a Geographer's Place

Ruins. One word that always seems to make me giddy. I’ve always liked ruins – especially the ones you can climb on/around/over/under/in and explore. That’s how it’s been ever since I was a little kid and my parents took my brother and me to Mesa Verde’s Anasazi ruins. Jordan has lots of ruins. Like a lot a lot. People have been inhabiting this region of the world for a long time, so the ruins span millennia. Yes, there are the well-known ruins like Petra and Jerash , and lesser-known places like Kerak and Umm Quaiys. But the Kingdom also hosts numerous others, some of which barely have a name, and others that are literally in the middle of nowhere. These forgotten fortresses have been a big component of my research here. Qasr az-Zahib . As I was taking pictures, a little Bedouin kid who was out herding sheep and goats came over with tea. We chatted a bit. He showed me a nearby cemetery, a still-functioning well, and another set of presumed Crusader ruins that I can't fin...

Dixie in her natural habitat: outdoors. Here in Southern Utah, 1993 When I was a little kid, Dixie (my mom) was into Native American (Indian) things. Actually, she was always interested in them. And because she was, and we spent a lot of time together, I became interested in Indian things too. We spent time discussing ancient native cultures, her (some would say wild) theories about them, and the more spiritual/mystical aspects often tied to the rich cultural heritage. She also liked “glyphs”, as she called them, and I soon became aware that these glyphs – rock art – were found in almost every culture around the world. Fast forward to my PhD work where, by luck really, I ended up studying rock art (though not in the traditional archeological sense) – and in the Desert Southwest US, no less. I learned there are four main types of rock art: petroglyphs (those carved or pecked into the rock), pictographs (paintings on rocks), intaglios (scraping away of a surface to reveal ligh...

As I’ve noted elsewhere, I believe ardently that a tourist sees what they came to see, but a Traveler sees what they see . Though I work hard to be a Traveler instead of a tourist when visiting places, tourism—and tourists themselves—play an important economic role for many countries. Indeed, some countries depend heavily on tourists for their livelihood. What tourists see and explore when they visit a place depends on any number of factors. For example, one tourist might visit a place for its cuisine and wine. Another for the location’s outstanding geology. Still others may visit for historical or religious reasons. Wherever a tourist goes, however, there remain specific sites that most everyone sees when visiting a specific locale. Staying in Paris for a bit? The Eiffel Tower is on your list. Going to New York, then make sure to stop at Times Square in Manhattan. Fancy wine and designer clothes in Italy? Well, the Colosseum is just around the corner. Exploring the Inca trail in...

Last week a Fulbright colleague called and asked if we wanted to go to Petra. We have a project we wanted to do there anyway so…no brainer. The following day we headed south. He had made arrangements for us to stay at a Bedouin camp for the night. These can be kitschy, but we had the entire camp to ourselves. It is off season, after all.  After arriving, we wandered through Little Petra just outside the village of Bayda. We also took a little walk to a supposed Neolithic site. While not as grand as their neighbor, they were still interesting. One cave still had 2,000+ year-old partial frescoes in it! Entrance to Little Petra. The small wadi (canyon) contains a small cluster of Nabataean tombs. Just  before sunset, we drove up to a viewpoint. The view over  Wadi Araba as Earth was finishing its rotational period was gorgeous. As the sun crept lower in the sky I realized the Green Flash would probably be visible. It was. Except it wasn’t just a “spark” like I’ve s...

In the throws of applying for tenure, I also submitted a proposal to the Fulbright Commission to conduct "Research-Teaching" in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan as part of my sabbatical. Sabbaticals take a lot of planning and allow professors to pursue avenues of scholarship that would be difficult given their normal duties. It's not a vacation. You have to work to get a sabbatical. And apply for it in a lengthy process that goes up the chain of PTB all the way to Provost. Sabbatical, at my university anyhow, can be taken by any full-time, rostered faculty member after 7 years of service. Hence, "sabbatical", like "Sabbath", coming from the Hebrew, sabat , which means "rest"...as in the seventh day of the week...although sabbatical is actually taken after  you've completed seven years of service... Well, anyhow, last week I got an email congratulating on winning a Fulbright! I was so excited I couldn't stop shaking! I almost cancel...

My number one reason for being a Geographer can be summed up in one word: Fieldwork. While I've written on that topic previously, I want to expound a little more on the subject and explore Field Studies . At it's core, a "field study" means you are conducting some kind of fieldwork with a specific purpose. This is why I do what I do. So I can drag people into the field with me, help them see the landscape anew! Currently, I run two international field study courses: Sustainability in the Caribbean , where I spend a couple weeks with students on the Island of Grenada, and Geography by Rail ® , a program I designed (and trademarked!) to explore landscapes using the quintessential mode of transport: the train. Both represent exciting, but different, field study programs. Students at Levera beach, Grenada, excited at the opportunity to study on a tropical island! Regardless of which they partake in however, students overwhelmingly enjoy the opportunity t...

Fieldwork. MY kind of fieldwork involves two things: working hard and playing hard. Yes, there’s also safety, planning, getting equipment and funding, etc., etc., blah, blah. But it all comes down to working and playing. It’s my goal to instill the kind of fieldwork I learned into the hearts of my students—those brave enough to embark on excursions with me. Because the only way to really learn it, is to do it. Fieldwork can be trying, rigorous, dangerous, challenging, and frustrating. In my eyes at least, it should also be fun. Sure you may get very hot or super cold, be extremely dry or soaking wet, and sweat like a puerco estacado . But you’ll also be richly rewarded...if not with good, usable data, then with experience that will, hopefully later, lead to wisdom. So here I am, in my little apartment on my beloved Island of Grenada in the Caribbean while students scamper around the Island on the annual G.R.E.N.A.D.A. ( G o, R un, E xplore N ew A nd D iverse A reas). All part o...

Someone left an anonymous comment asking what tools I use as a Geographer. This comes at a great time since I just discussed this with my class last week. I’ve written a little about the Ways of the Geographer and also what traditional  Geographers do . I’ve also put together a baby Treatise of Geography and reworked a classic Primer on Fieldwork . And that’s where I’d start: fieldwork. IMHO fieldwork of any kind is THE Geographer’s tool. Describing the earth requires being IN it...and fieldwork makes that happen. But, if I had to list more conventional tools, first on my list would be my field journal/notebook. This serves to record everything I do, observe, and analyze in the field. Second would be a digital camera—to capture those phenomena I am observing and analyzing visually. Of course, nowadays we have the ubiquitous cell phone. And it can function as a field journal/notebook and a really nice camera. Plus an audio and visual recording device, among other things. So, it's ...