| Entry: | My first diary entry for Catalhoyuk project ufff….. Right now I still have lots of feelings going on… First of all because I knew that I was part of the team just 6 weeks ago (I was not selected at the beginning, but I'm glad I agreed to be on the reserve list) so I’m still digesting that I’m part of this project, and I’m here in the last chance to dig in that place!!!
The first days at the site have been the process to adaption, with the team, in the house…cleaning and preparing the shelters to be ready to start the season AND with all this information about the Database system!!!! Uff I’m still dreaming with this tablet!!!! We had been having lots of “master classes” about everything, lots of information, and for a paper archaeologist like me, the beginning was a bit hard, because in a way, I had the fear that maybe I could not be able to manage with all this technology, and with all details in the recording database (the commercial archaeology don’t give us the opportunity to record the things in this detailed and fantastic way). But right now, after two weeks I’m more familiar with this stuff, the help of all mates helped a lot, so and I think that everything will be fine soon, or at least I hope.
Was also an amazing experience when we start to dig. For me, excavate in a Neolithic place with all that catalhoyuk represents in the story, and be able to try to interpret a little tiny part of this history…. WOW (I will reserve the translation of OPSM (the acronym of the Spanish words that I said in that moment, for another diary entry, is too early to start to use it here ;-).
I’m working in the Sp 565, after dig the burial F8008, we had been trying to understand what was going on with the features in this space, and if we was in the middle between the spaces 565 and 580. In the beginning was difficult because I was following and trusting all the descriptions for the year before and I was a bit confusing, and in a way you finally think that you see the same that they saw before. Anyways, after trust our eyes and work with different interpretations we realize that the F8010 and F8011 was highest that we was thinking, and that the space is full of infill room, so for the moment we are still in the Sp 565 and no evidences for Sp 580. I need to be more used to the stratigraphy and with the particular characteristics of the features in that place.
Finally, related with all the things accumulate during the last two weeks, there are still things that really worry me a little but in a way are very interesting. I had been taking archaeological decision the last 14 years of my life, and NOW there are moments that I’m scared to take one of or another decision, or I’m scared if I’m not doing my work correctly…strange feelings reappearing!!! Probably I just need a bit more time to be used, anyway in situations like that, I always remember what my field leader told me in my first day in an excavation around 1999: Cristina, when you starts a new project, you need to feel butterflies in your stomach and be ready for lots of worries, mistakes and surprises. The day that you do not have this feelings anymore you should leave the archaeology. Right now I have a butterflies swarm in my stomach…so I’m probably ready for all that mistakes, worries and surprises…Let’s the magic of Catalhoyuk starts!!!! |
