Marco Polo was from Venice, Italy. In 1271, at age 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 on 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. Daidu, 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." These 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 in 1292. After he returned home, Marco completed a book about his trip, full of facts about his wonderful experiences in China. The Polos finally got to China in  _  .
1271 1275 1288 1292