The U of Texas had a long ongoing dig in Central America on Mayan sites, back when the archeology department was among the leaders in deciphering Mayan glyphs.
They took volunteers who could devote a summer for the dig. I always wanted to go but somehow never could find the time.
Or maybe I was afraid of snakes.
A family member did that program, he had a blast, he also had absolutely no archaeological training. He ended up drinking and smoking with the nearby Mennonite teens every night and was the guy who clear cut new excavation areas for his small team.
They found an amazing 4 foot tall , 2 foot wide stella...
and more feral lances than you could imagine.
“Why did it have to be snakes?”