This Man Waited 10 Days For His Internet Girlfriend To Arrive At An Airport In China

The course of true love ne’er did run smooth. That sentiment can ring especially true when the internet is involved. A Dutch man found that out the hard way when he ended up waiting 10 days in a Chinese airport for his online girlfriend, who never showed up. Alexander Pieter Cirk, 41, flew from Holland to China to visit a woman he had met on a dating app, according to the BBC. But when he arrived at Changsha Airport, there was no one there to greet him. Cirk waited at the airport for a full 10 days, until authorities took him to the hospital to be treated for physical exhaustion. Dutch authorities confirmed to NBC News that Cirk had been hospitalized over the weekend, but declined to say what he had been treated for. The woman, who the BBC identifies only as Zhang, told Chinese media that Cirk had sent her a photo of airline tickets, but hadn’t explained what he was doing, so she thought it was a joke. Shanghaiist reports that the two had also previously agreed to wait a year before meeting in person, adding to the confusion. Unaware that Cirk was waiting for her at the airport, Zhang continued on with plans to travel out of town for surgery, and only learned about the story after the fact. Cirk’s story, accompanied by photos of him waiting in the airport, circulated on Chinese social media. The reactions were mixed: Some were sympathetic to a man patiently waiting for a woman. Others were less so. “He must be stupid; why would anyone do this?” one comment translated by the BBC reads. But for the lovestruck Cirk, hope remains. Zhang reportedly told Hunan TV that she wanted to continue the relationship, and would be interested in meeting him in the future. Hopefully, the second time will be the charm.