Prompt #4 Book

Every time I get on an airplane I am terrified. I do not enjoy traveling, but I love visiting other countries. I hate train stations, airports, bus stops, just waiting in general. To me, there is no worse feeling than being out of control. But Bryson doesn’t seem to share any of my worries. He just travels from town to town having a jolly ol’ time remember the towns from his youth. If that were me I would be freaking out! How can he be so out of control and relaxed at the same time? That really surprises me.

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My group consists of Nicole L, Sophie W, Joe S, James K, and I.
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03/25- TMD Wrap Up

The Do Now:
In your opinion did Ernesto achieve was what wanted to do went he set out to travel America?

This is a good Do Now because it is open ended and allows people to express their own opinion. The question also touches on the beginning of the trip, why he set out?

Comment on Melissa's Blog

03/17- Columbia and Venezuela

pg 163 "It was...as if everything solid melted away in to the ether, eliminating all individuality and absorbing us, rigid, into the immense darkness."
This quote talks about how Ernesto feels like many of the poor people are just slipping away because no one cares about them. They don't have a voice. These are the people that Ernesto wants to help.

pg 165 "bloodstained weapon"
This quote is simple. Violence, conflict, struggle, a willingness to do battle are all good interpretations of this quote. Now at the end of the book, the reader can finally see that Ernesto doesn't just want to talk about change; he wants to fight for it.

pg 165 "I feel my nostrils dilate, savoring the acrid smell of gunpowder and blood..."
This quote kind of goes with the one above. It is very descriptive. "gunpowder and blood" is like violence and death. And the word "savoring" means that Ernesto enjoys those smells. He wants to kill for want he believes in.

pg 165 "...prepare myself to be a sacred space within which the bestial howl of the triumphant proletariat can resound with new energy and new hope."
This is probably the single most pro-communist quotation in the entire book. Ernesto/Che is pretty much letting the proletariat (working class) know that it is time to rise up and fight to get rid of suppressive capitalist governments. Fight for communism.

Prompt #7 Chapter 13

This chapter was about Rome. I was right; Bryson continued to make funny jokes about how the Roman should never have been introduced to the invention of the automobile; alluding to the fact that he believes Italians to be the worst drivers in Europe. It’s interesting because some people may not appreciate Bryson’s sense of humor and writing style; but for me it makes all the difference.

Prompt #8 Book

I don’t think this book as a deeper them or lesson; after all it is a travel narrative. But I do believe that this book contains within it a very strong message. This book emphasizes the importance of travel. Going out of your comfort area and trying new and interesting things. Bryson is roof that you don’t even need to speak the language in order to communicate and have a fun time.

Prompt #10 Book

One of the main reasons why I enjoy this book so much is because I have traveled to many of the cities Bryson has gone to. Because Bryson and I share this “travelers-connection” it allows me to be able to travel with him instead of just reading a book.
Not only do I feel connected with the content of the book, but also to Bryson’s for of narration. It is very sarcastic and comical. In a way, it resembles how I speak. So not only can I picture what he’s talking about but he’s describing it in my own language!

03/12- Theme #6 Introduction

1. The most useful site for me was the first one because not only does it give you example of what a good thesis statement should look like, it also provides examples of what a bad thesis statement looks like.
2. The general idea of my thesis would go something like this:
Ernesto's desire to become a selfless doctor lead to Che's lasting generalized socialistic impact the people of Latin America still resignates (sp?) today

Prompt #2 Book

The hardest thing for me to understand is how Bryson can believe so adamantly in European stereotypes but never so much as actually have a conversation with them. He may talk to one or two people every now and again, but he vast majority of the time his is walking by himself.
It occurs to me now that Bryson is incapable of having a conversation because he only speaks English. But still, I would have thought someone as cultured and well-traveled has Bryson would know not to put too much stock in gross-generalizations.

Prompt #5 Chapter 8

Towards the end of this chapter Bryson talks a little about Anne Franks House in Holland. He tells about how hard it must have been for eight people to live in an attic for three years in Nazi-occupied territory. But interestingly enough, he pays his respects to the wife of the husband who owned the house who managed to feed ten people for three years during the most heavily rationed time in Holland’s recent history. It is an accomplishment that I never considered before. It must have been so dangerous to have lived during WWII especially for Europeans.

Peru Diction Quiz

Ernesto chose to write so much about Peru for a reason, and I believe that reason is the simple fact that Peru had such a powerful affect on Ernesto. Machu Picchu, the half-RAZED ancient capital of the Incan Empire, is no exception. One of the most important things about Machu Picchu is how Ernesto is so disturbed by the BESTIAL conduct of the Spanish Conquistadores, and how a once powerful race of people can fall into INDIGENCE and servitude. He goes on and on about the inequality of today and the unfairness of the past. This TIRADE lasts for many pages, which only solidifies my belief that the conquest of the Spanish Conquistadores is extremely important to Ernesto. In Ernesto’s mind the only way to help the indigenous Indians is to educate them, treat them with more respect, value their culture (so that the Indians may begin to regain their pride), and adopt their ancient temples as RELICS to a lost age.
Ernesto described Cuzco, one of the biggest cities in Peru, with one word and one word only: EVOCATIVE. What Cuzco evokes in Ernesto is somewhat of an ENIGMA to me; it could be a whole host of emotions and feelings. Regardless, it always amazes me how Ernesto and his friend, Alberto, manage to GLEAN bits of food and housing from the Civil Guard and the locals. I thought it was strange that when Alberto protective an Indian woman from the torment of the Civil Guard the Civil Guard decided to stop helping them. It just seems very fickle and arbitrary to me. This dissociation between the Civil Guard and Ernesto and Alberto IMPEDED their travels, but only for a bit.
Lastly, Lake Titicaca, which is actually one of the highest lakes in the entire world, impacted Ernesto with its PLACIDITY. The lake taught Ernesto about the natural beauty of Peru. It’s STAGNATE waters helped assure Ernesto that even though some things change, some things do not. The Lake allowed Ernesto to take a short glimpse into a past long forgotten.
One thing that really made me upset was on page 100 Ernesto told a military officer that he only drinks if he is eating also. This gets me upset because the IRREFUABLE truth is that he is manipulating the people around him to get what he wants. And it’s not just random people, it the people that care enough about an absolute stranger to take the time (and the money) to help him. This lie really speaks volumes about the moral fiber of Ernesto “Che” Guevara.

Prompt #6 Chapter 6

In a few chapters Bryson will be in Italy. Bryson is going to love Italy, all the culture and geography. Throughout the book so far he has been alluding, or rather stating, that he believes Italians (especially Romans) are horrible drivers. So when he is in Italy I bet he will make the some jokes about how terrible the Italians drivers are.
Interestingly enough, I have been to Italy and I didn’t think that the drivers there are that bad. I think all Europeans drives are pretty reckless; but I would never have singled the Italians out.

03/09 Essential Question #2

Throughout most of Ernesto’s life he had no idea what he wanted to become. One of his earliest aspirations was to go into medical school and become a doctor. Later in life, after he traveled around South America he realized how deprived many individuals are. After seeing the state of many parts of South America Ernesto changed into the idealist known as Che; which is slang for Argentinean in Cuban Spanish. Che wanted nothing short of World Wide change. He was a hardcore socialist at heard and believed that the responsibility of government was to provide for its citizens. In the beginning, Che was met with friendly agreement; but as the years went by even the most radical revolutionaries began to realize how moderate their politics were compared to those of Che. Even though there a lot of opposition (even within the ranks of Che’s “friends”) Che still managed to revolutionize Cuba, and introduced lasting governments sprinkled through Latin America.

Prompt #1 Chapter 4

This chapter was titled Paris, and as I’m sure you can guess it was all about the behavioral quirks of the Parisians. What I loved about his chapter was Bryson’s sense of humor. It kept the chapter interesting and made me want to keep reading. One of my favorite jokes was: “You would go into a bakery and be greeted by some vast sluglike creature with a look that told you you would never be friends. In halting French you would ask for a small loaf of bread. The woman would give you a long, cold stare and hen put a dead beaver o n the counter. ‘No, no,’ you would ay, hands aflutter, ‘not a dead beaver. A loaf of bread’” (Bryson 41).
I have been to Paris and I can remember being treated in a very similar manner by a French woman who owned a n ice cream store.

Prompt #11 Chapter 1

I love the author’s style. He is so sarcastic it so funny. Every paragraph Bryson is cracking a new joke! I can’t get enough of it. Here is an example: “I had brought with me a yellow backpack so enormous that when I went through custom I half expected to be asked, “ Anything to declare? Cigarettes? Alcohol? Dead horse?...” (Bryson 15).
I think that his sarcasm is very effective; it helps paint a clearer picture for the readers to understand. It also helps to keep my attention because every time Bryson makes a joke I’m sucked back into the story.

Independent Reading-14-Key Quote

"But that's the glory of foreign travel, as far as I am concerned. I don't want to know what people are talking about. I can't think of anything that excites a greater sense of childlike wonder than to be in a country where you are ignorant of almost everything. Suddenly you are five years old again. You can't read anything, you have only the most rudimentary sense of how things work, you can't even reliably cross a street without endangering your life. Your whole existence becomes a series of interesting guesses."
--Bill Bryson
This book, Neither Here nor There is a travelers novel and this quotation captures the very essence of what it feels like to travel in a foreign country that you have never been to before. The last line of the quotation really hold significant value to the book itself: "Your whole existence becomes a series of interesting guesses." Because that is how the narrator lives his life, one interesting guess at a time.

03/04- Chile

pg 57-60
When Che and his friend Alberto had a newspaper article written about them, and they were referred to as "The Experts." This experience influenced him a lot because he is not really a leprology expert; but he allows people to believe he is in order to get certain perks. In reality, Ernesto was even a doctor.
This is similar to when Che gets promoted in the Cuban government by Castro. Castro calls him an expert so he is an "expert." This represents the fact the Che is okay with receiving goods and services even if he doesn't deserve them.
pg 59
"TWO ARGENTINE LEPROSY EXPERTS TOUR LATIN AMERICA BY MOTORCYCLE."