Posts filed under 'Armenia'
What a Loan Smells Like:
By Brian Kelly, KF9, Armenia
Not very good, at least in some of these Armenian villages I’ve been dropping in on lately. Have you smelled a chicken coop, or a sty filled with 20 pigs lately? It’s tough to carry a conversation in there. Visiting borrowers, at least in Armenian villages is quite the sensory overload. You will smell more than you hoped to, probably taste something you never expected to, and perhaps hear a story that will inspire you to start your own apricot grove.
Haaaayyyy. This will feed the animals throughout the winter, looks tasty
Kiva does an interesting thing. It helps put stories to the often boringly academic discipline of microfinance. Without the stories, Kiva would struggle to fund loans as quickly as it does. They help to strike a chord inside of us that increases willingness to lend or donate because of a connection felt on a human level. But you probably know all of that already, (or have read some of the chatter) and this spiel sounds all good and nice, but what does a loan really LOOK like. What does it feel like, taste like up close? How is access to credit really affecting the borrower? Well that question is one of the unique opportunities that Kiva Fellows get to ask and hopefully attempt to answer.
7 comments 8 November 2009
Adapting to Armenia (..still?)
By Brian Kelly, KF9, Armenia
So after being in Armenia for almost two weeks, I have to say the introduction was a little tougher than imagined. As a preface, I don’t speak Armenian and I don’t speak Russian, both of which are the primary languages used here. English is everywhere at my MFI, but not too present elsewhere, other than the really western-style restaurants and cafes. So adapting to a new alphabet has been a challenge, as I see this foreign script all over a menu, and then a bunch of numbers. Then I point at something, similar to google’s “I’m feeling lucky” function, and hope for the best. Street signs exist about 50% of the time (so I feel you Victoria), and when they do, about 50% of the time the street name is recognizable. Those are quickly diminishing odds right there.
What I’ve found is the simplest transactions can have me looking like a complete fool. (more…)
13 comments 25 October 2009
Ready or Not, Here We Come…
By Brian Kelly, KF9, Armenia
“Life definitely just got a whole lot better.” A simple few words, but ones that perfectly represent where I stand a week after completing training for the Kiva Fellows program. Said by fellow KF9 Alana, this statement resonated with me as we headed to our graduation dinner. 49 of us had just completed a long week of training in all things Kiva, and in these short 5 days I realized how lucky I was to be a member of this 9th class of Kiva Fellows.
Fall 2009's must have accessory: KF9 Digital Belt Buckle
Last week’s training was overwhelming to say the least – the community and caliber of relationships I established was completely unpredicted. (more…)
15 comments 3 October 2009
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