Ryan Kauffman, a resident of Missouri, US, has flown thousands of miles to Gazipur to be with the Bangladeshi woman he fell in love with just a year ago online.

Previously separated by oceans and continents, the couple finally tied the knot on May 29 — on the very day Ryan arrived in Bangladesh to meet 26-year-old Syeda Islam.

They had not met in person prior to the wedding. The newlywed couple is currently staying at the house of the bride's grandfather in Gazipur.

Syeda told Dhaka Tribune that she met Ryan on Facebook in 2021 and exchanged numbers and addresses after falling head over heels in love.

A year later, the couple decided to get married and informed their families about their relationship. Ryan also converted to Islam in the US to get married to Syeda.

Mosharraf Hossain, Syeda’s grandfather, said Ryan had sent wedding dresses and jewellery as well as money to Syeda so she could shop for their wedding.

Ryan said he had been enjoying his stay in Bangladesh. “People here are very welcoming. They keep offering me food and tea even when I am not hungry. Life is very different here compared to in the US.”

He added that he had only studied till middle school and currently worked as an operator at a plastic factory.

“Besides my parents, I have an elder brother, and we all live separately,” he said. He said would take Syeda to the US, once visa processing had been completed.

Syeda has been living with her grandfather, mother and sister since her father died in 2019. She got her undergraduate degree in 2020.