The Kite Runner: Baba's Diary Entry

Monday, 1975

I thought that this day would never exist.
In this winter day, finally came the moment I wait for. Amir won the kite tournament, he finally did something brave, for men, something that I used to do.

All this years, I looked at Amir and the boy I were, and there isn't any similarities. Instead of playing football, he prefer to read books and write his own stories. He don't enjoy what a men do. He is all what I do no want for him.
One time I told Rahim Khan that "If I hadn't seen the doctor pull him out of my wife with my own eyes, I'd never believe he's my son".

Sometimes, when I look at Ali and his son Hassan, I think about the luck he had. Hassan is exactly the same as Ali is. Both of them are loyal and helpful. They always help us in the house.

Rahim Khan always told me to accept Amir. One time he said to me, that Amir may be different, but that wasn't something bad. He told me, Amir has great talents, that he knows how to write like a professional.
I thought he was wrong...

But this time, when I saw in the roof of the house, what Amir did to win the tournament with blood in his hands, I realized and understood what Rahim Khan said to me.

Amis is different, but that is nice.

The Kite Runner - Chapter 7, 8 and 9

Chapter 7:

1.  What was Hassan’s dream about
2. Why does Amir refer to the last moment of the competition as “All I smelled was victory. Salvation. Redemption“?
3. Who two people say these words: “He’s jut a Hazara, isn’t he?” What is the intended meaning?
4.  How does Amir feel by the end of the chapter? Why?

Answer:

1. Hassan dream about swimming in a lake with Amir. In this lake there was a monster, and the people of Kabul shout to them to get out, but they didn´t, bacause they knew that if they were together, nothing bad would happen.
2. According to the quote, in the last moment of competition, Amir refer that he was not only winning the tournament, he was also winning the love of Baba.
3. The people that said that words were the friends of Assef.
4. Amir feel really bad in the end of the chapter, because he knew that things will never be like before. He feel coward, bacause he didn't help Hassan, he not fight against Assef, like his friend would do.

Chapter 8

1. What happens to Amir on the way to Jalalabad? Why?
2. How does Amir react when Hassan invites him to buy naan?
3. Narrate the second episode at the pomegranate tree. What does it mark in Amir and Hassan’s relationship?
4. What is Assef’s gift to Amir?
5. What story does Rahim Khan tell to Amir? Why?

Answer:

1. On his way to Jalalabad, Amir vomit in the car. He really dont feel good about what happend to Hassan, and his reaction about that.
2. Amir reacts bad when Hassan invites him to buy naan. He shout him to not bother more.
3. Assef gift for Amir was the biography of Hitler.
4. Rahim Khan tell Amir the times whenn he was going to get marry. He realized that the 
5. "birthday boy" was sad, so the told that story

Chapter 9

1.  What is Amir’s most treasurable present?
2.  How does Amir feel when he receives Ali and Hassan’s present?
3.  What is Amir´s ” the last in a long time of shameful lies“?
4.  How does Amir realize Hassan “knew everything“?
5. Why does Amir compare the farawell moment to a Hindi film?

Answers:

1. Amir most treasurable present was the one that Rahim Khan gives to him
2. When Amir receives Ali and Hassan present, he fell very sad. It was the favorite book of Hassan and him. The quality of the book was also nice, so it was a expensive gift considering the economical situation of Hassan and his father
3. For Amir the last in a long time of shameful lies, was make Hassan looks like a thief in front of Baba.
4. Amir realized that Hassam knew everything about the lie, because when Baba ask him if it was true that he steal Amir's present, he said "yes", and he was the honest and loyal man ever born.
5. Amir compare the farawell moment to a Hindi film, because in that dramatic moment, when Hassan was leaving his life, in a movie he would chase the car.

The Kite Runner - Chapter 5 and 6

Chapter 5:

1. What social episode takes place in April 1978?
2. Why does Amir call Assef a “sociopath”?
3. What does Assef think about Hitler?
4. Why does Amir say to Assef that Hassan “is not his friend”?
5. What does Baba give Hassan as a birthday present?

Answer:

1. The social episode that happend in this chapter occur in April, 1978 when the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan took the power of the government, with a militar coup
2. Amir called Assef a "socialpath", because he is extremely intolerant with people different to him. And that thing makes him violent with everyone.
3. Assef think that Hitler is a "heroe", because he kill all the "inferior people" (jews). He said that in Afghanistan, they have to the same, killing the hazaras.
4. Amir told Assef, that Hassan is not his friend because he didn't want problems with him. Also he was kind of ashamed because Hasaan was a hazara, and he was born to be a servant.
5. Baba give Hassan an operation for his physical problem, as a gift for his birthday. Hassan born with this problem, so this gift was a very special one.

Chapter 6:

1. Why does Amir wish Baba did not buy the same kites for Hassan?
2. According to Amir, what is for kite runners a “trophy of honor”?
3. “Would you ever ask me to do such a thing Amir agha”? What is Hassan referring to in this section of the book? (p.59)
4. What is the real reason Amir wants to win the kite tournament?
5. In your opinion, is Hassan a happy kid? Why? Why not?

Answers:

1. Amir wish Baba did not buy the same kites for Hassan because he was his son, and for that reason he thinks he should get a special treatment, that shows him that Baba loves him more than Hassan.
2. According to Amir, for a kite runner a trophy of honor was to get the last kite, that winner cut off.
3. Based on the quote, Hassan is taking about eating dirt. This was order by Amir.Hassan ask him, if he really wants to do that, because he was so loyal to Amir, that he would do everything for him.
4. The real reason Amir wants to win the kite tournament is because he likes to demostrate Baba, that he is able to do great things, like him. He wants Baba be proud of him, so he can love Amir.
5. In my opinion Hassan is a happy kid. Everytime he is with Amir, he is happy, because he is with his friend, with his brother.

The Kite Runner - Chapter 4

Chapter 4:

1. Why do Baba and Ali have an unconventional master-servant relationship?
2. Why does Amir think that John Wayne is Iranian?
3. What phrase does Amir carve in the pomegranate tree? What does that phrase mean?
4. What was Hassan’s reaction toward the story invented by Amir?
5. How does Rahim Khan criticize Amir’s story?

Answers:

1. Baba and Ali have an unconventional master-servant relationship because Ali was adopted by Baba`s family, so they grow together, playing children games as Amir and Hassan does.
2. Amir thinks John Wayne is a Iranian because the voice that the actor has in the movies was Iranian.
3. The phrase that Amir carve in the pomegranate tree was "Amir and Hassan, the sultans of Kabul". That menas that tree now belongs to them, as a reminder of their friendship.
4. Hassan`s reaction toward the story invented by Amir was of surprice, because for him it was the best story that he have ever heard, so he began to clap to demostrate that.
5. Rahim Khan criticize Amir`s story as a master piece. He told Hassan he have a God-given talent. Also he said that Amir duty was to make count this talent.

New Zealand

Dialect

Along the two islands that makes New Zealand,the population speaks the language that the colonists left of heritage, the English.

The colonists established the english during the 19th century, influence his language as the Australian English, English in southern England, Irish English, Scottish English and Māori does.
This dialect of NZ is also the "the newest native-speaker variet[ies] of the English language in existence" Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Zealand_English
Dialect is defined as a:
"Variety of a language that is distinguished from other varieties of the same language by
 features of phonology, grammar,and vocabulary, and by its use by a group of speakers who are set from others geographically or socially"

Source: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/dialect

Some of the typical words that we can find here in New Zealand are "How is going?", when you greet someone; "choice", that means "very good"; "skus", that means "too cold"; "as good as gold", used for a positive answer; "chemist", the drugstore, and many others words and phrases we can hear in our trip. Some other words that comes from the British English: Barber's, Dentist's and grocer's.

Also is very typical to hear a variation in the pronunciation. They pronounce the sound /e/ as /i/. For example, when they say 'bed' they pronounce it as 'bid'. Moreover, instead of pronounce 'red' the say 'rid'.

Besides, New Zealand has 3 official languages: Maori, English and Signs language. 
In add to Maori speaking, they are some typical words that New Zealanders use very much, such as "Kia ora", that means "hello"; "Aotearoa", that it means " the long white cloud", that refers to the New Zealand country. 

Gonzalo Vidal

Diego Pertuzé

Wellington, the capital

New Zealand Culture

The New Zealander has respect and knowledge about their past. 

They feel that they have Maori blood, and they are proud of that. In some way, it's not like Chile where we are progeny of the Mapuches, but sometimes we refuse and make racism on them.

Even more, everywhere you go you find things written on English and Maori. For example in the TePapa Museum, all the explanations that they have are in both languages. Also you can appreciate Maori's architecture inside their most importants buildings, such as the Governor's House

The Governor is the one who represents the British Queen in New Zealand, and in fact actually he is Maori.

Do we have Mapuches leaders in the government of Chile? Unfortunately the answer is no.

Is this attitude the one who makes New Zealanders tolerant in front all the others cultures that travel to the islands. For them see some black or asian people is normal.  In Chile we look them in a strange way.

In other words they are empathetic with people who cames from other countries. 

They accept what is different compare for what is common for them. Is thing is what in Chile doesn't happen.

What is to be a New Zealander?

Being a New Zealander it is a synonym of being kind.

They respect each other, and for that reason they accept all the different cultures that they have in their two islands. When you walk in the street you can see a lot of Asian, black, Turkish and Islam people walking around in peace, like any other civilian, without suffering any type of discrimination or racism.

They are used to see people from a different religion and culture.

The New Zealander is characterized as an open-minded person, who is tolerant about the way the others are.

Even more there are no thieves, because it is in their culture to not steal anything. If you lose something, and someone finds it, he will probably try to give it back to you. 

For example, in the supermarkets they have plates full of candies and cereal, where you are able to have some and eat it without paying. But they simply don't do that. They get some, pay for it and then after all this, they eat it.

Also it can be seen that they have a very structured daily routine and specific eating times.
Actually they are punctual, the same as the means of transportation (example: the bus or the train)