Isn't it funny how our parents always told us to never ever talk to strangers on the internet, while the internet nowadays is full of websites where you can meet new people and talk to them? I am not ashamed when I tell you I have met many people on the world wide web. I talk to them, even consider some of them as my friends.

I think there is nothing wrong with meeting people on the internet, becoming friends with them or even start a romance, but I also think there has to be balance between your 'internet life' and the real life. The people you meet on the internet may not live nearby you and I think it's not okay to forget about your friends who live close by and replace them for your internet friends. Having friends on the internet might also sound kind of pathetic in some way and so I think it's important to have a sort of limit for how many people you're meeting on the internet. Not only because of the pathetic sense, but also for your own good. Your internet friends can't come over to spend the evening with you and watch a movie or something, you can't go to their house if one day you feel like you have nowhere else to go. They can't be there for you like a friend in real life can.

By the way, I must confess I am being a huge hypocrite right now, 'cause I myself met and am still meeting various people on the internet and with some I've been talking for months. I am keeping a limit since somewhere last year. My Facebook friend list was full of people I didn't know in real life and so I deleted some people from my Facebook and told myself to not meet anyone on the internet ever again (I failed by the way, as you might know). My life is here, in this little boring city I live in, with my family and lovely friends. I work, go to school, sometimes go to the gym and I practice my passions. I will not let someone on the other side of the world or something eat up my time due Skype or whatever. For me it's okay to have people who I can talk to if needed, even though they live far, but as I already said, my life is here and I shouldn't focus too much people with whom I might not even have a chance of meeting with. Right?

And here I come with a great contradiction again: I love to Skype with people. I love hearing different kinds of accents (super in love with the British accent by the way!), trying impossible tongue twisters in another language (did those in Italian once, I nearly died (also of laughter :)) and just talking about different cultures, the daily stuff and shared hobbies. And with Skype you don't only have to talk (no, this is not going in some weird direction, don't worry), you can play music together (or just listen :)), play games together or - in case there's more than a friendship - go on a fancy date. Just dress up a bit and beg your parents to let you eat your dinner in your room (haha), light up some candles, play some music, you know how it's done, right? Confession: it's on my bucketlist to have a date like this once.

Okay, so basically what I am trying to tell you is: I don't think having friends on the internet is a bad thing. It can be so much fun and gives you a lot of opportunities, like meeting the person in real life one day and if you're lucky and coincidently going to the place the person lives, you might have a place to stay for free! In contrast to that I think you shouldn't forget about the life you have around you by focussing too much on the people online. I myself sometimes still do this and I shouldn't. That's why I wrote this article and I also wanted to convince myself (and you) that having people online to talk to isn't bad at all. You just have to keep the balance!

Q: do you have contact with somebody who lives far or who you haven't met in real life yet? And what is your opinion on it?