09.08.2026 17:40
The hospitality of Turkish traveler and social media content creator İsmail Akdağ and his family, who picked up two Chinese hitchhikers traveling the world and hosted them at his home, left the Chinese in awe of Turkish culture. Akdağ, who shared the moments of picking up the two travelers in his car and hosting them at his home on his social media account, along with his mother and father, were hosted at the Chinese Embassy in Ankara as special guests of the Chinese Ambassador. Akdağ also shared those moments on his social media account.
Social media content creator Ismail Akdag came across two Chinese travelers while driving his vehicle. Seeing two Chinese people, a woman and a man, hitchhiking with a piece of paper in their hands that read "Istanbul," Akdag picked up both travelers in his vehicle. Akdag, who established a friendly rapport with the Chinese visitors, hosted them at his home where he lives with his parents.
TURKISH HOSPITALITY REACHES CHINA'S BORDERS
Akdag's behavior, who recorded the entire journey and hosting process and shared it on his social media account, attracted great attention. So much so that the Turkish family's hospitality transcended national borders and was also met with great interest in China.
China's Ambassador to Ankara, Jiang Xuebin, who watched the footage, could not remain indifferent to this Turkish hospitality. Xuebin reached out to Akdag and invited the Akdag family to the Chinese Embassy for their hospitality. Ismail Akdag, who went to the Chinese Embassy with his mother and father, also shared the welcoming and warm moments there with his followers.
CHINESE ADMIRED TURKISH CULTURE
While Turkish hospitality impressed the Chinese, the special invitation extended to the Turkish family by the Chinese was also appreciated.
"You may remember, a while ago we picked up two Chinese tourists we met on the road and hosted them at our home. I honestly never would have guessed that this beautiful encounter would take us on a completely different journey," Ismail Akdag shared the process on his Instagram account with these words, stating:
"Later, the Chinese Ambassador, Mr. Jiang Xuebin, hosted us at the embassy. We had an unforgettable day thanks to their welcoming smiles, sincere conversations, and delicious treats. We especially had very warm and enjoyable conversations thanks to Ms. Ilkay's (Press Counselor of the Chinese Embassy) excellent translation skills.
The meaningful gifts they carefully prepared for us made us very happy. We also wanted to offer a gift from our own culture to this beautiful friendship by presenting them with the famous dried apricots from our region, Igdir.
At the end of our conversation, we said that this time we would like to host the same team at our own home. They expressed that they would be our guests as soon as possible. We are already eagerly looking forward to that day.
HOME INVITATION TO THE AMBASSADOR
At the end of our conversation, we said that this time we would like to host the same team at our own home. They expressed that they would be our guests as soon as possible. They also said they would take me to China as soon as possible and personally show me around. We are already eagerly looking forward to that day.
Once again, we saw that kindness does not go unanswered. A small act of kindness can open doors you never expected, bring people from different cultures together at the same table, and lead to lifelong friendships."
Content creator Ismail Akdag also emphasized "kindness" at the end of his post, saying, "Just do good... Because kindness is the most beautiful key that opens all doors."