Re: Anyone lived together before marriage?
^ You would be surprised! Some do! My family in Karachi is very gora-like. They sent two cousins off to UK together to study and they are living together there and now they annouced to their families that they are getting married. They are Med students and some family members think they get away with it b/c of that reason! Also, my MIL and FIL act very traditional in front of people but are very liberal with their own children. Their eldest daughter (Doc) was falling in love with her 1st cousin (Doc) years back...and her parents allowed her to go out with him for hours and even on long drives to Muree. My MIL's neice fell pregnant (she was married but was having an affair...) and was very close to my in-laws. She came to my inlaws for help, openly told her problem to them...they said no probs and paid for her abortion!
Then my other cousin was living with her partner while she was studying in London. There it is common to live 1st year in shared halls which uni gives you and then you have to find flat-mates to share a rented house with etc. Anyway after 1st year she moved in together with friends. She couldn't find muslim girls to move in with b/c most commuted from home and 80% of her course was Hindu! So rest house mates were Hindu and one Muslim guy. Eventually they both realised that they liked eachother. Both Docs too by the way and married. Amazingly their fam's knew, accepted it all and paid the rent! Hehe!
I am not judging them at all and they are all wonderful indivuals but I am just answering to this thread. It is their lives and I wish that they are all happy with their lives. Just telling you that some 1st generation parents are really 'cool' and liberal about such things as much as it does shock others.
While I was in uni living in shared halls, there were so many 'Muslim' couples. We had separate rooms but shared bathrooms and kicthen. So for the couples it felt like they were living with eachother!