Posted by In the morning we leave Tripoli to go to Sabratha one of the three old cities of the ancient settlements from Phoenicians days. Back then it was just as important as Oea – present days Tripoli. But as time pass on the influence of Sabratha diminished and an earthquake destroyed parts of the city. Other parts ended up in different European museums but despite all this a lot still remain to be seen in the old city of Sabratha.
It is a really nice sunny day in Libya and the temperature is perfect compared with the conditions back in Copenhagen so just being able to walk along the coastline is a pleasure. The fact we actually got a pretty good and informative guide is only and additional advantage.
Around in the town are a lot of nice mosaics among the remains of some ancient basilicas. But the main attraction of the city is the giant theatre. It used to be a ruin but when the Italian dictator Mussolini came to visit thing started to go fast – and they rebuild the theatre in a rush. It is the most impressive of the buildings around. In the old days it could seat 5000 people but today it is only partly rebuild hence it can only seat 1500 – and it is still in use from time to time.
After a take away lunch in front of the old city at a not so charming parking lot we start moving south. The road brings us through Azizia – the hottest place on earth. The record temperature in this little town is 58 Celsius or 136 Fahrenheit which makes Death Valley seem like a place to hang around to avoid the heat – after all the record temperature in Death Valley is a measly 134 Fahrenheit. But the record temperatures is found in the summer time not in late December we shall be thankful for a temperature a bit over 20 Celsius. The night is spend in a old style hotel in Libya – one of the sort you thought we had all left in the 70s – but it is still in use today in Libya – well all we really need is a bed to sleep in – and a bar but that is a bit more of a problem around this town the strongest they are serving is tea.
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