It was a time during which Europe knew very little about the rest of the world. Virtually everything that was not in Europe and outside the Mediterranean basin was unknown and the earth was thought to be was flat.
Distances were great, especially for the communications and traveling means of the time. To put things into perspective, consider what it meant at the time to embark on a journey from Venice to London. What today amounts to a quick two hour flight under 100 euro, for a Thirteenth Century traveler it meant to embark on a long and perilous journey over the land, by sea – over the Strait of Gibraltar – and finally back on land. Under perfect weather conditions the entire ordeal would take no less than three weeks.
Travelling any further – and all the way to China – was something almost unthinkable at the time. It was the travelers and navigators that opened Europe’s eyes to the rest of the world. During their journeys they brought back news of other great civilizations and built the roots of global trade and exchange of goods and knowledge that we take so much for granted today.
Perhaps the most famous of them all is Marco Polo. Born in Venice in 1254, Marco Polo came from a wealthy family of merchants. During this itinerary, as we will visit the sestieri of San Marco, San Polo and Santa Croce, and walk through secret gardens and hidden corners, you will have the opportunity to travel back in time and experience the time and story of Marco Polo.
Let the journey begin.