Marco Polo discovered the overland route to Cathay which is what China was called in that time. He did not actually discover it, because Middle Eastern Traders had used the 'Silk Road' for centuries, but he is credited with being the first westerner to travel it. The overland trade route from the Mid East to China was a long and dangerous road, going through mountains, plagued by thieves, and hostile kingdoms. He saw the great wall of China, and he found the Capital of Cathay and made friends with the great Kublai Kahn. He saw Fireworks, and of course learned something of the various peoples he passed as he travelled. Silk and spices from the lands to the far East were very much prized by the Western Nations as well as the Mid Eastern ones. Before Marco Polo, these goods were very hard to come by, to Westerners, and were very very expensive. Some say that He brought back Chinese Noodles and that is how Spaghetti came to be in Italy.
