By Giulissa Hernandez 
Vacation romances move fast. Apparently, internet investigations move even faster. One tourist says she had barely spent a day in Belize before a spontaneous boat trip had her praising “foreign men.” The clip was meant to show a sweet gesture where a Belizean man catches fish by hand for a tourist. But instead of marveling at his bountiful harvest from the sea, TikTok became fixated on a single accessory. He had a ring on his left hand. Despite the creator insisting that it was “just a ring he likes,” commenters have appointed themselves the internet’s unofficial marriage detectives. Now they’re telling her to run.
Nicole Koster (@solowithnicole) appoints herself as the “backpacking barbie.” She’s traveled to countless different countries but her most popular video is from her visit in Belize. The clip has over 5.5 million viewers and almost 2,000 comments. In it, her text overlay reads: “foreign men>>>…day one in belize and this man was appalled that no man had ever caught a fish by hand for me before…he fixed that.”
The clip then shows said man hopping back onto the boat with his catch of the day. Nicole videos his haul as he unclips them from his belt. He first throws five fish on the floor of the boat and then pulls out a small octopus from his pants pocket. He holds it up to the camera and smiles. In her caption, Nicole clarifies that it wasn’t a tour. Apparently, they had met on the beach and “got along really well.” As for the ring evidently seen on his left ring finger? Nicole shares, “That was the first thing I asked but that’s literally just a ring he likes.”
Also known more casually as flings, this type of romance is all too familiar for a tourist destination like Belize. You’ll hear all kinds of stories from backpackers. Whether they meet at a hostel, a tour, or at a bar, nothing can hold back tourists and locals from falling in love. However, why are they so common? Is there a reason Nicole was swept off her feet the very first day in Belize?
Author Pearl Howie spoke to Anna Richards from Suitcase about this very phenomenon. “…When we’re already feeling alive, joyful, excited, as we often are on holiday,” she says, “we’ve already overcome a lot of the fear that holds us back from connecting or falling in love.” It may not be the case for everyone, but love does flow easily when there aren’t any usual constraints like work and other responsibilities.
Unfortunately, many viewers try to burst Nicole’s romantic bubble. A comment with over 109,000 likes says, “Oh baby he’s married.”
A second viewer simply posts a zoomed-in screenshot of the clip, specifically his left hand. Nicole replies with what she mentioned in her caption, that it’s just a ring he likes. To this, a viewer sarcastically says, “‘that’s just a ring he likes” on that specific finger too ahaha…you got it girl.”
Naturally, many viewers are begging her to run from this whirlwind romance. A comment with over 5,000 likes says, “As a Belizean woman baby protect your peace.”
Another viewer states, “Him telling you he’s not married don’t mean sh-t…nobody is more single than a married man.” Nicole replies, “I learned this the hard way.” It is unclear whether she meant this for the Belizean man or a past experience.
We have reached out to Nicole via TikTok comment.
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