Things have changed a great deal from when I first came here, and more often than not in a positive rather than negative way.
First major change: I thought archaeology was a much more isolated field of study than most others, but the more I stay here, the more integrated with geology and geography it is. Whether or not this change is a good one can be left to the reader’s interpretation. However, I learned I am much more comfortable with discomfort than I was 8 days ago. Not to mention I am getting visibly stronger. Another less pleasant change is I learned how much about archaeology is flying by the seat of your pants. While I am no master planner, having some plan beats having barely an outline and putzing around for 6 hours.
Antiochia’s history has greatly changed for me. After learning more about the Luwian peoples from the lecture on Wednesday, I am starting to see a more interesting picture of a group of survivalists as a culture, adapting to whatever political situation they are in. The way they handled the Seleukids and the Ptolemies was frankly both hilarious and fascinating.
Overall, I am coming back from these 8 days no longer in such admiration for people who do this all summer because I have begun to grow used to the weather and the changes in necessary water consumption on a daily basis. It has been great thus far and it’ll be interesting to see where it goes.