The Surprising Story Behind Free Food in Iraqi Kurdistan 

شكرا شعبنا الكردي شكرا كردستان انتم ترفعون الرس دائما بعيدا عن العنصرية انتم مثل للمواطن العراقي الكريم الذي في اصعب الظروف يرحب بضيوف

Hi.many people from nepal Bangladesh india china and other non European countries live here and kurdish people are very nice to them.ì mean they are nice to every one here.i am from iran and thanks kurdistany people for their kindness

Iraqi Kurdistan is holy place, really! God blesses it and all Kurdish people! Serchawa by big love from Ukraine

Beautiful! I wish the entire world was like this. I have know Kurdish people and they were so kind and loving. Thank you for your videos.

Thank you so much for sharing this! I am crying for such beauty and love💕🌷

I'm glad you guys enjoyed my home country, best of luck on the rest of your journey

I Am also a Kurd from Arbil! You're welcome to Kurdistan, We Hope you come back a second time!

Wow! What an incredible demonstration of hospitality and generosity. Thank you for sharing this lesser known side of Iraq

Absolutely amazing. This is the type of thing that just warms the heart. People are so much more than the political situation. Love this vlog guys.

Iraq? Correction: This is 🇹🇯🇹🇯🇹🇯 Kurdistan 🇹🇯🇹🇯🇹🇯 With Peace & Love

Hiiii! :) Beautiful story! greetings from poland! :) (we met together near malaga in january this year / played guitar and cajon by the fire) wish You good journey and i'm with You! :)

Thank you for sharing this side of the Kurdish culture. Hope you enjoyed the cuisine! 😊

Hey Joe and Liisu! Welcome to Kurdistan! I hope you enjoyed your time here. When it comes to paying it's almost compulsory not to accept money immediately out of courtesy and that applies to locals as well as tourists, but at the end you're expected to pay almost all of the time, often with a bit of insistence! Hope you visit again soon!

Welcome brother to Kurdistan 🤩 If you want to see more beautiful places visit Korak mountain ☺️

I am from Austria and altough we are living in a wealthy country we are always complaining a lot, especially about politics and corruption. Watching your videos touches me deeply. I understand that it's the people who are defining a country, not the politicians. Thank you so much for sharing your experiences! And I've already learned - especially from the last few years - that we cannot trust what media are telling us. God bless you! 💖

This is the 4th or 5th video i've seen about people going to to Kurdistan and the local not letting them pay, very kind people.

This video warmed my heart!

Damn They have been tortured for death and they are still kind and loving to everyone, even if you are an American, he will open a house for you to sleep in. Good people

Omg he visit my cousin kebab restaurant in Erbil/Hawler Kurdistan 🇹🇯❤️

welcome to kurdistan we love you guys and yes we love giving stuff

Great vlog, very uplifting and positive, showing us the true essence of this part of the World 🌎

Incredible place !! Nice people !!👍

I’m begging to have faith in Iraq people that lovely of them to welcome you both thank you for sharing your videos

Another beautiful video..

This was beautiful guys 👍❤️

Wish you really enjoying your time in kurdstan I hope you guys staying more here .... Also they're Saw two of kindness and sweet guests how can they accepts your money

Walking wallet - great way to say it - being in Turkey I get lots of free food and taste and tea, but in other places there are some - the lesser people - who will try and charge you more and pocket part of it. But for the most part the hospitality amazed me! Still does! This is my third trip here this last 12 months. I want to live here and learn more of these people! 😊 I feel as a newer Muslim that perhaps the faith and seeing hospitality as a vital part of reaching out and helping people - the basis of this. I wish more people in the world and in the US where I live - would teach these values and true expressions of giving! Mashallah!

Hey Joe and Liisu another good one. 👍 The Kindness a beauty of these people's Shows Us how it Should Be ( But Was onetime) everywhere. CARING AND SHARING.. Imagine. (John Lennon) Thank you for Sharing the Love ❤ with our friends in Iraq 🇮🇶 Peace and happiness to you All . Stay Free and Safe Travels

Hi Joe and Liisu, hope you's are both safe and well. Concerned as you haven't uploaded in a while, miss watching your great travel vlogs.

May God give his blessings to each and everyone who are kind and generous to strangers without seeking any rewards or recognition in return. These types of big hearted people are definitely driven by their faith in God and His message to humankind. Stay blessed and safe journey onwards. xx

Thank you for sharing this, im glad two of you had a wounderful holiday :)

Wonderful clips

Thanks for being here in Kurdistan

I'm from Ohio USA but have lived in Saudi Arabia and Serbia for the last 5 years. I find friends everywhere hospitality abounds. In Saudi Arabia I was welcomed into a world I'd never known . Friendliness In Serbia I discovered a level of honesty never known in the West

Fabulous dancing from these ladies! Thank you for sharing.

Nice video , I was glad , Most welcome 😍

I hope you correct title . Because you are in Kurdistan not in Iraq. . You should have respect to Kurdish people they do best hospitality for you .

Man I love your style of traveling the world. I think Im a big sap and wear my heart on my sleeve, this video made me teary. Thank you Joe and Liso

Hi Joe and Liisu,it is Akif and Mina, we are together for new year in Çankırı. Hope to see you🤗

Such wonderful people.

kurdish people are the best

Spas ji bo ku hûn li Kurdistana Iraqê bûn, ez ji Kurdistana Sûriyê me

Thank you for visiting my beautiful region , I hope you both enjoyed your trip. I’m our culture we never ever let guest/tourists pay for anything especially ladies 🥰

welcome to kurdistann♥

Fantastisk kultur, mat av alla slag ser utsökt ut. Lycka till. 🙏🌹❤️👍

The guy who took your money was Arab, The kindness come’s from zoroastrian culture of Kurds, religion is Islam but the culture is zoroastrian, less that 800 years ago kurds were still zoroastrian, so thats zorostrain culture of the kindness and sense of responsibility, this is just like carl Jungs theory when he talks about general unconsciousness of a nation.

Bütün Müslüman ülkeleri böyle cömerttir misafirperverdir

Hey joe and lisu are you guys ok haven’t seen you on film recently to say merry Christmas happy new year hope all is well with you

9:20 his man said my store is your store is mean for respect haha

We are all brothers, if we live as God says, there will be peace and happiness everywhere. We are waiting for you as a guest in my country, Azerbaijan

Son zamanlarda bağımsız gezginlerin gezi yazılarını okuyor vloglarını izliyorum. En çok ilgimi çeken kısımsa, kendi gezi deneyimlerimle de örtüşen bu gezginlerin gittiği bazı yerlerde yediklerinin hesaplarını ödememesiydi. Başı yan tarafa doğru aniden çevirme ve el kaldırıp eli sağa sola sallama hareketi, senin paran burada geçmez işaretiydi gittikleri bu bazı yerlerde. Bu bazı yerler dediğim yerler, bombaların onlarca yıldır susmadığı, annelerin feryatlarınınsa atmosferde çok kısa süreliğine yankılandığı yerlerdi. Kendilerini büyük sanan ve belki de gerçekten büyük olan devletlerin ve şirketlerin bir türlü kan festivaline doyamadığı bu yerler Türkiye’nin güneydoğusundan başlamakta ve Pakistan’ın en doğusuna, Hindistan’ın göbeğine kadar gitmekte. İnsan düşünmeden edemiyor, belki de yeraltı ve yerüstündeki kaynaklarını da paylaşmaya hevesliydi buradaki insanlar. Kendimden örnek vermem gerekirse, otostop ile Türkiye’yi gezerken paramı kabul etmeyen ve hatta cebime harçlık koyan yerler yalnızca güneydoğudaydı. Memleketimin batısı refah ve güven içindeyken bırakın beni doyurmalarını ya da harçlık vermelerini, misafir edip hâl hatırımı sormayı, yolda saatlerce kimse arabasına bile almamıştı. Bu yüzden mi bombalar bu yerlerde susmuyor yoksa bombalar yüzünden mi böyleler? Bilmiyorum ama sadece insanlığa dair geleceğin arkeologları, uygarlığın tek kalan izini umarım orta doğuda bulabilirler.

9:20 the guy said ( it’s your place ) means you don’t have to pay

Welcome to Iraq 🇮🇶

I'm in Iraq and Kurdistan now. You are supposed to offer at least 3 times to pay. They will say it's free the first two times. You should have paid them really...

it is not free it’s a kindness of people to european travellers

We welcome you to our beautiful country

Please come to Mosul, its near Kurdistan, you will be my beloved guest. Much love from

kinda bothers me,using the word iraq for kurdistan,but still youre most welcome here❤

Bonjur to Kurdistan ❤

I see your wan in Islamabad Pakistan stopped in rose jasmine garden 🥰

Great videos. Kurdish people always welcomed gust . Kidness is Culture of kurdish people. Not because they Muslims.

Amazing Video Friends 🙏👋

Just incredible, i didnt know about this :D

Viva Kurdistan

Kurdistan ❤

Amazing Kurdistan muslim country ❤️🇹🇯❤️

Are you guys ok? Haven't seen a new video for a while 😕

It's been a long time since Y posted a video Is everything alright?

Sizi seviyorum. Türkiye Cumhuriyeti den Selamlar saygılar sevgiler sunarım

Irak ülkesinden sonra iran ve azerbaycan güvenli bir ülkedir gidebilirsiniz aynı türkiye gibidir kültürleri. Fakat afganistan ve pakistan için gezmenizi tavsiye etmem. Oralarda fazla durmayınız. Onlarda müslümanlar fakat islamı katı kurallar çerçevesinde yaşarlar. Avrupadan ırakı gezmeye gelen ilk turistlersiniz. Sizleri cesaretinizden dolayı tebrik ederim.

It has nothing to do with Islam. Go to other Muslim countries and see if they'll accept your money or not. Non Muslim Kurds will also offer you free food so it has nothing to do with religion. It's part of the Kurdish culture to offer someone something to eat and someplace to stay. The locals who obviously know about their own culture will thankfully decline and still pay what they owe. They might be a bit tougher on foreigners (guests) and if you see he is serious on his body language that he will not accept your money then it's okey, but if he just says it once or twice you should still try to pay.

Is not iraq it’s kurdistan

Hi, you must visit to Pakistan, you will enjoy the country and it's culture. I must say people open heartedly welcome you and specially food is amazing. Hope to see you soon.

Is this your last one? We haven’t seen a video in a while. Are you guys ok??

Welcome to Iraq Kurdistan Repit visit to Kurdistan ❤️

Can you go to zaxo its a very awesome city and its very big

If you wanted to put your money in their hands you would have to literally physically fight them, get wrist control, open their hands and try putting in their hands. By the way theres a psychological factor, the entire time you must talk to them, telling them why YOU need THEM to take YOUR money from you. I’ve seen it go down in my own home. A women (also Kurdish) came as guest into my mothers home and tried leaving with a hug and then a hand shake, in that hand shake she slid a 100$ into my mothers and and forced hand closed and basically tried to wrestle her with wrist control saying. Na- na- na this is for the time you gave me 20$. My dad had to intervene, by ganging up on the other woman.

No Iraq yes Kurdistan

nobody comes to Kurdistan so yeah 😊

Fantastic peoples

Kurdistan is the land of Noah’s ark and Kurds are very ancient people in the land they live in very kind and loving people

Bu yolculuğunuzda ikinizde kendi güvenliğinize dikkat edin. Hırsızlara karşı dikkatli olun. Sizleri seviyoruz. Her zaman türkiyeye gelin misafirimiz olun I love wild wiking travels.

Wonderful; hopefully the area will not be inundated with mass tourism, it would bankrupt the amazing friendly and generous traders. 😀

Hi what’s happened to joe and lisu it’s like they have disappeared

please dont talking iraq iraq . as a kurdish we hate forever . we are just kurdish we fight 10000 years for better life , f

You havent been sending a video for a month? İs everything okay?

❤❤❤❤❤

Hello

This is getting ridicules. Iraq or Iraqi Kurdistan, for the love of god just pick one and stick with it! You can’t keep changing the damn titles from video to video all the time it’s like you want people to point it out like this.

❤️

Iraq 🇮🇶 👍🖤🔥🇮🇶😭

As i see no video or no news for the last one month, all ok?

Eminim ben gitsem benden para alırlardı 😂😂

Welcom to kurdistan🟥☀️🟩

I love Kurdistan

lovit

العراق كله ابو الكرم من شماله لجنوبه بنفس الكرم....

🎉🎉🎉🎉❤❤❤

This is run in our DNA

Thank you for showing Kurdistan from a positive side, but I'm sorry, no no no. This is not an accurate depiction of reality. You are tourists pointing a camera at them and you don't understand the culture. They are embarrassed to accept money and there is a tradition of acting like they will not accept your money. You are supposed to insist again and again until they accept the money or else you are considered rude. I've had discussions that lasted 5 minutes till I was able to pay. I have relatives that will literally push me away from the cashier. It's a dance of who is the most polite. Please do not assume that these street vendors make enough money to not need tourists to pay for their food. They just are not used to seeing white tourists. Let's not start this nonsense. Thank you for trying to be nice, though and thanks for returning with a big tip. Kind regards from Sule