To IB's defense, he did make a point to seek after his lost progeny on the way home. One son of his in Damascus had died, and another in Maldives he decided was

To IB's defense, he did make a point to seek after his lost progeny on the way home. One son of his in Damascus had died, and another in Maldives he decided was better off staying with his mother for reasons he doesn't mention. Moreover, there are at least three separate towns he visits where he mentions that it was the custom of the women of that place to marry travelers and then divorce them rather than leave (Oulata, the Maldives, and another town in Iraq I can't remember the name of). So you might be applying presentism there, even though I agree with the spirit of what you're saying.