West Rand resident shares her The Bachelor experience

Everybody is looking for true love, and some will go to great lengths to find it – even if it means baring your soul in front of millions of television viewers.

The 25-year-old Marisia van Wyk, one of 22 contestants in The Bachelor SA Season 2, said she entered because she felt that love had been taking a back seat in her life.

“I saw the show as an opportunity to make love a priority.”Marisia is a speech therapist and audiologist, and grew up in the heart of the West Rand. She moved to Cape Town recently to pursue a lifelong dream of hers.

“It has always been a goal of mine to complete my master’s degree in speech therapy, and I am now realising it,” she explained.

According to her there is not really anything about herself she dislikes, although she only recently made peace with the freckles she wished away for many years.

“I have realised that they make me different, and remind me that it is okay to be flawed and freckled,” she said. Her experience on the show exceeded her wildest expectations.

“They say beautiful things happen outside one’s comfort zone, and I enjoyed stepping out of mine. I really didn’t know what to expect and enjoyed getting to know the ladies and Marc in an unusual way. I never thought I would come out a stronger person, but there were so many life lessons to learn.”

How did she cope living in the same house with 21 other women, all competing for the same man’s heart and attention?

“It was pretty tough as the circumstances were unusual and unpredictable. I definitely grew close to a few girls,” Marisia said.

She also had her fair share of one-on-one, as well as group dates with Marc. “When I saw my name on a date card, I would get all excited and 100 butterflies would start fluttering in my tummy!” she said, laughing. But, there was also the other side of the coin.

“During every cocktail party and rose ceremony, I tried not to overthink things. This process has taught me the beauty of living in the moment, and appreciating every second, regardless of what life throws your way,” she said.

After seeing Marc on television only for a short while once a week, viewers’ opinions of him might not be accurate. “I think Marc is kind, caring, adventurous and real,” Marisia said.

She concluded by saying, “I would definitely encourage people to enter if they have the opportunity! Life is about grabbing opportunities and not about waiting for things to happen. Rather make things happen yourself. I put myself out there, and I learnt so much about myself. Even if I don’t walk away with Marc, I have gained so much more from the entire experience.”

Marisia is in the Top 2 and will be meeting Marc’s parents during the episode airing on Thursday, 21 May at 7pm. The show is on DStv channel 101.