Marco Polo does not discuss the specificities of his journey. He seems more focused on the productivity aspect such as trade and foreign goods that Tabriz has to offer.

Marco Polo believes Tabriz to be a wonderful city due to the city’s prosperous trade and market. The city is known for its luxurious woven cloth in silk and gold. The city is additionally known for having abundant stones which were highly regarded by passing travelers. Marco Polo discusses the city’s location which allows it to thrive in trade and foreign goods. The city is situated close to India and Baghdad; it allows for these neighboring countries to trade and brings in foreign goods. It also seems that this location is well known to travelers and many take advantage of the city’s goods through their travels.

Marco Polo holds the city in high regards in terms of trade; however, he does not hold the city’s people to the same standard. He refers to the inhabitants as “a mixed lot and good for very little”. The majority of the people that made up Tabriz were Georgians, Persians, Armenians, Nestorians, and Jacobites. The natives of the city were Mahomet worshipers. He refers to the Sarcers (Arabs) of Tabriz as evil and sinful. He blames their sinful behavior on the religious law that they follow since sin is easily forgiven. He also says that any harm Sarcers do to those who do not follow their laws is permitted.

Marco Polo then discusses of a monastery which is named after the Venerable St Barsamo. He notices that the monks wear a habit that resembles the style of Carmelites. He sees the monks weaving woolen girdles which they place on the altar of St. Barsamo. The monks hand out the girdles to noblemen to relieve pain in the body.

From Marco Polo’s descriptions, he judges a city’s prosperity largely on the basis of commerce and trade. He holds Tarbiz in high regard in the goods they sell and their abundance of trade with foreign countries. He seems to pay much attention to a location’s commercial success; however, he seems to be invested in religious differences.

Marco Polo seems to have strong views on religious practices. He insults the religious laws the Tabriz natives follow. He blames their religion for their lack of morals since it does not punish or chastise sinful behavior. Marco Polo’s strong take on these religious practices shows that he might be a Catholic or of Christian background. Marco Polo grew up in Venice which would have had a strict code of morals in which people had to follow and would be chastised for any immoral behavior. In one of his descriptions, Marco Polo expresses his knowledge in Catholicism when he compares the habit the monks wear to the style of Carmelites. Additionally, he draws similarities between the monk’s religious acts to those practiced by Catholics. In drawing similarities between these religious practices, it can be inferred that Marco Polo was intending to write to a Catholic audience in terms that they would understand. It could also be argued that Marco Polo was trying to make sense of the practices he saw by drawing a similarity to familiar practices. From these descriptions, it is obvious that Marco Polo judges the overall success of a city based on its trade and wealth; however, he seems to be impacted by a city’s religious and cultural differences.