But What
Incommodities And Troubles Chaunced Vnto Me In These Vyages, As Hunger,
Thirst, Colde, Heate, Warres, Captiuitie, Terrours, And Dyuers Other
Suche Daungers, I Will Declare By The Way In Theyr Due Places.
SECTION I.
_Of the Navigation from Venice to Alexandria in Egypt, and from thence
to Damascus in Syria_[34].
Should any one wish to know the cause of my engaging in this voyage, I
can give no better reason than the ardent desire of knowledge, which
hath moved me and many others to see the world and the wonders of
creation which it exhibits. And, as other known parts of the world had
been already sufficiently travelled over by others, I was determined to
wait and describe such parts as were not sufficiently known. For which
reason, with the grace of God, and calling upon his holy name to prosper
our enterprise, we departed from Venice, and with prosperous winds we
arrived in few days at the city of Alexandria in Egypt. The desire we
had to know things more strange and farther off, did not permit us to
remain long at that place; wherefore, sailing up the river Nile, we came
to the city of new Babylon, commonly called _Cayrus_ or _Akayr_, _Cairo_
or _Al-cahira_, called also _Memphis_ in ancient times.
[Footnote 34: To accommodate this curious article to our mode of
arrangement, we have made a slight alteration of the nomenclature of its
subdivisions; calling those in this version _Sections_, which in the
original translation of Mr Eden are denominated chapters; and have used
the farther freedom of sometimes throwing several of these chapters into
one section. - E.]
On my first arrival at this place I was more astonished than I can well
express, yet on a more intimate observation it seemed much inferior to
the report of its fame, as in extent it seemed not larger than Rome,
though much more populous. But many have been deceived in regard to its
size by the extensive suburbs, which are in reality numerous dispersed
villages with fields interspersed, which some persons have thought to
belong to the city, though they are from two to three miles distant, and
surround it on all sides. It is not needful to expatiate in this place
on the manners and religion of this city and its environs, as it is well
known that the inhabitants are Mahometans and Mamelukes; these last
being Christians who have forsaken the true faith to serve the Turks and
Mahometans. Those of that description who used to serve the Soldan of
Babylon in Egypt, or Cairo, in former times before the Turkish
conquest, used to be called Mamelukes, while such of them as served the
Turks were denominated _Jenetzari_ or Janisaries. The Mameluke
Mahometans are subject to the Soldan of Syria.
As the riches and magnificence of Cairo, and the Mameluke soldiers by
whom it is occupied are well known, we do not deem it necessary to say
any thing respecting them in this place.
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