonseca has won a Latin Grammy award seven times. Others on stage throughout the weekend include Baba Caiman, LPT Salsa, Myrandas, and Papayera la Arenosa. Enjoy performances and exhibitions by dancers and performers from the United States and Latin America. Learn to dance via on-site lessons with outstanding Latin dance groups such as Emily and Raul from the Salsa Kings.
  • We don't have the times of each performance, but we do know it will be an exciting musical day. Again, here are the performers for 2024:
  • Cultural Exhibitions
  • A game section will feature games from all over Latin America. Three visual artists will paint murals throughout the day, and the audience will vote on the winning mural. Venezuela Marka, Peru Dance, Viva Panama USA, and the NC Brazilian Arts Project will share folklore performances.
  • More than 70 Latin American vendors will present their wares, and Papayera La Arenosa from Colombia will perform "pop-up" style, playing their Colombian music as they wander the festival grounds. Authentic Food Latin American food trucks and restaurant vendors will offer authentic foods representing different Latin American tastes and experiences. VIP Tickets The VIP Experience offers 600 guests an easy way to enjoy the day-long festival in style, with an exclusive VIP area and direct access to the premium bar with top-shelf liquors, complimentary Latin-inspired hors d'oeuvres, and meet and greets with select performers. VIP Tickets are $75.00 for each adult and child.
  • Admission: General admission tickets are $20.00 for adults and $5.00 for children ages four and up. The VIP Experience tickets are available only in advance and cost $75.00 each. General admission tickets can also be purchased at the gate on the day of the festival if still available.
  • When: From 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. on Saturday, May 4, 2024.
  • Where: Francis Field, 25 W. Castillo Drive in St. Augustine, Florida 32084. Stories Told by the Florida Storytelling Troupe

Stories Told by the Florida Storytelling Troupe

• Romanza Festivale presents five members of the Florida Storytelling Troupe on Saturday, May 4, 2024, from 11:00 a.m. to noon, at the Ximenez-Fatio House on Aviles Street.
• David Fussell, Margaret Kaler, Kathy Duffy, Rose van Der Berg, and Kathy Kniery will tell tales about Florida's past.
• Admission: Free.
• When: Saturday, May 4, 2024, from 11:00 am. to noon.
• Where: At the Ximenez-Fatio House Museum Garden, 20 Aviles Street, St. Augustine, Florida 32084.
• This event is part of the Romanza Festivale of Music and the Arts, an annual festival of two weeks of historical, cultural, and creative events celebrating all things St. Augustine. From May 3 -19, the nation's oldest city will be jam-packed with music and dance concerts, living history events and historical tours, live theater, and art exhibits.

North Florida Women's Chorale: Music of Celtic Cultures

• On Saturday, May 4, 2024, from 12:00 noon to 1:00 p.m., the North Florida Women's Chorale presents "The Lively Music of Celtic Cultures."
• Part of the Chamber Music Series for the 2024 Romanza Festivale, this free program will be held at the Ancient City Baptist Church, 27 Sevilla Street. Kerry Fradley is the chorale director and Kathleen Vande Berg is their accompanist.
• The traditional instruments, Celtic harp, guitar, and drum, will also accompany the Women's Chorale as they sing lively Celtic dance tunes and Gaelic songs of love won and lost.
• The North Florida Women's Chorale presents music written or arranged specifically for women's voices and provides their members with the opportunity to learn new works, enhance their skills, and enjoy singing as an important part of their lives. In doing this, the group also enriches their audience and serves as role models for women of all ages.
• Admission: Free.
• When: Saturday, May 4, 2024, from noon to 1:00 p.m.
• Where: Ancient City Baptist Church, 27 Sevilla Street, St. Augustine, Florida 32084
• This event is part of the Romanza Festivale of Music and the Arts, an annual festival consisting of two weeks of historical, cultural, and creative events celebrating all things St. Augustine. From May 3 -19, 2024 the nation's oldest city will be jam-packed with music and dance concerts, living history events and historical tours, live theater, and art exhibits.

St. Augustine Brewers Fest 2024

• The annual St. Augustine Brewers Fest kicks off at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, May 4, 2024, at the Fountain of Youth. Proceeds from this event will go to several area non-profit organizations.
• St. Augustine's local breweries, including Ancient City Brewing, Dog Rose Brewing Company, Bog Brewing Company, and Old Coast Ales, will be joined by more than 25 other breweries from around the state and country to offer a day of fun for craft beer enthusiasts.
• Festival attendees will be given a tasting cup to use as they visit tents stationed around the Fountain of Youth, where unlimited beer samples will be available. Water filling stations will also be positioned around the Fountain of Youth's grounds, and attendees are encouraged to bring reusable water bottles to stay hydrated throughout the event.
• Designated drivers can attend for $10.00, with the purchase of one general admission ticket. Tickets for this popular event go on sale on March 1, and they usually sell out.
• In addition, entertainment will be provided throughout the day including live music and children's activities.
• Food will be available from local food trucks. Being true to a community event, family-friendly activities include face painting and plenty of space for kids to run around.
• VIP tickets are available for the festival and include guaranteed on-site parking, access to the climate-controlled pavilion, private restrooms, a catered buffet by Meehan's, a festival tasting glass, and full festival access an hour early. Designated drivers for VIP ticket holders will have to purchase a VIP ticket for access to this area. Only 100 VIP tickets will be sold.
• Admission: $50.00 in advance; $60.00 at the door. (Note: this event generally sells out so it's strongly suggested that tickets are purchased in advance.) VIP tickets are $120.00. Designated drivers attend for $10.00 with the purchase of a regular ticket. Tickets go on sale on March 1st.
• When: 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. on Saturday, May 4, 2024.
• Where: The Fountain of Youth is located at 11 Magnolia Avenue in St. Augustine, Florida 32084.
• Proceeds from this event will go to Epic Behavioral Healthcare, Swamp Haven, St. Johns County Marine Science Program, and the St. Augustine Lighthouse and Maritime Museum.

Romanza: Key of Seas

• The Romanza Festivale presents select members of the Key of Seas in concert on Saturday, May 4, 2024, from 3:00 to 4:30 p.m., at St. Cyprian's Episcopal Church, 37 Lovett Street.
• The Key of Seas is a student vocal ensemble. During each fall semester, they prepare a cabaret show, and in the spring they prepare a program that is largely a capella. This concert will feature select members of the ensemble, performing several numbers from recent fall cabaret programs.
• Admission: Free.
• When: Saturday, May 4, 2024, from 3:00 to 4:30 p.m.
• Where: St. Cyprian's Episcopal Church, 37 Lovett Street, St. Augustine, Florida 32084
• This event is part of the Romanza Festivale of Music and the Arts, an annual festival of two weeks of historical, cultural, and creative events celebrating all things St. Augustine. From May 3 -19, the nation's oldest city will be jam-packed with music and dance concerts, living history events and historical tours, live theater, and art exhibits.

EMMA Concerts: Music from the Movies

• The Emma Concert Series and the Romanza Festivale of the Arts present the St. Augustine Orchestra for a concert that features favorite classical and pop music from the movies. The concert will be held on Saturday, May 4, 2024, from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m., in the Lewis Auditorium.
• The St. Augustine Orchestra was founded in 1961 and is a true community orchestra of about 50 musicians. Their goal is to provide excellent live performances to the local community.
• Admission: Standard seat: $20.00. Limited view: $15.00. Student seat: $5.00.
• When: Saturday, May 4, 2023, from 7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
• Where: Lewis Auditorium, 14 Granada Street, St. Augustine, Florida 32084
• Parking: Free parking will be available at the St. Johns County Council on Aging, 180 Marine Street, St. Augustine. A free shuttle service will take those attending the concert to and from the parking lot. Free parking will not be available at Flagler College's Lewis Auditorium.
• About Emma Concert Association: The association was named to honor Emil Maestre, a Spanish cellist who retired to St. Augustine. Founded in 1979, by several music lovers, EMMA's mission is to provide "quality music and dance performances at modest ticket prices." This non-profit volunteer organization strives to present music and dance performances at an affordable price. In addition, EMMA provides funds, equipment, and instruments to various school programs in St. Johns County.
• This event is part of the Romanza Festivale of Music and the Arts, an annual festival of two weeks of historical, cultural, and creative events celebrating all things St. Augustine. From May 3 -19, the nation's oldest city will be jam-packed with music and dance concerts, living history events and historical tours, live theater, and art exhibits.

Magnolia Boulevard At Cafe Eleven

• Cafe Eleven presents Magnolia Boulevard in their listening room on Saturday, May 4, 2024, at 8:00 p.m.
• Featuring Gregg Erwin on guitar, Ryan Allen on keys, Chad Gravitt on drums, Chris Justice on bass, and Maggie Noelle on vocals and guitar, Magnolia Boulevard crafts music deeply rooted in bluegrass with a soulful touch.
• This ensemble earned recognition from the Lexington Music Awards and stood victorious in a band competition at the 2018 Floyd Fest. Sharing stages with headliners like Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band, George Porter Jr., and Neal Francis, they've solidified their presence in the music scene.
• Magnolia Boulevard's compositions tell tales of family, loss, personal growth, and the beauty of unexpected love. The band's prowess on the bluegrass circuit is underscored by positive reviews from Elicit Magazine, The Lexington Herald, and others.
• Among their recent singles are "Reverie," "Sister," "Things Are Gonna Change," and "Say It Like You Mean It."
• Admission: Tickets are $15.00 if purchased in advance and $20.00 when purchased on the performance day. Purchase tickets in advance online or purchase them at Cafe Eleven on the day of the show.
• When: Saturday, May 4, 2024, at 8:00 p.m.
• Where: Cafe Eleven, 501 A1A Beach Blvd, St. Augustine, Florida 32080. On the corner of A1A and 11th Street, one block from St. Augustine Beach.

May the 4th Be With You Car Show

• May 4 @ 9:00 am - 2:00 pm
• FREE TO SPECTATORS
• Head to Bozard Ford Lincoln on Saturday, May 4, 2024 for May the 4th Be With You Car Show — 9:00am-2:00pm. Free to Spectators!
• Trophies * Food * Music * 50/50 Drawings * Raffle
• Open to all vehicles!
• Participant Registration: $20.00 pre-registration $25.00 day of show
• Presented by Bozard Ford Lincoln & Classic Car Museum of St. Augustine. Proceeds support the mission of Bozard Ford Lincoln’s Employees Emergency Assistance Fund to provide financial relief to employees who experience emergency situations that require them to seek financial assistance.May the 4th Be With You Car Show

Hastings Coffee Co. Grand Opening

• May 4 @ 10:00 am
• Join us at 10:00am on Saturday, May 4, 2024 at Hastings Coffee Co. for their Grand Opening. The ‘Coffee & Conversation’ Hastings Main Street Monthy Community Meeting will be occurring then as well.
• There will be a Ribbon Cutting along with a warm welcome to owners Aashton and Lindsay Hodge.
• They’ll be open seven days a week serving Kookaburra Coffees and a wide variety of breakfast items. Be sure to stop in and check them out!

Romanza Festivale 2024

• May 4 @ 11:00 am
• Recurring Event - MANY ARE FREE
• Romanza Festivale of Music and The Arts 2024
• Mark your calendars for St. Augustine’s Romanza Festivale of Music and The Arts 2024 — May 3-19!
• Featuring dozens of concerts, shows, exhibits and much more at several locations throughout St. Augustine. And … best of all … most events are Free! The Festivale showcases productions by dozens of talented Arts and Cultural non-profit organizations.
• Very Special Headline Act! Sunday, May 12 at 4:00pm — the Legendary Count Basie Orchestra at Lewis Auditorium. Get your tickets now by clicking the event website link!
• Headliners: * Wednesday, May 8 at 7:30pm — Duo Arpeggione *
• Friday, May 10 at 7:30pm — Linda Cole Sings and Swings! *
• Friday, May 17 at 7:30pm — Con Brio String Quartet *
• Saturday, May 18 at 7:30pm — Luca CiarlaRomanza Festivale 2024

I am unable to post the sources because they are getting flagged as spam since they are all similar in name. So please visit this site for the list.
Written out urls here tinyurl.com/yjkw32kd

For future events please visit the Discord.

https://discord.gg/NG4eZSWAgR

Live Music

• Chillakaya, Marina Munch, 12:00 pm – 4:00 pm
• Lonesome Bert's Thick and Thin String Band, St. Augustine Brewers Fest 2024, 12:00 pm – 1:30 pm
• Christian Powers, Pierre's Pub, 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm
• Chase Fouraker, Pierre's Pub, 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm
• Trevor Compton, Backyard Island Cafe at Meehan's, 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm
• Joshua "Tennessee" Worthy, DJ's Clam Shack, 5:00 pm – 8:00 pm
• Smokin' Joe Schauer, Mellow Mushroom — St. Johns, 6:00 pm – 9:00 pm
• ZaZa Flamenca, Pierre's Pub, 6:00 pm – 10:00 pm
• Craig Hand, Hurricane Patty's Bar and Grill, 6:00 pm – 9:30 pm
• Brian Rowland, Pusser's Bar and Grille, 7:00 pm – 10:00 pm
• Str8up Band, A1A Ale Works, 8:00 pm – 12:00 am
• Blistur, Tradewinds Lounge, 9:00 pm – 1:00 am

Marineland Market

• Ragga Surf Cafe presents the Marineland Market on Saturday, April 6, 2024, from 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
• The Marineland Market offers fresh local produce, local art, a variety of food trucks, and live music. With everything from farm-to-table delights to hand-crafted artisan goods, the market offers a wide variety of coastal-themed products. Guests can explore a range of handcrafted items, from eye-catching jewelry and artwork to custom home furnishings and clothing. The market also serves as a monthly festivity that honors creativity, community spirit, and Marineland's distinct coastal culture.
• Admission: Free event
• When: Saturday, May 4, 2024, from 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
• Where: 9650 N Ocean Shore Blvd. in Marineland, Florida 32080

Amphitheatre Farmers Market

• The St. Augustine Amphitheatre Farmers Market offers visitors a variety of goods such as local fresh produce, handmade arts and crafts, baked goods, plants directly off the farm, freshly-caught seafood, cheeses, and more. The farmers market makes for a morning of family-friendly fun with live entertainment on select dates.
• In addition to the impressive variety of organic produce offered by local farmers, a number of local artists and craftspeople also display their wares at the market.
• Admission: FREE
• Where: St. Augustine Amphitheatre located at 1340 A1A South St. Augustine, FL 32080.
• When: Every Saturday morning from 8:30 am - 12:30 pm.[](tel:+1 (904) 315-9252)

GTM Research Reserve: Guided Exploration Hike

• On the first Saturday of every month, the Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve (GTMNERR) will host a Guided Exploration Hike.
• During the hike, guests learn about the cultural history of the Guana Peninsula, as well as the natural biodiversity of the research reserve.
• A GTM naturalist will lead the hike and discuss the peninsula's 5,000 years of human history, including how Native Americans made use of the estuarine resources, what European plantation life was like, and current efforts to save the estuary's resources.
• The 2.2-mile hike follows the GTM Research Reserve's yellow trail and takes approximately two hours.
• The event is free, but reservations are required since participation is limited. There is also a $3 per vehicle parking fee. To reserve a spot on the Guided Exploration Hike, please call.
• Admission: Admission to the Guided Exploration Hike is free, but there is a $3 parking fee.
• When: First Saturday of every month from 9 a.m. - 11 a.m.
• Where: GTM Visitor Center is located at 505 Guana River Road, Ponte Vedra Beach, FL 32082. Guests will meet at the GTM Research Reserve's Trailhead Pavilion, located West of the Guana Dam. Wear comfortable closed-toe shoes.
• GTMNERR is a protected stretch of land consisting of wetlands and estuaries on Florida's East Coast that actively works to maintain and help preserve the natural landscape of Florida. The GTMNERR's volunteers and employees are dedicated to the preservation of an unspoiled and undeveloped natural treasure, supporting a vibrant ecosystem and subsystems.

Fort Mose Militia Muster & Training

• Fort Mose Historic State Park hosts Militia Muster and Training on the first Saturday of each month — except for July.
• The Fort Mose Militia bring the 18th century back to life by practicing their firing drills, and by teaching new members historic weapons use and safety. Park visitors witness the weapons demonstrations, which include musket firings. This unique experience provides great photo opportunities and is a wonderful way to spend a day enjoying a state park.
• Admission: The program itself is free. Admission into the Visitor Center is $2.00 for adults and free for children under six.
• When: The first Saturday of each month (except July) from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m.
• Where: Fort Mose Historic State Park is located at 15 Fort Mose Trail, St. Augustine, Florida 32084.

Unidos en la Música (United in Music): A Latin American Festival

The Annual Unidos en la Música (United in Music) Festival celebrates Latin American art, music, dance, sports, games, and food. The all-day festival will be held from 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. on Saturday, May 4, 2024, at Francis Field.
Unidos en la Música features a spectacular variety of art, live entertainment, quality merchandise, dance workshops, and great food. The family-friendly event showcases games, Latin dances, and award winning-musical performers.

• Fonesca
• Baba Caiman
• LPT
• Myrandas
• Papayera la Arenosa
  • Live Entertainment The Colombian musical artist Fonseca headlines the 2024 Unidos en la Musica. Fonseca has won a Latin Grammy award seven times. Others on stage throughout the weekend include Baba Caiman, LPT Salsa, Myrandas, and Papayera la Arenosa. Enjoy performances and exhibitions by dancers and performers from the United States and Latin America. Learn to dance via on-site lessons with outstanding Latin dance groups such as Emily and Raul from the Salsa Kings.
  • We don't have the times of each performance, but we do know it will be an exciting musical day. Again, here are the performers for 2024:
  • Cultural Exhibitions
  • A game section will feature games from all over Latin America. Three visual artists will paint murals throughout the day, and the audience will vote on the winning mural. Venezuela Marka, Peru Dance, Viva Panama USA, and the NC Brazilian Arts Project will share folklore performances.
  • More than 70 Latin American vendors will present their wares, and Papayera La Arenosa from Colombia will perform "pop-up" style, playing their Colombian music as they wander the festival grounds. Authentic Food Latin American food trucks and restaurant vendors will offer authentic foods representing different Latin American tastes and experiences. VIP Tickets The VIP Experience offers 600 guests an easy way to enjoy the day-long festival in style, with an exclusive VIP area and direct access to the premium bar with top-shelf liquors, complimentary Latin-inspired hors d'oeuvres, and meet and greets with select performers. VIP Tickets are $75.00 for each adult and child.
  • Admission: General admission tickets are $20.00 for adults and $5.00 for children ages four and up. The VIP Experience tickets are available only in advance and cost $75.00 each. General admission tickets can also be purchased at the gate on the day of the festival if still available.
  • When: From 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. on Saturday, May 4, 2024.
  • Where: Francis Field, 25 W. Castillo Drive in St. Augustine, Florida 32084. Stories Told by the Florida Storytelling Troupe

Stories Told by the Florida Storytelling Troupe

• Romanza Festivale presents five members of the Florida Storytelling Troupe on Saturday, May 4, 2024, from 11:00 a.m. to noon, at the Ximenez-Fatio House on Aviles Street.
• David Fussell, Margaret Kaler, Kathy Duffy, Rose van Der Berg, and Kathy Kniery will tell tales about Florida's past.
• Admission: Free.
• When: Saturday, May 4, 2024, from 11:00 am. to noon.
• Where: At the Ximenez-Fatio House Museum Garden, 20 Aviles Street, St. Augustine, Florida 32084.
• This event is part of the Romanza Festivale of Music and the Arts, an annual festival of two weeks of historical, cultural, and creative events celebrating all things St. Augustine. From May 3 -19, the nation's oldest city will be jam-packed with music and dance concerts, living history events and historical tours, live theater, and art exhibits.

North Florida Women's Chorale: Music of Celtic Cultures

• On Saturday, May 4, 2024, from 12:00 noon to 1:00 p.m., the North Florida Women's Chorale presents "The Lively Music of Celtic Cultures."
• Part of the Chamber Music Series for the 2024 Romanza Festivale, this free program will be held at the Ancient City Baptist Church, 27 Sevilla Street. Kerry Fradley is the chorale director and Kathleen Vande Berg is their accompanist.
• The traditional instruments, Celtic harp, guitar, and drum, will also accompany the Women's Chorale as they sing lively Celtic dance tunes and Gaelic songs of love won and lost.
• The North Florida Women's Chorale presents music written or arranged specifically for women's voices and provides their members with the opportunity to learn new works, enhance their skills, and enjoy singing as an important part of their lives. In doing this, the group also enriches their audience and serves as role models for women of all ages.
• Admission: Free.
• When: Saturday, May 4, 2024, from noon to 1:00 p.m.
• Where: Ancient City Baptist Church, 27 Sevilla Street, St. Augustine, Florida 32084
• This event is part of the Romanza Festivale of Music and the Arts, an annual festival consisting of two weeks of historical, cultural, and creative events celebrating all things St. Augustine. From May 3 -19, 2024 the nation's oldest city will be jam-packed with music and dance concerts, living history events and historical tours, live theater, and art exhibits.

St. Augustine Brewers Fest 2024

• The annual St. Augustine Brewers Fest kicks off at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, May 4, 2024, at the Fountain of Youth. Proceeds from this event will go to several area non-profit organizations.
• St. Augustine's local breweries, including Ancient City Brewing, Dog Rose Brewing Company, Bog Brewing Company, and Old Coast Ales, will be joined by more than 25 other breweries from around the state and country to offer a day of fun for craft beer enthusiasts.
• Festival attendees will be given a tasting cup to use as they visit tents stationed around the Fountain of Youth, where unlimited beer samples will be available. Water filling stations will also be positioned around the Fountain of Youth's grounds, and attendees are encouraged to bring reusable water bottles to stay hydrated throughout the event.
• Designated drivers can attend for $10.00, with the purchase of one general admission ticket. Tickets for this popular event go on sale on March 1, and they usually sell out.
• In addition, entertainment will be provided throughout the day including live music and children's activities.
• Food will be available from local food trucks. Being true to a community event, family-friendly activities include face painting and plenty of space for kids to run around.
• VIP tickets are available for the festival and include guaranteed on-site parking, access to the climate-controlled pavilion, private restrooms, a catered buffet by Meehan's, a festival tasting glass, and full festival access an hour early. Designated drivers for VIP ticket holders will have to purchase a VIP ticket for access to this area. Only 100 VIP tickets will be sold.
• Admission: $50.00 in advance; $60.00 at the door. (Note: this event generally sells out so it's strongly suggested that tickets are purchased in advance.) VIP tickets are $120.00. Designated drivers attend for $10.00 with the purchase of a regular ticket. Tickets go on sale on March 1st.
• When: 1:00 to 5:00 p.m. on Saturday, May 4, 2024.
• Where: The Fountain of Youth is located at 11 Magnolia Avenue in St. Augustine, Florida 32084.
• Proceeds from this event will go to Epic Behavioral Healthcare, Swamp Haven, St. Johns County Marine Science Program, and the St. Augustine Lighthouse and Maritime Museum.

Romanza: Key of Seas

• The Romanza Festivale presents select members of the Key of Seas in concert on Saturday, May 4, 2024, from 3:00 to 4:30 p.m., at St. Cyprian's Episcopal Church, 37 Lovett Street.
• The Key of Seas is a student vocal ensemble. During each fall semester, they prepare a cabaret show, and in the spring they prepare a program that is largely a capella. This concert will feature select members of the ensemble, performing several numbers from recent fall cabaret programs.
• Admission: Free.
• When: Saturday, May 4, 2024, from 3:00 to 4:30 p.m.
• Where: St. Cyprian's Episcopal Church, 37 Lovett Street, St. Augustine, Florida 32084
• This event is part of the Romanza Festivale of Music and the Arts, an annual festival of two weeks of historical, cultural, and creative events celebrating all things St. Augustine. From May 3 -19, the nation's oldest city will be jam-packed with music and dance concerts, living history events and historical tours, live theater, and art exhibits.

EMMA Concerts: Music from the Movies

• The Emma Concert Series and the Romanza Festivale of the Arts present the St. Augustine Orchestra for a concert that features favorite classical and pop music from the movies. The concert will be held on Saturday, May 4, 2024, from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m., in the Lewis Auditorium.
• The St. Augustine Orchestra was founded in 1961 and is a true community orchestra of about 50 musicians. Their goal is to provide excellent live performances to the local community.
• Admission: Standard seat: $20.00. Limited view: $15.00. Student seat: $5.00.
• When: Saturday, May 4, 2023, from 7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.
• Where: Lewis Auditorium, 14 Granada Street, St. Augustine, Florida 32084
• Parking: Free parking will be available at the St. Johns County Council on Aging, 180 Marine Street, St. Augustine. A free shuttle service will take those attending the concert to and from the parking lot. Free parking will not be available at Flagler College's Lewis Auditorium.
• About Emma Concert Association: The association was named to honor Emil Maestre, a Spanish cellist who retired to St. Augustine. Founded in 1979, by several music lovers, EMMA's mission is to provide "quality music and dance performances at modest ticket prices." This non-profit volunteer organization strives to present music and dance performances at an affordable price. In addition, EMMA provides funds, equipment, and instruments to various school programs in St. Johns County.
• This event is part of the Romanza Festivale of Music and the Arts, an annual festival of two weeks of historical, cultural, and creative events celebrating all things St. Augustine. From May 3 -19, the nation's oldest city will be jam-packed with music and dance concerts, living history events and historical tours, live theater, and art exhibits.

Magnolia Boulevard At Cafe Eleven

• Cafe Eleven presents Magnolia Boulevard in their listening room on Saturday, May 4, 2024, at 8:00 p.m.
• Featuring Gregg Erwin on guitar, Ryan Allen on keys, Chad Gravitt on drums, Chris Justice on bass, and Maggie Noelle on vocals and guitar, Magnolia Boulevard crafts music deeply rooted in bluegrass with a soulful touch.
• This ensemble earned recognition from the Lexington Music Awards and stood victorious in a band competition at the 2018 Floyd Fest. Sharing stages with headliners like Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band, George Porter Jr., and Neal Francis, they've solidified their presence in the music scene.
• Magnolia Boulevard's compositions tell tales of family, loss, personal growth, and the beauty of unexpected love. The band's prowess on the bluegrass circuit is underscored by positive reviews from Elicit Magazine, The Lexington Herald, and others.
• Among their recent singles are "Reverie," "Sister," "Things Are Gonna Change," and "Say It Like You Mean It."
• Admission: Tickets are $15.00 if purchased in advance and $20.00 when purchased on the performance day. Purchase tickets in advance online or purchase them at Cafe Eleven on the day of the show.
• When: Saturday, May 4, 2024, at 8:00 p.m.
• Where: Cafe Eleven, 501 A1A Beach Blvd, St. Augustine, Florida 32080. On the corner of A1A and 11th Street, one block from St. Augustine Beach.

May the 4th Be With You Car Show

• May 4 @ 9:00 am - 2:00 pm
• FREE TO SPECTATORS
• Head to Bozard Ford Lincoln on Saturday, May 4, 2024 for May the 4th Be With You Car Show — 9:00am-2:00pm. Free to Spectators!
• Trophies * Food * Music * 50/50 Drawings * Raffle
• Open to all vehicles!
• Participant Registration: $20.00 pre-registration $25.00 day of show
• Presented by Bozard Ford Lincoln & Classic Car Museum of St. Augustine. Proceeds support the mission of Bozard Ford Lincoln’s Employees Emergency Assistance Fund to provide financial relief to employees who experience emergency situations that require them to seek financial assistance.May the 4th Be With You Car Show

Hastings Coffee Co. Grand Opening

• May 4 @ 10:00 am
• Join us at 10:00am on Saturday, May 4, 2024 at Hastings Coffee Co. for their Grand Opening. The ‘Coffee & Conversation’ Hastings Main Street Monthy Community Meeting will be occurring then as well.
• There will be a Ribbon Cutting along with a warm welcome to owners Aashton and Lindsay Hodge.
• They’ll be open seven days a week serving Kookaburra Coffees and a wide variety of breakfast items. Be sure to stop in and check them out!

Romanza Festivale 2024

• May 4 @ 11:00 am
• Recurring Event - MANY ARE FREE
• Romanza Festivale of Music and The Arts 2024
• Mark your calendars for St. Augustine’s Romanza Festivale of Music and The Arts 2024 — May 3-19!
• Featuring dozens of concerts, shows, exhibits and much more at several locations throughout St. Augustine. And … best of all … most events are Free! The Festivale showcases productions by dozens of talented Arts and Cultural non-profit organizations.
• Very Special Headline Act! Sunday, May 12 at 4:00pm — the Legendary Count Basie Orchestra at Lewis Auditorium. Get your tickets now by clicking the event website link!
• Headliners: * Wednesday, May 8 at 7:30pm — Duo Arpeggione *
• Friday, May 10 at 7:30pm — Linda Cole Sings and Swings! *
• Friday, May 17 at 7:30pm — Con Brio String Quartet * Saturday,
• May 18 at 7:30pm — Luca CiarlaRomanza Festivale 2024

I am unable to post the sources because they are getting flagged as spam since they are all similar in name. So please visit this site for the list.
Written out urls here tinyurl.com/yjkw32kd

For future events please visit the Discord.

https://discord.gg/NG4eZSWAgR

Check out our updated list of Montreal's Best new restaurants

Wow: As we always keep this list fresh, with no opening more than six months old, even if we don't count the openings from November 2023—Le Godot, Chez Jean-Paul, Lou’s, Savsav, Regashi, and Nofish—we can still count this list at a whopping 26 spots. (The Main)

Food stuff happening this weekend!

• The Atwater, Jean-Talon and Maisonneuve markets, and the city’s neighbourhood and solidarity markets, are welcoming back open-air vendors and restaurants with terraces.
• Lulu Epicerie's Beiroots Groove Ensemble is returning on May 4 with wines by the glass and a shawarma included in the price of a ticket.
• Take the REM to Panama station and check out the Anhui (or Hui) Chinese food of @nouillesdehui.
• The ice cream window, we repeat, the ice cream window at Gema is reopened.
• Hear ye, hear ye: Montreal natural wine and cider maker Lieux Communs is bringing their wares to the terrasse opening of Supernat on May 5.
• There are few better places to celebrate Cinco de Mayo than at Caifan in the Plateau.
• Cicchetti's got some nice juicy wines to try out on Sunday, May 5 with $2 oysters—nice way to end the weekend, if you ask us.
• From May 1 to 7, La Pizza Week returns for its 4th edition, where over 500 restaurants nationwide (including Montreal) will unveil unique twists on the dish.
• Chef Tom Allain will be bringing some east coast flavour in the form of donairs to Cremerie Dalla Rose on May 4.
• @mollo.boulangerie.cafe in St Henri is a new artisanal bakery with tons of home made pastries & breads.
• Ramen 9000 will be doing one last pop-up at Kitano Shokudo on May 4th and 5th before summer arrives, so snag a spot while you can.
• Be sure to grab a seat at Bar Otto when the modern Korean restaurant 9 Tail Fox crosses the Saint-Henri/Little Burgundy divide for a pop-up on May 5th.

When I was a young chef, I always dreamed of serving food to world leaders, diplomats, super stars. Catering fancy banquets and all that.
Life doesn't always go the way you expect.
I opened another industrial-sized can of ketchup and poured it into a huge bowl of box pasta. Cooked al-dente, of course.
I had almost had my way, too. A year cooking for the foreign service in Panama. Two years cooking on an aircraft carrier. Everything from chicken nuggets to a ten course meal with quail and a wine pairing.
The microwave beeped, and I popped open the door with a click and a thud. Removed the steaming, sweaty bowl of defrosted shrimp, and dumped it into the pasta.
Stirring the mixture with a wooden spoon, I smiled, remembering my first time making this dish. How I gagged and heaved at the smell of ketchup and damp microwaved shrimp. I was certain another chef was playing a prank on me.
Alas...
Eventually, the smell of this food, day in and day out, just becomes baked into your clothes. You feel it seep out of your skin. You're just immersed in it. Especially when you have to live on base, and cook your own meals in the same god-forsaken kitchen.
What I wouldn't give to cook up a nice steak, maybe some fries (no ketchup), or at least have some salami or cheese lying around. Against regulations, they said. The kitchen needs to be kept clean of exotic foods lest our guests become overwhelmed. At least I get to make my spaghetti with tomato sauce. That's something. Perks of the job.
I loaded the huge bowl of pasta onto a cart, along with some mugs of stale coffee. Some crackers from near-expired MREs. A pile of napkins. It's time.
I put on my best face, dusted myself off, and pushed the cart through the double doors at the front of the kitchen.
The smell of ammonia hit me like a brick wall, but I didn't even flinch. I was a seasoned warrior at this point.
With a smile, I placed the pot of spaghetti in the center of the plain table in the un-decorated concrete room. Placed a mug of coffee in front of each guest. Didn't spill a drop.
The greys made a sound like letting the air out of the balloon. Their happy sound. I smiled, said "bon apetit", turned heel, and walked out. I couldn't bear to watch them eat.
Apparently, back at Roswell, when we got our first "visitor", the staff nursed it back to health on old MREs and canned food. It was the start of a beautiful relationship. Now, these "foreign dignitaries" come from god knows where to try it.
They claim our food is some of the best in the galaxy.
I wished I could feed them something proper. Like a chicken salad sandwich or something. But the boss said, we can't put all our cards on the table. Need to have something in reserve. So it's canned food a la military bunker for the foreseeable future.
Maybe someday, when the peace talks are completed and humanity ascends to the galactic federation, we can introduce them to wine and cheese. At this rate, I couldn't imagine that was far off. As they said in the foreign service, diplomacy is about hearts and minds. And the way to an alien's heart is through its stomach. Maybe they'd give us FTL for my grandma's lentil soup recipe. God I wished we had lentils in stock.

I know im young and a lot of people will probably say im over reacting but man i gave that girl everything I could. I'm mainly writing this to come to terms with things and I dont think itll get a lot of traction but stick with me if youre reading.
I (22M) met her (22F) in 2022 through my friend. I was at a point where i was content being by myself and wasnt really looking for anyone but he would always get upset with me for not messaging her because she was upset with him that i didn't message her so one day i just decided to do it. We clicked almost instantly. Looking back it was red flags all over because she was seeing someone although they werent in a relationship. She's studying in the US and im in our home country but we clicked so well we kept talking.
After a couple weeks of us talking literally the entire night every night, she cut things off witht the other guy and fully invested in me. I remember when she first came home for christmas that year, I had a pretty big chem exam on the monday but she had said that I her the saturday and that she's clearing my schedule for me. I found it pretty cute and I did meet her and just pulled and all night aced the course so it wasn't a problem. From then on, we were inseparable. That christmas I went over by her, met her parents and got close enough with them that they invited me to go everywhere with them. They were kind of strict so i could only really go over by her but I'd spend the entire day by her and they'd drop me back home (I had no car).
In december the first blatant red flag showed itself, she had a friend (We will call him #1) that would constantly call her pet names like my princess or baby etc and I had told her thats weird and you should tell him to stop. She said she did but one of the days that i was over by her i noticed that she was talking to her and it was the same pet names. She noticed that I noticed and I asked her if she had told him about it and she said yes then I asked her why's he still doing it then and she just she doesnt know. I told her it made me uncomfortable and since he clearly doesnt respect any boundaries if she could stop talking to him and she just said sure. That same day, the guy she was talking to right before me had messaged her and said hi and she showed me and blocked him without me having to ask her. The rest of christmas went by with nothing much minus the mess up i did which was asking my ex girlfriend that was before her to crochet a panda keychain for her so i could gift it to her (horrible on my part i know).
Skip forward to January and shes back in the US for school and im going to uni in our home country. Im on the phone with her during every second of the day outside of class adn when i wasn't on the phone with her I was messaging her. She had wanted to sleep on calls together and i induldged so we were on the phone even while we slept. Now a couple weeks after she went back the US i felt something change and she got a bit distant but wouldn't tell me no matter what. i ahd started going to the gym with my friend (the same one who introduced us) and I was doing nothing except classes, then a 2 hour gym session in the night. I remember it like it was yesterday, I had went for food with my friend before gym and we ended up going to the airport for subway since it was pretty close to us and I sent her pic and joked that ill hop on a plane and come to her if she wanted to and she just said no. I ended up skipping gym to spend some time with her and see what was bothering her and if she'd tell me. She ended up sayign she feels like i dont spend enough time with her and i felt horrible and started to apologise and tell her that I'd make a more conscious effort to spend less time with my friend and more with her and halfway through me saying that I got a snap from her. She had accidently sent me a flirty snap that she was supposed to send to another guy and when i asked her about it she just said she sent it to the wrong person. After a couple seconds of me saying nothing i guess she realised that she did something wrong and she started to backtrack, saying that she didn't realise it was flirty and whatnot but i just hung up adn went to smoke a cigarette on my steps outside. When I cooled off a bit i was initially going to end things then and there with her because flirting with someone else while we're in a relationship (forgot to mention we got together officially in december) was a major dealbreaker for me but she begged and pleaded and promised and even did SH, i caved and let it slide but it still bothered my for about a week or so before i got over it.
February now, my birthday is right after valentines day and right after my birthday is Carnival. I dont have a lot of money but i wanted to do something special for her because she was coming back home for her spring break a week or so after valentine's day. At the time i couldn't make online purchases or anything because i didnt have a card that allowed me to do so so the only option was asking my mother but my mother and I have a really strained relationship for other reasons and my mother didnt like whenever i was in a relationship so she said no when i asked her if I could use her card to order my then girlfriend some flowers and Ill just give her the cash back. So, instead I opted to do something for when she came back home in a couple of weeks which i explained to her. Valentine's day rolled around and my birthday came the day after and she was acting weird and distant again but i just thought she was sad that I wasn't there or that her dad and stepmom didn't send her flowers that year (they normally did that every year). Her stepmom actually baked me a pretty sweet cake for my birthday and dropped it off for me which was really sweet and i loved it. Anyways, i tried to be there for her during those days and when she came back i was really excited.
The day before she came back I went down to visit her dad and stepmom and asked them if I could stay for a bit to decorate her room etc and they said yea. So my friend (same one who introduced us) took me to the store and i got balloons, flowers, a panda plushie and I had handwrtten her a long love letter and I spent the evening cleaning and decorating her room to make it special. i ended up not liking the flowers so I asked her older sister to take me to the store and i picked up some new flowers and set everything up while managing to hide the surprise from her and just telling my girlfriend that im visiting her parents just to say hi to everyone. The next day comes and goes and she came home and just didn't mention anything which got me a bit down but i brushed it off. I visited her the very next day which was saturday, I woke up early and had been saving up whatever money i had so i could spend it on taxis to go over to her house everyday while she was home.
When I got there i asked if she got my surprise and she just said yea and she was telling her stepmom how i wrote her the letter and was teasing me, starting to read it out for her stepmom and sister to listen to while I (dying of embarassment) begged her not to. her stepmom ended up telling her that its private and to stop, which she did. Fast forward an hour or so and we are on her couch just watching tiktoks on her phone when she gets a message from #1 and at first she tries to play it off as her not knowing why hes messaging her but the message itself was him asking her how her flight was, nothing big. But I asked her open the chat and when she did that was the only message from him, meaning she had deleted whatever messages before where she wouldve told him shes coming home etc and that bothered me because i had asked her to not talk to him for what i think is a good reason and she told me she would. So her still talking to him behind my back and then hiding the messages really bothered me. I ended up almost heading home for the day but i opted not to since it wasn't anything objectively bad. The next day i went down by her and asked to see if there was anything else she was hiding, turns out there were two other guys; one she told to come over (as a joke apparently) and another we will call Jon (important later). Once again, i brushed it off as nothing too bad objectively and though her stepmom had heard the story and had scolded her when I left the day before, we just moved past it.
March, April, May, was more or less uneventful. I had scrapped together some more money and begged her stepmom to order some lego flowers and send it across to her for me because she wanted them and I just paid her in cash. i was also working for my stepdad to get money for a summer trip for me to go and stay by her and see her. Around may was when she started saying she doesnt know if she wants this or could do it because ldr was hard and I told her i understand and if she wants to end things or try with someone else thats in the US as well id understand but she never wanted to break up, she always opted to stay.
July now, I went up and stayed by her for 4 weeks i think it was and we had to split most costs 50/50 to make what money i had last, and I still had to cut the trip a bit short because I was cutting it really close, but it was no problem. I came back home in august and she came a couple days after and i spent every single day by her. Had a couple of sleepovers too because at that point her parents started letting her sister's boyfriend stay over too so they let me as well and we had a lot of fun. While my girlfriend would normally end up going in her room earlier than us, her sister, sister's boyfriend, stepmom and I would stay up and watch movies and make late night gas station trips to get snacks for the night. At that point i was close to her entire family, aunts, uncles, cousins, grandma, everyone. Her uncle had actually invited me to come over for his kid's gender reveal and it was nice. My girlfriend at that point was always getting mad at me for small things like when i wanted to wear pink but she wanted me to wear blue and she also brought up the fact that the distance is too hard for etc almost every other week. A night or so before the gender reveal party she sat me down and said that i dont make her feel appreciated or anything because i appeal to her gift giving love language etc and I remember i couldnt help but let a couple tears fall. We ended up talking for a bit and her sister saw us talking and she ended up getting in trouble with her stepmom because she wasnt understanding im doing everything I could with the amount of money I had. Since all my money was always spent on commuting to her parents house and I just dropped around 1.5k USD on my trip to go visit her, her stepmom was upset with her for demanding more and wanting to end things over that.
That was when her sister, aunts and uncles started to tell her and her parents they she needs to start to treat me better. At that point she had me running up and the down house trailing behind her while she yelled at me for silly things like wanting to go outside and spend time with her family whilst she wanted to sit inside. I remember she called me a day, angry, because one of her aunts told her stepmom to tell her to treat me better and she told me that everyone thinks im so good nad I just sat there confused.
I spent every cent i had on trying to see her as much as possible. Every night I would stay up an hour later just in case she couldnt sleep and wanted someone to talk to, i wasn't going out with my friends nearly as much and if I did she'd be on a call with me. I wasn't studying and was using that time to talk to her but that was okay because it made her happy and I could afford to sacrifce my work and my sleep for her. There were times i pulled all nighters because she asked me to wake up her up at a specific time and i didnt trust myself to wake up in time so id just stay up to wake her up before taking a power nap before my first class. So september passes and we are in october now, this is where it gets juicier.
She had no friends in the US outside of guys she had history with, them liking her etc but she hadnt spoken to them because the last two she had kept in contact with she didnt enforce boundaries. She also didnt leave her apartment much and Id beg her to go out some more and try to make more friends from class or whatever. Id always get really happy for her whenever she said she was going to the mall but she'd want to stay on a call with me through it all and I always had to ask her to go and enjoy herself and to just be safe and let me know when she was home and that she needed time to herself.
At this point her her family and I are basically family too. Id visit them once a month or so to check in and they'd always get angry with me for not visiting them enough and they'd tease me that I only come over when my gf is there. They were inviting me on family outings everytime and her grandma would always tell me she loves me and to come around more. I went to her brother's birthday party there and stayed on a call with her the whole time so she could be there as well. Like i said, shes on the phone with me 24/7 if Im not in a class.
In october now, she gets distant. There was a day october 22nd, we hung up and i took a nap and I woke up around 2pm and she didnt reply to my previous message. SHe had also wanted me to get life360 some time back so i had it for her. A couple hours passed and she wasnt replying to me nor answering my calls and when i checked life 360 her location was off and wasnt loading, More hours passed and I had already messaged my friend to ask if he heard from her and her sister. Her sister checked her Find My location and that location was off as well and its only aorund 8 or 9pm she finally called me and said she went to wynward by herself and didnt feel like picking up my calls or replying she just needed time and space. I was upset and told her that i understand that but next time just let me know so i dont panic thinking something happened to you. A couple days later she got in trouble with her stepmom for 'stressing me out and disappearing' but i just laughed it off.
Now, A couple days later she started telling me wants me to cut off my friend (the one who introduced us). it was out of the blue because she had been saying shes going to stop being friends with him since he started moving different ever since he started liking this other girl (one of my other friends) but i didnt expect her to want me to cut him out of my life seeing that they were really good friends before and this guy and I were almost like brothers. I told her no and it went on for a couple weeks until he blocked her and she stopped asking and demanded. Now, we had many conversations about our future plans, marriage etc. I had gotten into med school at that point and told her after my 3rd year Id propose and stuff and we had a good future plan set; where we'd immigrate, Id convert to islam for her, a good timeline everything. SO she told me that if i want to be in her life i have to cut him off because she doesnt want him in her life at all.
I told her ill go talk to him about it because she wasnt giving me any reason why she hated him so much all of a sudden and thats when she started backtracking saying nevermind and its ok but i had my mind made up to find out what was going on. So he comes and picks me up and I asked wtf is going on between them. He sighs and tells me that a week before Oct 22nd she had a convo w him where she said she still had feelings for him and wanted him back and wants to leave me. i remember that night because we had another fight where she said I was restricting her from going out or making friends (i literally begged her to make friends and to go out) and that I was manipulative and gaslit her. He had the texts to prove it too so i just called her parents, told them I was breaking up with her and then went home. When I got home i asked her for the real reason she wanted me to cut him off and she didnt want to talk really so i just told her what i knew and broke up with her. She didnt react much but after she called me crying and begging and she booked me a flight to go see her in the US, this was a week before a pretty big exam I had in Med school but I still went.
The whole time I was going to the airport, waiting for my flight, boarding, in the air and during my layover flight in panama (it was cheaper to take a layover in panama) she as begging for me back and the whole works. She picked me up from the airport around 10am and i ended up having her apologise to my friends (the one who introduced us and the girl he like because my girlfriend was always really mean to her for no reason) and we talked, she ended up telling me that she only had that conversation with him because she wanted him and the girl he liked to not get together because she thought she was bad for him. A couple days into my stay there and im studying on her ipad for my exam when i got back and she got a message from imessage that popped up on her ipad.
I had flown out sunday morning around 1am and it was wednesday morning at 2:42 am. I was doing a lecture on cancer cells and she was asleep on the bed next to me. I was almost done when I saw the message. It was from Jon. Curious, i opened it and it was the only message and i saw that she had 342 deleted messages from him and 3 other guys. I opened Jons first and the saturday night when I broke up with her she messaged him, rekindlign a friendsship i guess. Whilst I was on the phone with her sending over my passport information, while i was at the airport, while i was flying over to her she was BEGGING me for another chance and it wont happen again and she was also messaging him. To summarise, she was telling him shes so happy its over, that im a loser and she wanted it to end since January. She said she was giggling and that I never did anything for her and that for valentine's i didnt even get her flowers. She said I was stupid because she did what she did for a good reason (Her triyng to break my friends up) and she was promising him that she won't see me again when she goes back him. She told him that she wanted to get to know him, her bed was big enough for a sleepover, the positions she liked, that she'd throw away the baby if he got her pregnant, that raw felt better and more disgusting things that I wouldnt wish my worst enemy to have to see a girl he love say to another guy while she slept peavefully next to him. To end the convo, he asked for some nudes and she sent some boob pics and he sent dick pics and then she told him dont message her for a week cuz she needs space. The morning I landed he had messaged her and she got upset with him, telling him to give her till monday ( i was leaving sunday evening) and then she'd be his. The two other guys were a lot less horrible, just her from august and october saying she misses them and she cant talk to them that much when im over by her every day (it was while i watched movies with her family). its still bad but it wasnt as bad as Jon.
i stumbled out of her apartment and couldnt walk striaght. i was shaking, vomiting and everything. SHe ended up waking up and calling me asking where i was and i went back and sat down and talked to her, asking if there was anything she was hiding and giving her every chance to tell the truth and she lied to the end until i told her that you can see deleted msgs on imessage. Then we had an arguement until the sun came up and I said some things like shes an easy whore out of anger which i deeply regret. I couldnt just leave so i had to stick it out for the rest of the days which i did nad in the end i caved to her pleas under the condition that she'd get therapy since she said her dad and (real) mom's relationship had fucked her up and her mom specifically really fucked her up. (Doormat, I know). So i go back home and barely pass my exam and while im talking to her and making an effort and shes trying her best with therapy and everything, its eating me alive but i tough it out and after my finals she came home and i spent the entire winter break at her parent's house with her, not leaving a single night because her stepmom had plans for me and her sister's boyfriend up until new years and some days after. I can't lie, it was fun because her family celebrated it really nicely and i never had a christmas like that ever.
Fast forward to february 1st this year and things were looking good. She had just gotten out of a therapy session and she called me and broke up with me saying she needs to heal and she doesnt want to be exclusive because she doesnt want to have to consider my feelings but she (allegedly) wont talk to anyone else and not to beg her or try to change her mind, i just said ok and have a good one. I was shattered, crying in ways i never cried before and the whole works because at that point i had sacrificed even my dignity and pride to stay with her through everything. During the first week she was mainly just playing videogames with another friend of hers (lets call him Ant) and that was mainly it while i was in shambles. She told me that he meant a lot to her as a friend and she cant imagine risking losing him as a friend and I asked her if shes fine with risking me forever and she said she thought about it and yea, shes sure she is.
I visited her parents and cried in her stepmom's arms while telling her everything. When i got back home she found out i told her stepmom what she had done in november and she went off the rails, saying i ruined her life and im an asshole and she wants nothing to do with me and to fuck off and get out her life and whatever. I just told her i get it and i just hope she can change for the next person and she said that she could've changed anytime and just didnt want to and im the only one who got that part of her and no else will have to got through that. I didnt say much but we ended up still talking for some time after and she apologised. She flew me out again and i went and it was ok, i found out that Jon had reached out to her again and she hid it but i didnt even care anymore.
She was in contact with my aunt because over winter she had met my aunt and when i had tol dmy aunt what happened my aunt was pissed but long story short there, my aunt told her to leave me tf alone. She and my sister had a good relationship so shed always tell my sister how much she loves me and wants me and my sister would tell me to give her another chance (i didn't tell her why I broke up with my gf). But every 2 weeks shed explode on me again and just say horrible stuff before apologising again. For example, during ramadan I took a sip of alcohol and went off the rails for that saying im disgusting and more. April 6th now, im starting to warm back up to her because i was crazy for this girl. That night she had told me she'll give me a call after she finishes playing with her cousin and brother and Ant and i said ok and when i checked the time it was 2am and she hadnt called. So i messaged her and asked her about it and she went off saying that she told me she cant give me any effort or attention so why do i keep asking for it and that we aren't in a relationship and she cant do it anymore. I just told her ok, i get it, and something in me just snapped and disappeared.
I didnt talk to her for 2 days and I didnt care, then, my sister called her and told her about this girl i was practicing skills with (It was me, the new girl and a couple other friends) and my ex went batshit on me. But i had given up on her already so I just told her we aren't even friends and shes just a mutual friend (which is true). After a day, she came home again and at that point she was all over me. She had gotten out of therapy and was saying that she wants me back and shes changed and its different and she was just obsessed with me but i didnt buy it. So Eid rolls around and her family invites me over so i go and we spend that time together but im still telling her that no, i dont believe what youre now saying and im done.
The saturday after Eid i go back and me, her stepmom and her have a talk and Im still adamant, telling her i dont want her right now but when she graduates if she's still consistent with that and neither of us are in a relationship then we can try something but shes going on, harping on about her only doing those things because of how i manipulated and gaslit her and the reason behind it is her mother and she went through therapy and stuff but im not buying it. She went back to the US the day after for classes. The monday now she calls me and says she messaged the girl (the one my sister told her about) and I just tell her to leave me alone and she starts up, spouting insults and I had enough and just told her I shouldve listened to her family when they said she was just like her mother (Her entire family used to say that).
She was still saying she wants me and loves me and wants to try again and I was still adamant, telling her that I do still love her because i can't stop just like that after loving her so much for so long, but I stopped seeing a that future with her when she did what she did in november and that I cant forget. I told her to give me time and let me heal from what she caused and we can see again next year because it wont be the same as it was if we get into a relationship right now. Turns out that she was talking to some other guy that looked similar to me for day while she was begging for me but i didnt care. Im studying for finals and shes calling me every 5 minutes and while i answer everytime I keep telling her to let me study and leave me be. Then i tell her she needs to move on and make friends to distract her.
Last wednesday now, she goes out for a the entire night with some dude who had messaged her on Instagram the week before (she told me an hour before she left that he had asked her out and she said no). When she comes home she says she had nothing to do so she went but it was just as friends but hes really nice and he has a nice car and everything. I just told her ok and she said that she still wants me and to give her another chance etc but i stick to what ive been saying. The next day she called me and said the same thing but she said that he asked her out again and shes not going to go because she was coming home the day after and she wants to see me. Of course, she goes out with him. But an hour before he picked her up she called and told me hes just a friend, she does like him, she sees nothing with him and hes nice yea and they have all these plans for when she goes back to the US and they took such cute pics together the night before but hes just a friend. Friday morning she makes a 180, saying shes going to try things with him and hes really nice and she wants to see where things go and shes ready for a pure love. She comes back home and friday night i called her stepmom.
WHen she was home for Eid her stepmom had asked me why im not giving her another chance because look how serious she sounds and shes cutting herself because shes so distraught. I told her that it isnt the 1st, 2nd or 3rd time and everytime she doesnt change. I told her that when she goes back to the US, within a week or two she'll stop completely and find someone else.
So i had called her stepmom to tell her that i was right and my ex called me in the night to tell me i shouldnt have told her parents anything and shes done with me, doesnt love me, told me all the good things about this new guy and that he treats her better in that one week than I ever had and that she thinks hes the one (She used to say that about me up to the day before) and that while hes busy during hte day and isnt active nor really replies to her during the day, she just busies herself so its ok. She ended up blocking me.
One of her cousins messaged me and said that hes all shes talking about and that she showed her a picture of the two of them hugging tightly and asked her if she saw his nice car etc but she already started complaining how theres a bit of a language barrier and that when she messages him on one app about something serious, he just goes to another app and starts another conversation there.
I saw his instagram last night and ended up accidently liking one of his posts and within minutes he had me blocked and she also had me blocked on instagram. I messaged her and asked her to give me a quick call because i just want some closure and she just told me to leave her alone. She wants nothing to do with me, does not and will not think about me now or in the future, she doesnt like nor love me and that its my fault i pushed her away, told her I hate her and that shes just like her mom. i told her i never said i hated her, i only told her i still love her but cant forget what she did and that i dont want to tell her I love oyu because i dont want her thinking everything is fine when its not. She said that im making up my own crazy delusions and to get over it, shes done and doesnt want me at all and shes happy with someone else and to stop bothering her and her family. Her step has bene nothing but supportive of me.
I feel like i didn't deserve what this girl put me through. I gave her so many chances and fixed so much of her. now she's giving someone else whom she met a week ago everything i begged her for. I want her back, trust me when i say i dont. I just miss the person I thought she was.
I didn't deserve any of it.
I know what she says about me and its fine, I loved her more than anything else and everyone saw it. I did everything i could and much more and everything saw it, except her. i want her to regret it a lot, perhaps she is changed for him, but I want there to come a day she has to unblock me to reach out to me, just for the closure that she regrets it. I really really want her to regret not valuing me as much as i valued her. I want her to regret throwing away every chance i gave her to show that she's changed and can finally love me the way I deserved, because i showed her what it was like to be loved without restraint. I just want her to regret it. I didnt deserve a single bit of it at all and its eating me away knowing that I didn't while she laughs with him. I know how she was with me so i know how she is with him and while im at my lowest, unable to sleep at night because i get nightmares of that girl, shes happier than ever. Im not happy for her at all, as a matter of fact, I hate that shes so much happier than me because i Deserved that. I deserved to get the good parts of her and all i got was the worst parts that no one else had to get. She actually admitted that she gave me the worst parts of herself and only me because i was there and she doesnt know why she did it really. I didnt deserve what I got, I deserved the pure love.
Sometimes you love the wrong people, doesnt mean you have to change the way you love. Sorry for the storybook and word vomit. If theres anyone who actually read the whole thing, i appreciate it. Just needed to get it off my chest really. Stay safe out there people.

I know im young and a lot of people will probably say im over reacting but man i gave that girl everything I could. I'm mainly writing this to come to terms with things and I dont think itll get a lot of traction but stick with me if youre reading.
I met her in 2022 through my friend. I was at a point where i was content being by myself and wasnt really looking for anyone but he would always get upset with me for not messaging her because she was upset with him that i didn't message her so one day i just decided to do it. We clicked almost instantly. Looking back it was red flags all over because she was seeing someone although they werent in a relationship. She's studying in the US and im in our home country but we clicked so well we kept talking.
After a couple weeks of us talking literally the entire night every night, she cut things off witht the other guy and fully invested in me. I remember when she first came home for christmas that year, I had a pretty big chem exam on the monday but she had said that I her the saturday and that she's clearing my schedule for me. I found it pretty cute and I did meet her and just pulled and all night aced the course so it wasn't a problem. From then on, we were inseparable. That christmas I went over by her, met her parents and got close enough with them that they invited me to go everywhere with them. They were kind of strict so i could only really go over by her but I'd spend the entire day by her and they'd drop me back home (I had no car).
In december the first blatant red flag showed itself, she had a friend (We will call him #1) that would constantly call her pet names like my princess or baby etc and I had told her thats weird and you should tell him to stop. She said she did but one of the days that i was over by her i noticed that she was talking to her and it was the same pet names. She noticed that I noticed and I asked her if she had told him about it and she said yes then I asked her why's he still doing it then and she just she doesnt know. I told her it made me uncomfortable and since he clearly doesnt respect any boundaries if she could stop talking to him and she just said sure. That same day, the guy she was talking to right before me had messaged her and said hi and she showed me and blocked him without me having to ask her. The rest of christmas went by with nothing much minus the mess up i did which was asking my ex girlfriend that was before her to crochet a panda keychain for her so i could gift it to her (horrible on my part i know).
Skip forward to January and shes back in the US for school and im going to uni in our home country. Im on the phone with her during every second of the day outside of class adn when i wasn't on the phone with her I was messaging her. She had wanted to sleep on calls together and i induldged so we were on the phone even while we slept. Now a couple weeks after she went back the US i felt something change and she got a bit distant but wouldn't tell me no matter what. i ahd started going to the gym with my friend (the same one who introduced us) and I was doing nothing except classes, then a 2 hour gym session in the night. I remember it like it was yesterday, I had went for food with my friend before gym and we ended up going to the airport for subway since it was pretty close to us and I sent her pic and joked that ill hop on a plane and come to her if she wanted to and she just said no. I ended up skipping gym to spend some time with her and see what was bothering her and if she'd tell me. She ended up sayign she feels like i dont spend enough time with her and i felt horrible and started to apologise and tell her that I'd make a more conscious effort to spend less time with my friend and more with her and halfway through me saying that I got a snap from her. She had accidently sent me a flirty snap that she was supposed to send to another guy and when i asked her about it she just said she sent it to the wrong person. After a couple seconds of me saying nothing i guess she realised that she did something wrong and she started to backtrack, saying that she didn't realise it was flirty and whatnot but i just hung up adn went to smoke a cigarette on my steps outside. When I cooled off a bit i was initially going to end things then and there with her because flirting with someone else while we're in a relationship (forgot to mention we got together officially in december) was a major dealbreaker for me but she begged and pleaded and promised and even did SH, i caved and let it slide but it still bothered my for about a week or so before i got over it.
February now, my birthday is right after valentines day and right after my birthday is Carnival. I dont have a lot of money but i wanted to do something special for her because she was coming back home for her spring break a week or so after valentine's day. At the time i couldn't make online purchases or anything because i didnt have a card that allowed me to do so so the only option was asking my mother but my mother and I have a really strained relationship for other reasons and my mother didnt like whenever i was in a relationship so she said no when i asked her if I could use her card to order my then girlfriend some flowers and Ill just give her the cash back. So, instead I opted to do something for when she came back home in a couple of weeks which i explained to her. Valentine's day rolled around and my birthday came the day after and she was acting weird and distant again but i just thought she was sad that I wasn't there or that her dad and stepmom didn't send her flowers that year (they normally did that every year). Her stepmom actually baked me a pretty sweet cake for my birthday and dropped it off for me which was really sweet and i loved it. Anyways, i tried to be there for her during those days and when she came back i was really excited.
The day before she came back I went down to visit her dad and stepmom and asked them if I could stay for a bit to decorate her room etc and they said yea. So my friend (same one who introduced us) took me to the store and i got balloons, flowers, a panda plushie and I had handwrtten her a long love letter and I spent the evening cleaning and decorating her room to make it special. i ended up not liking the flowers so I asked her older sister to take me to the store and i picked up some new flowers and set everything up while managing to hide the surprise from her and just telling my girlfriend that im visiting her parents just to say hi to everyone. The next day comes and goes and she came home and just didn't mention anything which got me a bit down but i brushed it off. I visited her the very next day which was saturday, I woke up early and had been saving up whatever money i had so i could spend it on taxis to go over to her house everyday while she was home.
When I got there i asked if she got my surprise and she just said yea and she was telling her stepmom how i wrote her the letter and was teasing me, starting to read it out for her stepmom and sister to listen to while I (dying of embarassment) begged her not to. her stepmom ended up telling her that its private and to stop, which she did. Fast forward an hour or so and we are on her couch just watching tiktoks on her phone when she gets a message from #1 and at first she tries to play it off as her not knowing why hes messaging her but the message itself was him asking her how her flight was, nothing big. But I asked her open the chat and when she did that was the only message from him, meaning she had deleted whatever messages before where she wouldve told him shes coming home etc and that bothered me because i had asked her to not talk to him for what i think is a good reason and she told me she would. So her still talking to him behind my back and then hiding the messages really bothered me. I ended up almost heading home for the day but i opted not to since it wasn't anything objectively bad. The next day i went down by her and asked to see if there was anything else she was hiding, turns out there were two other guys; one she told to come over (as a joke apparently) and another we will call Jon (important later). Once again, i brushed it off as nothing too bad objectively and though her stepmom had heard the story and had scolded her when I left the day before, we just moved past it.
March, April, May, was more or less uneventful. I had scrapped together some more money and begged her stepmom to order some lego flowers and send it across to her for me because she wanted them and I just paid her in cash. i was also working for my stepdad to get money for a summer trip for me to go and stay by her and see her. Around may was when she started saying she doesnt know if she wants this or could do it because ldr was hard and I told her i understand and if she wants to end things or try with someone else thats in the US as well id understand but she never wanted to break up, she always opted to stay.
July now, I went up and stayed by her for 4 weeks i think it was and we had to split most costs 50/50 to make what money i had last, and I still had to cut the trip a bit short because I was cutting it really close, but it was no problem. I came back home in august and she came a couple days after and i spent every single day by her. Had a couple of sleepovers too because at that point her parents started letting her sister's boyfriend stay over too so they let me as well and we had a lot of fun. While my girlfriend would normally end up going in her room earlier than us, her sister, sister's boyfriend, stepmom and I would stay up and watch movies and make late night gas station trips to get snacks for the night. At that point i was close to her entire family, aunts, uncles, cousins, grandma, everyone. Her uncle had actually invited me to come over for his kid's gender reveal and it was nice. My girlfriend at that point was always getting mad at me for small things like when i wanted to wear pink but she wanted me to wear blue and she also brought up the fact that the distance is too hard for etc almost every other week. A night or so before the gender reveal party she sat me down and said that i dont make her feel appreciated or anything because i appeal to her gift giving love language etc and I remember i couldnt help but let a couple tears fall. We ended up talking for a bit and her sister saw us talking and she ended up getting in trouble with her stepmom because she wasnt understanding im doing everything I could with the amount of money I had. Since all my money was always spent on commuting to her parents house and I just dropped around 1.5k USD on my trip to go visit her, her stepmom was upset with her for demanding more and wanting to end things over that.
That was when her sister, aunts and uncles started to tell her and her parents they she needs to start to treat me better. At that point she had me running up and the down house trailing behind her while she yelled at me for silly things like wanting to go outside and spend time with her family whilst she wanted to sit inside. I remember she called me a day, angry, because one of her aunts told her stepmom to tell her to treat me better and she told me that everyone thinks im so good nad I just sat there confused.
I spent every cent i had on trying to see her as much as possible. Every night I would stay up an hour later just in case she couldnt sleep and wanted someone to talk to, i wasn't going out with my friends nearly as much and if I did she'd be on a call with me. I wasn't studying and was using that time to talk to her but that was okay because it made her happy and I could afford to sacrifce my work and my sleep for her. There were times i pulled all nighters because she asked me to wake up her up at a specific time and i didnt trust myself to wake up in time so id just stay up to wake her up before taking a power nap before my first class. So september passes and we are in october now, this is where it gets juicier.
She had no friends in the US outside of guys she had history with, them liking her etc but she hadnt spoken to them because the last two she had kept in contact with she didnt enforce boundaries. She also didnt leave her apartment much and Id beg her to go out some more and try to make more friends from class or whatever. Id always get really happy for her whenever she said she was going to the mall but she'd want to stay on a call with me through it all and I always had to ask her to go and enjoy herself and to just be safe and let me know when she was home and that she needed time to herself.
At this point her her family and I are basically family too. Id visit them once a month or so to check in and they'd always get angry with me for not visiting them enough and they'd tease me that I only come over when my gf is there. They were inviting me on family outings everytime and her grandma would always tell me she loves me and to come around more. I went to her brother's birthday party there and stayed on a call with her the whole time so she could be there as well. Like i said, shes on the phone with me 24/7 if Im not in a class.
In october now, she gets distant. There was a day october 22nd, we hung up and i took a nap and I woke up around 2pm and she didnt reply to my previous message. SHe had also wanted me to get life360 some time back so i had it for her. A couple hours passed and she wasnt replying to me nor answering my calls and when i checked life 360 her location was off and wasnt loading, More hours passed and I had already messaged my friend to ask if he heard from her and her sister. Her sister checked her Find My location and that location was off as well and its only aorund 8 or 9pm she finally called me and said she went to wynward by herself and didnt feel like picking up my calls or replying she just needed time and space. I was upset and told her that i understand that but next time just let me know so i dont panic thinking something happened to you. A couple days later she got in trouble with her stepmom for 'stressing me out and disappearing' but i just laughed it off.
Now, A couple days later she started telling me wants me to cut off my friend (the one who introduced us). it was out of the blue because she had been saying shes going to stop being friends with him since he started moving different ever since he started liking this other girl (one of my other friends) but i didnt expect her to want me to cut him out of my life seeing that they were really good friends before and this guy and I were almost like brothers. I told her no and it went on for a couple weeks until he blocked her and she stopped asking and demanded. Now, we had many conversations about our future plans, marriage etc. I had gotten into med school at that point and told her after my 3rd year Id propose and stuff and we had a good future plan set; where we'd immigrate, Id convert to islam for her, a good timeline everything. SO she told me that if i want to be in her life i have to cut him off because she doesnt want him in her life at all.
I told her ill go talk to him about it because she wasnt giving me any reason why she hated him so much all of a sudden and thats when she started backtracking saying nevermind and its ok but i had my mind made up to find out what was going on. So he comes and picks me up and I asked wtf is going on between them. He sighs and tells me that a week before Oct 22nd she had a convo w him where she said she still had feelings for him and wanted him back and wants to leave me. i remember that night because we had another fight where she said I was restricting her from going out or making friends (i literally begged her to make friends and to go out) and that I was manipulative and gaslit her. He had the texts to prove it too so i just called her parents, told them I was breaking up with her and then went home. When I got home i asked her for the real reason she wanted me to cut him off and she didnt want to talk really so i just told her what i knew and broke up with her. She didnt react much but after she called me crying and begging and she booked me a flight to go see her in the US, this was a week before a pretty big exam I had in Med school but I still went.
The whole time I was going to the airport, waiting for my flight, boarding, in the air and during my layover flight in panama (it was cheaper to take a layover in panama) she as begging for me back and the whole works. She picked me up from the airport around 10am and i ended up having her apologise to my friends (the one who introduced us and the girl he like because my girlfriend was always really mean to her for no reason) and we talked, she ended up telling me that she only had that conversation with him because she wanted him and the girl he liked to not get together because she thought she was bad for him. A couple days into my stay there and im studying on her ipad for my exam when i got back and she got a message from imessage that popped up on her ipad.
I had flown out sunday morning around 1am and it was wednesday morning at 2:42 am. I was doing a lecture on cancer cells and she was asleep on the bed next to me. I was almost done when I saw the message. It was from Jon. Curious, i opened it and it was the only message and i saw that she had 342 deleted messages from him and 3 other guys. I opened Jons first and the saturday night when I broke up with her she messaged him, rekindlign a friendsship i guess. Whilst I was on the phone with her sending over my passport information, while i was at the airport, while i was flying over to her she was BEGGING me for another chance and it wont happen again and she was also messaging him. To summarise, she was telling him shes so happy its over, that im a loser and she wanted it to end since January. She said she was giggling and that I never did anything for her and that for valentine's i didnt even get her flowers. She said I was stupid because she did what she did for a good reason (Her triyng to break my friends up) and she was promising him that she won't see me again when she goes back him. She told him that she wanted to get to know him, her bed was big enough for a sleepover, the positions she liked, that she'd throw away the baby if he got her pregnant, that raw felt better and more disgusting things that I wouldnt wish my worst enemy to have to see a girl he love say to another guy while she slept peavefully next to him. To end the convo, he asked for some nudes and she sent some boob pics and he sent dick pics and then she told him dont message her for a week cuz she needs space. The morning I landed he had messaged her and she got upset with him, telling him to give her till monday ( i was leaving sunday evening) and then she'd be his. The two other guys were a lot less horrible, just her from august and october saying she misses them and she cant talk to them that much when im over by her every day (it was while i watched movies with her family). its still bad but it wasnt as bad as Jon.
i stumbled out of her apartment and couldnt walk striaght. i was shaking, vomiting and everything. SHe ended up waking up and calling me asking where i was and i went back and sat down and talked to her, asking if there was anything she was hiding and giving her every chance to tell the truth and she lied to the end until i told her that you can see deleted msgs on imessage. Then we had an arguement until the sun came up and I said some things like shes an easy whore out of anger which i deeply regret. I couldnt just leave so i had to stick it out for the rest of the days which i did nad in the end i caved to her pleas under the condition that she'd get therapy since she said her dad and (real) mom's relationship had fucked her up and her mom specifically really fucked her up. (Doormat, I know). So i go back home and barely pass my exam and while im talking to her and making an effort and shes trying her best with therapy and everything, its eating me alive but i tough it out and after my finals she came home and i spent the entire winter break at her parent's house with her, not leaving a single night because her stepmom had plans for me and her sister's boyfriend up until new years and some days after. I can't lie, it was fun because her family celebrated it really nicely and i never had a christmas like that ever.
Fast forward to february 1st this year and things were looking good. She had just gotten out of a therapy session and she called me and broke up with me saying she needs to heal and she doesnt want to be exclusive because she doesnt want to have to consider my feelings but she (allegedly) wont talk to anyone else and not to beg her or try to change her mind, i just said ok and have a good one. I was shattered, crying in ways i never cried before and the whole works because at that point i had sacrificed even my dignity and pride to stay with her through everything. During the first week she was mainly just playing videogames with another friend of hers (lets call him Ant) and that was mainly it while i was in shambles. She told me that he meant a lot to her as a friend and she cant imagine risking losing him as a friend and I asked her if shes fine with risking me forever and she said she thought about it and yea, shes sure she is.
I visited her parents and cried in her stepmom's arms while telling her everything. When i got back home she found out i told her stepmom what she had done in november and she went off the rails, saying i ruined her life and im an asshole and she wants nothing to do with me and to fuck off and get out her life and whatever. I just told her i get it and i just hope she can change for the next person and she said that she could've changed anytime and just didnt want to and im the only one who got that part of her and no else will have to got through that. I didnt say much but we ended up still talking for some time after and she apologised. She flew me out again and i went and it was ok, i found out that Jon had reached out to her again and she hid it but i didnt even care anymore.
She was in contact with my aunt because over winter she had met my aunt and when i had tol dmy aunt what happened my aunt was pissed but long story short there, my aunt told her to leave me tf alone. She and my sister had a good relationship so shed always tell my sister how much she loves me and wants me and my sister would tell me to give her another chance (i didn't tell her why I broke up with my gf). But every 2 weeks shed explode on me again and just say horrible stuff before apologising again. For example, during ramadan I took a sip of alcohol and went off the rails for that saying im disgusting and more. April 6th now, im starting to warm back up to her because i was crazy for this girl. That night she had told me she'll give me a call after she finishes playing with her cousin and brother and Ant and i said ok and when i checked the time it was 2am and she hadnt called. So i messaged her and asked her about it and she went off saying that she told me she cant give me any effort or attention so why do i keep asking for it and that we aren't in a relationship and she cant do it anymore. I just told her ok, i get it, and something in me just snapped and disappeared.
I didnt talk to her for 2 days and I didnt care, then, my sister called her and told her about this girl i was practicing skills with (It was me, the new girl and a couple other friends) and my ex went batshit on me. But i had given up on her already so I just told her we aren't even friends and shes just a mutual friend (which is true). After a day, she came home again and at that point she was all over me. She had gotten out of therapy and was saying that she wants me back and shes changed and its different and she was just obsessed with me but i didnt buy it. So Eid rolls around and her family invites me over so i go and we spend that time together but im still telling her that no, i dont believe what youre now saying and im done.
The saturday after Eid i go back and me, her stepmom and her have a talk and Im still adamant, telling her i dont want her right now but when she graduates if she's still consistent with that and neither of us are in a relationship then we can try something but shes going on, harping on about her only doing those things because of how i manipulated and gaslit her and the reason behind it is her mother and she went through therapy and stuff but im not buying it. She went back to the US the day after for classes. The monday now she calls me and says she messaged the girl (the one my sister told her about) and I just tell her to leave me alone and she starts up, spouting insults and I had enough and just told her I shouldve listened to her family when they said she was just like her mother (Her entire family used to say that).
She was still saying she wants me and loves me and wants to try again and I was still adamant, telling her that I do still love her because i can't stop just like that after loving her so much for so long, but I stopped seeing a that future with her when she did what she did in november and that I cant forget. I told her to give me time and let me heal from what she caused and we can see again next year because it wont be the same as it was if we get into a relationship right now. Turns out that she was talking to some other guy that looked similar to me for day while she was begging for me but i didnt care. Im studying for finals and shes calling me every 5 minutes and while i answer everytime I keep telling her to let me study and leave me be. Then i tell her she needs to move on and make friends to distract her.
Last wednesday now, she goes out for a the entire night with some dude who had messaged her on Instagram the week before (she told me an hour before she left that he had asked her out and she said no). When she comes home she says she had nothing to do so she went but it was just as friends but hes really nice and he has a nice car and everything. I just told her ok and she said that she still wants me and to give her another chance etc but i stick to what ive been saying. The next day she called me and said the same thing but she said that he asked her out again and shes not going to go because she was coming home the day after and she wants to see me. Of course, she goes out with him. But an hour before he picked her up she called and told me hes just a friend, she does like him, she sees nothing with him and hes nice yea and they have all these plans for when she goes back to the US and they took such cute pics together the night before but hes just a friend. Friday morning she makes a 180, saying shes going to try things with him and hes really nice and she wants to see where things go and shes ready for a pure love. She comes back home and friday night i called her stepmom.
WHen she was home for Eid her stepmom had asked me why im not giving her another chance because look how serious she sounds and shes cutting herself because shes so distraught. I told her that it isnt the 1st, 2nd or 3rd time and everytime she doesnt change. I told her that when she goes back to the US, within a week or two she'll stop completely and find someone else.
So i had called her stepmom to tell her that i was right and my ex called me in the night to tell me i shouldnt have told her parents anything and shes done with me, doesnt love me, told me all the good things about this new guy and that he treats her better in that one week than I ever had and that she thinks hes the one (She used to say that about me up to the day before) and that while hes busy during hte day and isnt active nor really replies to her during the day, she just busies herself so its ok. She ended up blocking me.
One of her cousins messaged me and said that hes all shes talking about and that she showed her a picture of the two of them hugging tightly and asked her if she saw his nice car etc but she already started complaining how theres a bit of a language barrier and that when she messages him on one app about something serious, he just goes to another app and starts another conversation there.
I saw his instagram last night and ended up accidently liking one of his posts and within minutes he had me blocked and she also had me blocked on instagram. I messaged her and asked her to give me a quick call because i just want some closure and she just told me to leave her alone. She wants nothing to do with me, does not and will not think about me now or in the future, she doesnt like nor love me and that its my fault i pushed her away, told her I hate her and that shes just like her mom. i told her i never said i hated her, i only told her i still love her but cant forget what she did and that i dont want to tell her I love oyu because i dont want her thinking everything is fine when its not. She said that im making up my own crazy delusions and to get over it, shes done and doesnt want me at all and shes happy with someone else and to stop bothering her and her family. Her step has bene nothing but supportive of me.
I feel like i didn't deserve what this girl put me through. I gave her so many chances and fixed so much of her. now she's giving someone else whom she met a week ago everything i begged her for. I want her back, trust me when i say i dont. I just miss the person I thought she was.
I didn't deserve any of it.
I know what she says about me and its fine, I loved her more than anything else and everyone saw it. I did everything i could and much more and everything saw it, except her. i want her to regret it a lot, perhaps she is changed for him, but I want there to come a day she has to unblock me to reach out to me, just for the closure that she regrets it. I really really want her to regret not valuing me as much as i valued her. I want her to regret throwing away every chance i gave her to show that she's changed and can finally love me the way I deserved, because i showed her what it was like to be loved without restraint. I just want her to regret it. I didnt deserve a single bit of it at all and its eating me away knowing that I didn't while she laughs with him. I know how she was with me so i know how she is with him and while im at my lowest, unable to sleep at night because i get nightmares of that girl, shes happier than ever. Im not happy for her at all, as a matter of fact, I hate that shes so much happier than me because i Deserved that. I deserved to get the good parts of her and all i got was the worst parts that no one else had to get. She actually admitted that she gave me the worst parts of herself and only me because i was there and she doesnt know why she did it really. I didnt deserve what I got, I deserved the pure love.
Sometimes you love the wrong people, doesnt mean you have to change the way you love. Sorry for the storybook and word vomit. If theres anyone who actually read the whole thing, i appreciate it. Just needed to get it off my chest really. Stay safe out there people.

US Citizen (with reoccurring income that I can use for retirement visa in most countries) Married to a Cambodian woman with 2 Cambidian children (9 and 12) I want to come closer to the US and US timezone because of my children and my work. Plan to be in the next location 2-3 years while I finish a degree and we get Visa to bring entire family to the US
Ease of entry and getting long term visa is important. I must have a resident visa for her otherwise we will have to return to Cambodia for VISA interviews etc. We would like to avoid that.
I need outdoor life, parks, something. I am a country boy. Right now in Phnom Penh I am very unhappy. there are no parks, and you have to travel quite a way to get to hiking or beaches. They dont even just have parks to go walk around to speak of. Its just a concrete jungle. I really love the Caribbeans type green and blue clear water. BUT. I am not a drinker and do not need the party scene. I do not have to live ON the beach....anywhere within a couple of hours would be perfect.
We live pretty simple. we currenlty eat very little "western food". We almost never eat out. Lots of mat, fruit and veggies we buy from roadside or markets, and probably less than 10% of what we eat comes from a supermarket. I DO need at least one room with AC or live at elevation we dont need AC. and I also need a hot water shower. Also need internet. Other than that, I do NOT need a resort living, or gated community or luxury etc. The total budget to live on is maybe around $2, 000-3,000 a month.
Ecuador was first choice, but 2 more mayors executed recently...the distance to get from Cuenca to the beach is more than an easy weekend trip...coastal areas are much less safe....power issues...are making me rethink this
Dominican Republic is my 2nd choice, but the Visa process is very cumbersome and time consuming. Still might be the answer, but looking to see if I am missing something easiebetter.
Colombia is out because they do not recognize my step children as my dependents for a visa. Need to qualify the whole family with my VA income.
Mexico is out because although you can live cheap there....the income for the resident visa is crazy high (like 6k to qualify per month)
Belize....my main worry is how limited the expat safe areas are...I dont know how hard to get visa
Costa Rica.....is cost of living getting too far out of hand?
Panama....Bocas is the only real "Carribean" area to live. and last time I was there just had way to much party vibe. I dont know about the Pacific coastal or highland areas.
El Salvador and Nicaragua both seem to be way to expensive vs the quality of life elsewhere. Am I wrong about this? Some places show El Salvador cost closing in on Costa Rica without the benefits Costa Rica has
Roatan maybe,,,,,I feel like it might have similar party vibe as Bocas in Panama. Can you really raise a family there anymore? is it still affordable?
Puerto Rico....again...I feel like its getting SOOO expensive (that is just from youtube though)
Where else should I be looking? What am I missing? OR do I just need to go to the DR even if that means 6-10 more months here first?
I am just curious what you guys think