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有史以来,冒险精神一直是鼓舞探险家从事伟大航行的动力。不过,当冒险精神与赚钱的想法相结合时,它便产生了更大的推动力,驱使商人兼探险家走遍天涯海角。在地中海上航行的水手,可说是最早的国际商人和探险家。海路运输一向比较快捷,尤其是在内海水域航行也比较安全。但是在十五世纪以前,从中东到非洲和东南亚的海路,不是险象环生,就是未经探察。所以,商人们常常经由陆路前往这些地方。由于陆路运输的费用很高,因此只有最贵重的物品才值得贩运。从东方运来的是上等丝绸、玉石、瓷器和香料,从非洲穿过撒哈拉沙漠的流沙运来的是黄金。在埃及的亚历山大港和其他集散地中,商人们一面做买卖,一面交换旅途的见闻。
Adventurism has always been the motivation behind the great voyages of explorers. However, when adventurousness combined with the idea of making money, it generated even greater impetus, driving traders and explorers to the ends of the earth. Sailors sailing on the Mediterranean Sea are the earliest international businessmen and explorers. Sea transport has always been faster, especially in the coastal waters safer. However, by the fifteenth century, sea routes from the Middle East to Africa and Southeast Asia were either not dangerous or unexplored. Therefore, traders often travel to these places by land. Due to the high cost of land transport, only the most valuable items are worth the traffic. From the east are fine silk, jade, porcelain and spices, and gold is transported from Africa through the sands of the Sahara. In Alexandria, Egypt, and other distribution centers, traders exchange information on the journey while doing business.