Lyudmila: Specialist Invited to Sakhalin

Lyumila and Pavel, 29, were looking for pigeons in the central of Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk late on a Thursday. Lyudmila is one of the many young specialists invited from the Russian ‘mainland’ to work on Sakhalin, where the pay is high due to the remote location. Pavel, her husband, supported the temporary move. ”I told her its a great opportunity, a chance to gain valuable experience,” he said. ”And it was a chance to visit the far end of Russia. Sakhalin is beautiful. You don’t get this kind of winter in central Russia.” Pavel said he is taking advantage of Sakhalin’s snow and mountains by picking up snowboarding since he and Lyudmila arrived seven months ago. The couple plans on moving back, though, to Nizhny Novgorod when Lyudmila’s contract is up to be close to family and friends. Pavel, the son of a military officer and teacher, said he is developing a project with friends back home and works from the apartment in Sakhalin. He and his friends hope to raise money via crowd sourcing to finish their project.