I just finished reading The Travels of Ibn Battutah, an autobiography of the greatest world travelers of his time, and it looks like there are several more World Heritage Sites that can be linked to the Connections page for Ibn Battuta. I've included a list of ones I noted, as well as quotes from Ibn Battuta about these sites from his book:
Medina of Tunis: So at last we reached the town of Tunis, and the townsfolk came out to welcome the travellers.
Hebron/Al-Khalil Old Town: Next I travelled from Ghazzah to the town of al-Khalil... Its mosque is an elegant edifice, substantially built, of striking beauty and imposing height, and constructed of squared stones.
Bethlehem: On my way there [Jerusalem] I visited Bait Lahm, the birthplace of Jesus -- on him be peace -- where the trace of the palm trunk is still to be seen surmounted by a vast edifice.
Tyre: For sheer masonry there is no more marvelous or more remarkable construction in any town in the world; for the sea surrounds it on three sides and on the fourth side is a wall underneath which ships may enter and come to anchor.
Crac des Chevaliers: From Tripoli I went inland, via Hisn al-Akrad [Crac des Chevaliers] and Hims, to the town of Hamah.
Aleppo: Halab [Aleppo] is one of the most illustrious of cities, and one which has no rival in beauty of plan and perfection of arrangement, and in the spaciousness and symmetrical disposition of the bazaars.
Baalbek: After Jabal Lubnan we came to the city of Ba'labakk [Baalbek], a beautiful and ancient place and one of the most agreeable cities in Syria, surrounded by glorious orchards and superb gardens, with flowing streams traversing its land, and rivalling Damascus in its boundless amenities.
Bosra: We marched to the town of Bosra, and thence to the castle of al-Karak.
Shushtar: I came next to the city of Tustar [Shushtar], which is situated at the edge of the plain in the dominion of the Atabek and the beginning of the mountains... It is encircled by the river called al-Azraq, which is a marvel... On both banks of the river, there are orchards and waterwheels...
Historic Jeddah: Following the pilgrimage of the year 730, I set out from Mecca (God Most High ennoble her) intending to travel to the land of al-Yaman, and came to Juddah [Jeddah], an old town on the sea coast, which is said to have been founded by the Persians.
Zabid: It is a great and populous city, and contains groves of palms, orchards and running streams -- in fact the pleasantest and most beautiful town in al-Yaman.
Land of Frankincense: We then sailed from Kulwa to the city of Zafar [al-Balid], which is at the extremity of the land of al-Yaman, on the coast of the Indian Sea... The people of this city are men of humility, good dispositions, virtue, and affection for strangers.
Ephesus: We went on to the city of Aya Suluq [Selçuk/Ephesus], a large and ancient city venerated by the Greeks, in which there is a great church [Church of Mary] built with huge stones, each measuring ten or less cubits in length and skilfully hewn.
Pergamon: We continued our journey from Maghnisiyah and came to the city of Barghamah [Bergama/Pergamon], a city in ruins, with a great and formidable fortress on top of a hill.
Bursa and Cumalikazik: We went on next day to the city of Bursa, a great and important city with fine bazaars and wide streets, surrounded on all sides by gardens and running springs.
Qutb Minar: In the northern court of the mosque is the minaret, which has no parallel in the lands of Islam. It is built of red stone, unlike the stone used for the rest of the mosque, for that is white, and the stones of the minaret are decoratively carved. The minaret itself is of great height...
Central Highlands: There are two tracks on the mountain leading to the Foot, one called the Baba track and the other the Mama track, meaning Adam and Eve (peace be upon them)... The blessed footprint, the Foot of our father Adam (God bless him and give him peace) is on a lofty black rock in a wide plateau. |