A trip (without arguments) that sealed the deal

"Everyone says it's still a big test," Allison Cai said of her first international vacation with Kurt Galbraith. The two were part of the same social circle, but didn't start dating until months after they met.

Allison Cai and Kurt William Galbraith were both part of 'a large group of friends who often dated, although they never really connected.

Ms. Cai recalls having a conversation with Mr. Galbraith in August 2017, thinking he was a friend's cousin. He was not. It was a moment Mr. Galbraith vaguely remembers. What he remembers is teaching Ms. Cai to play "Chinese poker" in Jersey Shore on Labor Day weekend.

In May 2018, Mr. Galbraith finally asked Ms. Cai out on a date. "As someone who historically takes things very slowly and doesn't take risks, I did some personal reflection and realized it was worth taking a risk," Mr Galbraith said. . "I knew if I didn't, she'd slip away and I'd regret it."

They went for drinks at Brazen Fox and Veselka, a Ukrainian restaurant, for dinner, both in Manhattan and then at the cinema. Ms. Cai calls it "modern dating via old school meeting", a kind of organic relationship.

"But when you meet someone through friends and it's not a set goal, a first date seems much more serious,” she said.

Allison Cai , 28, born in Hackensack, N.J., moved to the Beijing home of her grandparents, Wang Zhihan and Yang Mingyi, at 18 months. At 4, she moved back to New Jersey. "My parents wanted me to know my aging grandparents and my culture and learn Chinese first-hand," Ms. Cai said.

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She has a bachelor's degree in economics from N.Y.U. and works as a global marketing manager at Manhattan-based Revlon.

< p class="css-at9mc1 evys1bk0">Kurt Will iam Galbraith, 28, is from Warwick, N.Y. He is a partner at Morgan Stanley, having earned a bachelor's degree in finance from the University of Delaware.

ImageCredit...Allen Tsai Photography

In the fall of 2019, Ms. Cai knew she wanted to marry M Galbraith after making their first international trip without arguing. "Everyone says it's still a big test," she said. "We flew to Nice, France, took a train to Milan and then flew to Munich for Octoberfest," Mr Galbraith said. Cai when they decided to take a road trip in February 2020, picking up an RV in Las Vegas and then stopping to hike in a number of places including Zion National Park, Bryce Canyon National Park, Antelope Canyon and the Grand Canyon.

It was that same van trip that made their love clear to Mr. Galbraith. "By living in a van for a week, you get to know someone well," he said. "But it wasn't like a specific moment. It was just a lot of things combined."

When the pandemic hit, the two decided to get together. quarantining together in Ms. Cai's apartment in Manhattan. After a month, however, when the two realized the severity of Covid, they moved in with Ms. Cai's parents in Saddle River, N.J., where they stayed for four months before moving back to Ms. Cai's apartment in July. .

On June 27, 2021, when the Manhattan couple were back with Ms. Cai's parents, this time to babysit, Mr. Galbraith proposed. It was a lazy, idle Sunday, just as they both would have liked.

The couple got married on December 10, which was also.. .