Background on my trip: PART 1

Hello again,

I wanted to offer some context to what I’m doing on this trip and why I’ll be in both Guatemala and El Salvador.

First, I am currently a PhD candidate who is A.B.D. (All But Dissertated- meaning I’ve completed all –almost- graduation requirements).  There are two things left for me to do to complete my doctorate. First I need to demonstrate my knowledge of a second language related to my area of study (Spanish) and second I need to write my dissertation (Side note: I’m working on it and don’t you dare ask when it will be completed as that is the single most hated question by any writing a PhD! ;) ! ) .

So, I will be spending two and a half weeks in Antigua, Guatemala in an intensive Spanish immersion program. This will allow me to compliment my informal “field” Spanish with a more educated, formal Spanish that is more appropriate for conversing with government officials, giving lectures, and doing press interviews. As I have stated earlier, I have learned the majority of the Spanish I know while doing fieldwork in Belize, Honduras, Mexico, and mostly in El Salvador. I have participated in field projects at the Cerén site since 2005 and have learned the majority of my Spanish in the town of Joya de Cerén. There are some great local expression and words that are a regular part of repertoire. Fortunately, my dear friends and the guys who have worked in the field with us in Joya (the name we often use to refer to the modern community) have been amazing patient with my Spanish and have done their best to educate me a little more each trip. We have had some wonderful laugh over the terms I’ve mixed up. For example, I once asked our field cook to please pick up some “Church Sauce” at the store. I’d meant to say “English Sauce” (a term for Worcestershire sauce). Of course I went purple with embarrassment but this has turned into a great joke that we laugh about each time I visit.  Learning a second language is not for the faint of heart, as one might very easily confuse words that can lead to serious embarrassment! I am always afraid to say “I’m afraid” (ironic I know) in Spanish, since the work for this is somewhat close to a swear word for fecal matter and I am paranoid I will mix the two up! While it is scary to open yourself up to make these mistakes, it is only through diving-in and being willing to sound totally silly that I have had any success in learning a new language. I’ll keep you posted on all my major faupeaus and try to be brave enough to let you laugh with me, because the only way through it is to find the humor (after of course I turn a nice shade of purple from blushing).

Chris 

Leaving Home...

I’m currently sitting on my plane to Houston writing to you (No I’m not on a fancy wi-fi plane, just going to cut and paste this message when I arrive in Houston). 

So off I go after the hectic packing and organizing of life that comes with leaving the country for a month (making sure bills are paid while you are away and you’ve brought the necessary items along can be stressful!). As promised there were many tears upon my departure.  I waited until last night to put all of my items in my bags and made sure to have my wife there to help talk me out of attempting to bring the entire house in my suitcase. The reason for my delayed packing was that the moment I pulled out the big suitcases and began to put my clothes, field items, and project equipment into bag, my two dogs (Gracie Lou and Theo-also known as Brother) became noticeably depressed. I’m convinced they understand the ratio of bag-size to time away and they showed their lack of enthusiasm for my trip by following me obsessively around the house with tails between their legs (pugs sign of sadness). 

It is always hard for me to leave my home and I think that is a good-thing. It means I love my family and my life, but the call of Anthropology has also been a love, so with the amazing support of my wonderful wife, off I go again on yet another adventure. Having the loving support of friends and family makes a world of difference. I was lucky enough to have both my wife and a very dear friend of mine provide yummy airplane snacks as bon voyage gifts. Snacks are key in the age of having pay for plane food and given I’ll be arriving after midnight.

So, a note as I’m starting this voyage- if you didn’t read my earlier post, there is a very good reason I’ll be sleeping in Houston tonight. I did not want to arrive in Guatemala City around 9pm and then try to make my way to Antigua. I have nothing against Guatemala City but as a woman traveling alone it is not wise to arrive in an area I’m less familiar with alone and then attempt to journey on the roads at night! Please take this advice in your own travels. Also, I have the most amazing parents and grandma (Nanny) who are making a 3 hour drive from San Antonio to Houston just to get to have breakfast with me. I could not be more grateful for an opportunity to see my family or their continued love and support of me! I am blessed with such a remarkable family and though the time will not be nearly long enough, I know it will fill me with the love and support to make the month away all the easier.

Up, up and away!

Chris

The Adventure Begins...

Hi all.

Well, today is the day I set off for the field yet again.  I'll be flying into Houston tonight and spending the night there tonight, then continuing on to Guatemala in the morning.  For any of you looking to travel this is very important... I made sure to stay overnight in Houston so that I'd be arriving in Guatemala City during the daytime.

If I had not done it this way I would be arriving in Guatemala at 9:30pm at night and then trying to travel from Guatemala City to Antigua at night. This would be a very bad idea for any traveler, but especially being that I am a woman and alone this is not a great idea. Thus, I'll be spending the night in Houston and arriving in Guatemala in the afternoon. Please keep this in mind in your own travels. Any city can be dangerous (even your own), but when you are traveling to an unfamiliar city you must be all the more careful given that you lack an emic (insider) perspective and knowledge of the area.

Okay, now to finish packing and then a tearful goodbye with my wife and pugs. The hardest part of being an anthropologist is leaving behind my family as I travel.  Luckily my wife will be joining me in Guatemala next week for my birthday on the 4th of July!

These are hard faces to walk away from for a month (Pugs Theo to the left and Gracie to the right) !

Stay tuned and here we go! 

Chris

Here we go again...

Hello again.

It is summer time again and for anthropologists that often means time to go back into the field. So, here we go again! I will be setting out for Guatemala and then El Salvador at the end of this week.

The plan for this summer is a bit different. If you are new to the site, welcome and feel free to start at the earliest posts from last year and work your way to the present to catch up or in the next few days I will post a summarized version of our past project and current goals. 

Those of you who followed my blog last summer will remember we had a large archaeological project underway.  This season we will not being doing the excavations we did last year, but instead will be following up on some of our last year's work on ancient and modern planting techniques. Having found ancient planting methods no longer in practice today, we decided to have local farmers plant manioc (a tuber crop) the 'old way'. This summer will be all about working with these farmers to understand how these techniques might differ and also to see the results of our test plantings.  We are also preparing to submit a proposal for additional archaeological research at Ceren for the summer of 2014, so I will be keeping you updated on that as well.

My summer journey will begin in Antigua, Guatemala where I will be attending an intensive Spanish immersion program.  Having worked in El Salvador since 2005 I am able to communicate in Spanish, particularly in the region where I work and with farmers, but I am still lacking in fluency and formal Spanish.  One of the 'hazards' of anthropological research is that you often pick up that language in the area you are in- slang, bad-habits and all. Also, in my case my Spanish vocabulary is very skewed towards archaeological terms!  Learning a language in the field can be extremely rewarding and useful, however, it is also necessary to continue gaining fluency in the formal language for press conferences, lectures, and meetings with officials.  One of the requirements for a Ph.D. in anthropology is often a degree of fluency in a language related to your research. Thus, this Spanish program will aid my research and help me meet one of the requirements of my PhD.

I will keep you updated in my progress and also share the experience (frustrations to be sure) of learning a new language. My hope is that many of you will have the opportunity to participate in a similar program and anthropological fieldwork in the future. This blog will help you understand what we do as anthropologists in the field and a little bit of what to expect when you set out on your own adventures.

Welcome back to my blog and I look forward to writing to you in the weeks to come.
Chris