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We are dating again - despite Corona. But how does tying up with distance rules work? We asked "Slow Dating Vienna". They organize get-to-know events for singles.
A table with disinfectant and dozens of picture frames. On it to be seen: Possible coronaconforma greetings. For example "Wai". You put your hands crossed on your chest - that's how they say "Hello" in Thailand. In India you put your palms together in front of your body, bend your head - "Namaste". break. Works so much. Organizer Helena describes the mood at the beginning of the event: "All in all, the warm-up phase seems a little longer and the first contact a little more cramped than before the pandemic. You can tell that people play it safe and prefer to keep more distance than too little. However, it is also very funny for me to watch how the distances get smaller in the course of the event."
Together with Till, Helena founded the agency "Slow Dating Events Vienna" in 2018. Their goal: to connect people with one another - apart from flirting apps like Tinder, Bumble and Co. That always happens in a somewhat unusual way with the organizers. it is communicated through facial expressions, gestures and lots of eye contact. Or getting to know each other happens, for example, as part of a puzzle rally.
The corona lockdowns then forced Helena and Till to jump on the online track. They kept their creative approach. At "Date & Mate", for example, it was not the singles who got to know each other, but their friends, who then decided between a match and a non-match.
Dating with challenges
Now the events are taking place in real life again. Albeit with a few obstacles. Once your hands are disinfected and the others are greeted, it's time to find a topic of conversation. "Due to Corona, there is less opportunity to tell what you have done, since for most people that has been reduced to a few things for a long time," says Helena. Where would we be at silent dating again? "Not at all. Instead of spending a long time with small talk, most of them quickly came up with something really personal." This may also be due to the longing for a close, intimate connection, which has increased during the pandemic - in any case, the organizers have observed it. And the dating platform "Parship" has also found out in a study that around 35 percent of single people have an increased desire for a permanent partnership. Is the time for superficial and quick sex over?
Is the time for superficial and quick sex over? "I think in many cases intimacy is and has been mistaken for sex. Corona has shown that it is above all intimacy that we miss," said Helena, "People are afraid of being alone in the event of another lockdown. We have the impression that clarifying discussions have accelerated. What kind of relationship is being sought is discussed more quickly than before. We also noticed that our feedback questionnaires showed a slight increase in the selection point 'I'm looking for someone for a long-term relationship'. " But she does not see the end of the one night stand: "Even if a survey by the dating app 'Plenty Of Fish' predicts exactly that, namely 51 percent of those surveyed think that one-time sex is a thing of the past, I think that this thinking again goes back as soon as Corona no longer rules our lives."
Escorted Flirting: The Success Rate
But back to the coupling evening: How many did it work at the end of the event? "We had 16 guests. There were a lot of matches that will hopefully lead to more. We only found out a few days ago about a couple who met at one of our events and are now expecting a baby."
