And So It Has Returned To Being Hot...

...here in the wilds of Umbria. 42 degrees Celsius, in fact, in the van when I leapt in to take the students home from site this afternoon. So far, we have found a wall, which is actually pretty good going for a first-year dig. I am here, or hereabouts:



I mentioned the van; I have, for this dig, been put in charge of piloting a ten-seater minibus through the narrow windy medieval streets of the town, ferrying students to and fro. This is very exciting, especially the bit that I call simply "the chicane." So far I have hit five things with the van:

1. A brick wall: minor scrapage to the right rear of the van.
   
2. An olive tree: no damage.
   
3. A pile of dirt: dirt on rear bumper. This one barely counts, since it was basically deliberate.
   
4. Another olive tree: stripped driver-side mirror off while driving at fairly high speed up a narrow country lane in reverse. Said mirror is now tied on with twine. The life of a dig vehicle is not an easy one.
   
5. An iron gate: extreme low speed, no damage.

Anyway, just a few more days of this, after which it's off to a small town outside Naples for a few days to visit a friend who's facing a nasty bit of surgery. And then home!