Posterous theme by Cory Watilo

A note on housing in Jordan

When Mohammed was going to get his ID to take us on his friend’s bus back to Aqaba, he dropped us off at his  cousin’s home, who also worked on site in previous seasons. The houses in Jordan are almost all stuccoed, colourful one story buildings, but almost every building also has rebar sticking out of the top. I feel like perhaps the law here is similar to in Greece, where there are lower taxes on incomplete buildings. Nevertheless, these homes are very different from Greek ones on the inside. They have a front room for receiving guests, closed off from the rest of the house where the women can walk around freely. It was really interesting to watch our host’s daughter, a small two-year-old, scurry between the threshold of the public and private home areas. Every time she went back into the house, we could hear her speaking to her mother, but never saw her. It was definitely a moment for noticing difference. Nevertheless, we had the sweetest hosts, with such generosity as I’ve rarely seen before. A truly enlightening time :)

 

 

Seeing the Bedouin Fires at Night - Camping under the stars

While this work week has been fairly repetitive, there is nothing to describe the way that I have felt the past day and a half.
The week began with a change - our first day off! Relaxing as that supposedly sounds, there are several things that should be noted about staying in Aqaba instead of going to the desert.

1) It's HOT. Much hotter in town, and much more humid. And there's no escaping the heat, and no breeze.

2) You have to get up EARLIER than usual to get breakfast ready for the diggers. I curse the person that came up with that idea.

3) You work longer, and it's actually difficult to sit still and process finds when you want to work on your square.
Instead of digging, we processed and drew pottery (count sherds, categorize them, find the ones that can be used for dating finds, learning use, reconstruction and location) and worked on small finds (processing items found in your square such as bone fragment, charcoal, shells, coins, etc.)

It's dreadfully hot and really hard to concentrate, but we're allowed to nap until 7:30 after clean-up which almost makes up for it - but not really. Oh well! We stay home 1 of every 3 working days, except Thursdays when everyone goes to site so we can do a tour and describe our own squares. Not terribly exciting, but it means that we get to work in the desert, and I love the workers we interact with.


 

After Saturday's day off, we were itching to get back on site - which is why, when we were put to work on Sunday and Monday continuing to dig in Mike and Darcye's impossible square, we were ecstatic to Fas Kabir (big pick) rather than collect finds, especially since we weren't keeping anything from that locus (layer) so we were able to move dirt quickly and with as much force as desired.



Tuesday was another day off. The rest of the group went to the museum while I kept my friend Ana company on her way to the doctor - she wasn't feeling at all well this week (she's MUCH better now) and so it was time to get checked out. There is a separate section of the hospital for women - with female nurses for each male doctor - where we were able to get tests run, processed, and see a doctor twice all within three hours, including transportation and an hour rest back in our apartments in between tests and results. It was amazing - though hospitals don't sparkle here, they're highly efficient and inexpensive, which was great.


Wednesday we were back in the square with Mohammed, and as he had extended a camping invitation to us a few days previous we decided to go with him instead of Salim, especially since Salim's group was quickly becoming massive and totally unrealistic. Khris continued to go with Salim, but Darcye, Mike, Meaghan and I were to leave from site the next day with Mohammed so he could take us to camp. We drove into the desert around Wadi Rum - stopping to climb occasionally while the truck went ahead. We stopped throughout the day, taking time to hike up sites that Mohammed knew as well as I know my own neighbourhood. Knowing that, it made me think that it was a bit like walking around the block; I wouldn’t have exclaimed over every house in Ottawa, and yet every single mountain was more beautiful to us than the last. There was a beautiful sand dune, and I was instructed to sit down, only to realize that I was about to be tugged down the dune by my ankles! It was so funny, and so unexpected, but kind of like toboganning. So silly!

On one particular journey, we were climbing up a natural rock bridge, when Meaghan’s pants ripped. We went back to the car for her sewing kit and my safety pins, which I’d fortunately packed after the last day we’d had on site, where a similar thing had happened. While we were adjusting Meaghan’s pants for a temporary fix, a Bedouin gentleman, one of our friend Salim’s uncles, started walking towards us from where he’d been sitting, not too far from the truck. Now in a bit of a pickle, we pinned faster. Finally sorted out, the three girls adventured over a rock face to fix the pants for good. It was absolutely ridiculous.

We ate chicken barbecued over a fire, climbed more, saw amazing views and hiked to watch the sunset while Mahmoud and Arrod set up camp, before driving the truck out to meet us. It was my first time ever riding in the back of a pickup truck, and with bouncy desert roads and Mahmoud's unsteady steering, it was a little terrifying. The sand is extremely slippery to boot, which is unfortunate.


As the evening drew on, we climbed under a natural rock bridge-formation to watch the sunset. It was windy and beautiful, and being with friends made it so much better. I don't think I've experienced a quiet like that since arriving in Jordan, and hearing nothing but the wind was an exceptionally beautiful feeling, especially after the clunking noises our beat-up Toyota truck had been making. It apparently has poor steering, clutch, and the key falls out of the ignition - something we didn't learn until later!
As the sun was setting, we were briefly joined by Salim's group, who were riding camels to their camp. After they moved on and the sun had fully set, we started driving back. This time, Mike was invited to take a turn behind the wheel.



Now, a few things should be noted here as well.


Firstly, Mike only learned to drive standard two weeks ago in Sweden and Norway.

Secondly, the sand is SO HARD TO DRIVE IN and you slip all the time.


Thirdly, I had no idea if he would be a good driver.
Things started smoothly - Mike being a far superior driver to Mahmoud, we felt safe for the first time in that truck. That was, until Mike exclaimed "The key fell out!" 

We didn’t realize that this seemed to be an everyday occurrence, which Mike had already witnessed a few times already. We kept driving, a little uneasy now, the car groaning as we ventured uphill. On the downhill, though, we became truly concerned, as the car skidded its way through the sand. Finally, we skidded off the road and the car stalled. I should also mention, the clutch doesn’t exactly work on the car. Though the key was found, the car wouldn’t restart properly, and besides, it was stuck without any traction. So we all piled out of the car to push our way into motion, and after a few minutes it began working and we arrived back at the campsite, seriously entertained.

We started a campfire and ate again, though at this point we were too tired to eat but were afraid not to and risk offending our hosts. Then we began singing, chatting, and generally enjoying ourselves. They asked us about songs that we sang, and since no one else had any thoughts (or wanted to sing), I began “Leaving on a Jet Plane” in the middle of the small carved-out hollow where we were sitting. The acoustics were unbelievable, especially when the air around us was so still. Under the stars, it felt magical.

When we were thoroughly exhausted and full to the brim with shrek and shai, we prepared for bed, setting up our sleeping bags on what was supposed to be a soft patch of sand (it was not) in the open area outside of the campsite. We curled up next to one another, Meaghan giving fake names to the constellations (Including Madiera, Fas Kabir, etc.), and then me, correcting her as we went (Scorpio, the little dipper, Sisyphus…). We got onto the topic of creation myths, and so I told the story of the creation of the world, up to the birth of Athena. It was really fun, and a perfect way to fall asleep. From the time the sun set, the moon was so bright that it caused visible shadows over plants, and I walked around a few minutes to enjoy the silence. When I settled back into my sleeping bag, it was the first feeling of cool that I’ve experienced since being here.

After a sleep on what turned out to be the hardest patch of earth I’ve ever slept on (still, one of the best sleeps I’ve ever had), and then woke up to the sun rising. Unfortunately, couldn’t get back to sleep because it was such a hot day!

Until the afternoon, we drove and sat and hiked and drank tea and learned how to play a game much like jacks. It was so much fun and such a great experience. On one hike, Mohammed found a yellow flower and gave it to me for safekeeping. It was such a nice gesture and so filled with friendship.

When we finally headed back towards Humayma, we passed a camel skeleton along the road. Mohammed told us it was one of Salim’s uncles camels, which he remembered had died – three years ago. Its bones were bleached in the sun, and it was so surprising to learn its age. The desert really is unlike any other place on earth.

Mohammed dropped us off at his cousin’s house, where we sat with his family, eating watermelon and watching his counsin’s daughter, a tiny two-year-old who received more affection from her male relatives than I could have imagined. Granted, she was unbelievably adorable. Mohammed went to get us ice cream and cold water, and arranged for a bus to Aqaba even though it was a holy day. He’d also stayed up most of the night to act as a watchperson.

I should probably mention that camping is one of the most extraordinary privileges, especially since it’s hugely expensive, so it’s by invitation only. Mohammed showed such extraordinary generosity, it was moving. I was so happy to be able to share such a great experience with such a fine friend and good person. He took such good care of us, and it acted as a reminder of how beautifully people can treat one another.

We bussed back to Aqaba (by this point, we’d gone a while without any washroom breaks and I was seriously struggling) and Mohammed accompanied us to keep us safe. He was so modest, and repeatedly asked us if we’d enjoyed ourselves and apologized that it wasn’t more beautiful. I kept reassuring him that it was the best day we’d had to date, and it absolutely was.

When I washed the clothes I’d worn camping, the smell of the campfire had permeated everything. Whenever I think of campfire from now on, I will remember sitting under those stars and think of the friendships I have formed, the people I have already grown to care for, and the memories from that day that will last a lifetime.

In other news, we had a very strange day today on the dig site, and it was really hot. Hard to concentrate, and there were a few frayed nerves. But tomorrow (Sunday) is a day at home, so hopefully it will be a little smoother and not too tiring.

Until next time!

 

May 27th: The Day it Rained in the Desert

Not to spoil the surprise with the title, but it's pretty amazing when you wake up to an overcast morning, especially when the first day I woke up with the sun on my face, I had to move down the bed to avoid a burn. 

Today started with the usual motions, with a few exceptions - first, the addition of Brian to our party, meaning that Khris is now responsible for our square only! Exciting news, and especially so since Brian is such a treat to be around. Secondly, there were wild dogs runnign down towards us on the highway, and crows at the site - the first groups of animals we'd seen. So strange, but definitely fitting given the odd things that followed.

It seemed a fair trade that after fighting through our square with us, we spent the first half of our morning working on Darcye and Mike's space. Theirs is digging through a modern road to an ancient one, meaning hard-packed dirt and stone a LOOONG way down. Overall, pretty difficult but fun to do - you get to use the Fas Kavir (Big Pick), which I really like. The next big change was that the sky was pretty dark - dark with clouds. We were wearing sunglasses and having trouble seeing properly, and it was so lovely and almost cool.

We had second breakfast with Mohammed - it was so wonderfully delicious, with fresh feta cheese even, and such a pleasure to sit with him and enjoy our quiet time together. He's just the sweetest man. While we were drinking our shai, I felt something like a plop on my head, and assumed a bird had flown there, until another droplet fell on my arm. Like children on Christmas morning, we started getting excited. It was barely spitting - in Ottawa, I probably wouldn't have noticed or cared. But in the middle of a desert, there is nothing more spectacular than a few droplets of rain shading the ground and cooling your skin. Especially when you're so coated with dirt, that they leave a water mark.

While we were digging in Darce/Mike's square, we kept hitting massive rocks, until Meaghan and Mike taunted me about how I wanted to get a heavy one out by myself. I couldn't loosen it, but I DID lift it after and carry it to the dump site - really funny and Mike took advantage of his SLR's amazing picture-taking capability to catch about 20 embarrassing shots of it. Needless to say, I let him have the next (and THREE TIMES LARGER) rock that I discovered - it took 2 to carry.

After second breakfast, we dug until Khris called us back to our square - finished with our 00 locus, we were allowed to continue down. At last, usable finds! We got our first bone, shell, pottery - it was so fun and such a satisfying feeling to get rid of some of the soil and discover our first finds. 

Final weird thing, but amazing - Salim gave Khris a ride on his camel, and then offered to give me one too! So I had my FIRST CAMEL RIDE! It was SO COOL! They are such strong animals, you don't really get a sense of it until it's carrying you, though its motions are a little bit odd. Still, SO COOL! 

It rained a little bit more, and we returned to the dig house to go through the motions once again - wash, eat, wash pottery - but while pottery washing, the rainfall continued - this time with enough water to cool us down pretty significantly, though even then it wasn't even enough to create a film on the ground. It was so great.

The evening passed in the usual way, and it was really wonderful to relax and enjoy the strangeness of today. Loving the roommates, the square partner and the general pace of the day!

Another bit of news that's quite exciting is that when speaking with Mohammed and attempting to describe the beauty of Wadi Rum, he invited us to go camping there with him! Hopefully that will happen sometime soon.

Best wishes from Aqaba! 

Going to the Pool, that Guy from Sudbury and Other Stories.

Last Thursday, before going out for Tash's Birthday, Erin and I joined Miranda, Darcye, Daniela and Dominique at the Captain's Pool. It was a really hot day, and after a long week one of the most refreshing feelings ever - though we might have done well to read the pool rules BEFORE jumping into the deep end and splashing one of the women reclining there. It's just a little place and costs more than it's probably worth to get in, but the feeling of cold is such a luxury here that we felt completely relaxed and so...floaty. That was such a nice thing when we've been completely overtired.

On our way back, a guy on the street called out to us and asked where we were from. We'd basically been told not to speak too much to local folk, so we started to keep walking when he said "Canada? I went to school in Sudbury!"

After that, we chatted and learned he went to college there before starting a leather works business in Italy, which he's moving to Chicago this year. It was neat to speak with someone who could give a local's idea of what would be worthwhile to do in Jordan. He told us essentially to do the things we've already got planned, which means that we'll have a great time doing exactly what we're supposed to be doing.

On top of that, we've had another couple of cool experiences - namely I'll be camping with the Bedouin this coming Thursday (!) - Salim, one of the guys we've been having second breakfast with, is extremely wealthy and he and his camels will be going with us after work this week! VERY exciting.

The other really strange experience (in retrospect, probably not a WISE idea but still very interesting) was drinking camel milk. I was the first to try it in my shai, and it was REALLY interesting tasting. Surprisingly delicious. But unpasteurized. Oops.

A'as Salamu Alaykum! 

Saturday at the Dig House and a note on Car Horns in Jordan

Today was a pretty simple day - it was our group's turn to stay at the dig house so there were chores, pottery sorting, pottery drawing and small finds work. Essentially, we were learning how to do the tasks. I really enjoyed pottery drawing, and having a little extra time to clean and do laundry. Now that I've mopped and washed the sinks, I think my roommates have forgiven me for my messy room. It was a little ridiculous, but much better after a good scrubbing and lots of laundry time. It's getting to be a little exhausting to be constantly surrounded by people - we feel a little overstimulated. Even so, it's really fun to spend a little time relaxing in our base, which we've pretty effectively nested in.

I thought I'd add a little note about some funny things that I've noticed in Jordan, mostly that people really like to lay on their car horns. Sometimes, that's to get us girls to turn our heads to get a better look. Many times, it's to tell the car that is turning into your lane that you're there, even if they see you. I've noticed that a lot of cars don't have side mirrors so that might be a reason for it.

Most of teh time, however, the honking happens in large bursts, as people seem to be constantly getting married and people honk insanely between 7 and 10 pm, as the cars decorated with white chiffon drive by. It's so loud and joyous and frequent that it's hard to notice or mind, a lot of the time.

This often is accompanied by fireworks, which have occurred almost nightly.

Another note on loud noises in Jordan - the Mosques have simultaneous calls to prayer, at 4 am, 12, 4pm, 9pm, etc. This week is the first time I haven't been woken up by the call to prayer. Exciting, and proof that even in such a new place, you can adjust to the changes.

Salaam! 

Digging Day 5 and Wadi Rum

We've had a really exciting couple of days, starting off with our fifth day on site. Meaghan and I were really excited to have uncovered two pieces of channel, but Madeira (Dr. Reeves - it means "director") wanted us to move towards the aqueduct, focussing less on avoiding disturbance of the presumed dump pile from 1989 and instead moving towards the South to expose and articulate the aqueduct itself. That meant more heavy work, as we had to continue using the big picks, and because of our short time frame she had another square (Mike and Darcy, again!) come join us to speed up the process. By second breakfast, we had completed much of the square, but the aqueduct was largely still buried. Since Thursdays are a short day, we only had a little over an hour to finish. Craziness. We sped up again, and Mike, using a small pick, finally hit a stone wall - a lower stone in the aqueduct's system. SO EXCITING. It was such a rewarding feeling to have a worthwhile feature, though even now our finds are essentially meaningless. Hopefully that will change as we descend in our square.

As the day wrapped up, we had nearly finished the entire 00 locus - pretty exciting stuff! Then, a tour of the site ending with a celebratory baklava for Natasha's birthday! It was really cute and fun to watch her walk around in a ridiculous party hat.

When we got back, we went out to dinner in celebration and drank beers on the roof. With cool night air, neon lights flashing "Showekini" and constant laughter, the late night was well worth the lost sleep.

When we woke up the next day, it was our day off - with a planned daytrip to Wadi Rum (Wadi = valley). Wadi Rum will, in 2012, join the list of the Seven Wonders of the natural world - a well-deserved reputation.

We hopped on a bus at 7:30, an extra-late start, and crowded in to fill every seat and even the armrest. It was funny and silly and just plain ridiculous, but also super fun since we were all so excited.

 We traveled for around an hour to reach Wadi Rum's visitors' centre, then broke into groups to form trucks. I was in a 7 person group, planning to do a 3 1/2 hour tour. We left Miranda in charge of finding a guide - resulting in one of the most entertaining, and mildly unsettling, tours of our life. We left through the front entrance, and our driver claimed we could pay the visitors' fee on our return. Then, we took a back route, going sketchily onto a path that took us around to the area where we saw other trucks waiting to receive passengers as well. Ours was a Jeep van, and with seven people that meant 2 in the front seat, four in the centre bench, and one in the trunk with the bags. We were packed in, with doors that wouldn't open and Erin's window wouldn't crank down properly. When she asked about this, our driver, Mohammed, announced "twenty minutes" and then promptly ignored her request to open it. By this point, we were laughing hysterically, wondering if were were about to get left in the desert, or robbed, or completely taken in. It was such  disaster of a car that our imaginations got the better of us, especially as Mohammed kept repeating that he was an "official guide" in a refrain that made us certain that he wasn't. Showing us a beat-up map, he indicated the sites we would visit for our 59JD. After a quick stop to pump up the tires (a necessity on the bouncy, sandy roads), we continued through the village where he's in school - a high school student, working on his day off. We were still giggling when he stopped suddenly at a house, where a young boy dashed out to hand off a wrench! So silly. Ten minutes later, we stoppped again, and Erin's door was opened, and her window lowered using a hand crank - all hell broke loose as Mike's laughter took over and we laughed ourselves to tears. We couldn't believe what we were seeing.

And it was only the beginning.

We drove on, and arrived at our first site - Lawrence's spring, a natural pool of water up a hill and behind a tree. Mike decided that this was the perfect opportunity for an adventure, and so the rest of us followed him, though we were told we only had fifteen minutes to spend at the site. But we climbed up, and after quite the hike we'd reached the top and had our first view of freshwater in its natural setting since our arrival in Jordan. It was green. And slimy. But very beautiful - the most lush setting I've encountered outside of parks and the occasional farmer's field. Even so, it was so much more sparse that even the most feeble front yard in Ontario. Such a difference, and yet the green was shocking in this setting. Turning around, we were blown away by our first beautful view. The sun made the distand rock ledges seem hazy and dark. With a breeze hitting us an a sense of accomplishment, we climbed down and continued our tour. 

Second up was a canyon, deep and shaded. We followed it in to a series of man-made water collection spots - so cool and so different from our first view. The sand here was so red, and such a site to behold, especially when we caught a glimpse down the shaded tunnel that we were traveling through. Still overwhelmded by the beauty, we carried on to our third stop, a small bridge carved up into a large rock in the centre of the valley. We climbed up, and crossed the bridge, with a final step onto a platform providing a 360 degree view of the Wadi.

Looking around, observing the colour and depth and majesty of the space, it was so surreal. Thinking, too, that water carved these massive channels millions of years ago, I was taken aback by a sense of insignificance - we were no more meaningful in thisvalley than the grains of sand were to us beneath our feet. 

When we moved on from the bridge, we traveled to Lawrence's house, the presumed house of T.E. Lawrence [of Arabia]. On our way, though, the four-wheeler started to skid and got stuck on an uphill climb through the sand. We had a mild freakout, and then piled out of the truck to push it. The cherry on top of a ridiculous truck journey. Mike and Aaron fought against the sand, briefly helped by us girls. With much effort, they crested the hill, and we stopped for more photos - I forgot my water bottle and had to make Aaron jump out to grab it - not the first time on that journey, sadly, that I'd lost track of it, nor the last.

Arriving at Lawrence's house at last, it was a fallen stone shelter with tall rocks to the west - it was pretty neat, though not nearly as spectacular as some of the other sites. Then, we continued to stop at the base of a series of carvings, 2500 years old. THe shapes carved into the rocks were unbelievable, and peppered the side. Loved it. 

However, the best was yet to come. At our last stop, we were in a more intimate space with some incredible red sand dunes.

Mike bounded up, and I followed - a close but much more careful second, stepping in others' footprints along the crest of the dune to make the adventure easier. Sand filled our shoes - hot as an oven. We had an amazing time climbing, but it was so hot, and the sand so heavy, and by the top we were super sweaty. But looking at the distant haziness compared to the warm lines of the sand dunes was just unreal. 

With a stunning view, we sat an enjoyed until the last possible minute, finally bounding down in ridiculous, long strides to the bottom.

We sat down and laughed and started piling into the bus, this time joined by a Bedouin man named Ahmed, who had to pick up his truck after a hike.  He and Mike sat in the front seat and he turned the rearview mirror to look at the girls in the back, now doubly crowded with Tash joining Aaron in the trunk. Watching us, they bargained over how many camels we were worth - 1000, it would seem, and white ones to boot. Mike was even told he could have a few startup camels to find a bride of his own.

After a long day, we returned to the bus, exhausted and happy. It was great :) 

 

Digging Days 3 and 4

When we started our third day at the site, it was a little disappointing, since Khris had to draw the baulks from the squares in the fort, which we had worked on the previous day. That meant that we began our own work day in others' squares, since we couldn't start without supervision. Between first and second breakfast, we were in Noora's square (her name in English is Barb, but she's much loved amongst the Bedouin). We started digging for the first time, mostly dusting and cleaning Noora's squares for the top photo (a photograph that must be taken before breaking to a new level).

For the first time, we spent our second breakfast eating with the Bedouin, sharing shrek (a salty flatbread similar to tortilla) and all of our food amongst each other. We also drank shai (sweet tea) by the tumblerfull - it's absolutely delicious and helps keep your body cool. We were all grateful for that. When we'd finished second breakfast, we wanted to start our squares so desperately that Meaghan and I went on an adventure to find Khris. With the baulk drawings finished, we were able to start digging! We set our squares, dusted them, took a surface photo and elevations in the four corners. 
Finally, we got to start digging. Using big picks, we broke the surface and started digging down 20 cm. It's a lot of heavy work but after today's go at it I think it's a little easier.

Today we continued the same - it's really difficult but kind of fun, as long as you drink tons of water. Once we had a good amount of the square fashioned out, it became a lot easier to work. We had a lot of help and many great tips from Mohamed, one of the workers on our square. Since Darcye wasn't feeling well today, her square partner, Mike, joined us and brought Ali with him - the two of them were able to seriously contribute to our square, though Mike came across every cool find! By second breakfast, he had found a piece of aqueduct that had been displaced or had come from the dump pile previously situated atop our square (from the 1989 excavation), a large amount of stones and some interesting pottery pieces, some nearly complete, as well as a wolf's claw. I was supremely jealous. We spent second breakfast at the fort with Salim, sharing some delicious home-made stew, shrek, watermelon, and shai from communal bowls. You eat everything with your right hand, and pass with your right, since your left is for other stuff (wiping your bum, e.g.). It's also important to keep the soles of your feet covered, so as not to offend anyone or Allah. We sit cross-legged to keep them from pointing towards anyone, or squat.

Salim joked about marrying off Mike to one of his nieces, and took a picture of him and of Jake to show his niece. He said he'd trade a Jordanian woman for a Canadian - "same fish," as he put it. It was so silly! Tomorrow, he threatened to make Jake milk his camel. He was quite the riot, and so friendly. Mohamed, though, is a complete sweetheart - he has a son named Osama who's two months old and quite sick at the moment, and jokes constantly in impeccable English. We've been helping each other to learn new words (today - elevation terms in english vs. excavation terms in Arabic). There were also some incredibly silly moments of dancing, singing, and joking. I've made several friends amongst the Bedouin already and am really looking forward to getting to know them better.

One interesting thing that I learnt from another Mohamed was that most of the men working around us range in age from 20-30. The eldest is maybe 40, but they all look much older than their years. It made me a little sad, to consider why that might be, and I wondered how we seemed to them by comparison.

When we get back from the site, I swear your could grow potatoes from the water we leave in the sink, especially after washing pottery, which we do from around 3 until 5. It's a loooong day, and there are muscles in my body hurting that I never appreciated before.

It's exhausting and pretty wonderful and as long as you keep laughing, it's quite a fun time. Our square is already interesting, so it'll definitely be a good place to excavate. We're halfway through our locus now, hopefully it will get finished tomorrow and we can finally break into an area that's less disturbed, so we'll have usable finds. Currently, we're looking for a continuation of an aqueduct that's on the surface and the wall that will mark the edge of a building from the Nabatean period. I'm definitely looking forward to the finds.

Until then :)

Excavating, Days 1 and 2

Jordan_low_res1
For the past two days, we’ve had a lot going on at Humayma. After a 5:00am breakfast, we’ve packed a second breakfast for ourselves and hop onto the buses to go to site by 6. Arriving at 7, we unpack ourselves and our tools and head to our assigned squares. We work until 10, take second breakfast until around 10:30, and then work until 1. By 2:15 we’ve been back in Aqaba to wash up for lunch, and then we have had free time followed by lectures around 5 or 5:30 and dinner at 7. It’s a packed day with tons of food, but lots of fun.


When working, we’ve been mostly setting squares (marking off spaces in which to work) and emptying backfill (dirt used to protect previously excavated areas from further damage) from areas where work will be continued. So far, Chris’s team (Mike, Meaghan, Darcy and I) have been working on emptying the backfill from the fort, alongside Marla’s team (Jake and Kelsey) to expose a furnace and a section of subfloor that belongs to a heated dining room in the commander’s quarters. The first day was challenging, since we were adjusting to hard, sweaty work in the heat. Today was also quite difficult (day 2) since you’re fighting the growing heat and dust. We’re all getting used to the sensation of having dirt up your nose and all over your body, and the effort of carrying heavy loads around especially when tired. So far, I’ve most enjoyed the digging portion – carrying is kind of repetitive, but there’s something really satisfying about watching your own progress through a structure. Yesterday, I was helping uncover the dining room area (a small section called a probe), and we finished that fairly on the first day. It was really cool to see the stacks of brick that held up the floor, still intact for the most part. Today, we were finishing our clean-up of the furnace and surrounding areas to the last excavated layer so that Marla’s team can lay their squares and continue tomorrow.

There was a lot left to do in the area, which was COMPLETELY filled with sand. We had at least another foot of dirt to remove in a significant area, and it was much stiller in the air today. We had only reached one wall by the time second breakfast rolled around. Afterwards, we continued working for some time, and it wasn’t looking like we’d finish today. Fortunately, the representative from Jordan’s Department of Antiquities arrived on site yesterday, and by this afternoon the list of hired workers was up. It’s quite political, since members have to be evenly distributed between families, meaning that some people can’t be rehired every season. Five workers were sent over to help us, including Salim (a returning staff) who rode up on his camel, along with a lovely man named Mohammed and “Old Ali” - the oldest of many Alis who worked last season. Salim and the workers gave most of us Bedouin names because they’re easier for them to pronounce. Darcy is Hleilei (Crescent Moon), and Meaghan is Sahar (magic). I didn’t get a different name, since Sarah is a Bedouin name already, and it’s easy to pronounce.

 

With the help of five Bedouin workers, our square started looking close to completion. I got a little possessive and competitive, so started working much faster so we might finish it that day. With all of us working steadily and with so many extra hands, we finished preparing the square – it was extra satisfying. I’m already starting to develop a hand tan (so wonderful…) and so are many of the other students. It’s an awfully busy time!

Tomorrow, we (hopefully) start to work on our own square for the first time; I’m really looking forward to seeing what we’ll be working with, especially after we accomplished so much. Another day, and another early wakeup – but honestly, after such a satisfying time, it’s definitely something to look forward to :D