The Journey of Alvar Nunez Cabeza De Vaca

Since the beginning of time the need for human civilization to explore the unknown has and will always be second nature to us. We go above and beyond to learn of new worlds so that we ourselves can expand the knowledge we’ve learned in our own land. We take our knowledge, power, rules and way of life and share it and transfer it, sometimes not in the best ways, to other cultures and other worlds so that we ourselves leave an imprint of our image behind and hope the new world mirrors it.

The idea itself of exploring and learning more about the world may sound intriguing and exciting, but for the Spanish explorer Alvar Nunez Cabeza De Vaca the journey became a reality full of extraordinary troubles for him and his fellow crewman. The next eight years of his life exploring would become his greatest battle.

Alvar Nunez Cabeza De Vaca was a man with a background in the military, he was loyal to his country, Spain, his king and above all he was a man of god.

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On June 27, 1527 Cabeza De Vaca was appointed treasure and chief legal officer of the Narvaez expedition to conquer parts of north America.( Vaca 68) At the time he knew deep in his heart the journey would mean that not all the men appointed to this expedition would make it back, that some will die along the way due to the fact that they were going to unknow territory with no prior knowledge of the land but the hunger for adventure, fortune and fame did not deter him and his fellow men from embarking on the journey.

The first stop, which would be the first loss, where more than a hundred and forty men stayed behind was Santo Domingo. (Vaca 68) Six weeks and 3 days spent there gathering supplies for the next adventure not knowing that things were about to take a turn for the worse. Cabeza De Vaca and the crew battled through storms, the rough sea and lost sixty people and twenty horses, spending days in starvation and hardship before reaching the coast of Florida. (Vaca 72) Once they reached Florida it was then that they have their first encounter with the Indians. They did not understand each other but one thing that was clear to Cabeza De Vaca was that they were not welcomed in their land and wanted Cabeza De Vaca and his crew to leave. (Vaca 75-76)

Cabeza De Vaca and the remaining crew traveled on foot, they struggled for days living off of the small amount of supplies they could take with them but survived with what they could find along the way. They went most days without food before finally reaching Apalache where they hoped that their hunger and hardship would finally come to an end but that was not the case.(Vaca 82) Upon reaching Apalanche, for three weeks and four days they took over the village, they were met with battles from the Indians where both groups loss men in the bloodshed and once they were done exploring, they left the village behind to continue on their journey hoping the fighting would stay behind.(Vaca 89) The men were very cautious giving the experience they have already faced with the rough terrain, weather and the indigenous people already on the land that they were sent to explore and conquer. With the difficulties they’ve experienced never in their dreams did they think they would encounter anyone who would lend a helping hand, but they were met with a group of Indians that showed signs that they came in peace and wanted to help. They showed them compassion when they needed it the most. They were shown compassion by being given food, warmth and shelter in a time of need. (Vaca 114)

Years into the journey, Cabeza De Vaca and the very few remaining crew members he started this journey with were held captive and made to do hard labor. Cabeza De Vaca was treated extremely bad, at times he was starved by the Indians and most of the time he feared for his life, but his faith in god, he believed, is what protected and saved him from death. The same faith that he believes protected him from death, he was hoping it would give him the strength and chance to flee the harsh life he was forced to endure. (Vaca 125,143) He made it to a village inhabited by the people called Avavares. They were different Indians, they helped Cabeza De Vaca because they heard he was a healer. The relationship between both was beneficial because they would help Cabeza De Vaca explore new surroundings, meet many different people along the way but they provided Cabeza De Vaca and his crew protection from any dangers and from starvation. (Vaca 144) In return Cabeza De Vaca would help cure several people who he met along the way. For a long time Cabeza De Vaca was known as a healer and that gave him the opportunity to move around villages and meet more indigenous people. He had the chance to know them in a different level, a more personal level that forced him to open his eyes and have compassion for these people because he went through so much with them, and so much because of them. It was 8 years of exploring with many difficulties along the way. Cabeza De Vaca fought with them, was enslaved by them, protected by them, cured them and lived with them, So By the end of his journey and making his way back home little by litte, all those things he went through gave him a different perspective that he would never have gotten if his journey would have been perfection.

A journey in life that teaches us more about ourselves, our morals, our view of the world and the people in it, is a journey many people never get to experience in their lifetime. We desire to explore more than our surroundings, to discover a different version of ourselves in the heart of a new world and hoping that it would change us in ways we could never imagine.