Libya - 26 August - 29 August 2007

The 2000km drive across Libya to Tunisia was a long one but on good roads with frequent police checks. The border post into Libya took 9 hours of struggle with Arabic and getting Libyan number plates and custom clearance, but was overshadowed by the Libyan kindness, offering us food (chicken and spicy noodles), drinks and chocolates. We were eventually escorted by a tourist policeman, Mr Mohammed, to sleep next to a gas station, with great showers!

Heading west, we spent an afternoon marvelling at the Greek ruins at Cyrene , founded in 632 BC and named after the nymph Cyrene . The amphitheatre, temple of Zeus and Apollo with the rock and tombs down the escarpment to Appolonia, were especially dramatic.

Eventually we found our overnight accommodation in the car park of the Tibest Hotel in Benghazi and crashed before tackling the gruelling 850km to Misrata. Again we experienced the Libyan generosity with spontaneous meals at a local restaurant and free 'camping' on the grounds of the Gouzteek Hotel. Another early start and we lost ourselves in the outstanding Leptis Magna , originally a Phoenician port and then flourished under Roman rule in the 6 th century BC before the vandals destruction. The highlights were the severan arch with it's decorative sculptures, the hadrianic baths, the basilica with fantastic carved columns and the almost intact theatre. Amazing that after being abandoned in the 11 th century and covered with sand until the 20 th century Italian excavations, we can still feel their grand lifestyle.

Then, Tripoli , with its Turkish-Italian architecture and lively medina (old city) was our stopover for 2 nights. The Al-Kandi 4 star hotel nogal, was a respite from the heat and for once we lived in luxury (long overdue according to the girls!) as all the other hotels were either full or being renovated.

GR1 fixed a puncture and attempts were made at securing ferry crossings from Tunisia to Italy , before we explored the sights. Everywhere were billboards of Gadaffi and his views in the 'Green Book', which is the blueprint for people's power in a non-state, a jomhuriyya.

The unspoilt medina contains 38 mosques, within its walls, numerous souqs (markets) and the dominant Tripoli Castle amongst a labyrinth of courtyards and alleyways dating back to the 16 th century even though the site dates back to the Roman times. Only the impressive decorative Arch of Marcus Aurelius remains. GR1 decided to have an ‘alfresco' dining experience at the Arch, sampling Libyan dishes - lamb tajen cooked in a clay pot that they actually break open in front of you and a fresh whole fish. The Gurgi Mosque has beautiful inlaid marble decorations and tiles with 16 domes in its prayer hall and some ancient tombs leading off the eastern side.

The next day we were off to the border, but not after puncture repairs - Gary and Dean's umpteenth puncture he had en route. We lost Eddie in the traffic, meeting up at the Tunisian border after a brief search by 'My Van' (GR3).

Greetings

Globeriders Cape2cape