In the 1100's a Spanish Jew named Benjamin traveled to China and reported on his travels in a well-known diary that was widely read throughout Europe. It has even been speculated that Benjamin's diary precipitated Marco Polo's interest in making the trip. The diary of Benjamin of Tudela has been translated into English and is entitled:
The Itinerary of Benjamin of Tudela (Dodo Press) (Paperback)
by Benjamin of Tudela (Author), Marcus Nathan Adler (Translator)
Here is the information on a beautiful picture book about the same topic:
The travels of Benjamin of Tudela : through three continents in the twelfth century
by Uri Shulevitz. - 1st ed. . - New York : Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2005.
ISBN 0374377545
A fictionalized account of the
travels of Benjamin, a Jewish man from
Tudela, Spain, who, in 1159, set out
on a fourteen-year-long journey that
took him to Italy, Greece, Palestine,
Persia, China, Egypt, and Sicily.
Here are some web site with information about him:
http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/biography/BenjaminTudelo.html
http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/14981
Susan Dubin
Valley Beth Shalom Day School Library
.