As a general rule I am not a particularly emotional person and am neither impressed or moved by much. However, there is truly something otherworldly about Turkey. From the moment I touched down in Gazipasa I was struck by the raw beauty in everything around me. Between the mountains encircling you, the variety of plants you saw even on the side of the road, to the absolutely shocking blue of the Mediteranean which provides the most brilliant contrast with the land bordering it. Even at the dig site, when you’re at your most miserable, all you need to do is turn around and look for a few seconds and it becomes so worth it.
When it comes to the actual archaeology, it is an experience that is completely unique to anything that I have ever done before. The heat we’re facing I’m easily able to deal with, and the physical labor is nothing new to me. However, the history is absolutely thrilling. Going through museums or exhibits you enter with the understanding that what you’re seeing has been viewed by hundreds or even thousands before you, that it has been analyzed and studied for years before you were allowed to see it, and it might not even be the actual artifact. But here, when you find anything of value, even the smallest sherd of pottery, you know you are the first to see this tiny bit of history in two thousand years; that’s about the greatest thing that you can ask for.