I fell for my surf instructor in Morocco. We got married and turned an abandoned riad into a hotel.

Nina Ottevanger and her husband Ilyass bought an abandoned home in Morocco and opened a surf hotel.

Provided by Nina Ottevanger Nina Ottevanger met her now-husband during a surfing lesson on vacation in Morocco.

After a year and a half of living apart, they decided to split their time between two countries.

Last year, they stopped splitting their time between two places and renovated a traditional Moroccan house into a hotel and surf school.

This interview is based on a conversation with Nina Ottevanger, 31, a surf instructor and co-owner of Ilyana Surfhouse , a small business in Rabat, Morocco.

It has been edited for length and clarity.

Eleven years ago, I was traveling in Morocco with two friends.

While in Rabat, we wanted to surf and found a place online.

We were greeted by a man named Ilyass.

The main group had already left, but he offered us a private lesson.

Something clicked between us.

He shared his number in case we wanted to go out that evening, but we chose an early night so we could continue traveling the next morning.

I texted to say I hoped our paths crossed again, and we kept chatting.

He suggested I finish my trip with a return visit to Rabat , which I did, and we hit it off.