Bones and more bones…

Hello Readers!!!

As you can tell I’m pretty excited about what happened today!!

Today my group got to work with Dr. Baker excavating a tomb.

 

 

Our focus for the day was to excavate the outside entrance of the tomb.  We found lots of  broken pieces of pottery and bone fragments everywhere without even entering the inside of the tomb. While I was investigating the inside of the tomb I found an amazing  discovery!!! Yep, I was the one that located it in the back of the tomb and it was so exciting!! Sadly though, I can not give any details until experts come and analyze it. Hopefully, in the days to come I can tell you all about it. Lets just say I am totally excited!

However, I can show you the bead that I found. Pretty cool!

We also found parts of a skull which I believe was destroyed by looters who were after the pottery and valuable pieces only- very sad to the person whose body was desecrated. I was also totally excited to be Dr. Baker’s right hand person in helping to identify bone fragments from rocks.

We also had fun screening dirt in the grave and finding bone and pottery pieces. I  discovered a piece of pottery that resembled Greek pottery which was either copied Greek pottery or imported from Greece.

Sorry for the short post, with such an exciting day, but it’s been a long week filled with hikes, buckets of dirt, carrying tree limbs, digging, documenting and sore muscles so I am calling it a night. I also have to get up early tomorrow morning since we are off to Rome! Goodnight Readers.

Ciao,

Noelle

Bats and Bones!

Hello Readers,

We did work today!! Sadly though I was in a group without my normal friends. On the bright side though I got to start the day off with Dr. Baker. Also, it was a nice reprieve from the heat to have scattered rain showers today.

I was assigned map duty today which isn’t the most exciting thing to do but we all play a part in excavation no matter what the job is. My first job assignment was to get water proof paper- due to the rain. However, as I went into the tombs to find the paper I needed I was suddenly attacked by 2 bats which totally freaked me out!! They were flying about my head so I swatted them with the paper and ran out of the tomb quickly. EEK!!

Our group started excavating a tomb today. This tomb had bones everywhere!!! We had to be careful where ever we stepped.While removing rocks and leaves, out of the entry way of the tomb, we started finding pottery pieces. That was really cool until we found a tooth!!! We started screening through the dirt when we found more bone fragments and another tooth all in the pouring rain. It was very exciting! My most proud moment today though was having my teammates ask me for help in identifying bone fragments. Woo-hoo.  I am gaining knowledge and becoming an expert anthropologist!!

Later,

Noelle

Tombs, Tombs!

Hello Readers,

Today was a blast! Especially realizing that my blog name really encompasses what I am doing- raiding tombs! I am officially Indiana Jane!

Despite the daily long 7 mile to the tomb site it was a great day. Most definitely, I will conquer this hike of thorny plants, slippery dirt and moss by the time I leave Italy, and will be ready for something more challenging! It is hard work from 8 in the morning until 4:30 in the afternoon but well worth it.However, the hike and grueling hours are easier in the mornings when it is cooler than in the afternoon hot and humid weather.  I must now prepare myself for not only the grueling hike but now carrying buckets of dirt back up and down the hills as well. Yikes! It will be a challenge but one that I am definitely up for conquering.

The best part of the day was exploring ALL the tombs and there are so many to pick from! Exploring these amazing tombs is so much fun that I don’t want to do anything else. Personally, I prefer digging for human remains but for now we are uncovering pottery pieces until we discover the grave sites. Crawling in and out of these tombs is very exciting but also very risky since some tombs range from large openings where looters have destroyed the sites, to some with very small openings that you have to crawl into.  I have to be careful since this is also dangerous work because we can get trapped in the tombs. We are working in pairs so we have to rely on each for support and guidance.

We are beginning to document the tombs and artifacts with the help of our professors. The valuable lessons and experiences that I am learning  daily are life changing. From working with others, documenting artifacts and not bones to the physical challenges has influenced my life. I love learning about what others must have experienced in the past. It is truly amazing being here and experiencing all this in Italy!

Needless to say, I am exhausted – until tomorrow…goodnight.

Noelle

 

 

The Long Hike!

Hello Readers,

As promised, here is my daily update on my adventures in Italy.

To start, I want to be honest in saying that I am really out of shape and my feet are killing me! From the title of my post you can guess that I completed a lot of walking today up and down very steep hills. On the bright side, 1) I will have lost a lot of weight and be in better shape by the time I go home, and  2) despite me being out of shape I was able to stay ahead of the group trekking up the hill, which allowed me to take some amazing photos.

This morning I awoke at 6:30 in the morning and had breakfast at 7:00 which the nuns from the monastery made for us! After breakfast, Greta, Kristen and I walked the city of Barbarano Romona and became familiar with our new home for the next six weeks. Good news, we were able to map out a third of the city already! The town is really cute and ancient looking.

     

From there we began our LONG HIKE to the archeological site- which was about 6. 5 miles to and from. The hike took us through an old road, about 45 minutes, to get to the ancient ruins. The trek was very hilly and the majority of us lost our breath by the time we arrived. However, along the way we were able to pick fresh cherries along the route which were incredibly sweet and tart. The were AMAZING and wonderful to eat!!!! It was just what we needed to get us through the hike. Yum!!

Today there was no actual digging but rather the professors taught us the expectations and learning goals of field school. We were trained in the different types of equipment that will be used and the area that we will be working in during our archeological dig.

The one bad side to  my day was getting a horrible migraine that left me feeling terrible. Thank God I got it near the end of the day so that it did not affect my entire day. More than likely my body has not yet adjusted to the time zone, little sleep and a strenuous hike for my  first day. We did not return back to our hotel until 4:00 in the afternoon and  I forgot that Italians eat later in the evening so I didn’t have dinner until 8:00. I will have to make sure that in the future I stay hydrated and eat meals that will provide me with more energy and stamina. But, I did have an an amazing dessert for dinner tonight!

My take away for the day was in realizing amazing it must have been for the ancient Etruscans to march or run back and forth on their route to the ancient burial site. It’s amazing how ancient history comes full circle to the present. What the Etruscans left for dead; today we uncover as new evidence for the future.

Thanks for reading my post but I am very tired and off to bed! Until tomorrow-

Noelle-

Arrived in Rome!

Hello Readers,

Let me start by saying that I am extremely tired! It has been a very long and tiring day of traveling from LAX to NY to Rome-sadly I was only able to get 2-3 hours of sleep so I have been awake since my last blog yesterday at 3:00 a.m. A nice surprise on my flight to Rome was meeting a Professor, Joe, from CT, who too was on his way with his graduate students to his own field school in Italy.

Since I was the first one to arrive at Leonardo Da Vinci Airport at 7:30 a.m. I had the opportunity to greet everyone and bond with all my fellow archeology peers. Unfortunately, we did not leave the airport until 5:00 p.m.! Yikes- 10 hours in an airport is  a long time, even for me being an Anthropology student who loves to watch and analyze people.! We then boarded our bus for an hour and a half ride to Viterbi, Italy, where I will be attending the San Guiliano Archaeological Field School for Baylor University.

 

 

Once on the bus we were told that we could rest at the hotel…LIES!! We are staying at the Residencia Nazareth in Viterbi, on old converted monastery, and surprise…no one prepared us for the long haul up the rugged terrain and hills- it must have been about 5 miles-lugging my 62 pound, overweight, suitcase! That was definitely a workout every student felt! The good news as that when we leave back home it will all be down hill! I did not do a lot of exploring today but I will relate that as soon as I can. Needless to say, I am EXHAUSTED but Excited for tomorrow!

I was able to relax in my room, which I am sharing with two other girls, and catch up with Dr. Baker for awhile and get dinner. Needless to say I am tired and off to bed since I have to be up at 6:30 in the morning for my first adventure at the Etruscan ruins.

Catch you later,

Noelle

I’m off

May 29, 2016

Hello Readers,

My name is Noelle Martinez and this is my first time doing a blog.  I apologize ahead for any grammar or misspellings that will take place since this is my first time journaling my thoughts and experiences to the public.

In case you are interested I will be writing about my archeological dig and experiences in the beautiful country of Italy. I will spend the next 6 weeks in the Tuscany region of Viterbo while conducting field school for Baylor University. So, instead of digging graves up in Texas, which I did as a freshman, I will be digging up Etruscan bones in Italy.

I will try to update you all on a regular basis, but no promises since I will be very busy. Sorry my first post is so short but I’m about to check in with airport security at LAX. I’m off. Wish me luck!!!

Signing off,

Noelle