The Book of the Marvels of the World (Italian: Il Milione, lit. 'The Million', possibly derived from Polo's nickname "Emilione"), in English commonly called The Travels of Marco Polo, is a 13th-century travelogue written down by Rustichello da Pisa from stories told by Italian explorer Marco Polo. It describes Polo's travels through Asia between 1271 and 1295, and his experiences at the court of Kublai Khan. The 2024 edition of the Carnevale di Venezia is themed "Ad Oriente... the extraordinary journey of Marco Polo," The festival honors one of history's greatest explorers, whose journey embodies the spirit of the city: the curiosity, the thirst for knowledge, and the resourcefulness of Venetian merchants are at the core of a lifestyle that has defined the Republic of Venice's entire history in a blend of trade, business, diplomacy, and knowledge of science and geography. So my Italian friends came up with their versions of a Marco Polo inspired full masked set of costumes...