Taiwan woman finds love in Iraq through internet

Taipei - A Taiwan woman has become the envy of many lonely hearts after a newspaper reported how she flew halfway around the world to Iraq's Kurdistan to find a man she met on the internet, a news report said Saturday. Hsu Chia-hua, 32, a former assistant to a lawmaker, flew to Iraq to meet Zanst, a 28-year-old Kurd, in August 2008, the United Daily News reported. It said Zanst, a social worker in the Kurdistan autonomous region, will come to Taiwan to marry Hsu in April. Hsu returned to Taipei in October 2008, but her adventure was not publicized until the lawmaker Hsiao Bi-khim recently wrote about it in her blog. Hundreds of Taiwanese read about Hsu's story and left messages on Hsiao's blog to express admiration for her. According to the News, Hsu and Zanst dated on the internet for several months, chatting through Skype every day. In August, she decided to go to Iraq to find him. Her friends tried to talk her out of it, warning that the flight was too long and costly, or that the man could be a cheat, but Hsu was undeterred. 'If it does not work out, at least I won't have regrets,' the paper quoted her saying. So Hsu took 3,000 US dollars with her and flew 11,779 kilometres to go to Kurdistan. She had to change flights in Bangkok, Cairo, Damascus and Amman to fly to Kurdistan. She was stuck in a Damascus hotel for 20 days waiting for an entry permit from the Kurdistan autonomous region's government. Hsu stayed at Zanst's home for 40 days and got along well him and his parents, the report said. On the day of her departure, Zanst wept all the way as he drove her to the airport. Hsu is making arrangements for their wedding in Taiwan in April. Zanst will teach Arabic in Taiwan, if he adapts to life in Taiwan, the newspaper said. Hsu admitted she took a risk to go to Iraq to meet her date. 'Not everyone can find true love. If you have a lover, please treasure your moments together. If you have not found true love, then chase it,' the News quoted her as saying.