We first met in April 2020 at F45 in Shanghai, where Ben was coaching and Caroline was one of his regulars (although it took her many sessions to actually remember his name, a fact he still won’t let her forget!). A few weeks later, we realized we lived in the same apartment compound in Jing’an, just a few buildings apart. It really had to work out, otherwise things could have been pretty awkward! After our first date, Caroline casually suggested a 4:30am run and training session the next morning, and to her surprise, Ben actually showed up (see photographic proof below). He can’t say he didn’t know what he was getting himself into... We spent the next year and a half together in Shanghai, traveling to remote corners of China and falling head over heels for each other. When Ben had to move back to London, Caroline knew instantly that as much as she loved her life in China, she’d drop everything to start their next chapter together. Two years in London flew by before we got the itch for adventure again, and in 2023, we found ourselves in Dubai. Since then, we’ve truly found our rhythm: Ben found his way back to F45, this time managing a franchise group and loving every minute of it, and Caroline is continuing her work with the Chinese market while diving headfirst into triathlon. While Dubai is fast-paced and full of life, we spend any downtime looking for dog-friendly coffee spots, lazy brunches, and quiet evenings on the beach. As for the proposal, Ben popped the question in the middle of the desert near Abu Dhabi on a surprise camping trip. No phone service, just us, our beloved dog Lola, and a sky full of stars. It was perfect… aside from the moment of panic when Lola decided to take herself for a midnight stroll out of the tent (don’t worry, we found her!). Now, after several years, various countries and countless adventures, we can’t wait to share Dubai with all of you, not just the glitz and glam everyone sees, but the quiet beauty of the vast desert that we love to escape to, and where our engagement story began. There’s so much more to the UAE than meets the eye, which is why we had our hearts set on a desert wedding in Dubai’s neighboring emirate, Ras Al Khaimah. It feels like the perfect place to begin the next chapter of our story, surrounded by the people we love, under the same stars where it all began.