Before I went to Türkiye, when I was reading these “advice posts” from students last year, I thought they were being so dramatic. Everyone was talking about the heat, humidity, and work and how difficult everything was. It IS hard, BUT my time in Gazipaşa was the most rewarding experience of my entire life. I spent the first few days questioning my sanity. But as the initial shock wore off and I adjusted to the climate, it quickly became an unforgettable month that I wouldn’t trade for anything. The moment you begin excavating and get to hold a piece of pottery that hasn’t been touched by another human in thousands of years, the struggle doesn’t really matter anymore.
When it comes to packing, I personally did not bring enough everyday clothes. I spent the month on basically a four-outfit rotation, which was great for conserving suitcase space but got old pretty quickly. Bring lots of lightweight clothing and make sure to pack a good pair of walking shoes and some comfortable sandals, too. Most importantly, break in all your shoes (especially your dig boots) well before you arrive in Türkiye. Trust me, you’ll want to avoid blisters! Once you’re in Türkiye, I recommend you try every single convenience store snack, drink, and especially ice cream that looks interesting and try everything available for dinner at least once. You’ll definitely have favorites, but when else will you have the opportunity to try these things again? My favorite snack was strawberry-flavored rice cakes from the brand Gong. Yum!
I’ve never learned so much, so quickly, as I did in Türkiye. Since I’m a hands-on learner, some of the pre-trip readings were tough to grasp at first, but everything clicked once I was actually on-site. I gained so much insight into object identification and the daily lives of the people who lived in Antiochia Ad Cragum. Plus, the supervisors are incredibly helpful. They’re always ready to answer questions, and by the end of the month, it’s amazing to look back and realize just how much you’ve absorbed. You also learn a lot about your ability to come up with the most insane “theories” about what must have happened in your unit. For example, my unit for the second half of the month, ANS8, was clearly once a hibachi grill where a war between goats and cows broke out. The cows won, by the way.
The most memorable experience from my time in Türkiye should probably be finding coins and other artifacts from thousands of years ago, but that honestly wasn’t. Don’t get me wrong, it absolutely was amazing, but for me, my favorite part was getting to know everyone on site. Our group from St. Olaf was full of some of the kindest and most fun people I have ever met, and I’m so excited to see them more around campus when we go back for the fall semester. Getting to know the Turkish students and workers was also such an amazing experience. I’ve only been back in Minnesota for about a week now, and I’m already missing everyone so much! Ultimately, this trip taught me a lot about myself as a person and what I want to do with my life after college. I absolutely have a genuine passion for archaeology and fieldwork, and I would love to pursue this path further. While I am certain that graduate school is in my future, I’m still exploring specializations, as my biology undergraduate degree is so broad. I loved working with Megan and Emily in the bone lab, so maybe something related to that? My ideal career would involve a balance between museum curation and active field research. Though I am in the early stages of planning, this experience has solidified my desire to return to the field whenever possible.
If you have the opportunity to go on this trip, do it!