LI Man Featured On TLC's '90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way'

BRENTWOOD, NY — A Brentwood man's journey to find his forever person is bringing international attention to Long Island.

Julio "Wikii" Moya, 27, is one of 14 people featured on Season 5 of TLC's "90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way."

The season premiered July 10 and follows Moya and girlfriend, Kirsten Schoemaker, 24, of the Netherlands, as she meets his family for the first time — a final step before a possible engagement.

Moya told Patch he met his long-distance girlfriend on Instagram. After speaking for three months, he flew to the Netherlands in December 2021 to meet her in person.

The country was in lockdown at the time, and the two quarantined together in a hotel. Things were "awkward" at first, but the two soon opened up to each other. Moya credited their time together as to what"fast tracked" their relationship.

"That was very interesting, because if you can spend a week with someone in a hotel room, then that means you could live with them forever," Moya said.

In July and August, he and Schoemaker lived together in the Netherlands.

In the first episode, Moya said he plans to permanently move with Schoemaker to the Netherlands and that he applied for residency there.

A traveler of 30 countries who had previously lived abroad in Norway, he always intended to move outside the United States.

"I always told myself when it's time for me to settle down and have my family, I wanted it to have it in another country," Moya said on the show. "Meeting Kirsten made it right for me, to be able to do that."

Schoemaker applied for "90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way" in May 2022, Moya said. The show is a spin-off series of 90 Day Fiancé, where a foreigner must marry their American fiancé within 90 days of arriving in the United States.

In "90 Day Fiancé: The Other Way," Americans intend to move to their significant other's country.

Moya told Patch he had only seen a few clips of the show, and applying was all Schoemaker's idea.

"She said, 'It's perfect, you're moving here,'" Moya said. "It was all of those things that made me think, why not?"

Once producers heard their story, they wanted to begin "filming everything."

Moya described the process as "long," including steps such as background checks and fact checking.

But in October 2022, a film crew was ready to make the trek to Long Island.

"I was nervous," said Moya. "I wasn't sure how the whole thing was going to work. And, you know — what was going to come from it."

Ironically, the producers didn't fully know either — at least, regarding Long Island.

Despite following people to different countries and continents, not many people on the film crew were familiar with Moya's hometown.

"It's a bunch of people from all around the country that work on different segments with the show," Moya explained. "So they're all asking me, saying, 'Listen, we don't even know. What is Long Island? Is it a town?'"

Originally from the Dominican Republic, Moya moved to the United States with his mother at the age of 8 years old. At the time of filming, Moya works as a school safety officer "by day" and a DJ at Long Island establishments "by night."

He said he gave the crew a list of important spots on Long Island, especially around his hometown of Brentwood.

"I was sending them links and photos," Moya said. "Most of the crew were just like, 'This place has a beach on both sides?'"

He also recommended taking b-roll around Huntington Village, when the crew asked for a location with a "town" feel.

In the first episode, the crew films shots of Huntington and East Northport. They also showcase Mission Taco, located in Huntington Village, where Moya has a DJing residency.

Other notable Long Island spots that appear in the show include the Bay Shore Marina, which is Moya's "hero shot," or where it shows his name, hometown, and age before a scene; and The Great South Bay Brewery, where Moya has a conversation with a friend.

So far, three episodes of the season have aired. Moya said that Long Islanders should definitely look out for local spots that will be featured in future episodes.

While Moya could not confirm what happens between him and Kirsten, he said he is grateful for the opportunity and said that experiencing diversity while living on Long Island helped him prepare to be on the show.

"In Brentwood, you have students and people from all over the world, all different cultures," Moya said. "It was interesting growing up because I was put in front of them."

Having friends of different backgrounds is what inspired him to travel, he said.

"Meeting them and seeing their cultures made me think, 'I wonder what else the world has to offer?'" he said. "'If these are stories that I'm hearing secondhand, I wonder what I can experience myself?'"