"the world is a book and those who do not travel read only a page." ~St. Augustine

To travel or not to travel? I think that humans are naturally nomadic - let's not forget the normal state of human existence and survival as nomads. Our prehistoric movements across huge areas, whole continents at times, were generally done out of necessity, due to climate change or movement of game. And in historic times, very recently, humans still had the idea of "the frontier", "the west", "the Orient", "the East", and "deepest, darkest Africa".

Do these places still exist, or have we travelled (collectively, as species) as much as we are going to? Now that we can travel simply for travel's sake, do we prefer to stay closer to home?

Travel has certainly become economically easier across wider distances - competing airlines, student discounts and fares, group rates - though this has become countered by our greater and more immediate awareness of problems in these same places - war, famine, drought, and crime, to name a few. In actual fact, these problems always existed, the only difference is that we know about them ahead of time now, thanks to the global village, Lonely Planet, Fodor's, and CNN. The element of surprise, both good (realizing there is no one else crawling all over an ancient ball court) and bad (waking up to find a stranger standing over you, holding your wallet, a common thing in this area of town) has become sterilized. Now you get to "choose your own adventure", instead of just accidentally finding it.

A good friend of mine is currently on a several-month-long circumambulation (of sorts, except that it is in a large vehicle) of the African continent. Admittedly, when he first told me about his plans to go on this "package trip", I was skeptical that such a degree of organization would be what he was looking for, as I thought it would be without any spontaneity or flexibility. Since keeping track of his trip (the company he went with, African Trails, has a great on-going transblog of their progress), I have been really impressed by the degree of improvisation that occurs - whether it is side adventures while waiting for Visas, or getting bogged down in the local muddy roads, or changes in plans due to political climates, or the option to leave or join the group at any time. Now, that is not to say that I am converted and I think that group travel is the only way to go, but it has made me think that where there is available forewarnings about a certain area, it would be naive to not take certain precautions, such as a flexible, small group.

This anecdote brings up yet another reason why I love my career: I get to experience wonderful places, generally with the people who live there, and not be a tourist in the typical sense of the word, while working with the locals to help create sustainability through their own heritage. I usually get to spend prolonged periods of time in these places, going to work every day and maintaining a normal schedule, and teaching students who have often not been away from home before. While I get to teach them the joys of archaeological method, theory, and ethics, as well as the history of the area, I also love teaching them about the current culture and traditions.

Alas, it is the only thing for me to do, at least for right now...

To bring things full-circle: it should be noted that though there is certainly no shortage of travel-inspired quotations available, there are just as many that remind us that not all travels are created equal...

"Too often travel, instead of broadening the mind, merely lengthens the conversation." ~Elizabeth Drew

...and, it must be said, that the more I travel (and I have many more travels in me yet), the more I know that when I am ready to come home, it has been a good trip...

"No one realizes how beautiful it is to travel until he comes home and rests his head on his old familiar pillow." ~Lin Yutang

the 2007 field season is about to get underway

It never rains but it pours...literally and figuratively, it would seem, here in wet Surrey. Don't get discouraged: the rain won't last all season and, when it rains in the field, though it gets everything sopping, it makes for more exciting stories when you return home.

The word is out: it won't be long until I'll be heading out into the field, in the rain. And, not too long after the rain is dried out of my tent and the mildew is soaped off my gear, my tools will be oiled and ready to be used in Jordan. I should be heading there in early June with the University of Toronto's Archaeological Field School at Tell Madaba (see link in sidebar) to supervise students and instruct them in archaeological practice, method, and theory. The security forms have been filled out and submitted and, once I get my arrival and departure dates, I'll be bouncing off walls with excitement. Tell Madaba is a wonderful historic site, located not too far from the Dead Sea, the Israeli border, and Biblical Mount Nebo, and has been occuppied consistently for several thousand years. The field school has been going on there for a few years and is very well run. I'm very proud to be a part of the project.

a little technology can go a long way

Here it goes. I am undertaking a new challenge: staying connected with friends, family, and colleagues while working both at home and abroad. I am also using this new (for me) medium of blogging to provide information to people about myself and the wide world of archaeology. I like to think of myself as having my fingers in many pies at once, so don't expect to find items on this blog related to one area of the world, one period of time, one school of thought. My plan is for this to be an informal site people can swing by and, all in one visit, can find out: what I am up to personally and professionally, what my immediate plans are, what events are upcoming that interest me and may interest you, what interesting and exciting things are going on in the world, what relevant and interesting articles and books are currently circulating, and what's going on in the field.

I invite you to come back often and get involved by posting comments that will (hopefully) contain information that may be of value to other people stopping by. Almost any type of dialogue is encouraged.

Let's see how this new-fangled contraption runs...