ZHANG Ke
Cofounder
“I did my first Camino de Santiago in 2014, and fell ‘irrevocably’ in love with it, because I experienced in those weeks something of unparalleled beauty and purity. It awakened a modest calling in my heart: I wanted more fellow Chinese to learn about the Camino and experience it.”
Her inspiration found full support in her friend, Spanish pilgrim Ignacio Ramos Riera. They worked together in 2015 to create the first WeChat official account in Chinese for the Camino, provided practical information on different routes, visa, packing list, transportation, and accommodation. In 2017 they met another Chinese pilgrim Wei Yue. The trio gathered in Mount Song to share their common vision. After their ‘Alliance on Mount Song’ they decided to establish an “Association of Camino Friends in China”, formally named ‘Beijing Camino International Cultural Exchange Center’, with a mission to “promote the Camino, serve the pilgrims, and foster intercultural exchenge between China and Spain. In 2018, Chang Huiling, another pilgrim inspired by the same flame of heart joined the team.
Zhang Ke was sent by the association to Spain in 2019 to seek collaboration with various Jacobean institutions. During her Ph.D studies in Spain, she collaborated with her fellow researchers to conduct in-depth studies on “experiences of Chinese pilgrims on the Camino de Santiago” and “cultural route heritage in China”, publishing three first-author academic papers in international core journals. She accompanied Chinese students on the Camino multiple times, and upon returning to China after graduation in 2022, continued to searve the Association dn pilgrims alongside the team and volunteers, advancing the Jacobean activities and mission with unwavering dedication.
Ignacio RAMOS RIERA
Cofounder
“I did my first Compostelan route with some friends when I was 16 years old, starting in Sobrado dos Monxes. I discovered that it is a space of discovery and encounter. When I was 21, I made a personalized Camino from Leon to Santiago through the regions of Luna and Los Ancares, relying on the kindness of strangers on the way, following the examples of medieval pilgrims. After that I started trying to walk a section of the Camino almost each year. In 2014, I walked the Camino with a Chinese pilgrim for the first time, and found out that the Camino had a great potential to foster peace and intercultural communication. Then I decided to promote this cultural heritage of ‘the route of the heart’ together with friends from that great nation!”
In 2015 Ignacio and Ke created a WeChat official account about the Camino de Santiago in Chinese to serve Chinese walkers who desired to walk the Camino. After encountering with Mr. Wei Yue in Beijing in 2017, a trip to climb Mount Song together was arranged and the ‘Mount Song Covenant’ was made on March 25, 2017: to promote the Jacobean culture by establishing an association. Two months later the ‘Beijing Camino International Cultural Exchange Center’ (BCC) was born, and a Jacobean sharing salon was organized, in collaboration with the Beijing Cervantes Institute. In this activity the team met with Ms. Chang Huiling who felt passion about the Camino and officially joined the core team in the following year.
On June 4th 2017, BCC organized its first Camino conference in the Beijing Cervantes Institute, and on August 11 2018, a sharing forum of Chinese Camino pilgrims in the same venue. Since the beginning BCC explored the possibility of collaborating with Plan Xacobeo office of the Xunta de Galicia. With the great support of Plan Xacobeo the association was able to organize multiple wonderful Jacobean events in China. During 2019-2020, BCC won a call for tenders launched by the Delegation of the EU to China, to run ‘A Jouney of Encounters – Exhibition of the Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe’ in different Chinese cities; during 2020-2022, BCC accompanied different rounds of Chinese university students Camino trips in Spain and translated the Camino APP guide into Chinese in cooperation with Buen Camino Editorial; from 2023 until today BCC also organized many Jacobean sharing salons, cultural exhibitions, publications, training and sending volunteers in China and Spain, together with different friends and volunteers.
WEI Yue
Cofounder
“In 2014, when I was still working as a senior outdoor coach, a close friend who settled in Spain extended an invitation: ‘Would you like to walk the Camino de Santiago with me?’ This was my first encounter with the Camino. My friend promptly passed to me a detailed guidebook. During my pre-Camino research, I was deeply moved by the film The Way – especially by the lonely Cruz de Ferro in the movie, which left an indelible mark in my heart. However, my friend’s plans changed later, dashing my expectations. Whenever I talked with my fiancée about doing the Camino alone, the apprehension of the unknown held me back – until one day, we both suggested spontaneously: ‘Why not make the Camino our honeymoon?’ This flash of inspiration led us to start the French Way in October 2015, completing an 800km honeymoon trek.
Upon returning to China, though we enthusiastically shared our Camino stories with friends, kindred spirits were hard to find. That changed when we discovered by chance a WeChat official account about the Camino de Santiago and got in contact with its operators, Zhang Ke and Tachi. I still remember my first meeting with Tachi at the University of International Business and Economics – we poured over every detail of the Camino over coffee, the joy of finding kindred souls was so unforgettable. Though meeting Ke in person came later, our discussions about the Camino never ceased since then. My wandering heart finally found a place to belong. Eager to get more people to know about the Camino and share its unique spiritual gifts with others, we decided to formally establish an association of Camino friends in China.
The birth of this association was less a call of duty than a twist of fate. In 2017, when the association was just created, I was entrusted to lead the first group of four pilgrims to walk the last 100 kilometers of the French Way. Witnessing their transformation along the journey, I grasped the meaning of ‘serving pilgrims’—an experience as precious as my first Camino, yet entirely different.
Over the years, as the fame of the Camino in China has grown, we’ve seen not only promotions from Spanish tourism authorities and Chinese commercial enterprises, but also the perseverance of our association. Challenges and doubts arose, but Tachi’s cultural integrity, Ke’s meticulous care, and Huiling’s professionalism have steered us steadily toward our mission, making the team a treasure beyond measure. Whenever we revisit our mission – ‘to promote the Camino, serve pilgrims, and foster Sino-Spanish cultural exchange’, every effort gains profound meaning. Along this path, we have never forgotten why we began.’
CHANG Huiling
Cofounder
“In 2012, I first encountered the Camino de Santiago through the film The Way, deeply moved by its narrative; in 2016, after completing the last 110 kilometers of the French Way and immersing myself in Spanish culture, my interest burgeoned into a profound passion.”
During my studies at the Cervantes Institute in Beijing, I met Wei Yue, Tachi, and Ke – the founders of Beijing Camino International Cultural Exchange Center (BCC). United by kindred spirits and shared ideals, I joined the core team, working together in the development of China’s association of Camino Friends.
As a core team member, I have overseen the operation of the Camino’s WeChat official account since 2018, continuously updating it to provide Chinese pilgrims with comprehensive information about the Way. From 2019 to 2020, I participated in planning and executing the “An Encounter on a Journey across Time and Space — Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe Exhibition” at the Changchun and Beijing stops. Through exhibitions, sharing sessions, lectures, and interactive exchanges, we introduced the history and spirit of the Camino de Santiago and other European cultural routes to China, fostering Sino-Spanish cultural exchange. The events drew enthusiastic responses, captivating numerous attendees.
Like the patterns of a seashell polished by time, the Association’s footprint has expanded steadily, deepening the inheritance of Camino’s spirit with each passing year.