A French expat was left devastated and ‘extremely discouraged’ after being stopped by an Australian man on a first date.
Chloe Vick was excited to start dating again and had been talking to a new guy on Bumble for two weeks before a date was set for March 23.
But the 29-year-old had to wait alone in a bar for 45 minutes before realizing her date was second to none, despite her saying he would come.
Speaking to FEMAIL, Chloe said she has lived in Brisbane for two years and was shocked by the dating scene Down Under compared to back home.
She has been single for six years and decided to start dating again after the death of her father a few months ago.
Chloe Vick, 29, waited alone in a bar for 45 minutes before realizing her date left her
The expat from France has lived in Brisbane for the past two years and is now traveling in Bali. She was shocked by how ‘normal’ it is for Australian men to ghost women
“The fact that I gathered my courage and hope… and then this happened felt like a slap in the face,” Chloe said.
This kind of behavior is something Chloe is not used to as it ‘never happens’ in France.
While she doesn’t want to generalize, she has found ghosting to be “the norm” in her experience dating Australian men.
“They often go from hot to cold and are bailed without any explanation, leaving you feeling like you did or said something wrong, that you wasted your time or that they found what they thought was a better option.” , she said.
“Either way, it’s very cruel when communication simply stops.”
Chloe added that standing up has dampened her confidence in dating.
“If the person you’re hoping to date isn’t the least bit curious about getting to know you or making plans and not bailing, then what’s the point?” she said.
“I also feel like it’s made me a harder person because it makes me expect the worst from every person I try to date.”
This kind of behavior is something Chloe is not used to and ‘never happens’ in France
“The fact that I gathered my courage and hope… and then this happened felt like a slap in the face,” Chloe said.
After returning home from the date, she decided to vent her frustrations by recording a video that was later posted to TikTok.
“So I just got up and I really need to know if this is just an Australian thing that I’m missing,” she said in the clip.
‘I’m from France and I’ve never been scammed or ghosted, this isn’t really what guys do there.
‘But for some reason it is really normal here not to show up for appointments and to treat people badly. I need to know, am I missing something? It’s wild to me. Who is raising these men?’
The video has since been viewed more than 29,000 times, with other women agreeing that Australian dating culture is ‘horrible’.
‘Welcome to Australia. Ghost town culture girl,” one woman wrote.
“Unfortunately, the low-effort lifestyle has also translated to the dating scene in Australia,” said another.
Someone else said: ‘Yes, that’s normal. I’m the hottest I’ve ever been and I’ve stopped dating.’