Relationship - Romanian/Brazilian

Hi everyone! I’m curious to hear some Romanian perspectives about relationships and cultural differences.

I’m Brazilian and I’ve been dating a Romanian guy for a while. We both live in Ireland. We’re both men and not openly out publicly, although my mother and a few close friends know.

We met through sports early last year and started casually hanging out (usually having a beer after games). Around September I realized he had romantic interest in me, and since then we’ve been building something really nice together.

He treats me extremely well, very caring, attentive, and present. We travel together and already have more trips planned. He includes me in future plans and shows affection a lot through actions.

At first he seemed emotionally quite reserved, which surprised me a bit. But over time he opened up more and now feels much more expressive with me. The feelings are clearly mutual and I really love him. We are not in a opened relationship.

One thing I’m curious about culturally: in Brazil relationships are often very affectionate and couple-oriented (not a rule, of course). He, on the other hand, enjoys traveling with friends and meeting new people. Sometimes those friendships seem a bit superficial to me, more like networking or travel friendships.

Of course, we also both live abroad in Ireland, so I understand that making friends can be different when you’re far from home.

So I’m curious:

• Are Romanian men usually more reserved emotionally at first?
• Is traveling with friends and making casual friendships common?
• How do Romanian couples usually balance independence and time together?
• Is it common to not kiss? We have not kissed yet...

For context, I’ve also visited Bucharest with him and really liked Romania (especially the food and how friendly people were!!!).

Thanks in advance for any perspectives!