In 1997, shortly after Kazakhstan’s independence from the Soviet Union, President Nursultan Nazarbayev moved the country’s capital from Almaty to Astana, the latter being rich in minerals and oil wells. During this shift, Almaty experienced a radical change in terms of population composition. All government offices and activities moved away from the city and with them the workers too. Most men abandoned the city leaving the women behind, making Almaty one the cities with the highest number of females in the entire world. In Almaty, summers are hot and until October trees offer a warm and colorful backdrop; this time of the year is called BAB'E LETO in Russian, literally Old Women’s Summer; its meaning implies something that is already gone and will never come back, just like a summer fading into winter. It evokes those women in their late forties who will never be young and beautiful again, like a blooming flower before withering. Patriarchy is still highly pervasive in the Kazakh culture, especially outside the biggest cities where women conditions are very difficult. They usually get married very young, have many children and don't work in order to fully dedicate themselves to their family. Women can divorce but seldom marry a second time. Almost no women hold senior positions in the country, neither in government nor in the private sector. Almaty is an exception to all this. It is THE CITY OF WOMEN, a place in which BAB'E LETO does not seem to exist. Here, women live a sort of second youth, resistant to the cold winter. This is a story of women, this is a story of female loneliness, this is a story of human strength.
Summer is fading winter is coming
Summer is fading winter is coming
In 1997, shortly after Kazakhstan’s independence from the Soviet Union, President Nursultan Nazarbayev moved the country’s capital from Almaty to Astana, the latter being rich in minerals and oil wells. During this shift, Almaty experienced a radical change in terms of population composition. All government offices and activities moved away from the city and with them the workers too. Most men abandoned the city leaving the women behind, making Almaty one the cities with the highest number of females in the entire world. In Almaty, summers are hot and until October trees offer a warm and colorful backdrop; this time of the year is called BAB'E LETO in Russian, literally Old Women’s Summer; its meaning implies something that is already gone and will never come back, just like a summer fading into winter. It evokes those women in their late forties who will never be young and beautiful again, like a blooming flower before withering. Patriarchy is still highly pervasive in the Kazakh culture, especially outside the biggest cities where women conditions are very difficult. They usually get married very young, have many children and don't work in order to fully dedicate themselves to their family. Women can divorce but seldom marry a second time. Almost no women hold senior positions in the country, neither in government nor in the private sector. Almaty is an exception to all this. It is THE CITY OF WOMEN, a place in which BAB'E LETO does not seem to exist. Here, women live a sort of second youth, resistant to the cold winter. This is a story of women, this is a story of female loneliness, this is a story of human strength.