Arriving as a refugee in a foreign country is both lonely and stressful. At Caritas language café in Oslo, Natalia Hmil and her daughters can learn Norwegian and find new friends.

Natalia Hmil came to Norway because of the war in Ukraine. Before the war, she lived in Dnipro with her family, husband and two daughters. Natalia worked as an economist in a bank.

When the war started, Natalia and her family headed west to Lviv, but after a while there, she and her husband decided to take the children to Poland. It had become too dangerous to stay.

The children cried all the time

In Poland, she was given a place to sleep and food. For more than a week, Natalia and her daughters lived with other refugees in an apartment owned by the Church.

There were three large rooms and between 30-35 people in each room. We slept on mattresses on the floor. The children cried all the time. It was very stressful for all of us," Natalia remembers.

Natalia Hmil, Ukrainian refugee in Norway

Natalia didn't plan to go to Norway. It actually happened by chance. Volunteers who were sending refugees by bus to Norway came to the church. They said they could give us a ride if we wanted to go there, and Natalia and some of the others joined us.

Worried about those at home

Natalia's husband, her parents, her brother and other relatives have remained in Ukraine. It was their choice. They didn't want to leave their homeland. Now they live with the dangers and consequences of war. They have no electricity or hot water. Russia has bombed important infrastructure to pieces. Natalia calls her husband and parents every day, but sometimes there is no connection and they can't talk. Then comes the anxiety.

Yoga and language café help

To cope better with all the worries, Natalia has started going to yoga. In addition, her daughter, Vika, found information online about Caritas language café and they started going there regularly. There they found new friends. Natalia's eldest daughter is especially happy about it. All her friends have been left behind in Ukraine and she is constantly worried about them.

I miss my husband and all our relatives very much. My children need a father. This war is a huge tragedy for the Ukrainian people, but at least now we don't feel completely alone anymore.

Natalia Hmil, Ukrainian refugee in Norway

In addition to the language café and Norwegian courses, Caritas helps refugees who have come to Norway from Ukraine by offering guidance in Ukrainian. We also organize activities for Ukrainian children.

(Text written by: Anna Tarhonii)