Dating on the Goldy

By Ashleigh Hobson.

That headline alone is terrifying, and let’s be honest, the Gold Coast is a transient holiday destination at best, but what about the minority of people who are still looking, and are somewhat hopeful regarding the dating scene.

From what I can tell from this new single world, a lot of people are relying on dating apps, such as tinder to find love, but all I found was an endless amount of cheesy pickup lines, eggplant emojis and disturbing photos, which could have been used on Embarrassing Bodies: Gold Coast.

From one single gal to the next, I’m going to let you in on some of the terrible dates I’ve been encouraged to go on by my friends after a few wines… and then again, maybe some of the best.

The ‘Come to my house and I’ll cook you dinner’ date

At first glance, this date can be a little misleading. He wants to actually put in the effort and cook me dinner, he can’t be that bad… wrong. These guys are the ones who have either grown up with a very nurturing Mother or sisters. He knows that in this day and age there needs to be a little more effort put in to get him across the line, and he’s willing to learn one, maybe two recipes which he can confidentially create to make you believe he is a seasoned home cook.

But don’t be fooled, just like the original ‘come over and watch a movie’ line, guys know all too well that if you get a girl home, the chances to actually make a move on her increases to 100%* (totally made up statistic right there). Sure, it’s thoughtful that he boiled pasta in a pot and added a can of red sauce, but he is still only trying to get you alone in an intimate setting and one he is obviously comfortable in. Plus we all know that cooking at home is cheaper then eating out.

The ‘Let’s grab a couple of drinks and head up to Burleigh Hill’ date

Now, I can’t fault this one too much. He’s getting out of the house, tick. He’s making the effort to get you both into an environment that you can be comfortable in, tick. And he’s obviously confident to do it in a surrounding where he only really has his personality to win you over, tick! So off you go in your trendiest new outfit to meet a complete stranger at the Burleigh headland on a Sunday afternoon. It’s a beautiful day, the sun is shining, the birds are singing and when you get there, you are pleasantly surprised that his pictures weren’t completely misleading! But just as you make eye contact, you start to look around and you see not one, two but twenty other people you know!

How did you forget in this moment of hopefulness that Burleigh Point is going to be crawling with half of your Facebook friends list, from mates to co-workers to that guy you hooked up with on Cavill Ave at 2am. Do you know how hard it is to be completely into a first date when every second person you see you are hoping that they don’t come over and have to do the awkward “This is my ‘friend’, Ben..” conversation.

The ‘Lets grab some dinner and drinks’ date

Don’t get me wrong, this is the most typical and some may say ‘cheesy’ date, but just like flared pants and high wasted jeans came back, so too did this old classic! This was always the date that I did my best to avoid, as I was certain it was the lazy date that took no effort to think of, but I was wrong! You can tell a lot about a guy by where he chooses to ask you to dinner, from how much effort he is willing to put in, to seeing if he listened when you said that Mexican was your favourite cuisine. Not just that, but let’s be honest, there is nothing more daunting then heading to a restaurant with someone you don’t really know, and understanding that you are walking into 1-2 hours of possibly awkward conversation.

But here’s where the typical dinner date is (in my opinion) the best. It’s an environment where there is a still a lot of background activity, so the odd moments of silence aren’t too overwhelming, especially when you get your food and you’re trying to make it look like you went to etiquette school whilst you eat. You can also enjoy a couple of drinks, and we all know that taking the edge off before/during a date is by far your best option. And last but not least, it is a typical date. You both know you’re going into this with every possibility you will never talk to them again, but you’re both willing to get dressed up, enjoy some food and hopefully make some sort of connection.

The list of dates goes on and on, but those are my three experiences of some of the best and worst. And just like those high wasted jeans, the next time someone whips them out and asks you to try them on, maybe don’t turn your nose up at them too quickly, because we all know that the classics never go out of style.