Ibn Battuta — "The sea is one of the most powerful and wonderful things I have ever seen and I …"

"Among their odious customs is that women do not veil themselves, and they are not ashamed of this. Many of the women I saw were more beautiful than the men."

"The women of this country are very beautiful, and they walk about unveiled."

"The people here have a strange custom of greeting each other by rubbing noses. It was quite an experience to get used to."

"I saw a mountain in this land that was made entirely of salt. It was a truly astonishing sight."

"I saw a snake in this land that was as thick as a tree trunk. It was a monstrous creature, and I quickly fled."