Hi there! I’m Christopher Columbus from Italy Genoa. I was born in the year 1451. I started navigating at the age of fourteen.
I am going to the King and Queen of Spain to share my brilliant Idea to go quicker around the world on boat to India, than walking there. They are giving me a chance to my idea. So they’re providing me the money, the boats, and the sailors. They are offering me three boats: 2 small boats, the “Pinta” and the “Niña”. The big boat is called “Santa Maria”.
On the boat, we are bringing some rice, cheese and animals to kill. For our navigation we are bringing things such as… Almanacs, charts, compasses, and hourglasses. When we get to our location, we will trade…Glass beads, brass rings, knitted caps, gold and silver, pearls, and spices.
“Splash! Splosh! Splush!” My first Voyage around the world to India. It’s October 12 and I’m hearing Rodrigo de Triana shouting “Tierra! Tierra!” (Land! Land!)
“CRASH!” I’m looking outside and guess what… Land! We were almost about to leave. From saving our hunger and lives, I declare this land called “San Salvador.” Everybody is getting out now excited with the new world. Then, I see islanders coming out from the forest, just greeting everybody nicely… Of course! They’re Indians!
A few hours later, we started our trading business. They were actually pretty nice. They would trade anything for anything. Spun cotton, parrots, and spears for the sailors. Glass beads, red caps, and trinkets for the Indians. After a few months, we learned more about the Indians until we found out that they were actually called “Tainos” but there are bigger groups of islanders in the island called the “Arawaks”
We were having so much fun until we found out the Taino and the Arawaks had pure gold pierced in their noses! So I was asking them about it. The islanders told me… “If you go farther in this island, you will see more gold around.”
So now I set sail again to find more gold but this time, some Tainos are coming with me so they can lead me to where the gold is. It’s taking a few weeks to get there, but I can’t fail this exploration.
(Almost November) Finally! We got to the next island though we are on the coast of this is got, and.
After we got to this weird place, we started going east. We went all across the land. This land had more gold around and people had bracelets of pure gold!
When we got to the end of the land, we found another island. Some of the Tainos told me that in their language they call this island Haiti. Haiti stands for the island of mountains. There was a small Taino chief who lived in Haiti. So we stayed on this village for Christmas, December 25th. Since the Santa Maria got destroyed, we made a fort to sleep in for Christmas.
In January, I needed to name this land. So I said… “By the power given to me by the King and Queen of Spain, I shall name this land la Hispaniola!”
I am now going to go back to Spain to go on my next Voyage. I am going to leave behind Forty-three men in la Hispaniola to see how it goes.
Good-bye Hispaniola!
It’s September 25th 1493 and the King & Queen of Spain let me go on my second voyage. Me and my sailors are on a rush to this next voyage because the Catholic King and Queen are scared that the Portuguese would come to the islands that I discovered and probably they will discover other things. Now I am off to my second voyage!
On the two boats and other more, we have other things this time. With us, we are bringing priest from the Catholic Church, monks, settlers, and many other types of people.
According to the map we have, we must be getting into a new land we haven’t discovered yet. Lets go! I am so excited to see this new land. I hope it is not to late to discover.
“Land ahead admiral!” I hear. It’s time to get off the ship because my sailors and I need to explore. When I got off the ship, we explored many places on that island. Since I named all the islands I’ve been to, I should name this one too. But I can’t find a name so I shall leave this land without a name.
After I left the land without a name, I went to la Hispania to see how the sailors are going there. When I got there, every single sailor was dead on the floor. I am so shocked!!! All the Indians are cross with me. So I asked one of them of what happened to the sailors.
(A few minutes later…) Oh my god! I can’t believe this happened! All my sailors started stealing gold and making the Indians into slaves. After that horrible moment I decided to go back to Spain and do a new voyage around this place.
So long Indians! See you next time!
It’s the 30th of May 1498 and I am so pleased that I can go on my 3rd voyage around India and china. I think that I am going to be very famous for all my exploration.
As always, we are sailing on sea to find more land. And we always do. All my sailors are excited to go discover new lands. Day after day we are sleeping on the floor… Except for me!!! I’m looking at my compass to see if we are on the right direction.
“Land admiral!” says one of the sailors on the 31 of July. Of f we go to a new island! This island is so clean and green! Anybody would want to live in this place!! (This island will soon be called Trinidad.)
After we looked at this island we just went to, we set sail southwest leading us to a coastline said on this chart. We were on our boats for lots of days, probably weeks.
On the 4th of August, the chart was right. We got to a coastline what if it was already discovered? I checked around to see if there were any flags from countries. No flags. So that means we discovered it first. Hooray! We walked all across the coastline until the 12th of August.
We started to go a little bit more forwards and we found a very rocky and watery place that the water nearly touched the land. It also looks so beautiful. So… “ By the power given to by the King and Queen of Spain, I shall name this place the Land of Grace.”
A few days later my sailors and I left again to la Hispaniola. When I got there, everything was fine. But then… a few months later came people from Spain came to arrest me. They thought I didn’t get to India but I wasn’t strong enough to let go. I got sent back home Italy, Genoa thinking that my exploration would end from now on.
Good-bye Christopher Columbus, welcome back, Cristoforo Clombo.
I have a feeling this is going to be my last and final voyage. I will first go to Spain, Then I shall do a final trip. It took me a while to find sailors but I got a few.
So now I start the trip. Of I go the same way I usually went, past the canaries. While we are on the boat, I checked if I had everything with me:
. Compass… Check!
. Astrolabe…Check!
. Map… Check!
. Chart… Check!
. Hourglass…Check!
So we have everything with us. After a month or two I checked my map that we are near an island. June 15, we got to a place or an island and we stared exploring it. There was a hurricane coming so we had to leave. I did not want to put a name on this island so I left it alone. It was a beautiful place though.
So my sailors and I went on boat to la Hispaniola so we can be safe. When I got there on June 29, the Indians wouldn’t let me enter. I was telling them about the hurricane but they did not want to believe me.
After the conversation, I headed back to one of the islands in the third voyage. Then I went east with my sailors and got to a coastline on the 30th of July, and we kept going ford ward to the land so my sailors and me can explore. We are exploring on this coast for about 2 months.
Later, after exploring the coastline, I sailed south on the boat and got somewhere close to that coastline. We started exploring that place too. I was seeing some Indians there too. They taught me lots of things now I can do them. I was having so much fun until a storm came by. All my ships but one got destroyed. So I immediately had to go to la Hispaniola.
A few weeks later in la Hispaniola came a big giant storm. My last boat did not survive! So I have nowhere to run, nowhere to hide.
So-long Italy, Spain, & India.
Good-bye,
Christopher Columbus…
