The past three months have been a whirlwind of new and exciting
experiences. I have had the pleasure of acting as the Intern at the
Canadian Institute in Greece for the Fall semester on behalf of Wilfrid
Laurier University. Over the past three months, I worked to complete my
tasks at the CIG, complete two online courses offered through WLU, and
take advantage of my time in this country trying to see as many things
as possible. Being granted this opportunity I have had the chance to
immerse myself in Athenian culture and visit many of the archaeological
sites that I have learned so much about in school. This internship has
allowed me to gain a first-hand perspective into many aspects of
archaeology that I otherwise would not have had the opportunity to
experience. Studying ancient Greek archaeology in a classroom is vastly
different than getting out and actually seeing the temples and artifacts
for myself. This internship has provided me with valuable connections,
skills, and experiences that have greatly contributed to my passion for
archaeology and left me with a desire to pursue the aspects I enjoy the
most.
I had a variety of tasks that I completed throughout my internship at
the CIG. Namely, I worked on the digitization of the Khostia Archive. In
my first week, I was handed two large accordion style folders
containing documents from the almost 40 year old archaeological project
and it was my job to scan and electronically file each and every one. I
was tasked with the responsibility of creating a unique system with
which to name each individual file as it was scanned so it could be
systematically stored. My problem solving skills and patience were put
to the test as I developed a 20-digit coding system to name all 3074
documents. After countless hours of scanning spaced throughout my three
months, I managed to complete the digitization of the Khostia archive
and was also able to physically organize the records. One of my roles as
the intern was to assist in the facilitation of the Fall lecture events
hosted by the CIG. It was my responsibility to prepare the food, with
the help of the fellows of course, and pour drinks at the reception. I
met many great people at these events and heard many talks on a variety
of interesting topics.
Throughout my time in Greece, I have been fortunate enough to travel to
some of the important archaeological sites as well as visit six islands.
In Athens, I visited all the major sites including the Acropolis, the
Athenian Agora, the Roman Forum, and Hadrian’s Library, among many
others. Of course, I couldn’t just leave it at that and made stops at
many of the fantastic museums hosted by this city. My favourite museum
to visit was the National Archaeological Museum where I pushed my way
through the crowd to see the infamous mask of Agamemnon and the boxing
boys fresco. Since I mentioned in my original blog post that I had
aspirations of visiting some of the Greek islands, I just had to carry
this out to the next level and ended going to a total of six islands.
The first island I visited was Mykonos where I met up with a fellow
Laurier Goldenhawk who took me scuba diving for the first time. While on
Mykonos I took advantage of its proximity to the island of Delos and
made the trip to visit the archaeological site. I was blown away by the
sheer size and beautiful location of the site and found myself running
around in awe.
The next island I visited was the picturesque Santorini where I went
full out tourist and rented an ATV, went cliff jumping (even though it
was almost November), and watched the sunrise over Oia. Of course, I
couldn’t miss the opportunity and visited the Bronze Age site of
Akrotiri. Somehow, I found the time to make day trips to the Islands of
Aegina and Hydra. I rented another ATV on Aegina and raced around the
island visiting the Byzantine ghost town of Paleochora, the Temple of
Aphaia, and the beach to go swimming. In my last efforts to squeeze
everything in before I have to unfortunately return to snowy Canada, I
ventured to Crete. On my three day adventure, I tried to visit as many
things as possible and was able to see the Minoan Palaces of Knossos and
Malia, as well as the Venetian fortress in Heraklion and the Heraklion
Archaeological Museum. Despite the fact that it was December, I managed
to go for one last swim in the Mediterranean Sea at a deserted beach in
Malia. I was also fortunate enough to make trips to visit the Temple of
Poseidon at Sounio, Delphi, and Ancient Corinth, thanks to one of the
Fellows, Mark.
Throughout my time in Greece I have had the opportunity to further
explore my love for archaeology and delve into aspects that I had not
yet pursued. My internship at the Canadian Institute taught me many
valuable skills, especially how to carefully balance school, work, and
leisure. I could not have asked for a better overall experience. I have
learned so much throughout my time here and have been able to meet so
many great people. I will always remember the memories I made here as
well as the people I shared them with. I would like to express my thanks
towards Jonathan Tomlinson and David Rupp for providing me with this
internship, as well as Dr. Schaus for granting me this opportunity.
Ailidh Hathway
Wilfrid Laurier University, Fall Intern 2016
