Marco Polo

I think a hero should be someone who helps other people. A hero is also someone who is admired. A hero does not have to be really popular, but should have at least a couple of friends. A hero can't just say, 'I'm a hero because I went to the moon,' and be the meanest person in the world! That's what I think a hero should be.

My hero is Marco Polo. He explored places, but wasn’t mean or rude at all. Marco Polo was born in Venice, Italy. He had a brother, Maffeo, named after his Uncle Maffeo, and also a father named Nicolo.

When Polo was 17, he took his first trip to China. He went with his father and Uncle Maffeo. They thought he would be a great help to them. The reason they went was to tell the king news about the Pope, who had not yet been elected. When they got to China they went to the great Kublai Khan’s palace.

When they got to the palace, the king seemed to take great interest in Polo and offered him an important job. The job was to go to different places around the king's empire and find out what was going on there. Polo accepted gratefully.

Polo learned the different languages well, then went to the king's winter palace in Cambaluc. One day, the king sent Polo to Karazan. He was gone for a very long time, but when he came back, the king greeted him graciously and asked him how his trip went. Polo told the king that there were golden rivers and gold in the mountains. The king was happy that he had such a rich country. As Polo grew older, the Great Khan trusted him more. The king sent him to faraway places like India and Burma.

After many years, Polo, his father, and uncle finally went back to Venice. They had had a long adventure and it was time to settle down. Marco Polo is my hero because he was brave, kind and courageous!