Marco Polo

Marco Polo was a great explorer. He was born in about 1254 in Venice, Italy. When Marco was six his uncle and father sailed to Russia to trade with a wealthy ruler. Marco's mother died when he was on the trip, so he was raised by his relatives. His relatives raised him in a very busy district called San Severo. The heart of the city had every merchant imaginable. Criminals were displayed in cages so people could insult and jeer at them. Knights even jousted there! As the son of a merchant, Marco Polo was destined to follow in his father's footsteps. His school textbooks were filled with tips on business, taxes, and other factors. It also had lots of practical math problems to prepare him for a life of similar problems. The textbooks also had lots of wise sayings; religious prayers; and advice on predicting the weather. Marco was 15 when his uncle and father returned from their trip. After trading in Russia, the way back was blocked by a war. They were saved by a Mongol envoy that was passing through. They invited them to the court of Kublih Kahn. In 1271, they went back to the east to visit Kublih Kahn, this time with Marco. They joined a caravan of armed merchants to be safer. Marco was the first European to describe a source of oil. They stopped at the port of Hormuz. They thought they could find a ship to take them to China but they couldn't. They made the trip on land. They had to keep a sharp eye out for bandits. While making their way across, a huge sandstorm sprang up. A lot of bandits attacked them during the sandstorm. Marco Polo barely evaded capture. Then they went on the Silk Road, an ancient trading route. As they got to the mountains Marco fell ill but as they kept going, Marco recovered. He crossed the Taklimikan Desert. They got to China in the spring of 1275, 3 ½ years after they left from Venice, Italy! Kublih Kahn had a huge beautiful palace. Marco Polo was really amazed at the paper money (they didn't have any paper in Europe). When Kublih Kahn ruled the Mongols he was pretty nice! The Marco brothers were getting homesick so they decided to go home. Kublih Kahn didn't want them to go home. They did find an excuse though, there was a princess that needed to go back to Europe and they wanted Marco Polo to take her back. They got back to Venice in 1295. He spent the last 25 years of his life in Venice. He married a Venetian woman, had three daughters, and led the trading company. His life was pretty dull from then on. He died age 69 on Sunday, Jan. 8, 1324.

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