As someone mentioned one of Ray's next programs may be on his favourite explorer, I was wondering who is everybodies elses favourite, seems as we all tend to have different ideas on who is the greatest at this and that.
Im going to put forward a little known man named Ibn Battuta. I watched a programe on this man last year and was fascinated. He was by far the most travelled explorer of the ancient world, covering more distance than Marco Poloan estimated 75,000 miles. However, he is little known because he is a Muslim and travelled within the muslim world.
Butthata was born in 1304 and begun his travels from Morocco aged 20. The places he covered, over a period of 30 years include North Africa, West Africa, Southern Europe and Eastern Europe in the West, to the Middle East, Indian subcontinent, Central Asia, Southeast Asia and China.
Its a shame hardly anyone has heard of him. though there are several books about him
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/The-Travels-of-Ibn-Battuta-in-the-Near-East-Asia-and_W0QQitemZ250282011272QQcmdZViewItem?hash=item250282011272&_trkparms=72%3A984|39%3A1|66%3A2|65%3A12|240%3A1318&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14
I had a camel for riding and a she-camel for carrying provisions. When we set out on the first stage the she-camel broke down. AI-Hajj Wujjin took what was on her and divided it among his companions. They shared out the burden. There was in the caravan a Maghribin (man of Arab north-west Africa) of the people of Tadala who refused to carry any of it in the way other people had done. My servant lad was thirsty one day. I asked the Maghribin for water; he did not give it.
Then we arrived at the land of the Bardama people (a Tuareg group). a tribe of the Berbers. The caravan cannot travel except under their protection; and amongst them the protection of a woman is more important than that of a man. They are nomads, they do not stay in one place. Their dwelling places are strange in form: they set up poles of wood and place mats around them, over that they put interwoven sticks and over them skins or cotton cloth. Their women are the most perfect of women in beauty and the most comely in figure, in addition to being pure white and fat. I did not see in the land anyone who attained to their standard of fatness. These women's food is cow's milk and pounded millet; they drink it mixed with water, uncooked, morning and evening. A man who wants to marry among them has to settle with them in the country near them, and not take his spouse farther than either Kawkaw or Iwalatan.
Im going to put forward a little known man named Ibn Battuta. I watched a programe on this man last year and was fascinated. He was by far the most travelled explorer of the ancient world, covering more distance than Marco Poloan estimated 75,000 miles. However, he is little known because he is a Muslim and travelled within the muslim world.
Butthata was born in 1304 and begun his travels from Morocco aged 20. The places he covered, over a period of 30 years include North Africa, West Africa, Southern Europe and Eastern Europe in the West, to the Middle East, Indian subcontinent, Central Asia, Southeast Asia and China.
Its a shame hardly anyone has heard of him. though there are several books about him
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/The-Travels-of-Ibn-Battuta-in-the-Near-East-Asia-and_W0QQitemZ250282011272QQcmdZViewItem?hash=item250282011272&_trkparms=72%3A984|39%3A1|66%3A2|65%3A12|240%3A1318&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14
I had a camel for riding and a she-camel for carrying provisions. When we set out on the first stage the she-camel broke down. AI-Hajj Wujjin took what was on her and divided it among his companions. They shared out the burden. There was in the caravan a Maghribin (man of Arab north-west Africa) of the people of Tadala who refused to carry any of it in the way other people had done. My servant lad was thirsty one day. I asked the Maghribin for water; he did not give it.
Then we arrived at the land of the Bardama people (a Tuareg group). a tribe of the Berbers. The caravan cannot travel except under their protection; and amongst them the protection of a woman is more important than that of a man. They are nomads, they do not stay in one place. Their dwelling places are strange in form: they set up poles of wood and place mats around them, over that they put interwoven sticks and over them skins or cotton cloth. Their women are the most perfect of women in beauty and the most comely in figure, in addition to being pure white and fat. I did not see in the land anyone who attained to their standard of fatness. These women's food is cow's milk and pounded millet; they drink it mixed with water, uncooked, morning and evening. A man who wants to marry among them has to settle with them in the country near them, and not take his spouse farther than either Kawkaw or Iwalatan.