The tiyulim has quickly become my favorite thing about this program.

I want to start this journal off by saying that I am having the time of my life right now on this program. I am writing this journal in my room past lights out, which has become a habit because I really believe I write the best late and I can really express myself onto this document and not have anything in my mind, especially school or social circles. This is not only for this journal, but I also do this with my own daily journal and CORE photo journals, which I have to write a couple times a week. The tiyulim has quickly become my favorite thing about this program because I really feel like I have an opportunity to explore Israel as a student and not a tourist. This is because most of the places that we go are to historical sites that I have learned about and going after I have learned about them gives my brain more context and that is something that I really enjoy about the program. Another thing that I like about tiyulim is my amazing CORE teacher, Jacob. I sometimes might not be the most interested in what I am learning, but my teacher makes me interested. He stresses everything as it is the more important thing he is talking about and makes me want to listen to what he is teaching. This makes the tiyulim more fun and the material I am learning more interesting and engaging. For example, on the Masada tiyul, we learned about the home of the Zealots for 4 years until their mass suicide at the hands of the Romans. Another thing that makes the material I am learning a lot more interesting is the fact that I am learning at the places I am learning about. For example, I went to a Roman amphitheater which could have been the death place of Rabbi Akiva. Would you guess what I was learning about that day? Rabbi Akiva and the Bar Kochba Revolt! What a coincidence. I also like to learn outdoors, which the tiyulim that I go on give the opportunity to do. The weather is an amazing thing here in Israel and while my friends back home are dealing with blizzards, I will be studying in 80-degree sunshine tomorrow. I would prefer the sunshine. In conclusion, Israel is my classroom because I am in the places that I am learning about, my teacher wraps me into the material, and the culture and climate of Israel make it a compelling place to learn.