2008-08-27 Probably the best Travel Guide in the World :)

Ibn Battuta was a medieval traveller from modern day Morocco. He was a Qadi (judge) who travelled, lived and worked in large swathes of the ancient world ranging from China, India, Ceylon, Sub Saharan Africa, and the Middle East! A feat one wonders if ever has been repeated.

The book is an autobiography written in the first person that details and describes his extensive travels in the form of a journal, dictated in the first person. The book gives an incite of the Islamic culture, customs and habits, as well as his perception (from the prospect of a Medieval Muslim) of his interactions and private thoughts with and of other cultures, be it Christendom, China, or even different Muslim regions.

I found that it opened up my eyes to the world, and to metaphorically see, and walk through other peoples shoes, whom although long gone come to life as the book touches on the political, as well as the social and cultural habits of the time.

Well worth the read, if you have any interest in travel, history or other cultures. An interesting contrast to Marco Polo.