Mustafa Fawadi, an Iraqi citizen from Baghdad, has been actively blogging about his life in one of the villages near Kolomyia for seven years. During this time, he has become well-known on social media, attracting the attention of millions of Ukrainians to his story of adaptation and relocation to the Carpathians.
This is reported by Finway
Moving to the Village and Renovating an Old House
In 2018, Mustafa came to Ukraine with the aim of developing his own YouTube channel. He has lived in many cities, including Kyiv, Odesa, Kharkiv, Lutsk, Rivne, and Ivano-Frankivsk. However, in the fall of 2024, he decided to radically change his life and move to the village of Demeshkivtsi in the Ivano-Frankivsk region. Here, he rented a house built in 1959, which had been empty for a long time.
Mustafa took on the renovation himself: he set up the kitchen, bathroom, laid laminate flooring, painted the walls, and tidied up the yard. Initially, the house had no water supply or sewage system — most of the work he did on his own. Already, the blogger is working on creating a studio for video editing and a gym, as well as taking care of the garden and setting up the terrace.
Adaptation, Communication, and Popularity on Social Media
The first videos in which Mustafa showcased his home went viral on TikTok — one of them gained over a million views. In his blogs, he talks about daily life, takes care of cats and ducks, cleans the area, visits neighbors, and learns about local traditions. During this time, he has almost mastered the Ukrainian language, despite his accent, and easily finds common ground with the village residents.
“Hello everyone! My name is Mustafa, I live in Kolomyia”.
Local residents support their new neighbor, help him adapt, and treat him to traditional dishes, such as stuffed cabbage rolls, while Mustafa happily participates in village work. He plans to buy the house in the future and continues to share his experiences on social media.
The man admits that the topic of war in Ukraine is particularly sensitive for him, as he experienced similar events in his childhood in Iraq. Despite this, Mustafa feels at home in Ukraine and believes in a peaceful future.
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