Ibn Battuta and Zheng He

Morocco
his home
21
his age when he left
A young man sets out
About 700 years ago, a young man left home. He lived in Tangier, Morocco. His name was Ibn Battuta. He was 21. He set out to go to Makkah for Hajj.
Then
months or years
Now: hours
He kept going
After Hajj, he did not go home. He wanted to see more of the world. He rode camels and horses. He sailed on boats. With no cars or planes, trips took months.
1. 1Morocco
  home
2. 2Egypt
  visited
3. 3India
  lived there
4. 4China
  he said he went
5. 5Mali
  visited
Almost 30 years
He visited Egypt and India. He lived in India for a few years. He said he reached China too. Later he crossed the desert to Mali. He traveled for almost 30 years.
His stories become a book
At last, he came home to Morocco. He told his stories to a writer. The writer put them in a book. That book is how we know about his trips.
Real photo
Zheng He's giant ships
About 600 years ago, Zheng He sailed from China. He grew up in a Muslim family. He led a huge fleet. A fleet is a big group of ships. His wooden ships had many sails.
Seven long trips
Zheng He made seven long trips. His ships reached India, Arabia and East Africa. A giraffe from Africa came to China on his ships. So both travelers visited India.

Goal: Your child learns who Ibn Battuta and Zheng He were, where they came from and how they traveled.

Away from the screen: On a globe, find Morocco and China. Then find India, the place both travelers visited.

World History · Trade and Travel