Join a Dig: See the World

As any dig volunteer will tell you, there is nothing like the adventure of going on your first dig. Of course, digging is itself exciting, but there’s also the adventure that comes along with being immersed in a different country and culture and exploring a part of the world that many never get to see. Traveling in a foreign land, seeing the sites of the Bible and meeting people from different backgrounds are experiences that volunteers treasure for the rest of their lives.

Every year, our BAS Dig Scholarship winners (see sidebar) tell us about their overseas 030 adventures in Israel and elsewhere, recounting how their travels exposed them to new cultures, languages, foods and customs, not to mention the incredible sites and monuments of Biblical lands. In this issue, we use their words, stories and photographs to highlight the many intangible benefits of traveling abroad to work on an archaeological excavation.

Get to Know the Lay of the Holy Land

While a volunteer’s workweek revolves around a strict dig schedule,^a there is usually plenty of time on weekends to see the sites and explore the country. In Israel, for example, many digs offer organized field trips to various sites and regions around the country, including Jerusalem, the Dead Sea and Galilee, while in Jordan, volunteers can look forward to trips to Petra, Amman and Wadi Rum.