This past week my perspectives on many things have evolved: I now have a better understanding of myself socially, and my interests within archeology. One thing about this trip my supervisor told me is you are always going to be a little bit exhausted: I have found this true, however not in a bad way. There are constant things to do: work at the dig, do a blog post (like right now), go to the beach, go to Konrads, day trips ect… and this is all very fun, and has given me a chance to get to know Gazipasa, my dig mates and myself more. However, I have realized this past week, that you can’t go to every single thing. I am human and even as a self-identified extrovert I have social limits. I have learned that I have to sit out of some events sometimes to recharge and better enjoy the activities I do go to.

I went into this dig having an interest in buildings and general archeology/history mostly, however no strong interest in Mediterranean history, and the pottery the region produced: This has changed. There is such a pure and sobering feeling when you find a piece of pottery that has been buried for hundreds of years in the dirt. The last person who touched it died long ago and you can still see finger pinchings from generations ago and run your finger over the indents. It feels like an epiphany and a mini positive life crisis each time. This led to me developing a newfound interest in the pottery of Rome, Turkey, and Greece. I have spent the last few nights reading articles on pottery now as I fall asleep. I am even rethinking what sub-section of archeology I may want to go into.