Arriving in Jordan

For someone who considers herself at least somewhat of a writer, I certainly haven’t written anything yet – and it’s been what, five days since I left Calgary?

I think a lot of this trip will be spent comparing it to when I last came here in 2006, so get yourselves ready for some reminiscing and dream sequences.

The flights were all easy to manage. I drugged myself up on Gravol and slept through pretty much everything. I did however, have a bit of a photo goal going on to the flights: I wanted some aerial photography shots.

Germany. The Germans have been lying to us for a lot of years about being efficient and technical and whatnot. We got a little lost in the Frankfurt airport while trying to find accommodation for the night. It turned out there was this handy little desk dedicated specifically to finding people hotel rooms, but none of the information desk people seemed to know it existed. We did finally find it, after asking everyone in the airport.

Otherwise, it was nice to have a break after the nine-hour flight from Calgary and since Germany has hot water, I took one last warm shower for the next two months.

Jordan is so much the same as it was, it feels like I never really went home in 2006. There are minor changes here and there, but for the most part, it looks, sounds, and feels exactly the same. I suppose four years isn’t really a enough time for a lot of changes, but I had expected a least a few. Other than a handy walking bridge to cross the highway, I haven’t really noticed much that’s different.

Things are just getting started for the dig, we’re preparing to head out on Friday for the cleanup of the debris that’s blown into the site in the last two years and then it’s time to go nuts with work starting on Monday. I’ve been put in charge of three squares, though it’s not as big a job as it sounds because there’s a large wall running through them, but still, it’s definitely going to be interesting.

From what I understand, not much has been done with the square I was working on in 2006. The goal of my field supervisor is to dig down the rest of Field H to meet how far down the square had been dug in 2006. Did I really dig down that far that year – that some of the field hasn’t caught up to it? I think there must have been more work done on my old square since, but I won’t know until I see the site later on.

Right now though, my immediate concerns are breakfast and finding a new mattress that doesn’t dip so badly in the middle (man, I’m getting old).