Walking to site after the rain
By some small miracle, I awoke in my tent at 6:00am having had a solid night’s sleep despite the torrential rain bucketing down around me throughout the night. A week ago I couldn’t have imagined willingly waking up before sunrise. I had been in ‘holiday mode’ since the conclusion of semester 2 exams, where sleeping in until 10:00am was not uncommon.
However, at field school I have found myself thrust into a new rhythm – and I feel better for it! In fact, I am beginning to believe that I have been brought to a secret health camp. We operate with the birds – up at sunrise and droopy-eyed by sunset. We spend a solid 7 hours in the field flexing our biceps, oblique’s, and knee-caps, and we are provided three healthy (and extremely delicious) meals a day. Swimming in the cooling ocean is almost mandatory and always warmly welcomed, and a belly laugh during a game of Cards Against Humanity in the evening is a frequent occurrence.
Example of current bird population
I am a big fan of birds, and today my enthusiasm for them was displayed in the field. Working in Quadrant 6 I came across a bird bone deep within a deposit. I was immediately able to discern that it was a bird bone due to its light and hollow composition. This swift and confident conclusion was no doubt appreciated by my trench supervisor Matt, who has exhibited immense patience throughout six days of incessant questioning over whether or not a rock is fire cracked or (most likely) not …
Progress so far
We are at the halfway mark of the 2017 field school. In a mere 6 days I have forged strong friendships and even stronger biceps (from troweling!). My more experienced colleagues have made me feel at home in an unfamiliar environment whilst also guiding me through the process of learning. Coming from a family of avid non-campers, I am taken aback by how comfortable and settled I am feeling.
Bring on the next week!
~ Gala