Burckhardt was the first educated person of modern times to behold the now-famous temples of Abu Simbel. His records of discoveries, adventures, and business dealings along the upper Nile and in Nubia were the first reports to reach Europe about this region, and they became a sensation. With the knowledge of an "insider," he vividly describes the lifestyle of the Bedouins and the cultural uniqueness of the East, as well as the slave trade and caravan life in Sudan. In February 1813, he traveled upstream along the Nile, crossing Nubia amidst many dangers until he reached the Red Sea, arriving by ship in Jeddah in 1814. "The old governor received me coldly and said, 'This is no land for people like you to travel in without being accompanied by caravans.'" J.L. Burckhardt.