The First Week in the Trenches

Hello All,

This will probably be a long post.  I'm too lazy to go and do day-by-day, or topic-by-topic, so I'm just going to start typing what I remember and we'll see where it goes.  I'll at least try and put a few pictures in to break up the monotony.

By the way, you may sense some frustration or anger in my post, but honestly, it's just that I'm SO DAMN HOT.  I can't remember the last time I was in some AC.  It's made me quite grumpy.

Each morning of the week my day starts at 4:15AM, when I wake up to get ready for the dig.  I have to get dressed for the dig and bring everything that I'll need with me to the dig site, including my own water.  There's no chance of returning to the "hotel" until we are done for the day at noon.  I also got roped into bringing the tripod for the surveying level every day, so I have to bring that with me as well.  We all have to make it downstairs to the front of the hotel by 4:45AM, promptly, or the bus will leave without you and you have to take a taxi on your own dime to site.  We load all our bags into one van, and all hop into another.
The van is a passenger travel van that can fit about 20 people, which is about how many people we are.  There is, of course, no AC.  The driver only rolls down the window a crack to smoke out of, so it gets quite stuffy in there.  He drops us off on the side of the road and then we begin our long trek up the side of the hill.  And it is quite the trek.  There are two paths: the really steep-dangerous-I'm surprised no one's fallen and died-path, or the longer-slower-steady-Oh my God when will this end-path.

This is not the steep path.  Just imagine what the steep path looks like compared to this.

It takes about 15 minutes to get up to the site from the road.  It, like all good acropolei, is located at the tip top of a rather tall hill in the region.  You're already winded by the time you make it to the site, and you haven't even started the heavy lifting (more on that later).  There is one positive to the hike:  I get to see sunrises and views like these every morning.

Once you arrive at the hilltop, it's straight into the digging with barely even a moment to catch your breath.  Most of the time, it's quite cool in the morning, which makes it nice weather for digging.  That doesn't last very long once the sun comes up.  The sun is quite brutal here.  I keep getting sunburns, even though I wear long clothing and reapply sunscreen 3 or 4 times while on site.  This past weekend I got sunburned on the top of my feet after standing in the sun for 10 minutes.  I really hate my skin sometimes.  But we had one glorious day where it was overcast and sprinkling all day, and the temperature likely didn't break the upper 80's.

The little bit of sun we had that day.

We got a rainbow that day, too.

This dig moves a lot faster than my previous dig.  I've spent the majority of my time here pick-axing and shoveling instead of troweling and brushing.  Let me tell you, this is not fun.  This is not the kind of archaeology I like.  I like slow, methodical, careful archaeology.  With this we pick and pick, maybe find some roof tiles or pithoi, then make a note, rip them out of the ground, throw them in the dirt pile, and move on.  I understand that there's a lot of material to get through, but we seem to be just ignoring the later stuff, just to look further and further back.  It's got me a bit miffed.  We've cleared more dirt in the past week than I did in the entirety of my time at the last dig.

We stop for breakfast for 30 minutes some time around 8AM.  We have to sit in the shade of our storage container and eat the food that the "hotel" provides.  Most of the time it's a ham and cheese sandwich with drinkable yogurt.  90% of the time the yogurt is warm and sour due to it's lack of refrigeration and it's car ride to the site.  Then it's back to work with no scheduled breaks til noon.  We can take shade and water breaks when we need, but there's not many places to get shade and the water is always what you bring, which is always the temp of outside, because there's no refrigeration, ice, or cold storage.

NW corner of the site.

East on the site, and the container, where we store all our stuff.

The Propylon Ramp (smooth paved walkway).

Laying out the lines for a new trench.

Yet despite all the complaining, we have found a lot of really cool stuff, most of which I don't have pictures of.  I started the week working down in the Late Iron Age stratum.  We removed a pebble floor and found some destruction layers with a bunch of pottery.  We also found a really awesome bronze votive of a jar.  It was essentially found by itself amongst a Iron Age destruction layer, so I don't know what sense they're trying to make of it. Once it got interesting, we were moved up to the South side of the site.  They had just taken off the top soil with a bulldozer, so we started digging fresh ground there.  We found a bunch of roof tiles, some continued walls, and pieces of giant pithoi (storage jars).  In my trench we found a bizarre circular stone we think may have been a lid for the storage jar.

The bronze votive jug.

You can't really tell, but there's a pot there.

See!  Here it is with its handle!

A body sherd piece with engraved decoration.

Around 11:45AM, we have what's called no new dirt time.  This means there's no more picking or troweling, you just need to sweep and shovel up the dirt you've already loosened and take notes on the happenings in your trench for the day.  Around noon, we load the equipment in the container or van, and then make the trek down the side of the hill/mountain.  We all climb, covered in dirt and sweat, into the non-AC bus and make the drive back to the "hotel".

The rest of the day has various required activities and free time, which I will talk about in the next post.  

Hope you all have enjoyed seeing the dig through my eyes!

Macedonia. Where is that again?

Hello all!
So most of you know that I have been planning my trip to Macedonia for several months.  I applied for and was accepted to an archaeological dig in Sveti Nikole, Macedonia.  The dig is funded by the Texas Foundation for Archaeological and Historical Research (TFAHR).

I had done a dig in Greece before, and kinda want to study archaeology for the rest of my life, so I was quite excited to get the opportunity to work with this program in a country I've never been to before.  I'll explain what exactly the program entails in later blogs.  But first, I figured I'd talk about how I got here!
While the program pays for much of our expenses here, it did not cover travel costs.  All participants were required to make their own way to the Hotel Ovce Pole (OV-che PAH-lay) in Sveti Nikole (SVE-ti NEE-kohl-lay).  My time here was planned to start circa 4:45AM on July 4th, so I wanted to arrive by July 3rd.  This meant I needed to leave the States on July 2nd.
I stayed up so late on the night of the 1st just trying to get everything together.  My parents were out of town on their own trip, so Mary volunteered to come spend the night in Georgetown and then take me to the airport (thanks, Mary!).  I had packed nearly everything, but had forgotten my power adapter.  So we stopped by Wal-Mart to buy another on our way to the airport.  We got to the airport on time and Mary helped unload my stuff.  I started freaking out (which I apparently accompany with a freak-out dance), but Mary calmed me down.  I checked in and made it through security alright.  I got some breakfast tacos as my last taste of TexMex before I left.  They were awful.  But I suppose that would make my first taste of TexMex afterwards all the more sweet.

Yuk.

As I was calling my bank to let them know of my travels, I saw Mary was calling me.  I knew instantly that I had forgotten my plug adapter in her car.  I didn't really have time to leave and go back through security, so I just told Mary to hang on to it for me.  Man, I felt like a total screw up before my trip even started.
I was a little nervous about switching airlines halfway through my trip, so I went up to the American Airlines gate agent to ask some questions.  They completely ignored me.  They were texting and talking to each other even though they could clearly see and hear me.  So in true Dickenson fashion, I'm boycotting them.  I will never fly American Airlines again!

Boo, American Airlines!

I decided I would worry about my flights as I got to them.  That's why I had planned longer layovers anyways.  On the flight from Austin to New York City, I sat next to a Gwen Bowen look-alike and her husband.  Of course, there were kids behind me kicking my seat the whole flight as well.  During landing, they were screaming like they were on a rollercoaster.  Very obnoxious.  But the flight wasn't a total disaster.  I got there unscathed and finally got to see The Adjustment Bureau, which was great!
I stepped off the plane in NYC and had no idea where I was.  I didn't even know what terminal I was in or where I needed to be.  And since I didn't have my boarding pass for my next flight, I was pretty lost.  I followed the signs for the AirTrain, figuring I would have to switch terminals.  I finally found some nice people at the International Welcome desk who pointed me to the right terminal.  I took the train and arrived in Terminal 1, which was the international departures terminal.  And it was MASSIVE.
I arrived at the line to check in for my Austrian Airlines flight.  There was a large bunch of people from Kosovo who kept cutting in front of me.  One of them finally looked sheepish and let me go in front of him.  I got my next two boarding passes and made my way upstairs to have some lunch.  I had some ridiculously expensive McDonalds and headed down to go through security again.  I got to my gate and called my Mom.  As I was walking through a shop and complaining how I couldn't find a single power adapter, I found one!  So I paid a ridiculous amount of money for it.  I had another near meltdown after talking to my Mom.  I already felt lonely.  But I didn't have much time to think about it before I got on the plane.  And the plane was MASSIVE as well.  It had three seats, an aisle, four seats, an aisle, and then three seats on the other side.  But inexplicably, in the back lefthand side where I had selected my seat, there were only two seats.  So I had a bit more space, which was good because I wanted to sleep.
The plane was ridiculously colored.  It was bright red and green and yellow.  The flight attendants were solid red, including pantyhose and shoes, except for a blue scarf at their necks.  But they provided a blanket, pillow, headphones, and even a copy of the New York Times.  I read the newspaper before passing out for much of the flight.  They provided dinner and breakfast.  Dinner was pretty nice (for airplane food): it was chicken and potatoes with a Greek salad.  Breakfast was... well, it was just a bunch of sandwich meat and a cup of yogurt.  So I didn't really eat that.

Ah, airplane comfort.

I honestly don't remember much of that flight because I slept nearly the whole way there.  The part I do remember is when we were flying over Nova Scotia.  My God, it was the worst turbulence I have EVER experienced.  People's drinks were spilling and the flight attendants' cart fell over.  I swear I came out of my seat at one point.  The flight attendants had to stop serving us and go strap in.  It lasted for about 20 minutes, and then it was smooth sailing (flying) again.
We arrived in Vienna and I woke up long enough to watch the landing.  The scenery was gorgeous.  It was just tons of farmland and looked very picturesque.  The landing was really smooth and people actually applauded!  Deplaning happened pretty quickly for the amount of people we had on that plane.  In the airport, it was much easier to navigate where I was supposed to go than in JFK!  Turns out a bunch of the people I sat next to on the flight were part of a summer exchange program between NY and Vienna.  They were all organizing and I walked with them through passport control and customs, before I went my own way.

Vienna from the skies.

I exchanged some money for Euros so I could pay for my taxi in Skopje (SCOPE-yah).  Man, I was ripped off.  But I needed the money.  I bought a magnet from Vienna, because I wanted to get some sort of tourist trinket from each place I visit, and magnets are pretty popular.  I got one in JFK as well.  I then made it to my gate for Skopje.  The security checkpoint and passport check was right in front of each gate.  I didn't even have to take off my shoes to go through security!  I sat at my gate for a bit and had a Coca Cola.  Then it was time to get on the flight.  I had a window seat and sat next to an elderly Macedonian woman.  They gave us some really nice chocolate hazelnut wafers as a snack.  This flight was pretty uneventful.
Skopje's airport is really small.  They rolled out some stairs for us to deplane, and then we literally took a bus about 200 feet to the terminal.  I made it through passport control and retrieved my bag somewhat intact.  I passed straight through customs without being searched and headed to the taxi post.  It was pretty easy to get a taxi, and cheaper than I thought.  Man, taxis are crazy drivers every place you go.  On our way to Sveti Nikole, we passed fields and fields of sunflowers as far as you can see.  I didn't get any pictures of it because it was raining and they wouldn't turn out.  Hopefully I'll be able to get another picture of them sometime soon.
I had to tell the taxi how to get to the hotel. (Seriously, in a foreign country I've never been to before, I still know the place better than the taxi driver?!)  I arrived to check in and met the directors of the dig, Bill Neidinger and Eulah Matthews.  I then was taken up to my room by the reception clerk, Igor.  Apparently the  room hadn't been cleaned, and Igor was embarrassed.  He sent the maid up to clean.  And she "cleaned" by making the bed (with the sheets already on it) and cleaning up the trash.

Yuk.

Double Yuk.

I'm supposed to get clean in THIS?!

Also, dangerous.  Look at those outlets?! (Also, this is my broken air conditioning.)

I spent the next several hours napping and trying to find an outlet that would fit my adapter.  Yep, turns out the ridiculously expensive adapter I bought won't fit ANY outlets in Macedonia.  They are all recessed and my adapter is not long enough.  Damn again, I just can't catch a break with this stupid adapter!
I ran into another member of the team who invited me to dinner with the rest of the group.  We went to a restaurant in town and I just had a lemonade and a large "shopska" salad, which was basically cucumbers, tomatoes, cheese, and olives.  I was feeling kinda gross after the airplane food and wanted something light.  The lemonade had no sugar...  Oh well, it was really cheap, only about $5 total.  We then came back to the hotel and I walked to the local gas station to get some water for the dig the next day.  Then it was back to the hotel and I met my roommate, Nicole.  She was pretty quiet and kept to herself.  We went to bed early because we had to wake up for the dig at 4:15AM.
That's my first two days of my trip.  I'll try and be regular about updating, but between all the digging and pottery analysis and sleeping, I may not have much time.  I love you all and hope you enjoy reading my travels.  It's definitely been, well, an experience so far!
-A

Travel Blogs coming soon!

Hey guys,

So I'm working on typing up some of my journal entries from my trip.  I've been here nearly 4 days, and so much has happened.  But every spare moment I'm not digging or doing pottery analysis, I'm showering, eating, or sleeping.  So I'll try to get some of my blogs posted tomorrow afternoon.  I'll probably be a few days behind on each post.  I might be able to catch up with weekend, but we're all going as a group to Ohrid, and I don't know yet what free time I'll have then.  But to tide you over, I'll leave you with this picture of where I'm going this weekend!

Love you guys!