Leptis Magna was pretty mag! If you’re a fan of climbing through Phoenician-Greco-Roman ruins with next to no tourists around, Libya is the place to be!
Leptis Magna was first established as a Punic settlement around 500 BCE, but went through significant expansion during the reign of (Libyan-born) Roman Emperor Septimius Severus. After being abandoned at the time of the Arab invasion in the 640s CE, it was covered over by dunes which kept it well preserved until the Italians uncovered it in the 1920s. The great arch is a monument to Septimus Servus. The amplitheatre was the third largest in the Roman Empire.
We had a professor from the local university guide us through the ruins and explain how everything worked. My favourite tidbit is how they built the first row seats just high enough so that the lions couldn’t leap into the stands.
This is a wrap for Libya. It exceeded my expectations. The people were friendly, kind and hospitable. The food was good. The history and culture of the country are fascinating. I know it’s a Level 4 ‘’Do Not Travel’’ country but with the right arrangements it was perfectly fine.
I have a 4:30 AM wake-up call to get to the airport to fly back to Tunis. I’m having a bit of trouble booking a car pick-up because the flight and the airport don’t register in the international flight databases, but I guess I’ll grab a cab when I get there. I’m looking forward to a few glasses of wine before I leave for dry Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on Sunday.
My Libyan photos are here (Opens in new tab.)
No comments:
Post a Comment