Great view!

Entry 1: Cairo

I left my home Morocco to arrive in Cairo where the city was in a buzz, extremely crowded and busy constantly. There were many venders and peddlers, and with all of these people come many businesses and establishments including hospitals, mosques, colleges, and convents. They were built by military commanders who competed to build more charitable works than the other. I stayed in Cairo for about a month before leaving to travel along the Nile to reach Mecca, then proceeded on to Jerusalem.

Entry 2: Jerusalem and Damascus

I arrived in Jerusalem which was quite the small town compared to others. There were many shrines everywhere and lots of religious establishments. I then went to Damascus which was much larger and more impressive. This city contained about 100,000 people, which was an astounding sight. There was a very large supermarket and an enormous mosque, both were gorgeous.

Hello down there!

Entry 3: Medina to Mecca

I left Damascus to go on a Hajj with a caravan containing several thousand people. It was a long trip, about 2 months of traveling from Damascus to Medina. It was a dangerous trip, yet we still made it without much incident. It was a relief after we arrived to be done with such a treacherous trip. Instead of returning home from Mecca, I decided to leave for a long journey.

That's a big wall!

YIKES!

Entry 4: The Red Sea and East Africa

I left Mecca to get on a boat across the Red Sea. It was a very treacherous trip in a small wooden boat, yet I still made it across. Once we arrived on shore, we were able to rent camels from some locals and travel south. We traveled to several locations including villages in the mountains of Yemen, the city of Taiz, and Aden which was a magnificent city built in a crater in which Islam was a minority religion.

Entry 5: Anatolia

I then left East Africa where I traveled to Syria, and then on to Turkey, where I was greeted with wonderful hospitality. Although that was wonderful, I was surprised by several aspects of their culture. An example of one of these aspects was their use of a marijuana-like drug which they thought no harm of. There was also a very impressive citadel which I marveled at for quite some time. It was an enormous structure that towered over all else and was truly a spectacle.

Hope I don't fall!

Entry 6: Sailing the Black Sea

In Turkey I waited for a long time to finally have good weather to sail, but once I did I was able to board a small boat. I was struck by huge storms and rough sailing, similar to my trip on the red sea, yet I managed to successfully arrive on the opposite coast. Once on shore, I went to Kaffa, an Italian colony with mostly Christian citizens. A church bell rang out and me and my fellow Muslim travelers were very upset. We even went up to the roof to protest this, but some other Muslims came and stopped us to prevent any further conflict.

Not again!

Entry 7: Constantinople

I then traveled from Kaffa in a large group for 75 days to reach Constantinople in the Byzantine empire. I got to stay there for almost a month and even met the emperor Andronicus III. Although many parts of the city were beautiful, the Byzantine empire is a relic of the past. This meant that many aspects of the empire were sub-par and disappointing, such as the collapsing currency and unfair treatment of peasants.

What a disappointment!

Entry 8: Delhi, India

I left Constantinople to enter the now mostly Muslim controlled India through the high mountains of Afghanistan. I proceeded on to Delhi where I was greeted with a gift from the Sultan as well as a furnished house. I was also gifted a job with an enormous salary. This job was as a judge and to take care of a mausoleum. These combination of offerings have truly left me with a great impression of Delhi.

New job!