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I worked in Beirut in the mid 90's at a time when the Israeli's were bombing. I remember some pleasant evenings on the roof of our building, more chilled out than normal due to Gin and Tonic, basking in the soft, warm wind, watching the strafing lines of tracer fire going up over the city. A spent shell fell on site one day that had people diving for cover. Happy days. We must've been nuts.
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Being a Kiwi I have no experience in the Northern Hemisphere.
But I have worked on sites in both Australia and New Zealand as part of my studies. You can't get much further from the UK than that.
Most of my work has been voluntary but now I've finished studying I'm making some money (fingers crossed it will last).
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It is nice to see that so many people have experienced working abroad in archaeology. It can be very rewarding both in terms of life experience and work experience. I do agree that it is something that has to be done at an early stage in your career if you are planning to 'settle down' or have a family. One of the best opportunities to do this is through Uni degree and (if you do one) Masters, which is where I got a lot of my work abroad from. There are a lot of research projects out there just crying out for graduates to come out on expenses alone.
Thanks for updating Austin, don't know why it never lets me update my polls - I should just learn to get it right the first time!
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Hi i've put Yes - quite far afield (Middle East/Asia/N America, etc)but i would like to add that that they where mainly paid but i would still (morgage depending) work in a diffrent country if they paid travel and acocmindation. I been having dreams about syria at the mo so if anyone knows of anything coming up
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I think travel and accomodation are minimum if you want to get good workers - some sites even have full pay!
I have however worked on sites for nothing.. but hey... its not exactly a holiday? You are working and you are working hard .... usually for soemone who is wanting to make their name...
"Entrepreneurs are simply those who understand that there is little difference between obstacle and opportunity and are able to turn both to their advantage."
Niccolo Machiavelli
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17th July 2010, 02:01 AM
(This post was last modified: 17th July 2010, 11:36 AM by dangoldswain.)
I find it impressive how many people get the opportunity to work abroad. As someone just starting out I hope I get the opportunity to do some paid work abroad in the future.
I would take any opportunity abroad, as long as accommodation and travel factored in still made it financially worthwhile. Where do you find these kinds of opportunities? I suppose it may be a case of who you know (as seems to be a common theme in the profession I have noticed!). When abroad in non-english speaking countries has anyone encountered an issue with language barriers? I suppose it would be important to learn parts of a language if you intend to work there.
I myself spent a summer in the Czech Republic and Slovakia on some excavation work when I was at University, it was great to gain some practical experience, but also get out there and see parts of the world I had never seen and meet lots of new people.
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ITs a bit of chicken and egg...
Use Past Horizons World Project search to find projects.. and in the future, there will be opportunities for staff members added... but basicly (and this was how it worked for me) I went on one in Jordan, this led me to Turkey, where i was then passed to Emirates etc... get known and you always find a site... I spent Sept - May every year away from the UK... which was nice
though it was mainly for food and accommodation and a small cash prize
The site in Slovakia... get back in touch, offer to come out and help... then you get onto the international circuit...
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I think I agree with what David is saying and would add - don't consider the 'financial' factor first and foremost (after all if that were the case most UK based archaeologists would be giving up let alone archaeologists working abroad!!). You are only going to get one chance to work on many international projects and if you dither whilst you think about whether you are going to end up with enough cash left over to buy Smarties, you might find that opportunity has passed you by. My advice with the language - try your best!!
With peace and consolation hath dismist, And calm of mind all passion spent...
