'So … how did you two meet?': 7 charming love stories from women in Singapore on how they met their husbands

“How did the two of you meet?” It’s a question couples get asked often – by friends, family, and curious aunties at festive gatherings. 

From being rescued during a hike at Gunung Ledang in Malaysia to finding love through a newspaper, these women reveal to CNA Women how they met their life partners.  

As told to Izza Haziqah. 

HE SAVED ME FROM FALLING OFF A MOUNTAIN 

Siti Nurul’ain Hamdan, 35, financial consultant

In 2011, I was part of a youth leadership programme at Perdaus, an Islamic educational organisation. 

That year, our batch went on a training excursion to Gunung Ledang, a mountain in Johor, Malaysia.

The hike included climbing up a mountain using a rope. When we reached this part, my group mates and I were exhausted from a long day of hiking. Everyone else was injured so they went ahead first and I took the initiative to carry the big bag of food and water rations for our group. 

It wasn’t my first hike, but I felt emotionally, mentally and physically drained. The height made me nervous but I told myself to just get it over and done with.

After I made sure that everyone had reached the top, I started my climb but the combination of the weight I was carrying and my exhaustion led me to lose my footing. Before I knew it, my legs got tangled up with the rope and I wasn’t able to climb further.

From my awkward position, I couldn’t see clearly. I remember looking down and wanting to throw up. I panicked and my breathing picked up. I was praying so hard and desperately trying to calm down. I barely had the strength to right my body and worse, I was all alone.  

I was about to scream for help when suddenly, I heard someone to my right shouting my name. “Ain! Look at me!”

I turned and saw a guy I didn’t recognise on a rope. 

“Swing your backpack towards me and I’ll swing my rope to you. Come here, I’ll help you!” 

So I did as he instructed – and I was safe. 

Everything after that was a blur. I was so relieved to be back with my group and safe. I was probably in tears. 

I only remember seeing the guy again the next day when we happened to be wearing the same camp shirt. That’s when we introduced ourselves, and I thanked him for literally saving my life.

It turned out he was my classmate in the same programme at Perdaus, though I barely knew him since I kept to myself. 

Later when we got to know each other better, he told me he had always been interested in me and had been observing me from afar in class. But he was too shy to approach me, so he thanked God for my slip during the hike, because it opened up a way for him to get to know me better. 

After the hike, we grew closer as friends. To find ways to talk to me, he kept reaching out to me to figure out how to get to certain places in Singapore and I enjoyed chatting with him. It seemed like there was always something to share between the two of us. 

As time passed, I grew fonder of him. One thing led to another and, a few years after he saved my life, we got married in 2014. 

I NEARLY MISSED THE DIVING TRIP WE MET AT  

Xingyan Chen, 37, human resources director

When I was 25, my friend and I signed up for a diving course in Pulau Aur, off the east coast of Malaysia. A few weeks before the trip, however, my friend backed out. This made me hesitant to go as I’d never been overseas alone. My parents were concerned, too. 

But because I was interested in diving, I went ahead. I convinced my parents to let me go and decided to see the whole situation as a potential adventure.

On the first day, during the pool practice session, the diving company made a small mistake and packed one less diving regulator set. I was also late and was the last person to arrive for the session, which meant I was the one without a regulator.

One of the instructors was annoyed at both my tardiness and the insufficient equipment. However, he gave me his own regulator without hesitation so I could proceed with the class. 

I respected his quick thinking and professionalism. I also admired how he wanted to make sure every customer had a smooth experience, even if it meant sacrificing his comfort while teaching. I later found out that I was the first customer to whom he gave his regulator set.

During the trip, I ended up befriending two other divers and also chatted a lot with this instructor. We bonded easily. 

We kept in touch after and the four of us would meet to cycle or have meals together. I also found out that during our diving trip, he had some mobility issues and nearly missed the trip, too – but something told him to just go ahead. 

He suggested meeting one-on-one for dinner, and as time passed, we found a deeper connection through conversations and a common love for adventures and exploring places through travel and diving. Eventually, we became a couple.

In 2019, we went on a trip to Pulau Tioman, an island in Malaysia near Pulau Aur, where we first met. While diving, to honour the way we met, he took out a ring and proposed underwater. Of course, I said yes  – and we got married that same year.

WE CROSSED PATHS ON AN 890KM TRAIL  

Michelle Lee, 30, healthcare marketer

I was first introduced to the Camino Frances, a Catholic pilgrimage trail from France to Spain, by my mum. Together, we did a 200km-long portion of the French section in 2015.

In 2022, I had just quit my job and wanted to return to France to walk the entire trail, which is about 890km long.

I planned everything myself and went alone. Hiking 890km – which involved daily walks lasting four to six hours – across various cities and hilly regions for about five weeks as a solo female was one of the scariest things I ever did. But I went ahead, believing that life was bigger than our fears. 

On the second day of my hike, I crossed paths with a man from Washington, United States. It was his first day on the trail and we were bunkmates in a room with a few other strangers at a hostel. 

I remember saying “hi” to him first after getting some supplies at a local mart and seeing him resting on the bed above mine. 

After chatting for a while, he asked me if I’d like to have dinner with him, and I said yes. 

After that evening, we went our separate ways. About a week later, however, he and I bumped into each other again in Estrella, a charming little town in Spain. I felt very at ease with him, so even though we both started the walk alone, we decided to walk the rest of the Camino together. 

Even though he wasn’t Catholic when he did the Camino, he attended mass with me at every stop. He was interested in knowing more about the faith which was very important to me, a cradle Catholic.

It was also easy to converse with him and I was intrigued by his lifestyle. He too had just quit his job and had been a digital nomad, living in US cities like New York, Alaska and Hawaii.

By the time we reached Santiago de Compostela, the city in Spain where the pilgrimage trail ends, we had walked for over three weeks together. We spent every waking hour together, walking and chatting. 

It was there that I felt perhaps we could be something more. However, I was aware that we are from different ends of the earth with different cultures – he’s American and I’m Singaporean. Building a life together would not be easy. 

It also occurred to me that we might be on a “Camino high” and this could be a summer love kind of situation. So, we decided to part – he continued his travels in Europe and Africa while I went home to Singapore.

Two months later, we decided to meet again in a Bedouin camp in Jordan. It felt like nothing had changed. We still had strong feelings for each other so we decided to become a couple. 

A year after that, he proposed to me at Roy’s Peak in Wanaka, New Zealand. In a remarkable coincidence, the stranger who helped us capture the moment on camera was from Estrella, the Spanish town where we had decided to walk the rest of the Camino together. We got married in May 2024. Soon, we'll move to the same country to continue building our life together.

AN ACCIDENTAL DATA TRANSFER LED HIM TO ME

Tanty Wahyuni Idrus, 50, art educator 

In 2003, I received an SMS from a guy whose name and number I didn’t recognise. 

The message said, in Malay: “I wish you a blessed fasting month of Ramadan.”

I was so confused, but I replied: “Who are you? Where did you get my number?” 

It turned out that he got my number through an accidental infrared transfer. Before there was bluetooth, infrared transfers between handphones were the in thing. 

He and his friends were trying it out and one of them, who was my friend, accidentally sent him my number. It was so random. 

After I found out, I thought our conversation would end there, but we continued to text each other. I enjoyed chatting with him. Around him, I felt safe and open.

Just a week after the first SMS, he asked if we could meet and break our fast together. I jokingly told him that if he wanted to share a meal with me, he’d have to meet my mum first. 

I thought he’d laugh it off but to my surprise, he asked for my address. That evening, he drove over, met my mum, and we all broke our fast at a restaurant. 

I had my doubts about starting a relationship with a guy I had met so randomly, but I liked the way he carried himself – he was respectful to others, really kind and polite. I also admired his aspirations for the future. 

A few months after we met, we were out together and passing by a jewellery shop, when he suddenly pointed to a pair of wedding bands and casually asked me, “If I bought one ring for me, would you wear the other?” 

I was so taken aback, but that was also when I said yes because I don’t think I ever felt so sure. We got married and now, 22 years and three kids later, we’re still just as happy and comfortable together as when we first met.

A SURPRISE VISIT FROM 10,000KM AWAY 

Tricia Rianne Teixeira, 27, community experience officer

I wasn’t looking for a serious relationship when I was on the dating app Bumble’s travel mode, a premium feature on the dating app that lets you appear in a different city instead of where you live, back in 2023.

It was a mix of being a little lost in life, struggling with some personal issues, and feeling bored, but mostly, I was just curious. 

I wouldn’t call myself well-travelled as Malaysia and Indonesia were the only places I had been to, but travelling to other parts of the world was a dream of mine. So I figured, maybe I could start by getting to know someone from another city. 

I set my location to the major cities I was fascinated by, like New York in the US and Sydney, Australia, and was curious to see what kind of guys were out there. 

One of the guys I matched with was Victor, from London. Our conversations weren’t always smooth. The time difference made things tricky, and we didn’t talk every day. But he kept checking in, he seemed empathetic and genuine, and he remembered little details about what I told him.

Two months after our first chat, he sent me a message that shocked me to my core: “Surprise!” Along with a picture of his flight tickets to Singapore.

I thought it was a love scam. Who flies across the world for someone they barely know? I kept telling myself to lower my expectations. “Photoshop is a thing, Tricia – he could easily edit some tickets to make it look real.”

My parents were just as suspicious: “Don’t believe anything until you see him in person,” they said. “Make sure you check his passport.”

When he arrived in Singapore, I was still in disbelief.  But when we finally met, it wasn’t as nerve-wracking as I thought it would be. There were no awkward silences, no discomfort, just two shy people figuring each other out.

Less than a year after we matched, we decided to tie the knot in April 2024. Some people may think it’s crazy. Maybe it is a little insane – I met him online, his home is 10,000km away, and we’ve known each other for less than a year.

But despite the differences and challenges (moving from Singapore to London can be a logistical nightmare), Victor makes it all worth it.

HE IMPRESSED MY MUM ON OUR GROUP TOUR  

Nurin Nazurah Saifudin, 26, public service researcher

The second time I went to Turkey with my family, I was 20, in my second year of university, and it had been a tiring year at school. I was really looking forward to the trip.

We joined a package tour, and there were a few other families on the trip. True to my introverted nature, I kept mostly to myself, enjoying the sights rather than socialising.

My mum, however, befriended many of the other travellers and took a particular interest in one guy. 

She told me he seemed smart, mature and level-headed. On the bus in between stops, she noticed him reading a book rather than scrolling through his phone. She also found out he was the eldest son of three kids. Bells were ringing in her head that this guy was a catch.

She kept talking to me about him throughout the two-week trip, but it mostly fell on deaf ears because I was too immersed in my vacation – all I wanted to do was to take in the Turkish landscape and food. Still, I couldn’t help but feel a little curious.

We only had a few cursory conversations during the trip, and I didn’t interact much with his family. But from those moments, I remember thinking he was approachable and had a good head on his shoulders.

A year later, in December 2020, our first proper conversation happened at a gathering with the same travel group. It felt like a second chance to get to know each other. 

We ended up talking about everything – politics, work, even halal food options on my university campus. He was easy to talk to and a great listener. I felt like we were on the same wavelength.

But the thing is, we forgot to exchange contact details.

After the gathering, I couldn’t stop thinking about him. Finding him on Instagram was easy – his full name was right there. But my account was a ‘finsta’ (a private Instagram only for close friends). My profile photo was a meme of Cinderella, and following him would mean exposing my real identity and putting myself out there for a guy. I wasn’t sure if it was worth it.

Weeks of debating with my friends later, I decided to just do it. I changed my profile photo to a picture of myself in Turkey and followed him. He recognised me instantly, followed me back, and shortly after, he posted a throwback photo to the Turkey trip. (I later found out it was his way of getting me to initiate a conversation.)

After chatting more, despite being in different stages in life – I was still in school and he had already spent a few years in the workforce – we grew closer and it was clear that we liked each other. 

A year after that group gathering, we got engaged, and in 2022, three years after our families crossed paths in Turkey, we celebrated that meeting by getting married. 

THEIR LOVE STORY STARTED IN A NEWSPAPER

Lim Gaik Im, 89. As told by her granddaughter, Joyee Koo. 

In the 1950s, people interested in finding pen pals would put their names and addresses in newspapers or magazines. 

One of these people was my grandmother, who lived in Ipoh, Malaysia. In the late 1950s, she submitted her name and address to a magazine. 

At the same time, my grandfather, who lived in Singapore, did the same – although while he shared his address, he didn’t use his real name because he wasn’t sure of who he’d meet.

But when he saw Grandma’s name and photo, he knew he wanted to write to her. She replied, and they wrote to each other for a year before deciding to meet in Singapore when Grandma came here to advertise a programme for the company she worked for. 

Grandpa still remembers the first time they met. He was waiting downstairs at her hotel, feeling both excited and happy. She looked exactly like she did in the photos, he told me. 

For their first date, they went to the beach and had satay. He said there were many other couples at the beach too, so the whole place had a romantic setting. Sitting by the beach was their favourite kind of date. 

After meeting that day in Singapore, they continued corresponding and always wrote all sorts of “lovey-dovey” letters. 

A few years afterwards, Grandma, who was in her early twenties, decided to take a leap and live with Grandpa and his family in Singapore. 

When they knew they wanted to spend the rest of their lives together, in 1966, they travelled to Ipoh to get married. Grandpa said it was to make things easier for her family to attend the wedding ceremony.

They settled in Singapore and built their life and family here. They opened a zi char stall together, as they both enjoyed cooking. They also had three children: Two sons and one daughter, who unfortunately passed away when she was a teenager. My dad is the oldest son. 

Today, they still live together with a helper. Grandma suffered a stroke a few years back and is in a vegetative state. Before the stroke, my grandparents enjoyed singing karaoke, playing mahjong and tending to their flowers together. Grandma used to be in a singing group and they both loved music.

Grandpa doesn’t leave the house and spends his days sitting beside her, holding her hand, and playing her favourite Chinese songs.