Libya 2009 - Part 2

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Back in Tripoli, we have another very good meal in the evening The jazz entertainer was a bit persistent, but it was good fun He didn't give up! Libyan soup and fizzy pop This is the arch of Marcus Aurelius located at the crossroads of the Cardo and Decumanus of the Roman city of Oea or Tripoli
Tripoli Tripoli Tripoli Tripoli Arch of Marcus Aurelius
         
Built in 163-164 AD, it was the triumphal entrance from the harbour into the city Ancient prophesies foretold terrible punishments for anyone who removed a stone... ...perhaps this is why it has survived Arch of Marcus Aurelius A very well camouflaged cat
Arch of Marcus Aurelius Arch of Marcus Aurelius Arch of Marcus Aurelius Arch of Marcus Aurelius Arch of Marcus Aurelius
         
The minaret of the Gurgi Mosque The doorway is beautifully ornate The Gurgi Mosque was built in the 19th Century by the Turks The inlaid stonework on the mihrab is a lovely floral design...
Arch of Marcus Aurelius Gurgi Mosque Gurgi Mosque Gurgi Mosque Gurgi Mosque
         
... as are also the sides of the mimber Gurgi Mosque Gurgi Mosque The marble columns come from Italy and the tiles on the surrounding walls are from Tunisia The ladies are suitable covered
Gurgi Mosque Gurgi Mosque Gurgi Mosque Gurgi Mosque Gurgi Mosque
         
A modern electronic board shows the times of sunrise and the calls to prayer There are 16 domes in the mosque This is the upper level of the mosque which is where the women gather The decoration on the arches is delicate lattice-work This old man is the caretaker of the mosque. He very proudly showed us his discharge papers from the British army in 1958
Gurgi Mosque Gurgi Mosque Gurgi Mosque Gurgi Mosque Gurgi Mosque
         
Entering the Medina of Tripoli Crossroads of the Four Columns on Arba Arsat, so called because of the Roman columns on the street corners Another Roman column on another corner The Medina is run down and neglected This old house in the Medina has been renovated and is now a fine new hotel
Tripoli - the Medina Tripoli - the Medina Tripoli - the Medina Tripoli - the Medina Tripoli - the Medina
         
Fresh flowers and leaves decorate the basin in the atrium We wait to be shown around Vivid colours in one of the seating areas A typical street in the Medina A small shop in the Medina
Tripoli - the Medina Tripoli - the Medina Tripoli - the Medina Tripoli - the Medina Tripoli - the Medina
         
Another alleyway This area seems to be for metalwork The Medina An Aladdin's cave A workshop in the Medina
Tripoli - the Medina Tripoli - the Medina Tripoli - the Medina Tripoli - the Medina Tripoli - the Medina
         
Poster of Colonel Qaddafi on the walls of Al-Saraya Al-Hamra or the Red Castle of Tripoli The Jamahiriya Museum of Tripoli is housed in this part of the Red Castle This statue of Venus from the Hadrianic Baths of Leptis Magna was stolen during the colonial era, but returned to Libya in 2000. Detail of the 2nd Century AD mosaic floor displayed on the wall behin the Venus A Roman copy of Diadoumenos by Polykleitos
Red Castle Jamahiriya Museum, Tripoli Jamahiriya Museum, Tripoli Jamahiriya Museum, Tripoli Jamahiriya Museum, Tripoli
         
The VW Beetle used by Colonel Qaddafi around the time of the 1969 revolution A statue of the Three Graces from the Roman Baths at Cyrene A statue of the Three Graces from the Roman Baths at Cyrene Ephesian Artemis from the amphitheatre of Leptis Magna Some very fine mosaics from the Tripolitania area
Jamahiriya Museum, Tripoli Jamahiriya Museum, Tripoli Jamahiriya Museum, Tripoli Jamahiriya Museum, Tripoli Jamahiriya Museum, Tripoli
         
Some very fine mosaics from the Tripolitania area Some very fine mosaics from the Tripolitania area Outside the Jamahiriya Museum in Green Square Green Square The columns at the entrance to Green Square, sometimes known as Martyrs' Square
Jamahiriya Museum, Tripoli Jamahiriya Museum, Tripoli Jamahiriya Museum, Tripoli Green Square, Tripoli Green Square, Tripoli
         
This poster celebrates 39 years since the revolution We had to identify our luggage at Tripoli airport before boarding the plane. This suitcase appears to be abandoned Our internal flight to Benghazi was on Buraq Airways Flying eastwards along the coastal plain towards Benghazi Benghazi Airport
Tripoli Tripoli Airport Tripoli Airport In flight Benghazi Airport
         
Another Qaddafi poster at Benghazi Airport... ...and on the airport forecourt Hotel Tibesti was built in the 1970s and hasn't been updated since. However, it was the only one of our hotels with Internet access View from our bedroom across one of the Benghazi lagoons Our evening meal in Benghazi was at a Turkish restaurant
Benghazi Airport Benghazi Benghazi Benghazi Benghazi
         
The lagoons of Benghazi in the morning sun The lagoons of Benghazi in the morning sun Ptolemais - the crossroads of the Cardo and Decumanus with the column bases and pillars which are all that remain of three Roman arches marking the entrance to the Monumental Road Roman Baths off the Monumental Road The remains of cisterns used in the Byzantine period
Benghazi Benghazi Ptolemais Ptolemais Ptolemais
         
The Byzantine cisterns The Byzantine cisterns Water would have been drawn through the holes in the roof The Villa of Columns - no doubt this large dwelling belonged to a wealthy family The Villa of Columns
Ptolemais Ptolemais Ptolemais Ptolemais Ptolemais
         
The Villa of Columns - a large swimming pool or ornamental pond is found in the centre of the villa The Villa of Columns The peristyle surrounding the pool of the Villa of Columns Looking down on the the villa's bath complex and storage areas and the Byzantine cistern beyond The western gateway of Ptolemais
Ptolemais Ptolemais Ptolemais Ptolemais Ptolemais
         
The Forum of Ptolemais showing one of the holes giving access to the vast cisterns below. The concrete surrounds were installed by the Italians We go down into the cisterns which were originally built by the Greeks and expanded by the Romans in the 2nd Century AD These cisterns are the largest in North Africa and were fed by water routed from mountain springs 25km away in the mountains above Ptolemais This chamber is partially silted up. The Greeks built the lower part in stone and the Romans the upper vault in bricks and cement Water was pulled up to the Forum above through holes in the vault
Ptolemais Ptolemais Ptolemais Ptolemais Ptolemais
         
All the chambers interconnect so that the water filled all 18 galleries The way out! The way out! Gill emerges The Roman Forum and the remains of one of three temples that were situated on the northern edge
Ptolemais Ptolemais Ptolemais Ptolemais Ptolemais
         
The Forum covers a large area. The cisterns lie beneath this The Odeon of Ptolemais. It would have seated about 500 people and was covered by a roof Evidence of pipework suggests that the Romans may have filled this with water - for entertainment or swimming? The Odeon of Ptolemais Villa of the Four Seasons - named after the mosaic found there which is now in the museum
Ptolemais Ptolemais Ptolemais Ptolemais Ptolemais
         
There are still some mosaics in situ This is the modern village of Ptolemais - Tulmaythah The Museum of Ptolemais - this Medusa head mosaic is from the Villa of the Columns Detail of the Medusa head mosaic This is bottom part of the Four Seasons mosaic from the villa of the same name
Ptolemais Ptolemais Ptolemais Ptolemais Ptolemais
         
A very welcome picnic after our visit to the site There was an Italian settlement here, but the houses are now deserted Italian houses    
Ptolemais Ptolemais Ptolemais    
         
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