Customer Reviews
Probably the best Travel Guide in the World :) - By: H. Megerisi, 27 Aug 2008 
Ibn Battuta was a medieval traveller from modern day Morocco. He was a Qadi (judge) who travelled, lived & workedin large swathes of the ancient world ranging from China, India, Ceylon, Sub Saharan Africa, & the Middle East! A feat one wonders if ever has been repeated.
The book is an autobiography writtenin the first person that details & describes his extensive travelsin the form of a journal, dictatedin the first person. The book gives an incite of the Islamic culture, customs & habits, as well as his perception (from the prospect of a Medieval Muslim) of his interactions & private thoughts with & of other cultures, be it Christendom, China, or even different Muslim regions.
I found that it opened up my eyes to the world, & to metaphorically see, & walk through other peoples shoes, whom although long gone come to life as the book touches on the political, as well as the social & cultural habits of the time.
Well worth the read, if you have any interestin travel, history or other cultures. An interesting contrast to Marco Polo.
Epic travel - By: El Sushi Supremo, 09 Mar 2007 In contrast to the numerous modern travel books which seem to focus on the 'personality' of the writer or trivial observations, this is an epicin every sense of the word. The scale of the journey is immensein distance & time, IB stayed to work as a Qadi (judge)in several places along the way, this means that you really get a deep sense of the politics & the peoplein each destination. This depth is unlike some of the more superficial accounts of present books which rely on novelty & humour. Although travels is not without humour itself.
I like travelling & read travel books frequently, so it's no suprise that I enjoyed the descriptions of distant lands & strange customs, however, the biggest suprise for me was the journey into the Islamic culture & lifestyle. I think it's the first account I have read from an Islamic perspective, & a Medieval one at that. With thisin mind I think this is a perfect book to open the mind about other cultures & other ways of seeing the world. To get the most from this journey it is important to read 'Travels with a Tangerine' & 'Hall of a Thousand Columns' By Mackintosh-Smith.
I hope this reworked classic inspires other translators & archivists to unearth other works from centuries gone. On a final note I am deeply envious of anyone who understands Arabic as they can read the original.
A Very Stimulating Storytelling - By: , 14 Feb 2004 The story told is based on his own true experience & worth reading. He is so honest when relaying his experiences & really open my eyes to other cultures & life that ever existin the world. I envy his brave & courage to travel & learn about lots of things from it. Once reading his book, you can't put it down. You can even laugh & cry with him. He is so brave to with the cannibals & his story about his experiencein his pilgrimage (Hajj)in Mecca, was so great that I can't find an exact word to describe it... he make us who has been there too, miss the place & want to go there again.
