Marco Polo was from Venice, Italy. In 1271, at the age of 17, Marco went on a trip with his father and uncle to China. Today people often travel to different places around the world. But it was very hard for people from Europe to visit China then. After three and a half years, the Polos reached China in 1275.
While he was there, Marco Polo worked for Kublai Khan, the emperor of China. He was able to learn and experience many things that were new to Europeans. In his diary, he wrote, "Kublai Khan's palace is the greatest I've ever seen. The streets of the new capital, Dadu, are so straight and so wide." Paper money also took him by surprise, since it was not yet in use in the West at that time. Homes were heated with "black stones… which burn like wood." Those stones were coal, and most of the Europeans knew little about it then.
After 17 years in China, Marco and his family finally returned to Venice. After he returned home, Marco completed a book calledThe Travels of Marco Polo, full of facts about his wonderful experiences in China.
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