Exploring Marco Polo & the Silk Road

Form A students recently studied the Silk Road and Marco Polo’s travels throughout Eurasia. To culminate the lesson, they welcomed Denis Belliveau, who traveled Marco Polo’s route on the Silk Road for three years, to campus for two days. Belliveau and made a documentary, In the Footsteps of Marco Polo, and wrote a book by the same name on his adventures along this historic journey. Students watched the documentary in class and were ecstatic to meet someone featured in the film.

Belliveau led the boys in various activities, including building a yurt, where classes and storytelling sessions were held; sharing artifacts such as yak hair, musk deer scent, and a replica of the golden tablet featured in the Netflix show Marco Polo gifted to him from Kublai Khan; teaching the boys tie-dye using indigo; and instructing a cartography activity where students free-handed maps of Eurasia, complete with physical and political landmarks, Marco Polo's journey, and facts about the animals, art, architecture, and trade that one can find in this region.

Enjoy photos from this fun-filled lesson with Belliveau! To learn more about him and his journey, visit www.thestepsofpolo.org.