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Israel Study Tour - Wheaton Academy
January 8-17, 2019
Led by Marshall Holtvluwer
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Trip Blog Posts
Our Last Day
posted on Thursday January 17 2019 at 1:00 am UTC
We didn’t not have a lot sights to see or places to stop at on our last day, but the ones we did stop at were deeply meaningful. We began today by visiting the Holocaust Museum. Throughout this trip our guide (Ronen) has said that in order to understand Israel you must understand two evens: Masada...
Jerusalem in a Day!
posted on Wednesday January 16 2019 at 1:00 am UTC
Jerusalem in a Day! (Hezekiah’s tunnel, the Western Wall, Southern Steps, Mount of Olives, Garden of Gethsemene, Pool of Bethesda, Via Del Rosa, Church of the Holy Sepulchre) To say today was a packed day would be a bit of an understatement. We began this morning by ascending the streets of...
Bet She’an, Mount Carmel, Caesarea Maritima
posted on Tuesday January 15 2019 at 1:00 am UTC
We crested the hill looking over Bet She’an and were overcome by the size and beauty of the city. It looks nothin like anything we have seen up to this point. It is a huge sprawling city covered in marble columns that look like they were taken from Rome. We walked down the side of the hill into...
Katsrin, Cesarea Philippi, Tel Dan
posted on Monday January 14 2019 at 2:00 am UTC
We began today with a very unique experience at the ancient town of Katsrin. We walked up to this area not knowing what to expect and before we knew it we were dressed in the clothes of ancient Israel, grinding olives into olive oil on an ancient olive press and cooking bread around a campfire. We toured...
All around Galilee
posted on Sunday January 13 2019 at 2:00 am UTC
We started today with a GREAT hike up and down Mount Arbel totaling about 3 miles. The highlight was sitting at the top of the mountain reading and reflecting on what this mountain meant to Jesus. Several times in scripture it is recorded that Jesus retreated to the mountain to pray, to appoint his disciples,...
En Gedi, Qumran, Jordan River
posted on Saturday January 12 2019 at 2:00 am UTC
Psalm 42 will always take on a new meaning after today. We spent this morning hiking into the En Gedi, which is where David ran and hid from Saul in the wilderness. It is also the sight where David cut off the corner of Saul’s robe. It was striking how in the midst of this immense desert there...
Masada, camel rides in the desert, Tel Arad & the Dead Sea
posted on Friday January 11 2019 at 1:00 am UTC
What better way to begin the morning than looking out over the Dead Sea admiring the creation of God. It was a great time to stop and reflect on how God is already moving in our hearts during our time in Israel. From there we loaded up on water and got ready for the 1.5 mile hike up the “snake...
Travel Day & Day 1
posted on Thursday January 10 2019 at 2:00 am UTC
After a long day of travel we arrived in Tel Aviv at 9:30 this morning tired but excited to be in Israel. Within thirty minutes we were standing on the sight of Sampson’s hometown – Beth Shemesh. As we look out from his hometown I was struck by just how close the Philistine’s lived...
And we're off!
posted on Tuesday January 08 2019 at 3:00 pm UTC
After months of anticipation, the time has come to depart! We'll be flying from Chicago into Newark Intl. from which we'll depart this afternoon on a 10+ hour flight into Tel Aviv! Thank you for your prayers and we look forward to sharing our trip with you via this blog! You can follow along with...
Preparing for Israel
posted on Friday September 28 2018 at 1:40 am UTC
Our trip will be here before you know it! Once we're on the ground we'll post periodic updates and photos. Check back often or get update notifications using the subscribe options on this page. We'll be sharing our travel experiences online with you, our friends and family, to not only bring you...