This is the moment two women reunited for the first time after meeting on a student exchange program 27 years ago.

Dawn Baiden, 56, was a 28-year-old new mother in 1997 when she offered to take in an exchange student whose host family had dropped out at the last minute.

Ana Fahlam, 17 at the time, arrived in Scottsdale, Arizona, USA, from Helsinbort, Sweden, and spent the next school year in Dawn's care.

The pair bonded as Ana helped Dawn look after her two young daughters.

However, when Ana left in June 1998, the women lost contact.

Over a decade later, in 2009, Dawn looked Ana up on Facebook and the two started talking again.

But it wasn't until this summer that Dawn and Ana were able to organise a meeting when they both happened to be in Marbella, Spain on the same day.

Dawn, a jewellery designer from Philadelphia, USA, said: "When I saw her again, it really felt like time stood still."

"I was so excited. I don't think I can even put it into words."

"We didn't stop talking for the entire eight hours and I followed her everywhere so I didn't miss a second."

Dawn and her youngest daughter Lili Baiden, 20, had planned a two-week holiday in Spain.

And it just so happened that their last day coincided with Ana's first say in Spain, visiting her husband's family.

Dawn said: "It was so serendipitous that we were able to get the chance to meet up."

"We were all in Spain at the same time last summer, but she was in a totally different region so we couldn't meet."

"We weren't going to let it slip through again this time."

"Part of what made this so special for me was for Ana to meet Lili and for me to meet her husband and kids."

"We've both been through so much since we last saw each other."

"From knowing her as a 17-year-old girl to now a 45-year-old woman. I just wanted to see her life."

After meeting up this summer, Dawn is determined to not allow another 27 years to pass by before seeing each other again.

She said: "We would love to plan a trip to Sweden, potentially for summer 2025."

"No plans are properly ironed out yet but I really want to see her life in its entirety."

"Eight hours was simply not long enough."