Their livelihoods, their markets are far-reaching, their deserts are arduous, and their mountains are barren with no vegetation. To the south of them, there is no civilization, and one sees only what is nearby. They have camels, which they use for travel, sustenance, and trade. From them, after 8 days, is the city of Baima, and connected to it are the villages of Berberah, the first of which is Juwa, which is close by. In general, the Abyssinians raise camels, acquire them, drink their milk, use their backs, and await their offspring. They are the most valuable commodity to them. Some of them steal each other's children and sell them to traders, who then take them to the land of Egypt by land and sea. To the north of the land of Abyssinia lies the land of the Bija, which is between Abyssinia, Nubia, and the land of Upper Egypt. The land of the Bija has no villages or fertility; it is a barren desert. The gathering place for its people and the destination for traders is Wadi al-Alafi, to which the people of Upper Egypt and the Bija come. It is a valley with abundant vegetation and plentiful water. Al-Alafi itself is like a large gathering place, and the water there is from sweet wells. The famous gold mine is in the middle of their land, in a desert with no mountains around it, only soft sands and flowing plains. When it is the beginning or end of the Arabic lunar month, the "Kallab" (gold prospectors) specifically search those sands at night. Each one looks at the land before him. If he sees gold that shines with a bright light, he marks its location with a sign he recognizes and stays there overnight. When morning comes, each one goes to his mark on the sand dune he marked, takes it, and carries it on his swift camel until he reaches wells there. Then he washes it with water in a wooden basin, extracts the gold from it, then purifies it with mercury and smelts it. What they gather from it, they trade among themselves, and some buy from others. Then traders carry it to other regions. This is their constant occupation, from which they do not cease. This is their livelihood.