| Abstract | Paper -a:
The low-voiced singing and rejoice that could take place on a ship when seeing the Holy Land for the first time is a reoccurring trope in medieval European travel accounts. However, the last stretch of land between the port of Jaffa and Jerusalem was often filled with surprising events and obstacles. Based on medieval 'travel guides' by Niccolo da Poggibonsi, Felix Faber, and Leonhard Rauwolf, this paper will anachronistically prepare you for all kinds of incidents, such as knowing proper tax rates, how to avoid sudden robberies, proper etiquette with local officials, and choosing the right ass-driver.
Paper -b:
This paper examines how 15th-century Europeans wrote about the bad behavior of their compatriots in Jerusalem. It first looks at graffitiing of and theft from pilgrimage sites, exploring how such defacements heightened conflict over control of the holy spaces and their commemoration in the West. It then examines how travellers negotiated dress codes, either asserting their national and religious identities or adopting 'native' costumes. By exploring constructions of the 'ugly tourist', this paper illuminates how medieval Europeans understood their relationship with the ancient birthplace of their faith, a place in which they were simultaneously at home and strangers.
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