Eva and Shane have been together for seven years and married for six of them. Eva is Chilean and Shane is Irish.
Tell us a bit about how it all started. When did you think, this is it for me?
Eva: I came to Europe seven years ago to travel on my own for three months. I went to Temple Bar to have a few pints and listen to live music. I saw Shane when I was approaching the live band, and I thought he was the most attractive man I’ve ever seen. I kept having my drink near him, thinking that maybe if I was lucky he would approach me and talk to me. That is what finally happened! He completely blew my mind, but I never thought he would become my husband or that my life was going to change so much. After he followed me on my trip to Barcelona and went to Chile to meet my family and friends I thought, ‘This is the man. I have to give this a chance!’
Shane: We met in Temple bar, and I thought Evi was very beautiful, so we chatted and went on a few dates. I decided to follow her to Barcelona on her adventurous trip around Europe. It was when we were in the middle of Las Ramblas watching street entertainers, I remember Evi was laughing so hard she could not control it that was the moment I fell in love with her.
What cultural differences do you think actually help your relationship to grow and
stay healthy?
E: We both had different ideas of how relationships worked. In Chile couples are always together but in Ireland couples tend to go out in groups and separately. We have combined the two ideas so what we can go out with friends or in groups but also organising dates just for the two of us to share both ideas. We always try to take the good sides of each culture to make it one.
Are there any cultural traits or customs that you had to compromise on?
E: Definitely! I was very used to eating at the dining table and having long conversations for hours. Shane prefers to eat at a small table and watch a movie without talking! I ended up agreeing with that. Another one is that the Irish sense of humour is entirely different to the Chilean one. Irish humour is very sarcastic and forward, so at the start I got really offended at these jokes. I then decided to use it to my advantage and be more honest than ever and enjoy that nobody gets angry about taking the piss out of each other.
S: Chileans have a strange tradition when it comes to birthdays. Whoever’s birthday it is gets their head pushed into the cake. So although Evi has got me to push her head into her birthday cakes a few times, I try to avoid this for my birthdays!
As a couple from different cultures, is your approach to your relationship any different from the relationship of two people from the same country?
S: The most important thing is the love between a couple. As a mixed couple, we think we are very lucky as we have learnt two different cultures and taken the best of each. We had difficult times in the beginning. Communication and misinterpreting caused problems. However, with time and patience we learnt that regardless of any issues, we loved each other. You focus on this and the rest just becomes easier.
