Sunday, May 22, 2011

"Solpa adjust maadi"

In Thailand it was "Jai yen yen" (ใจเย็นๆ) - keep a cool heart.  In Bangalore, Karnataka, India, Eagle River resident and Ohio Wesleyan student, Becky Smith, is being told to "please adjust a little." 

She writes in her new blog, Hindustan Hamara (begun May 3, 2011 with three posts now):
Part of Bangalore from the air Nov. 2006
Everything in India takes a few extra steps. After a few days at my service apartment, I finally was informed that I had no hot water because there was a boiler that also needed to be turned on. While I'm used to generally just finding a hotel within my price range, here finding a place to stay involved several days of phone calls (thank God for my friend and his dad who took care of that for me) and negotiations to agree on the rate for a two month stay. And that was all before we decided that air conditioning really was necessary for an Alaskan to live in Bangalore. Which brings us to the first lesson of India: "Solpa adjust maadi." In Kannada, the language predominately spoken in Karnataka, this roughly translates to "Please adjust a little, sir."

Becky's just begun as an intern  
at Sanghamitra Rural Financial Services (SRFS), a non-profit microfinance institute aiming to raise clients out of poverty by offering microloans and other financial services. I will also be conducting independent research on the profit structures of microfinance firms and its effect on the social and income impacts it has on its clients.
You can follow Becky's summer internship at her blog.  I would note that her proud father is Anchorage's Deputy Police Chief, Steve Smith. 


Do you know where Bangalore is in India?  How many seconds will it take you to find on the map?
Adapted from worldsecurity.org map


I'm assuming that most of you know where India is on the world map. Hint: Bangalore is in Southern India.

1 comment:

  1. Professor,

    Thanks for highlighting my "little girl's" work in India, and for making her blog known to your readership. I know she will benefit from the thoughts and observations of the highly insightful people who frequent your blog.

    Steve Smith

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