Digging the Dirt on Spain – 9 Days of Field Work
By Lindsay – 3rd Year MEarthSci Geology and Physical Geography
With the world slowly opening back up post-Covid, field trips are again up and running, specifically our abroad field trips. So, what do we do with 9 days in Spain as a GPG student?
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What do we do?
The El Hoyazo Volcanic Crater
As a very general overview, the first few days are spent traveling around the region near Tabernas, looking at different rock types and features. We also looked at vegetation in the region which was different for a GPG student but equally as interesting. The last couple of days are spent on a project of your choosing – I chose to look at the El Hoyazo volcanic crater, where the floor is LITTERED with tiny garnets which was so cool to see, but other options people chose included looking at sedimentary structures, river terraces and vegetation.
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What is it like?
This year was a bit different, not only because it was the first field trip to run post-Covid, but also because it was the first year the GPG and Physical Geography students had gone to Spain together. Although we came with different expertise, we were able to work together and bring our knowledge together as we went through the various sites. Getting the chance to do this out in the field and seeing everything in person definitely helps you learn things more effectively than just learning about them in a lecture.
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What is the weather like?
The Badlands, where many Western films have been set, for obvious reasons.
The south of Spain is sunny, so sun cream and lots of water is required, but the temperatures stayed low enough so it wasn’t too warm when we were going about our days in the field.
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Costs, food, and accommodation?
The cost of flights, food and the hotel were all covered on this trip! Getting 9 days of free fieldwork in Spain is something I will never complain about. The hotels and food are unusual, but in a good way.
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Overall, what is Spain like?
Spending 9 days with people in your degree is a great bonding experience, especially over the interesting food at dinner. You have a chance to have a chat with everyone and learn more about each other, which is something that most other degree programmes will never have the opportunity to do, so definitely make the most of it!
If this sounds interesting to you, then you can check out our degree programmes at https://www.ed.ac.uk/geosciences/study/degrees. If you want even more insight to field trips and studying at Edinburgh University have a look at our other student blogs and our social media pages for more!
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