Ziad Alqassab along with his children Delan and Ilyas share about Iraq, its culture and traditions and how the Muslim religion, food, and Arabic language are very much instilled at their home in Cavan.
Ziad describes the joys and pains of fleeing the war in Iraq in 2006 after waiting for 7 years. Wearing only a T-shirt when he landed in Dublin and with no word of English, and no oriental/ethnic shop in sight in Monaghan, the cold weather, language barrier, and Irish food came as a shock. But the friendly and welcoming nature of the Irish, plus an Iraqi-British neighbour who eventually became his wife brought a lot of comfort. Dylan and Ilyas consider themselves both Irish and Iraqi in their ways and are very proud of their parents’ home country.
