I traveled to Kazakhstan in June 2023 to implement project close-out activities for the USAID CASA-1000 Secretariat Project. CASA-1000 is a multinational power transmission project that will bring surplus power from Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to Afghanistan and Pakistan via 1,387km of HVDC and HVAC transmission lines. While transmission line construction and and operation are carried out by several companies located in each of these countries, the US Agency for International Development contracted Energy and Security Group LLC, my former employer, to handle project coordination from a field office in Almaty, Kazakhstan. While our work was originally scheduled to extend past 2023, USAID and the US State Department decided to end US involvement in the project after the Taliban regained control of Afghanistan in 2021.

During my two weeks in Almaty, I took as many opportunities as possible to explore the city and surrounding region in the evenings and weekends. With numerous noteworthy points of interest including the Green Bazaar, the Ascension Cathedral, Panfilov Park, the Medeu ice rink, the Kök Töbe zoo and gondola, and the Trans-Ili Alatau mountains (the northernmost range of Central Asia’s Tian Shan mountains), I knew it was essential to bring a camera that was small and portable while still being up to the task of capturing the vibrant pulse of Almaty and the grandiose landscapes of the mountains. I decided on my Contax G1 and the Zeiss 45mm f/2, along with a handful of Fuji Velvia 100 and Fuji Neopan SS.

Placeholder for Gorelnik Gorge hike