What did Ibn Battuta see in Calicut and Malabar?

"months before embarking on another ship. The sultan gifted me much allowood, camphor, cloves, and sandalwood, and provided for me. I traveled for forty days until reaching Quilon, where I stayed near Qazwini, the judge of the Muslims, during Ramadan. I attended the Eid prayer in the main mosque. Their tradition is to continue remembrance of God from night until dawn, then continue until the Eid prayer, after which the preacher offers a sermon, and they disperse. We then traveled from Quilon to Calicut, where we stayed for several days."

"Some people from China own many ships, sending their agents abroad, and there are none wealthier than the Chinese. When it was time to travel to China, the Samudri prepared a junk for us from the thirteen ships in Calicut's harbor. The agent of the junk was named Suleyman al-Safadi al-Shami, someone I was acquainted with."

"with me and wrote a letter of hospitality for me. We traveled downstream on the river to Kensa, then to Kanso, and finally to Zeytun. Upon reaching it, I found the junks heading to India, and within them was a junk belonging to the king Al-Zahir, lord of Java, whose relatives are Muslims. His agent recognized me and welcomed my arrival. We encountered a favorable wind for ten days, but as we approached the lands of Tawalisi, the wind changed, the weather darkened, and rainfall increased. We stayed for ten days without seeing the sun before entering an unknown sea, causing the sailors to fear, contemplating"

"Contrary to popular belief in our lands that they are boiled, this texturing occurs due to sun exposure. I saw them measured out by the gallon in the city of Calicut, as corn would be in our lands. The first city we entered in the Malabar region was the small coastal city of Abu Sarur, pronounced with an open sin. It is lush with coconut trees. The head of the Muslim community there is Sheikh Juma, known as Abu Sita, a generous man who spent his wealth on the poor and needy."

"and the Green Gate, which only opens on Fridays for people to visit the graves. It has a harbor of great significance, unlike any others I have seen, except for the harbors of Qalam and Calicut in India, the Unbelievers Harbor in Sordag in Turkey, and the Zeytun Harbor in China, which will be discussed later. The Lighthouse of Alexandria. On this journey, I visited the lighthouse. I saw that one of its sides was partially collapsed. Its structure is described as a square building reaching up into the sky, with a raised entrance facing a similarly elevated structure. Wooden boards are placed between them to cross to the entrance. If they are removed, access is impossible."

"until they are appeased with money and clothing. Aden is exceedingly hot. It is the port for traders from India, receiving large ships from Kanbaida, Tanna, Kolam, Calicut, Fandorina, the Shalia coast, Mangalore, Cochin, Honavar, Sindhupur, and others. Indian traders reside there along with traders from Egypt. The people of Aden are either traders, porters, or fishermen, and among their traders are some of substantial wealth. A single trader might own a great vessel and all its contents without any partners due to his vast resources. This gives rise to boasting and competition among them. I was told that one of them sent his servant to buy a ram,"

"cultivated in the same manner as grapevines with trellises made for it. Betel vines are often grown as entwining the cane as done for grapevines or are planted near coconut palms, ascending them much like the pepper does. The betel plant bears no fruit. Its purpose is for its leaves, which resemble mulberry leaves, with the most desirable being the yellow ones. Its leaves are harvested daily. The people of India hold betel in the highest regard. When a man visits another's home and is given five leaves, it is as though he has been given the entire world, especially if the host is a man of status or nobility. The act"

"The sea journey between it and India takes a full month with favorable winds, though I once sailed from Calicut in India to Dhofar in twenty-eight days without any interruption day or night. Between Dhofar and Aden is a month's journey through the desert, and between it and Hadhramaut is sixteen days, with twenty days to reach Oman."