A Pilgrim from Xanadu: How A Christian Monk Discovered Medieval Europe
The first-hand records of Bar Sauma’s amazing mission allow us to trace his odyssey from Beijing to Baghdad, and on to Rome and Bordeaux.
The Medieval Travel Guide of Cristoforo Buondelmonti
Cristoforo Boundelmonti’s 15th-century guide to the islands and lands around the Aegean Sea is a traveller’s delight.
Travel in the Middle Ages, with John F. Romano
A common myth about the medieval period is that no one traveled anywhere, but stayed in the place they were born until they died. This week on The Medieval Podcast, Danièle speaks with John F. Romano to find out what travel was really like in the Middle Ages.
Essential Hiking Gear for a Medieval Chinese Monk
Pilgrimage, alms begging, and journeys to obtain scriptures or relics: life on the road was a reality for many monks in medieval China. So what kind of things did they take with them, according to popular depictions?
Travel Expenses in the Middle Ages
Travelling for business, then as now, meant keeping careful track of your expenses, from what you ate, to who you schmoozed (and how), to what you did when your transportation broke down.
In Search of the Promised Land: Saint Brendan’s Voyage
The story of an Irish monk and his fourteen companions who embarked on a dangerous journey in the fifth century.
Hospitality in historical perspective
Catrien Santing explores the concept of hospitality business within the context of sincere charity one side and the earning of money on the other.
The Ethiopian Age of Exploration: Prester John’s Discovery of Europe, 1306-1458
This article examines the dynamics of interaction between Italian elites and Ethiopian travelers throughout the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries
Bartered Bodies: Medieval Pilgrims and the Tissue of Faith
The journey disciplined and dirtied the body, exposed the travellers to danger and death, and denied their normal comforts.
What was it like to travel during the Middle Ages? Part 1: Going by Road
Road travel in the Middle Ages was basically awful.
Origins of nature tourism in imperial China
The emergence of nature tourism in early medieval China can be attributed to four major factors, including transformation of value orientations, seeking longevity, interest in suburbs and population migration.
Jewish people always On the Move: Jewish Travelers in the Middle Ages
The essential starting point of this study has to do mostly with movements of people in Medieval times throughout the world, but paying special attention to the particular way Jews moved from one place to another in those times.
Stowford: an early medieval hundred meeting place
In the summer of 2015 archaeological excavation sought to examine the location of an early medieval hundred meeting place (‘moot’) in southern Wiltshire.
Between the Sultan and the Doge: Diplomats and Spies at the Time of Suleiman the Magnificent
The paper presents earliest Venetian accounts about the Ottoman empire viewed through the prism of personal contacts and links between Venetian and Ottoman diplomats and nobles.
BOOK REVIEW: Pilgrim Routes of the British Isles by Emma J. Wells
What was pilgrimage like in the Middle Ages? Do modern day routes faithfully retrace the steps of long ago pilgrims? How has pilgrimage changed over the course of hundreds of years? Tourist? Pilgrim? Or both? What is the meaning of pilgrimage today?
Travel Tips for the Medieval Pilgrim
William Wey, a 15th century pilgrim, gives his travel tips for those going to medieval Jerusalem.
A Bad Medieval Road Trip
Those who have ever suffered similar misfortunes can judge from their own experiences how great my agitation and anxiety were at the moment.
The Global Side of Medieval at the Getty Centre: Traversing the Globe Through Illuminated Manuscripts
Los Angeles correspondent, Danielle Trynoski takes through the, ‘Traversing the Globe Through Illuminated Manuscripts’ exhibut at the Getty Museum.
BOOK REVIEW – London: A Travel Guide Through Time by Dr. Matthew Green
Love London? Then you will love this book. A fascinating trek through time looking the pivotal moments in London’s history.
Book Review: Hidden Britain by Alvin Nicholas
Tourism with a twist? Tired of the same old tours and droning guides? Alvin Nicholas’s book on manors, mansions, castles, nooks and crannies, reveals there’s more to Britain than meets the eye.
Tall Tales: The Trouble with Tours
Tours. They can be great, or they can be cringeworthy and rife with misinformation. A great tour guide knows how to add a flourish or two to a story to keep the audience engaged and the history interesting. A bad tour guide invents things and hopes there isn’t a historian in the audience dismayed by the falsehoods they’re spreading to unwitting listeners…
Eastward Voyages And the Late Medieval European Worldview
This thesis treats the journeys as medieval Europe’s interaction with Asia, outlining how travellers formed their perceptions of ‘the East’ through their encounters with Asian people and places.
Medieval Lisbon: Jerónimos Monastery
Of the four medieval #placestosee in Lisbon, Jerónimos Monastery, Mosteiro dos Jerónimos, was my favourite. The monastery is located in Belém, a suburb of Lisbon, that is famous for the 16th century monastery, as well as for its world famous pastry shop, Pastéis de Belém…
Medieval Lisbon: Carmo Convent
Part III of my series on Medieval Lisbon. This visit took me to Carmo Monastery and museum.