Tag #146326 - Interview #78190 (evgenia shapiro)

For ten years I went to work in Nefteyugansk [3,000 km from Kiev]. My daughter stayed with my parents in Kiev. Engineers and workers had an opportunity to get a job in the North where salaries and wages were higher due to the severe climate and work conditions. It was also difficult to cope with the hardships of life there because of the polar night that lasts half a year and when there is no sun. People signed contracts for several years to make a significant amount of money. There were oil deposit developments and construction sites in the North. So, work in the North was better paid, and I wanted to earn a little before my retirement. I had the time of my life in the North. I worked with nice people. We were a great team. I lived in a room with a fridge and a TV. We celebrated holidays and birthdays together. We flew a helicopter to pick mushrooms. We put on our rubber boots and anti- mosquito nets and went to pick red bilberries. I enjoyed it very much there. I returned to Kiev in 1984 when my daughter decided to get married. I still keep in touch with my former colleagues from Nefteyugansk.