A painting of the Buddhist God, that I saw passing through India.
My sketch of the Taklimakan Desert that I have traveled through.
So far I have been through the countries of China and India, still on my way to Rome to trade silk with the Roman Empire. I have passed through the Taklimakan desert, and that was by far the worst part of my trip. When traveling through, there was an awful dust storm, so I had to wait it out along with my donkey. That was a setback for me on my voyage. I have seen lots of other merchants on my travel; many looked Indian because of their dark skin, but they were going the opposite way as me. So far, this has been a life-impacting journey, and I have gained so much from it. I have taken in so much, like how it is like to live in other parts of the world. Even just in a different section of China, many things are different. Since I have been gone for so long, I am starting to miss my wife very much, but I know that what I am doing now will help us in the long run, financially. My donkey is holding up fine with low maitenance, so that is a bonus. Since I am getting word about Buddhism spreading into China, I am expecting that soon enough, my wife and I will consider the option of converting into Buddhism. It will be a big change from beleiving the Mandate of Heaven. But I will not worry about that now, since I still have a long way to go before I return home. When traveling through India, they have taxed me, but not overly, so I am happy about that. Most people in India do not speak Chinese, so I can not understand them. Luckily, some of the Indian merchants that I have come across speak some Chinese, so we could have a breif conversation with eachother. When passing through India, I have seen several new ways of farming. They are using unfamiliar techniques that hopefully China will inherit from the Silk Road. When traveling in western parts of China, I noticed that many people are also traveling on camel, I have not heard of that before but when I noticed that the man on the camel was heading in the same direction as me, I decided to ask him about it. After getting the answer we had a long conversation about where we live and why we are on the Silk Road. Fortunatley we were traveling the same route for a while. He was trading fruit to Persia. I could tell that he was about the same social rank as me, a peasant, from how similar our appearance was, we were both dressed the same. Aside from that, I learned that not only China gained economically from the Silk Road, but other countries too. Many Indian and some Persian merchants were on the Silk Road, which made me think that they are getting a living off of this too, just like me.
I would not want to take this trip because it seems there were many problems encountered.It seems that he didn't have that much fun while taking this journey. One of the first problems was the encounter of the sand storm in Taklimakan desert and described it as awful. Also he didn't seem to be entranced by every little aspect of difference of the cultures which I know i would be entranced by. He also didn't know the people and weren't able to understand many of it. And he misses his wife which is sad and i would miss my family. Finally it did not seem that he mad a very large profit and no purpose of his trip.
ReplyDeleteAllison G. Period 1
I would really want to take this trip. The Indian merchants who spoke Chinese would be fascinating to talk to and learn more about their culture and their valuable goods. Also, it would be very useful to learn more about the improved farming techniques that were being implemented in India. Of course, there would be some negatives in taking such a long and arduous journey. One main drawback would be the brutality of the traveling through the Talimakan Desert, with dangerous dust storms and lack of water. My sturdy donkey might make it through alright, but acquiring a camel for desert travel might make the journey less hazardous. By entering India, I could learn more about Buddhism which is starting to spread into China. This would be an excellent opportunity for me to experience a better religion than that of the Mandate of Heaven. Although being gone from my wife during a the long journey on the Silk Road would make me unhappy, still I would be gaining wealth for my family through my trading along the trade route, which would be, in the long run, good for my family's survival. Therefore, I would be delighted to take this journey on the Silk Road, experience the knowledge from other traders, and make my family wealthy through trade. To be on the safe side, though, I think I will purchase a camel for the journey first.
ReplyDeleteMitchell S. Period 2
Wow! This person seems incredibly strong to travel through a bad dust storm and cross a desert on only a donkey. I would like to travel with him because he seems like someone who would never give up, even in hard circumstances. For example, even when he was taxed by the Indians, he was just glad that it wasn't more, and kept a calm temper. I would like to travel with this trader.
ReplyDeleteI would not want to take this trip. It seems that all that has happened to you has been bad. You were stuck in long hard sand storms which put you back. Your short trip has turned into a nightmare. You also miss your family. I believe that you should just go home to your family. I would not want to be away from my family that long. Also, all the places you are visiting seem boreing and you seem lonely. I would rather take a more fun adventure than this.
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Julia Ulrich period 2
This trip sounds like a hard journey, since he didn't understand many people and traveled through places like the Taklimakan Desert, which were brutal. His trip does not sound like a fun one and he only seems to be doing it to help his family financially. On other trips (blogs), I have heard about how people see all the new goods from other countires and how they are fascinated, but this trip is more of a hardship than a trip for fun.
ReplyDeleteThis trip seems like a very big commitment to me. You took a big risk going all through these places with horrible dust storms. Taklimakan desert looked like a pretty place to visit but fighting through the dust storms just isn't worth the troubles. After all the problems, i would just go home to your family and only remember the good memories of the trips. For your next trip, i would pick a more fun place. Maybe even take your family along with you. Going to new countries is always a dream for some people, but if your not having fun, it doesn't do you any good.
ReplyDeletei dont think that i would have took this trip. first off it seemed dull and that they didnt encounter many exciting things making the trip worthwhile. also they faced problems like little money which may not hold up so well in the long run. also the dust storms would have been to torturous for me to handle. those are some of the reasons i wouldnt have enjoyed the trip. but maybe you enjoyed going to new countries and adapting to that, of course in the end my answer is just a opinion
ReplyDeleteI would not have taken this trip. It seems as though it has no real purpose to it and also too dangerous. The dust storm might have killed me, and walking through the desert would not only be boring but extremely dangerous. Even though you did meet some interesting people, i dont think it would be worth the struggle of the climate and conditions. I would rather just stay safe at home. I personally would have tried to pick a more interesting place, but if it suits you, you probably had a really good time.
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