At the beginning of December, snow falls on Vršovice. The shop window of a bistro near Vršovické Square glows with yellow light onto the street. Mr. Sultani, together with his wife, serves arriving guests who have come for a late lunch. “That’s a neighbor,” he explains as a woman orders what she always does. The bistro’s menu combines classic kebab with traditional Afghan dishes. Mr. Sultani sits down at a table and pours black tea into small cups. Today, he has come straight to the bistro from the Faculty of Arts at Charles University, where he studies Czech for foreigners. I ask him how he remembers the Nový domov course run by Slovo 21, which he attended a year ago.

A Course That Should Have Come Earlier

He explains that it was an eight-hour course organized specifically for people coming to the Czech Republic from Afghanistan. Besides Mr. Sultani, there were about ten other participants. “It would have been better if it had taken place earlier, not after several years of already living in Prague,” he adds. “But even so, the information was relevant and useful. And not only for me, but for everyone else as well, because many people had lots of questions about topics like support and other issues.”

The courses are intended for holders of international protection and aim, in a sensitive way, to provide newcomers with information they may be missing when integrating into Czech society. The lecturers are specially trained to work with this specific group and provide essential information about life in the Czech Republic—for example about the social system, finding work, or housing.

Mr. Sultani recalls the things that were hardest for him at the beginning of his life in the Czech Republic. But his thoughts often return to life in Afghanistan and everything he had to leave behind there. Before emigrating, he worked at the Czech embassy and lived a comfortable life in the capital, surrounded by his family. From 2020 onward, however, the situation in the country deteriorated. Because of his work at the embassy, he began receiving threats from the Taliban. The situation quickly led to the forced evacuation of the entire embassy. Mr. Sultani describes leaving the country in haste and under great stress. “At one in the morning, after hours of organizing the departure, we were sitting on the plane, already in the air, looking down at the city as the Taliban were arriving.”

A Bistro as a New Beginning

No course can help newcomers come to terms with the loss of their homeland. But it can offer a helping hand with the obstacles awaiting them in a new environment. Mr. Sultani recalls, for example, the difficulties of finding a job. “I sent out maybe a thousand CVs, but I still couldn’t find work. Especially because I struggled with the language,” he notes. That is why he decided to attend intensive Czech language classes at the university. His inability to find a job ultimately also led him to open his own bistro, which he now runs together with his wife and brother.

“To be honest, my experience with the Czech Republic and with the people I’ve met here is good. Everyone has treated me fairly, and I would recommend the Czech Republic as a good place to live. But at the same time, it is difficult. It’s hard to find a job, learn the language, and get used to cultural differences. Only when you emigrate do you realize how complicated everything suddenly becomes,” Mr. Sultani concludes his story. We say goodbye over one last cup of tea. Outside, the snow is already falling into the darkness.