Courtesy/Dana Fall

For the past seven years, the trip has come to Cornerstone University.

Carroll said while the trip is through CU, it is open to students from other schools also, and each year a few students from neighboring schools join. He said the strategy is to market the trip to other Christian universities, as it is a unique trip.

This year’s trip will happen May 27 through June 18. The itinerary, once the students get to Greece, is very full. The group travels to every important site in Greece, Carroll said.

“We start out in Athens, go out to the islands, go to all the major Christian sites and also the major pagan sites so that we can understand the Bible in its cultural setting,” he said.

Carroll works with a Greek missionary friend, but said the trip is academic, not a missions trip.

“We lecture a lot. Lecture before going to a site, lecture at a site,” he said.

One of the key points about the trip is the physical challenges the group tackles. For one, walking is expected.

“Plus, we have stages every couple days like a physical adventure, and they get increasingly more challenging until we climb Mt. Olympus, which is the highest mountain in that part of the world,” Carroll said.

CU junior Emily Faletti went on the trip to Greece in summer of 2008, and said the physical challenges were, indeed, challenges.

“Every day was a new adventure. We hiked eight hours to a cave one day that we didn’t even know that we would find. We found it, and then had to hike back in the dark, down the side of a mountain that had a steep cliff,” Faletti said. “Not to mention only half of us had head lamps. That was exciting.”

Carroll is up front about the physical demands of the trip.

“The trip is not for everyone. We try to be economical with the food we eat. If you don’t like vegetables, fruit and bread, it’s not the place for you,” he said. “If you like the outdoors, something academically, spiritually and physically challenging, it will be an unforgettable experience.”

Faletti said the physical challenges were rough, but helped work toward the climb at Mt. Olympus.

“It was probably one of the most physically challenging things that I have done. I don’t think it matters if you are athletic or not. It took a lot of endurance to hike up that mountain,” she said.

Faletti said the group started the climb at two in the morning, worked their way up the mountain and came back down at around eight in the evening.

“We were only at the top for about 30 minutes because of the daylight, but those 30 minutes were worth every penny of the trip,” she said. “Seeing the beauty of God’s creation was breathtaking. It was a clear blue sky, a few scattered clouds and the radiant sun shining down on us. I loved every second of it.”

The trip costs close to $4,000, but Carroll said when compared to other universities, it is almost $2,000 less for this kind of trip.

“I’ve spent more time in Athens than I have in Grand Rapids. We don’t have a tour guide when we go. As an archaeologist, I can go anywhere. We go to the coolest places, and they are off the beaten trail,” Carroll said.

Faletti said her experience on the trip was awesome and she would not trade it for anything, and Carroll said he hears that comment a lot.

“The trip will change your life spiritually, academically and physically. It’s worth the money, and you will always appreciate the experience,” he said.

Carroll said each year he tries to mix things up a little bit and add new things. He said that on the upcoming trip, the group will be spending an extra day on Crete and will use it to take a surprise expedition. The group will also spend an extra day on Santorini to explore the volcano and sail around the island.

Carroll said the group will also get to see Poseidon’s Temple at Cape Sounion and Plato’s Academy, which are sites rarely visited in years past. Because of the flight schedule this year, there were opportunities to fit these sites into the itinerary.

Carroll quoted the Greek philosopher Heraclitus in talking about the trip: “’You never step into the same stream twice,’ and no trip to Greece is the same either,” he said.