Pedestrians stroll past peeling campaign posters in central Bishkek. Kyrgyz voters go to the polls on Oct. 10 to vote in a new parliament, the first following the recent unrest in southwestern Osh and following the ouster of former President Kurmanbek Bakiyev.
Twenty-nine political parties have presented more than 3,300 candidates vying for 120 seats in the Kyrgyz parliament.
A girl wearing a T-shirt with the writing "Warning! This bitch bites!!" attends a recent Sunday morning religious service at Georgia's main Holy Trinity Cathedral in Tbilisi.
An initiative by Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili on importing some 10,000 English language teachers from abroad to teach the nation English seems to make sense - at least in the case of a better choice of apparel for this young girl. And the church, whose officials have criticized the president for the program, could actually benefit from the nation's better knowledge of English as well.
Temo Bardzimashvili is a freelance photojournalist based in Tbilisi.
Cows relax and chew cud outside a centuries-old "Albanian" temple in the village of Dashbulag in northern Azerbaijan. The horned bovines use the structure as a shelter when not grazing on the surrounding fields.
Vladic Ravich is a freelance photojournalist based in Turkey.
First graders prepare for the first day of school at School 51 in downtown Tbilisi, Georgia. According to the Georgian Ministry of Education and Science, public schools will start on Sept. 15 from now on, a change from previous years when the first day of school was Sept. 1 or later, depending on the ministry's decision.
Molly Corso is a freelance photojournalist based in Tbilisi.
At a September 11 ceremony at the Manas Transit Center, two US airmen salute the American and Kyrgyz flags to mark the 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States. Washington opened the base outside of Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan shortly after the attacks.
David Trilling is the Central Asia news editor for EurasiaNet.
In 1971, Moscow awarded Yevdinya Sidorova the title 'Hero Mother of the Soviet Union' for giving birth to 10 children. Seen here with one of her grandsons in Korobikha, today she proudly displays the medals and certificate. Most of her children have left this remote village in eastern Kazakhstan's Altay mountains for Russia.
David Trilling is the Central Asia news editor for EurasiaNet.
Lubov Sosina (left) and Feodor Neudakhin, both presbyters, or leaders of a local Christian congregation, say a prayer to a Georgian Molokan community during the celebration of Transfiguration Day on Aug. 19th in Tbilisi. Molokans - Russian for "milk drinkers" - stem from a Russian sectarian Christian group that split from the Russian Orthodox Church during the early 17th Century. In the mid 1800s, tens of thousands of Molokans were expelled from mainland Russia into the Caucasus.
Although the Molokan religion prohibits women from preaching, in Georgia, where the number of Molokans has decreased from 10,000 to several hundred since independence from the Soviet Union, the community has no choice. In recent decades, young Molokans have left Georgia, returning to ancestral lands in Russia. So despite Sosina being the married
77-year-old daughter of a deceased presbyter, the community has preferred to have her act as a religious leader instead of her husband. “Probably I was more worthy,” she says jokingly.
Temo Bardzimashvili is a freelance photojournalist based in Tbilisi.
Ramadan is the month-long festival considered to be the most important in the Islamic faith, during which many fast throughout the day in order to reflect and worship. Ramazan, as it is called in Turkish, is celebrated in Istanbul as a joyous festival with daily events held around the city peaking at Iftar, the meal at sundown that signals the end of the daily fast.
Many Istanbulites have been taking Iftar outside to beat the summer heat, making this a very difficult and long Ramadan. Due to the long summer days of August, those who fast are not supposed to eat, drink or smoke from roughly sunrise at 5 a.m. until sunset after 8:30 p.m.Though not all Turks fast, the trend seems to be growing.
Monique Jaques is a freelance photojournalist working in Turkey and Afghanistan.
Two boys restrain a mare as a butcher prepares to slaughter her on July 23 for a Kyrgyz wedding. Never ridden and thus more tender and costly, she fed more than 200 people at the Bishkek celebration the next day.
The butcher has a full-service slaughterhouse in Bishkek’s western suburbs, roasting the ribs and rumps and stuffing the intestines as sausages, all within 24 hours, and then delivering to the wedding venue. Horse meat is slightly sweeter than beef or lamb, and lower in fat, but pricey. This horse cost roughly $1000. Though a popular part of the Kyrgyz diet, due to the cost and size of the animal, horse meat is often reserved for special occasions, such as weddings and funerals.
The slaughter, cooking and delivery cost was $90.
David Trilling is the Central Asia news editor for EurasiaNet.
