Ariela’s long-awaited reunion with her boyfriend, Biniyam, in Ethiopia wasn’t the happy occasion she thought it was going to be on Monday’s episode of 90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way after she became overwhelmed and had a panic attack.
Ariela — who’s pregnant and moved from Princeton, New Jersey, to Ethiopia so that Biniyam can be there for the birth of their child — arrived with her mother after traveling for more than 24 hours. Biniyam had been eagerly awaiting their arrival and told TLC cameras he was humbled by Ariela uprooting her whole life to be with him. He also expressed nervousness at meeting her mom for the first time, who had accompanied Ariela on the trip to make sure that her living conditions were suitable enough for her to give birth and to raise their child.
Bini originally bought the flowers for Ari’s mom, but he was so excited to see Ari that he gave them to her instead. ? #90DayFiancepic.twitter.com/jdqKltM7Wt— 90DayFiance (@90DayFiance) July 7, 2020
But 28-year-old Ariela was in shock as she reunited with 29-year-old Biniyam at the airport, explaining that he had changed his appearance drastically. He cut his dreadlocks — which she said was the first thing that she noticed about him when they met — and commented that he looked “so skinny.” Ariela then got emotional, explaining to cameras that she felt like she had to get to know Biniyam again after being away from him for so long, and now they were going to be thrown into living together.
The anxiety is real #90DayFiancepic.twitter.com/qCGRbO2ywH— 90DayFiance (@90DayFiance) July 7, 2020
In the car, Ariela burst into tears and had trouble breathing, telling Biniyam that she was having a panic attack. Ariela’s mom — who actually liked Biniyam immediately after meeting him — said that she needed time for her emotions to settle in.https://www.youtube.com/embed/Ho_4mbYf0Y0?feature=oembed
Later, when Ariela saw the apartment Biniyam rented for them for the first time, she again got stressed and bluntly said she “hated” it and that it was “terrible.” Ariela explained that the colors were depressing and that the decoration was obviously left over from the last tenant, and that the bathroom “looked like a scene from a Saw movie” and smelled like mold. She said that while she had lived in precarious places before while traveling, this time was different given that she now had a baby to think about.
There was a storm on the way to the apartment, so all of the clothes in Ari’s suitcases were wet. She wanted to hang them in the closet to dry but when she opened the door it fell off its hinges. #90DayFiancepic.twitter.com/CwSFJgPhd4— 90DayFiance (@90DayFiance) July 7, 2020
?Smile through the pain? #90DayFiancepic.twitter.com/EnMDvV8Gk9— 90DayFiance (@90DayFiance) July 7, 2020
For his part, Biniyam was sad that the apartment failed to live up to Ariela’s expectations and felt like it was his fault. However, he reassured her that this was only her first step to living in Ethiopia and that they could find a new place.
“Welcome to Africa,” he told her with a smile.
But in a preview of next week’s episode, Ariela’s mom — who works as a nurse — is similarly shocked at the living conditions in Ethiopia. She is shown telling Ariela that she can’t give birth and live there, which is what Ariela had feared would happen when her mom insisted on coming on the trip with her.
360aproko spoke to Ariela last month, and she gushed about Biniyam and explained why she decided to move to Ethiopia for him. Further complicating their situation is that she met Biniyam shortly after going through a divorce, and that he also has an American ex-wife and a 2-year-old son he hasn’t seen since his ex decided to move back to the United States.
“Biniyam is really an amazing guy,” she told 360aproko. “Anyone who meets him really likes him the first time that they meet him. He is a very kind person and that’s what I noticed at first. Of course, the first thing I noticed is he’s a very attractive guy. He has a personality that I think people will really connect to.”
“You know, in a way it’s true, I barely even knew him, but at the same time, when you meet someone and you have that connection, you can feel like you know someone even if it’s only been a couple of months,” she continued. “I decided that I wanted to try at least the experience of being together because I really wanted to start my own family.”
She also teased what viewers can expect from their journey this season.
“You’ll see more than a few tears,” she shared. “I feel confident to say that my story line is going to be one of the more emotional … heart-wrenching, and I think, funny — I think people are gonna laugh. I think there’s gonna be quite a few moments where people laugh.”
