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Sabetta. Summer time
Today, I will continue sharing my experience working in the North at Sabetta.
During my first trip I spent almost 3 months and returned home for a summer break. After 1.5 months, I was scheduled to go north again.
After spending a few days in quarantine at a hotel, I arrived for my shift.
Sabetta welcomed me with greenery.
When I arrived, I immediately received information from other colleagues that we would have to work from our rooms. This news made me very happy right away!
In general, there was no need to go far before this change. The office was just a 5-minute walk from the residential building. However, working there was not very pleasant due to micromanagement from the bosses, not always a pleasant environment, and some silly Russian rules regarding wearing work attire in the office.
They moved me to another room, which also increased my comfort. I ended up living on the 3rd floor with a somewhat pleasant view, and I could even see a bit of the sea (when it's not foggy like in the photo).
In this room, another colleague had already been living, but our paths never crossed. While I was at work, he was on vacation (in northern slang, they call it "межвахта"). So, I ended up with a good workstation equipped with two monitors.
I made some adjustments to my workspace - I connected my laptop to the monitor to be able to work and handle tasks more effectively.
Overall, the summer in Sabetta was quite pleasant. There weren't as many insects here as in other oilfields, and the temperature was comfortable - around 10-15 degrees Celsius almost round the clock. Plus, the sun barely dips below the horizon during the summer.
I managed to take some beautiful photos during lunch breaks.
In general, time passed quite calmly, there wasn't much work to do. Throughout the summer, I didn't really travel around the oilfield much. The planned tasks were constantly postponed, or they couldn't arrange the necessary permits and documents, so I spent my time either taking walks or in my room.
I think I did manage to go somewhere nearby a couple of times, but it was very brief.
During my time here, I had to help with delivering something and setting up some unnecessary computer equipment.
I also had to go to the cafeteria and eat whatever they provided. It felt like the food quality was getting worse with each trip.
During the summer, there was a great opportunity to go to the sea, and fortunately, it was just a 30-minute walk away.
You had to walk along these northern roads made of construction panels.
The sea was accessible at one particular spot where some contractors used to live. However, their containers were later dismantled, creating access to the water.
Several videos with the view.
Ignoring the litter around, it's quite a pleasant place.
However, it's not advisable to swim here as the water can be heavily polluted due to human activities.
So, this relatively short summer in Sabetta passed. Each day at work was quite similar to the previous one, and the general schedule was as follows:
- Wake up at 6:30 AM, shower, warm-up.
- Head to breakfast at the cafeteria at 7:15 AM.
- Return to the room at 7:30 AM and work until lunch.
- Then a 2-hour lunch break - you could take a walk, rest, and of course, eat.
- I would take my dinner from lunch, so I didn't go to the cafeteria in the evening.
- You could go to sleep at 10-11 PM.
- And so, every day followed the same routine.
I also started actively studying while in Sabetta. The environment allowed for it, as there were no distractions in the room.
As the departure date approached, autumn began.
The days were getting shorter, and darkness fell faster and faster. But I had to leave and head back.
The next time I arrived, it was already winter. But I'll write about that in the third part.
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