To answer the OP's original Q: yes. And it was thrilling, delightful, fraught, fun, difficult, risky, demanding, patience-exhausting, exhilarating, hugely expensive, exasperating, rewarding, very dangerous, indelibly memorable, pain-in-the-arse and, ultimately, saddening too, when it inevitably had to wind down after several years.
I'm sure your own experience will follow unpredictable paths, unique to you, but there's every reason to suppose it'll probably involve much of the above too. So, there probably really is something in the other chaps' advice to have a sense of whether your girl is stable and good-natured enough to bear the inevitable difficulties and jealousies that will ensue, if it turns out to be anything more than a fling for a few months.
Enjoy!