Christian feast day: Odoric of Pordenone

Odoric of Pordenone

14th-century Franciscan friar, missionary, and explorer

Odoric of Pordenone was a Franciscan friar and missionary explorer from Friuli in northeast Italy. He journeyed through India, Sumatra, Java, and China, where he spent three years in the imperial capital of Khanbaliq. After more than ten years of travel, he returned home and…