by Gina Scarpa

 

Last week, on The Bachelor, Sean Lowe took Selma Alameri out for their first one on one date. After an exhilarating rock climb, they sat down to a romantic dinner where Selma revealed that she couldn't kiss him until she was the last woman standing. No, she wasn't playing games a la Elizabeth Kwiatkowski on Ben Flajnik's season. Selma's family is quite traditional and she wanted to respect that, which Sean was happy to respect as well. She chatted with RealityWanted and reporters about that and more in a press conference call.

 

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: Did you feel like the fact that you weren't planning to kiss Sean might hurt your chances with him?

A. Selma: You know, I did feel like it might put me at a disadvantage. I was afraid of that, coming in, and I explained that to my family also. I said, "I'm going there to win someone's heart. These other women can show their affection and I can't. I'm afraid he'll take that as if I don't like him." At the end of the day, Sean is an amazing man and totally understood.

 

Q. Gina, RealityWanted: Tierra has come under fire for her dramatic antics this season. What was it like to live in the house and what was your take on her?

A. Selma: I honestly... being there, I kept out of the drama because I was trying to stay focused on one thing and one thing only. But there was so much drama with her and now, looking back on it, it's like, "Oh my gosh! This girl is so much drama! How did I tolerate this?" I kept myself out of it, but I felt bad for all of us. It was so crazy!

 

 

Q. You told the cameras during Monday night's episode that you weren't planning on kissing Sean until you were the last woman standing. Were you joking or were you serious?

A. Selma: Well, you know, I honestly in that moment was saying what I thought I was going to do. I wanted to hold out and I was just rolling with the punches. I didn't know what was going to happen. I didn't know if I was going to end up kissing him or if I wasn't, because things change. Life happens, you know? You don't know, you act on emotion. You don't know what is going to happen. So, for that moment, yeah, I really did mean it saying it. But you'll have to wait and see, you know, what ended up happening.

 

Q. In his blog, Chris Harrison said you wanted to kiss Sean and really didn't necessarily seem to believe that dating publicly is wrong nor is kissing, but you felt compelled just out of respect for your parents and their believes to refrain from kissing Sean. Did you develop a slight feeling of resentment or regret as the season progressed?

A. Selma: No, no I 'm the type of person who never regrets anything I do. Honestly I feel like everything is meant to happen. But I -- I really don't believe that showing affection in public is a bad thing like my mom does. But you know at the end of the day she is my mother and she had one simple request. She didn't mind that I was going to do the show, which is huge in our culture. You know, it's big enough to just be going on a dating show but her one request just please just don't make out with him on television, don't be that girl, you know. So to me it was honestly a simple request and I needed to test Sean to see if he would respect my family and my culture as well, you know. Because we do have just strong culture, you know, and my family is so big in my life so it was sort of a test for him as well and you know it was a huge test for me to see if I could resist even, you know.

 

Q. Did you know Sean was The Bachelor, going in?

A. Selma: I went in with the hopes that it was Sean but we didn't find out until the night before that it was and I was definitely happy about it because he is at the end of the day just such a perfect human being, you know.

 

Q. I was so impressed how you scrambled up that steep cliff [in your one on one date]. It appeared at the beginning that you had a fear of heights and that it wasn't going to happen and then you got right up there. What was that experience like?

A. Selma: You know it's so funny because they don't show a whole lot of how scared I really was. I was like freaking out I was so nervous because I really do have a fear of heights and I'd never been rock climbing before and I mean I do love adventure and I hike all the time but to go climb a vertical hundred foot rock, I was at the bottom of that thing staring at it like I don't even know where you want me to start. And I'm looking at him like if I survive this you would be lucky if I still like you after this. But at the end of the day it was like survival mode and I literally just hauled ass up that rock. I was like I can't even think about anything, I can't think about where I am, what I'm doing. I just blocked it out of my mind and just started crawling like go team go. And when I got up there I never loved Sean so much because he really did at that moment everyone is like oh he should have given you the glamour date and I'm like no way. He really gave me a chance to prove to the world that like you know I'm more than just a glamour girl, because I am. I actually -- I'm in gym clothes my whole life, you know. So I was really really happy and I really did love him so much for giving me the opportunity to prove myself that way.

 

Q. Who did you get along with best at the house you said you kind of kept to yourself but was there one particular girl that you got along with well?

A. Selma: You know I didn't like keep to myself I just kept away from the drama. I actually got along with all the girls. I really did but I would have to say I was closest with AshLee. You know her and I were sort of the oldest ones in the house. She might kill me for saying that, but we were so we got along best but I really did enjoy all the girls that lived in the house. They were all amazing. Well, with the exception of one.

 

Q. Did you think everyone, including yourself, has been portrayed pretty accurately?

A. Selma: Actually yes. It's funny because I was so afraid that they were going to make me out to be something I wasn't. I was like, "Oh my God, you never know with reality television what's going to happen," but I mean, they really can't make you someone you're not. So yes, I think everyone has been portrayed like very accurately.

 

 

Don't miss the two day Bachelor event this week, Monday at 8/7c and Tuesday at 9/8c, on ABC.

 

(Image courtesy of ABC)

 

 

Follow Gina @ginascarpa