Local Libya

Local Libya

Libya had been on our list for a few years. We visited when Gaddafi was still in power, no civil war,
no militia’s. A quiet and peaceful period.

Airline ‘Afriqiyah’ (Libyan state-owned) takes us to Tripoli, Libya. The plane can carry about 170 passengers; there were approximately 25 people on board. We land at Tripoli International Airport. Our visa is approved, we wait in the arrival hall. No guide yet. Unfortunately my phone doesn’t work here. At last driver/guide Ahmed is there.

Through a rainy and gloomy Tripoli he takes us to the Alkabir Hotel – also known as Grand Hotel Tripoli. Located close to a square and to medina market the view is nice. That evening we dine in restaurant Diafa Fish. Good food. We walk, it’s close to the hotel.

Start the day driving South, direction Gharyan. Stop in Qasr al-Haj. Location of an old big grain storage. Impressive. On it goes to Tarmeisa, a Berber village close to a huge valley. Berbers are descendants of the pre-Arab inhabitants of North Africa. We meet a local called Brahim. He invites us to his home. We drink some coffee in the guest room. Along with that a small plate with a pastry. A local specialty by the name of ‘Tóman’. The taste reminds us of peanut butter…

In Gharyan we visit a ‘Troglodyte’ house. The building is completely underground. To enter you
kind of jump in. After lunch we walk around in Gharyan, a little sightseeing, tea on a small terrace. We finish the day in a shisha café. Smoke the waterpipe, all different flavors…

The hotel we stay at, in Gharyan, is not used to having a lot of guests. No wake-up call this morning and
the breakfast room was dark and closed. On an empty stomach we continue our trip. A long trip all the way back to the coast. At last we reach Leptis Magna. First coffee.

Guide Musbah shows us around. Roman Emperor Septimius Severus greatly expanded the city –
probably because he was born there. This Emperor was the only Roman Emperor of Roman African
heritage. The ruins of Leptis Magna are within present-day Khoms, 130 km east of Tripoli. They are among the best-preserved Roman sites in the Mediterranean.

Our guide is very enthusiastic. He knows his history and is full of stories. Among the interesting
things he shows us are the Amphitheatre, the Arch of Septimius Severus and the Hadrianic Baths.
All in all an incredible visit; stepping back 18 centuries in time!

Our hotel for the night is in Zliten. Therefor, Hotel Zliten. We walk the city center, sit down for a
cup of tea. Back in the hotel it turns out my cell phone is stolen. We talk to the reception, they will
ask around. Small chance I’m afraid. After all, we leave tomorrow.

Breakfast in Zliten hotel next day. We share the breakfast room with a lot of foreign construction workers. They wonder what the two of us are doing in the Libyan desert… We drive to Sabratha. Like Leptis Magna a city of days gone by. A Roman city in those days. Well preserved also. This archaeological site is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The guide here is called Fàti. He tries his best but he is less inspired than Musbah. Sabratha is much
smaller than Leptis. Though interesting. We saw a grave from a Phoenician guy buried two
centuries BC. The medina – the old city – lies partly sunken in the water. We also spot the swastika sign.
Originally Indian Buddhist symbol, later misused by the NAZI’s.

We say goodbye to guide Ahmed and check in to the most famous Tripoli hotel called Corinthia. It’s a huge hotel close to the Mediterranean Sea. Government officials, foreign business people and a few tourists are staying over. In the years after the fall of Gaddafi some political motivated murders took place here.

A little walk in the neighbourhood. We discover close to where we stay an excellent outside shisha
café. We make it a habit to drop by there now and then. Diner that evening in the top floor restaurant of the Corinthia. A superb view. As a main we choose the Moroccan-style prepared dove. Tastes very good.

Taxi to the Red Castle of Tripoli. This is a vast palace complex with numerous courtyards, dominates the city skyline and is located on the outskirts of the Medina. There are some classical statues and fountains from the Ottoman period scattered around the castle. It houses the main museum of the country. The history of Libya is on display ; ending with the happy society Gaddafi created for his people (…).

In the museum I bought the Green Book. This is a short book setting out the political philosophy of
Muammar Ghaddafi. His inspiration came from the famous Red Book by Chinese chairman Mao
Tse-Tung. The book is written in a ‘simple, understandable style with many memorable slogans’.
Off course during the later civil war copies of the book were burnt.

We sip some tea on the terrace of a tea house. Tea is very popular here, especially mint tea. In this
strict Islamic country alcohol is not allowed. We never spotted any beer or wine somewhere. Nor
did we ask for it.

We stroll through the harbour into the Medina. See the Arc of Marcus Aurelius. Enter a large fish
market and end up on our own shisha café. That evening we dine in the Fatah tower. On top of it is a spinning restaurant. Nice view, nice food.

In Arab countries you always find a large souk. An endless market where you almost get lost. Most
shops you see are either selling carpets or gold and silver. And mind you ; you don’t have to choose between one or two shops ; there are more than hundred selling the same stuff. Unlike in Morocco (much more tourists visit) nobody shouts at you or behaves pushy. It’s a nice walk around presenting you many photo opportunities.

Time for a drink at Clock Tower terrace. An older chap joins us. He visited Great Britain in the seventies. His English is good but dated. He uses out-of-date expressions like ‘it’s raining cats and dogs’.
In the copper souk we buy a tray displaying a carved out portrait of Ghaddafi – just for fun.

That evening our flight back awaits us. So one last cup of the tea and a waterpipe on our favorite
terrace close to the hotel.

The year before we visited a Danish cartoonist published some explosive images of Muhammed. This let to riots – mostly government organized – in some Arab countries (read about in https://www.huffpost.com/entry/muhammad-cartoons_b_1907545). During our stay there were
still riots, also in Libya. Riots to protest against the Danish cartoonist. While travelling we often experience the common people have their own – not government oriented – ideas.

Sorry for this long intro. To the point now! While sipping our tea and enjoying the waterpipe some students pass by. They spot us, laugh, come to us and shout smiling ‘Don’t say you’re from Denmark!’

Trip was made in 2006.

 africa culture middle east