This could be the title for the majority of my posts. But this one is about miscommunications with a translator so I thought it appropriate.. :) My research assistants did not feel comfortable translating my interview guides into Hindi (I found this out a week before we were to leave for the field) and so I set about looking for a English/Hindi written translator. One would think this would be easy in a place and work environment where most people speak Hindi and English. Alas, wrong again.
There was one option that we could find on short notice who did not work for CARE but another NGO nearby. Terms were settled but then we had to courier the documents over to her because she had no email address. This should have been the first sign but no... I just arranged it and moved on, excited for my Hindi translations to come in on Friday.
When we had to arrange for a courier to pick them up, I was suspicious on how a computer file could not be emailed at a local internet cafe instead. This is when we found out (3 days before we left for the field) then these were handwritten. OH. I had reformatted the guides to take up fewer pages thinking I could just cut and paste them back into their original forms. I didn't think that would require actual scissors and paste in this circumstance. SIGH.
In the midst of this, other miscommunications occurred and I ended up going their myself to this small apartment on the other side of town to pick up these handwritten documents. I was not in a happy mood.
And then when I arrived... this wonderful elderly lady opened the door and said hello, she offered me a seat and was so shocked that I had come to pick up the papers myself, expecting a courier. She offered me a Sprite and told me fun tales. Like she was not actually a translator but had been doing work for a friend and found out half way through that this translation work was not for her friend, but for CARE. And then she decided she would do it anyway. She was actually an Urdu fiction writer and was working on a new novel. And she lived in a cute apartment with a view of the Ganges River (see picture below) and many years ago it was much higher than this but the waters had receded lately.
Oh my gosh it was the cutest thing ever. Totally removing any bad feelings I had on the subject and I sat there and talked with this woman, drank my Sprite, and met her neighbor and neighbor's daughter. Bam. Happy times. :)
There was one option that we could find on short notice who did not work for CARE but another NGO nearby. Terms were settled but then we had to courier the documents over to her because she had no email address. This should have been the first sign but no... I just arranged it and moved on, excited for my Hindi translations to come in on Friday.
When we had to arrange for a courier to pick them up, I was suspicious on how a computer file could not be emailed at a local internet cafe instead. This is when we found out (3 days before we left for the field) then these were handwritten. OH. I had reformatted the guides to take up fewer pages thinking I could just cut and paste them back into their original forms. I didn't think that would require actual scissors and paste in this circumstance. SIGH.
In the midst of this, other miscommunications occurred and I ended up going their myself to this small apartment on the other side of town to pick up these handwritten documents. I was not in a happy mood.
And then when I arrived... this wonderful elderly lady opened the door and said hello, she offered me a seat and was so shocked that I had come to pick up the papers myself, expecting a courier. She offered me a Sprite and told me fun tales. Like she was not actually a translator but had been doing work for a friend and found out half way through that this translation work was not for her friend, but for CARE. And then she decided she would do it anyway. She was actually an Urdu fiction writer and was working on a new novel. And she lived in a cute apartment with a view of the Ganges River (see picture below) and many years ago it was much higher than this but the waters had receded lately.
Oh my gosh it was the cutest thing ever. Totally removing any bad feelings I had on the subject and I sat there and talked with this woman, drank my Sprite, and met her neighbor and neighbor's daughter. Bam. Happy times. :)
How the mood and emotions change :o) This is a memorable day definitely! Nice that you document it!
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