April A-Z Challenge: A Tale of Four Cities [Q]

Blog entry #17

Quixotic | Quid pro quo | Quest for Zest | Qui vive

Quixotic (Mumbai)
I can still recall the story of 'Don Quixote and Sancho Panza' from my 5th grade school book on literature. For this story, pronunciation was the first thing we learnt: "ki-ho-tey". This story also taught me the phrase "tilting at windmills", referenced in one of the later seasons in Suits (clip). You’ll also find this character referenced in TBBT (clip). Moreover, it’s a valid Scrabble word, and that’s a good thing, since with 'Q’ = 10 points, and 'X' = 8, this would be a high-scoring word if you got to play it. 'Quixote’ is valid too. Don Quixote was more of a silly character, and the word 'quixotic' came to be associated with 'unrealistic and impractical'. If you’d like to tell your kid this story, here’s a 12-minute animated version.

Quid pro quo
This Latin phrase for "you scratch my back, and I'll scratch yours", was commonplace in BITS Hyderabad, as I’m sure is in other colleges too. In campus, it’s always 'something for something' among students. You help me with my assignment, I can put in a word or two for your Dance Club inductions. Help me practise tennis, and I can help you understand electrical engineering 101. And so on. I guess this policy holds true in some corporations as well. Gone are the days of selflessness, perhaps.

Quest for Zest
I was very excited before, during and after my internship at Amazon Chennai. During my internship, I was pumped to be part of this huge conglomerate. Huge might still be an understatement, since this is the world’s largest online retailer, with having acquired several digital businesses too. My excitement did not end with the internship, of course. Once I joined as an FTE (full-time employee), I was eager to learn and work with the in-house technologies and frameworks. I am glad to say that my 'quest for zest' continues not only in my job, but also in other domains, say, like writing a blog? ;) 

Qui vive
It’s French for 'on the alert or lookout'. When driving in India, one has to be cautious, that goes without saying. But when in Bangalore, especially, one always has to be on the qui vive. It’s quite scary for a learner, a rookie driver. It’s been two years of my frequent visits there, but I flinch every time someone is so close you can see the colour of their eyes (Okay that was totally random). But yeah, if this city has the capability to become the top IT hub and is a dynamic city that beckons diverse populations, I hope it can do better with its "traffic situation" and therefore, "driving frenzy".

Image courtesy: Google ©