Officer Krupke, I'm down on my knees!

Finally, something truly blogworthy! My life's been pretty monotone the past few weeks, but I guess you should never complain about that kind of thing, lest something interesting happens. Ah well, I guess misfortunes and mishaps make for the best kind of blogging, eh?

Today was (hopefully) the last day of data collection, and Tweedle-Dum and I set out to interview four clients. Tweedle-Dee was absent, him being called to court - yes, court. I didn't enquire too closely. We've set out each day with a driver and a rented car, and driven about an hour into the countryside - most of GMFI's clients are rural. We were interviewing the third client (a real success-story - a seamstress/electrician couple with a big brick house in a market area) when the branch manager who'd been accompanying us was taken into huddled consultation with a bunch of people outside. When we finished the interview, we went out to join him, in order to drive to the final client- and were told our driver'd been arrested!

Apparently the driver had parked illegally, and when the police came to tell him off, he "use many ill words, Ma'am." We stood for a while as Tweedle-Dum and the branch manager consulted what to do, a crowd slowly forming around us. Tweedle-Dum managed to communicate to me that she thought it best to try and call the office and have them organise for a driver to come and pick us up. I suggested we go to the police station and see what could be done. Maybe we could induce the police to drive us home, since it wasn't our fault the driver was an idiot? Tweedle-Dum seemed shocked at the suggestion, and tried to say we should avoid dealing with the police at all costs. "Nonsense!", said I, the good little Western girl who's used to trusting authority figures, "I'm sure the police will be sympathetic and helpful!". I convinced the branch manager to take us (and our entourage the crowd) to the police station to see what was what.

We arrived (some thirty people strong at this point) and were pointed to the senior officer. With Tweedle-Dum translating, I managed to convey our situation and ask for his advice. Miracle of miracles, he was helpfulness itself! He agreed that it was terrible we should suffer for someone else's idiocy, and though our driver was an idiot we shouldn't be inconvenienced. I asked whether he could arrange for transportation for us, and instead he gave the order to set our driver free! While we waited, he apologized again and again, saying his junior officers were too quick too take offense, and normally Indians didn't cause such problems. Hah! Once our driver appear, apparently not in the least chastened, since he immediately stalked to his car, we were saluted out of the quarters and given a police escort to the main road. I couldn't help giggling at the whole affair. Tweedle-Dum seemed bewildered at the politeness of the officials, and I couldn't help but wonder at how fast the police officer had let a man out of jail purely because I had asked nicely. Hah.


Otherwise there's not much to report. I got down to the bookstore this afternoon, and bought Great Expectations, Alice in Wonderland, Gulliver's Travels, The Pickwick Papers, Mansfield Park, and Robinson Crusoe. Let's see how many of them I finish before I come home (next Saturday, whee!)

Much love to you all,
Cheers,
Gitte