Day 5: Kevin

Yesterday was a rest day. I must admit that it was not a good day for me. I had lost my credit card, so I turned around and walked back a kilometer to check where I had had it last. It wasn’t there. I had almost reported it stolen when I decided to check in my bag one more time. It turned out I had just misplaced it. By the time I had it figured out, time in the day was running short, and I spent 30 minutes agonizing over whether to risk it and catch up to my group that was ahead of me or stay behind another day and rest.

I’m so glad I decided to rest.

The next morning brought fog to the city of Pamplona and the whole entire valley it was in. I set off on my own at 7:00 AM and soon found a companion by the name of Marcus. We walked together through the intense fog on the plains for some time.

A natural tunnel on the foggy morning

Soon Marcus and I reached the crest of a hill. There was a small structure a little way up. I wanted to go see it, and Marcus wanted to keep going. So we said adios and went our separate ways. We had expected to see each other at the albergue (meaning a hostel for pilgrims) that night.

After investigating the cemetery, I continued on my way, alone this time. It was quite tranquil, but admittedly eerie every now and then, especially when the bells of an old Catholic church were going off somewhere up ahead in the fog.

It had been a long, slow, gradual climb. It was well worth it though, of course. But especially worth it that day because when I finally reached the summit, I met a man from the UK making a documentary about the Camino de Santiago! I thought that was so cool! His name was Benny, and he had that iconic British accent. After speaking with him for a bit, he asked me if I wanted to be in the documentary.

Unfortunately, I had been in a rush, so I had to turn him down.

Nah, just kidding! Of course I said yes! He got some really cool slo-mo shots following behind me walking to the summit. After that, we kept talking, and he asked for my Instagram, so I gave him @wanderlust_zach. Benny said it was going to be into next year before the documentary was finished, but he said he’d let me know. Can’t wait to hear from him!

The view from up on the summit was breathtaking. When I got up there, I also emerged from the giant fog blanket that had covered everything below me. I turned around and saw a lake of clouds that had reduced the other mountains off in the distance into little islands.

The lake of clouds

The summit also happened to be one of the most iconic spots for pilgrims to take pictures. I forgot the name of it since I lost my guidebook, but it’s a very well known spot to anybody who has studied the Camino.

The iconic pilgrim statues throughout time

Now, all this had been absolutely incredible, but little did I know what was in store next.

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Soon after I began my descent into my destination for the day, I noticed another pilgrim behind me not too far. It didn’t take very long for him to catch up. He was fast.

Cómo te llamas? I ask him in Spanish.

I don’t speak good Spanish he replies.

What about English?

A little English, yes.

I could now make out his French accent. What’s your name?

Kevin, you?

I smiled and held out my hand for a handshake. Zach. Nice to meet you!

Kevin shook it. Nice to meet too he said in heavy French.

Kevin’s name is pronounced like Kev-ee-n. I guess that’s the French way of saying the name. He spoke enough English for us to communicate and have a conversation. So I asked about his story and found out more about who he was. I was shocked by what he said.

I found out he had started the Camino Frances way back in eastern France. He had been walking the Camino for 2 months now. Without money.

Without money?! I couldn’t believe it. How did you find food and a place to stay?

I ask people for stay night and for food. I say I have no money. Sometime they give me things.

Have you ever not slept inside? I was very impressed. I wanted to know more about who this guy was.

Only 3 or 4 day out of last 2 month.

Why? Why are you doing the Camino with no money?

I want to become monk.

I couldn’t believe it. Kevin was doing everything I was scared of. That’s exactly the type of travel I wanted to be doing. The cheap way, not being afraid to ask locals for a place to stay or for information. That kind of thing takes a certain kind of confidence.

We kept talking. I increased my pace to keep up with him. I wanted to know more. I threw all my curious questions at him. I found out he’s a devout Catholic, but his family isn’t necessarily very religious. He writes home once a week to his parents. He’s 21, only 3 years older than me. He actually doesn’t need to do the Camino to become a monk, but he’s doing it to connect with God and show Him he’s committed. He walks about 35-40 kilometers each day.

How do you know if there will be a city to stay in before it becomes nighttime?

I watch sun and about 5:00 I stop for day. There is city about every 5 kilometers. I trust in God that he will give what I need.

How long have you gone without food?

Only one day, but it is harder to find place to stay now I’m in Spain. Too much tourist.

Unbelieveable. Kevin was living the true nature of the Camino. He wasn’t calling ahead to each albergue each day to make sure there was a place to stay each night. He wasn’t going out to eat and drink for fun, like some of the pilgrims I’ve met. Kevin didn’t have the money for that. He didn’t have money period. He relied on the kindness of locals, his own skills, and the mercy of God.

I wanted to do that. To live in faith, and not fear.

But I was scared. I debated in my head. Can I really join him? No, he’d probably rather do this alone. It’s between him and God.

At the very least, I wanted to stick with him as long as possible so I could learn as much as I could from him.

As the kilometers flew by and we got to know each other more, my destination grew ever closer. I learned much more about Catholicism and I shared with him insight into the LDS religion. Kevin is a very nice and funny guy. He is open minded and has a sense of humor. We share similar views on a lot of perspectives, despite being from other religions.

Before I knew it, we were at my destination, Puente la Reina. Crud. I didn’t want this to end. Maybe I really could go with him.

In our conversations, Kevin told me that the Spain part of the Camino Frances is full of tourists. I said to him that I was one of them, but I wanted to join him. He didn’t say much in response, but I couldn’t tell if that was good or bad.

He also told me more about how Catholic Churches operate. Anytime the doors are unlocked, people can come in and pray when they want. When we arrived at Puente La Reina, he invited me inside one. I watched him bow to the idol of Jesus, get on his knees, and pray in his own head. It was similar to how I prayed, just without the symbolic gestures at the beginning and after we left the church.

So… what do you want to do? Kevin asks me after we close the doors.

This was it. An opportunity to join Kevin on his journey. Was I going to take it? Was it the right choice? Maybe I shouldn’t, he walks a lot and I want to enjoy the Camino slowly, I thought to myself. But man, what an adventure it would be! What a risk! To not know if I’ll have a roof over my head for the night and either have to figure it out or sleep on the ground sounded exciting. I also wanted to help him. I had money, and I could speak Spanish while he couldn’t.

I’m normally the type to thing long and hard about my decisions, to consider every aspect, every possible benefit or disadvantage of what I choose. I had no time. Kevin was waiting for my response.

Yes, I’ll come with you! Let’s go!

We continued onward. On the way out of the city, we ran into Marcus, the pilgrim from earlier this morning in the fog. He asked if we were staying the night in the albergue.

No, I’m going with Kevin! Buen Camino!

Before we left the city, I told him we should probably buy dinner for the night. I almost went into a grocery store right on the Camino path, but Kevin stopped me.

Tourist place. Too much money.

He was right. I hopped on Google Maps to search for a grocery store a couple blocks off the Camino trail. I couldn’t ask a local because they would just direct me to the one right in front of us.

Dinner provisions cost a measly $5 euros. That included pasta, tomato sauce, an onion, a green pepper, and a baguette.

We continued on out of town at a brisk pace. We walked like that for a few hours, up a few steep hills and different terrains. After the last large hill, we spotted a city in the distance. We decided to stay there. It wasn’t 5:00 yet but it looked good.

We arrived into town and began to wander off the Camino path, but a local stopped us and pointed us in the right direction. I said thanks, but we are looking for a place to stay for the night. I asked him if he knew of a place.

No, all the albergues are closed. You will have to go into the next city.

That wouldn’t do. I pressed.The next city? We don’t have to sleep in an albergue, we just need a roof over our heads. Are you sure there isn’t anywhere we can stay for the night?

Well, there might be a house that accepts guests. You can go and check. Go up the street, turn right, then go left and then underneath the arch. After that, the house should be on the left.

I repeated his directions back to him just to make sure I had it right. I was correct. Wow, my Spanish was pretty good!

Kevin and I found the described place. It looked empty, but we knocked and rang the doorbell anyway. After one minute, the second story window opened up and the owner’s head peeked out.

I took the chance to speak first before he could tell us to go away. Hello, sir. We heard this was a place we could stay the night, is that true?

The owner nodded. Yes, yes. Give me one moment.

He went downstairs and invited us in. His name was Martin. He showed us the bedroom and the bathroom. It was a simple setup, but it was good enough for the two of us!

If you want to stay, it will be 20 euros each.

Hmm. I’d have to pay 40 euros. But it didn’t seem like there were any other likely options besides going to the next town.

Ok, we’ll take it!

Kevin and I made dinner and it was simply delicious. We were stuffed. We made a dinner for two people with only €5. I’m definitely sticking with groceries from now on. It’s a much better way to save money.

We also unpacked, had showers, and had some more discussions about our different beliefs. He had to use google translate quite often, as the sentences he was trying to create were complicated. I really enjoyed this evening!

And I can’t wait for tomorrow. My Camino is going to look much different from now on. More difficult, adventurous, and fast paced. Im going to learn a lot! This will put me out of my comfort zone every day, which is exactly what I’m looking for.