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Published: July 28th 2005
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Wow.
I am back in Albuquerque, New Mexico. I arrived back in the states one week ago today. And I got back to Albuquerque last Sunday. I'm still kind of in shock to be back. People had mentioned this to me... That there might be some culture shock upon returning--I didn't really think about it or believe that it would occur. But it is.
So, I realized that I never fully explained what I was doing in Copan, Honduras. I guess it is a little late now, but I will try to explain. I am a student at UNM pursuing a BA in Anthropology and a minor in Latin American studies. Last year, I took a few art history classes on Pre-Columbian Art. My professor mentioned that she was looking for students to take to Copan with her in the summer to work on her project. I expressed my enthusiasm for this and also began working for her part-time in her office. Well, turns out, she decided to take me (and a few others) to Copan with her! Through her classes, I also found an interest in ceramic traditions from the Southeastern Maya area. I decided to center my
honors project around this ceramic tradition. My professor paid my room and board for a month in exchange for me working for her. And I got a Field Research Grant from the Latin American and Iberian Institute (LAII) at UNM to work on my honors thesis. They covered my airfare. That is how I ended up in Copan.
My professor set me and the rest of my compañeros up with families to live with in Copan for the month of June. In the morning we worked for our professor. We were working to the side of the ballcourt in the ruins at 'Pile 5.' This was a pile of architectural stone sculpture (mosaic facades) that come from several different buildings. This pile was measured, photo'd, drawn, given catalogue numbers, etc in the 1980's. However, the sculpture remained in this pile to deteriorate for 20 years. The sculpture was covered with lichen, moss, was broken. The numbers had worn off and no one knew exactly which pieces were in the pile. SOOO, our task was to match the approximately 3000 pieces of sculpture to the catalogue sheet descriptions. It was quite a task. The objective is to get it all
Mis Compañeros
Except Freddy. labeled again and put up off the ground in a champa or temporary storage unit on the site. The first two weeks were brutal with hardly any matches, but as time wore on, we began to know the motifs and made quite a few matches. This is what we did in the morning.
In the afternoon, each of us had our own individual projects. I worked on ceramics. I was photographing, measuring, weighing, and describing 13 vessels that were pulled out of storage for me. They were mostly Copador, which is the type I am studying for my honors thesis. It was a great experience to be able to hold and really examine these vasijas. I could really see details that photos just don't show--like the specular red hematite paint--like pieces of glitter shining though the painted decoration. I could see where the artist messed up and tried to fix their mistake. On one bowl, I could even see the smudge of the artist's fingerprint in the paint. Working with these ceramics stirred up some new questions about the tradition in my head.. great fodder for my honors thesis.
After the four weeks of work, most of my
classmates left. I stayed an additional three weeks, studying Spanish at one of the local Spanish schools. Luckily, I was able to stay with the same family.
Now that I am home, I am having a hard time synthesizing this trip. I had an amazing time. I learned a ton about myself. I remembered how much I love the water. I proved (to myself) that I can travel with this disease that I have. Tons of other stuff.... But now, I can't help but feel... I dont know. Empty and confused. And I don't like facing reality. Here I am watching TV. I have to find a job. I have to pay bills with money I dont have. I am $18,000 in debt from school. And now I am thinking that maybe I should go to business school so I can open up a store for Latin American imports. I have to go back. I absolutely must go to Guatemala. Sigh.
On a different and less depressing note, my friend Nonny came to visit me from NC. She brought her friend she met in the military. They only stayed for one night, but we had a great time.
My Copaneco Mom
This is Lilian and someone else's son. His name is Dennis. He was cute. We had great conversations. We played with the 'modern art' statues at UNM.
I guess now that I am back, it is the end of this blog. Till next time.
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