Relative Expectations

Our tent camp (shot and stitched by Trent Rouse)

One of the themes of the Jordan dig of 2010 was that our appreciation of things tends to increase with a similar decrease in expectations.  We all stayed in tents that we brought from Canada, so that the beds in the hotel rooms on the weekends were all the more comfortable.  Although our cook, Aladdin did an amazing job preparting our meals, nevertheless, the Movenpick ice cream on weekends was particularly wonderful.  If the beer on the dig was sometimes warm (or even frozen solid), somehow even warm beer can taste good if it is the only beer available. 

Our dig spanned the last 2/3 of the World Cup of Soccer in South Africa, and it is probably this tournament more than anything that set into relief our lowered expectations.

I had managed to watch a few games at home before we left, but the very fact that we could not easily watch these games in Jordan gave them much more added importance.  We managed to watch five games.  Luckily, our first weekend break in Aqaba was spent during the group of 16 stage of the tournament, and so we were able to watch three games, including England/Germany, US/Ghana, and one other I cannot remember.  After this, I contacted Hussein, the Manager of the Eco Lodge where we stayed last summer, and although we had nothing to do with the Eco Lodge this year, he invited us to the Reception centre in a nearby village so that we could see Holland play Brazil in a cracker of a game.  We also were able to listen to two games on my shortwave radio in camp.  Finally, we arranged our last weekend so that we could watch the final in our hotel rooms in Aqaba. 

Justa, our lone Holland representative, singing the Dutch anthem

The game took on a festival atmosphere.  We all piled into Trent and Lynne's room, and Justa painted faces in her native Holland colours.  Most people there did not seem so interested in the game, but there were enough hard core soccer fans to keep the focus on the game.  Spain won in extra time in a thrilling finish. 

Trent and I watching the final (Justa hated my Spanish jersey)

The World Cup experience of 2010 was particularly wonderful because our expectations were low.