IRP Post #6

After we are told about what happened in the village, Mortenson heads back to the states. While there he puts off the funding for he school. He finds a stuffed animal and thinks back to when he was younger. He was born in Minnesota, but then his parents brought their children to Tanzania, where he live for a majority of his childhood and he was the happiest there. When they moved back everything was unfamiliar to him and people bullied him terribly at the high school for how kind he was to everyone. We are told of how when his youngest sister was born he took care of her because he was so concerned of her health condition, his care for her inspires him to do many of the things he did, like become a nurse and care for the struggling children in Pakistan.
When he was older his father got cancer, making him consider time as more important because within months his father deteriorated and he insisted on doing whatever would be best to make his father feel better. After that he decided to venture out more and moved to California and took up mountain climbing, he became very skilled in a short amount of time. While living in California, his youngest sister, Christa, died from a seisure, inspiring him to take her bracelet to the summmit of K2, the second highest point of elevation on earth.

I noticed while reading this section that there are many similarities in The Motorcycle Diaries. Like Ernesto, he decided on a whim to leave his successful life behind in a medical career to venture out. Mortenson even had an unreliable way of transportation, which he called "La Bamba". Similar to the Motorcycle Diaries, as well, people take him into their homes without question, like when Mortenson arrived in the village he was mistaken for Korphe.
I wonder if all travel/ adventure memoirs happen in the same sort of way. So far they seem similar in these ways.

The Tibeten butter tea that Mouzafar made for him, a delicacy to them.

IRP Post #5

Mortenson was once again separated from his group while climbing the mountain, but he came in contact with his porter that was transporting Mortenson's things from the mountain for him, Mouzafar. Mouzafar is one of the tribal people from Balti. They are explained to be small people who are terrific at climbing, and with short tempers, but despite their temper, amazing and generous people. Despite these traits that are described, it is obvious that Mouzafar cares very much for Mortenson's safety, and we are also told that they staff friends throughout his journeys to Pakistan
After giving up on the climb Mortenson attempted to go to Mouzafar's village for shelter, but went in the wrong direction and ended up in a village called Akole. He is greeted by Haji Ali, the chief of the village. The people of the village treat Mortenson to luxury items of their tribe, offering him things that are so rare.
After arriving in the village they get into contact with Mouzafar, and he comes back to see Mortanson.While staying in th village, Haji Ali shows him their school, which is barely a school. This astonished Mortenson and he promised their village that he would go back to fund this school in America, so all the children could get an education.

IRP Post #4

"' May the nation, the country, and the state shine in glory everlasting. This flag of crescent and star leads the way to progress and perfection.'
During his recuperation in Korphe, Mortenson had frequently heard villagers complain about the Punjabi-dominated Pakistani government, which they considered a foreign, lowland power. The common refrain was how a combination of corruption and neglect siphoned off what little money from Islamabad, the capital, to these distant mountain valleys. They found it ironic that the Islamabad government would fight so hard to pry away this piece of what had once been Kashmir from India, while doing so little for the people" (Relin 32)

This was when Mortenson was shown a local school, which wasn't really a school at all. There were about forty kids on the ground outside doing work, without a teacher. The man told him that the teacher only comes once a week, the rest of the time they have to attempt ton teach each other. What's ironic of this, is that the girl is thanking her country for all it provides, even though while saying this she is without basic tools for the school she is attending. After seeing this he swore to that mountain village that he will build a proper school from the ground up so all the children can get an education with more than one teacher, and all come daily to teach their students.

R.A.F.T. #1

R - Communist Couple

A- Me

F- Opinion Editorial

T- People

Correo de Valdivia,

Although this open opinion may get us in possible trouble with the government, my wife and I could no longer hold back our feelings towards Chile and its people. We understand that this newspaper can do nothing about or predicament, but maybe those reading will understand our views and see our side of things. This country is so harsh towards those with their differing opinions against democracy. We are in favor of revolution, changing Chile into a communist state. Our country though, being backed by the democratic U.S., has persecuted us for our communist views under the Law for the Defense of Democracy.
This country has treated us terribly. I was put into prison for three months, leaving my wife without food, starving. Though my wife hasn't been taken from me, my close friends have disappeared under uncertain conditions. Now we search for work at any place that does not question ones beliefs on a political system and their past. Now we plan to work at a sulphur mine, because nowhere else will hire a man having gone through jail for unjust reasons.
So, please, understand and join us as the "Communist Vermin" we are called, because obviously those in power cannot treat all human life with respect.

IRP Post 3

While reading the background of Mortenson's life I got very excited to see that he was born and raised in the Twin cities in Minnesota, like myself. He also went to one of the colleges my father went to around the same time, making both huge coincidences.

When the section about the mount climbing came up I noticed how similar it was to 180 South that we watched in class. It was much more intense in comparison to the movie, though. Both groups of people were attempting to reach a goal, but Mortenson's goal was to put his younger sister's bracelet at the highest peak of the mountain in memory of her. I am not sure if this applies to many mountain climbing experiences, but it seems from the stories I have heard and read about that the get so close to the summit, but for safety reasons they can go no farther.

From what I have read thus far I can tell that this book is about a modest man. He seems to want to do anything for anyone who needs, and unlike most he doesn't do it to make himself feel better for having done something for a person in need.

I wonder what other, if any, other places he has gone to do missionary work.

IRP Post 2

In the introduction we are introduced to the writer of the book, David Oliver Relin, who joins Greg Mortenson on his missionary work as a teacher in the Middle East. He says that although he is the one that technically wrote the book, in every way Mortenson was the writer. He was the one who went out and did amazing things for hundreds of children by helping them and teaching them.

The book starts off by describing a scene in a helicopter through Pakistan with Mortenson. They landed in Korphe greeted by ecstatic children offering them tea. Mortenson is known to have an "orbit" that attracts people into his life. There were multiple given examples of how within a moment of meeting him people would join him to become "dedicated fixers". Soldiers of the Taliban ended their violence simply meeting Dr. Mortenson.

After our introduction of Mortenson we are told of his first time encountering failure. Him and a large group of other climbers, including a close friend,Scott Darsney, attempted to climb K2, the second highest point on earth. While climbing up he lost the rest of the group and reflected on how lonely it was during that time. When he found the group again they were held back because a man became sick from the elevation. Only 600 meters from the top they had to climb down, encountering failure.

IRP Blog Post 1

"Reaching into his pocket of his shalwar , he fingered the necklace of amber beads that his little sister Christa had often worn. As a three-year-old in Tanzania, where Mortenson's parents had been missionaries and teacher, Christa had contracted acute meningitis and never fully recovered. Greg, twelve years her senior, had appointed himself her protector. Though Christa struggled to perform simple tasks -- putting on her clothes each morning took upward of an hour -- and suffered severe epileptic seizure, Greg pressured his mother to allow her some measure of independence. (8 Relin)

I thought this passage to be important because it shows an early example of Greg Mortenson's life and how caring he is. Not only does he now build schools in the middle east, but at the age of fifteen after a traumatic incident he absolutely insisted on taking care of his sister. It goes on to talk about how every year he took her out to see and do amazing things with him such as going to Yosemite or go on road trips. Unfortunately on her birthday right before she went to visit him she died from a severe seizure.

Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin

"It's like the quest for the holy grail. Who gives a [darn] what the grail is, its the journey that counts...its the transformation that is within that is important."

Jeff traveled to Patagonia by boat with surfers and mountain climbers. He explained that he always wanted to and finally got the chance in his busy life. They came across issues traveling there, such as the mast breaking along the way. They stopped at Rapa-nui to get it fixed, but didn't realize they would also learn things about the land and had just as beautiful nature as the areas in Chile. When they reached Chile Jeff noted that there were so many industrial buildings there ruining the natural world in the country, such as working to build a dam in Patagonia. Jeff didn't realize that he was going to learn so much about the land and the people. He ended the documentary saying how that if you care about a place you have a right to take care of it. In his journey with the others he came across so many example of how people weren't taking care of their natural world. Although Tim and himself didn't finish the climb (Holy grail) I'm sure they all learned the same sort of lessons in their transformation of going there, as Jeff explained.

In school we are taught that we have to work hard for grades to get that 4.0 GPA as our "holy grail", but in school I have also realized how I work. Despite how some courses may have been annoying, in retrospect I leaned how to bring thoughts together and in school I have met people that have helped me grow in my ability to think things through. Even though half of my high school career I didn't have the grades I was told to have I did change through those years and I still definitely am.