handwritten post no. 2

Tuesday, March 21
about 10am, somewhere in Libya
On the bus

We left Susa this morning, en route to Benghazi where we will board an evening flight to Tripoli. Along the way, we stop at three sites: Qasr Lebia, Ptolemais, and Tocra.



We've just left Qasr Lebia. (Qasr is Arabic for castle. Or maybe I should say castle is English for qasr.) The site was small, but really interesting, most of all for the marvelous whimsical mosaics found there. You approach the qasr from the bottom of the hill, and it looks like a little sanstone Lego castle. The landscape is peppered with bright, blooming trees and shrubs, while spring flowers (poppies, mostly) sprout underfoot. The weather is perfect. The mosaics originally resided in the eastern church, but have put under cover in a small museum. Wildly colorful, thematically varied depictions of animals (as predator, prey, and lollygagging creature) dominate, bu there are also scenes of humans (gods and mortals alike) and castles and the lighthouse at Alexandria. I suppose "folk" is the term for the content.





Leaving the site, we bumped into the French group staying at our hotel, yet again. I swear we're going to see them all the way to Tripoli. Meals at the hotel are quite the international affairs: French, Germans, Italians, Canadians, and us Yanks. Actually, one of our people was chatting with a Canadian who said, "I thought Americans weren't allowed in Libya." Bet that's a selling point for some folks.

Going back again, yesterday (Monday) was pretty great. Our first stop was Apollonia, right across the street from the hotel. More Roman and Byzantine riuns, all very lovely, but its location is unreal, perched on a cliff overlooking the Mediterranean. So pretty, agagin. The wind was hot and fierce, though. Gale force, blowing me over a few times. (They were blowing all night before, too. Woke me up several times. And what I had initially said was rain coming down turned out to be, in fact, SAND. Pelting our hotel all the way upt o the 7th floor.)



After Apollonia, we boarded the bus for the most picturesque drive. The view was stunning. Just when I think that sea can't get any more striking, it does. Our second stop, L'Atrun had the most amazing scenery seen yet (I took at least three dozens photos so you'll see). Rolling green mountains dropping sheer down to the water below, which is so crystal you can see the rocks continue below. Dare I say, it was breathtaking. The site has two churches, probably the most exquisitely located places of worship. The marble was in excellent condition and parts of the structures have been reconstructed.





And then, when the elevating temperature and winds had just about gotten to me, a cool, sweet breeze floated up off the sea. It was delicious. I stood on a rock for a solid ten minutes taking it in.



Next stop, Ras al Hillal. Another Byzantine church, or what remains of it. Nice mosaics, but by this point I'm a little churched out.

Last stop before lunch (yes, all this before lunch) was a brief peek at the largest cave in Africa. It was pretty cool, plus now I can say I've been to the largest cave in Africa. So huge, though I have no basis for comparison since I'm not a cave-dweller. Local farmers still use it in the winter months; you can see the smoke charred on the walls from their fires.



Last site for the day (after lunch) was Slonta. Not really a site, actually, more like a curiosity. It's a little area, about 200 sq. ft., of reliefs carved right into the stone. A grotto I think it was called? The scenes are intriguing, weeping and moourning people, the four seasons, a cow, a crying boy. No one really knows what it means or even to when it dates, but it is unlike any rock-cut scenes anywhere else in Libya. You have to rely on your imagination a bit to see some of the images, though. It's like Magic Eye in the rock.



Came back to the hotel and it was still early so a couple of us walked into "town." Caused a bit of a stir walking through the main strip (all of two blocks with about two dozen shops). Got some good shots of the curious and mostly friendly people, including a butcher and a baker (but no candlestick maker).





Then I ate three chocolate covered cream puffs at dinner and went to bed. Moo.

handwritten post, no. 1

Sunday, March 19
9:13pm Susa, Libya

From here on out, looks like I'll be writing my journal the old-fashioned way -- by hand. I'm too afraid to turn on my computer. Sparks just flew when I plugged the power cord to the adapter in the outlet. Not going to risk frying my baby. But, it's down to about 13% power and I need to be able to dump my photos... Memory card is full. Hope that doesn't suck up too much juice. Batteries are also dead in the camera, but the battery charger seems to be working OK. So did my phone, although it got quite hot. (Another thing I can't risk losing.) Forget about the iPod.



All these technical difficulties are only adding to my mounting tension. I want Mexican food so bad. Basically I just want anything that's not hummous, cucumber, and bread, so bad. I want my clothes. Very sick of wearing the same crap over and over, even if I do do that at home. Most of all, I'm getting homesick, and missing someone a lot. The absence of cellular service, contrary to what I was told, is making that worse. Didn't feel so far away when there was the magic of text messaging. I need to call my mama, too. Things were much easier in Egypt...

Which is not to say that Libya is bad, save for the barren wasteland at the border. It's quite lovely, actually. Just very foreign, to everyone. No one is quite comfortable yet.

The area we are now in, Susa, is a verdant fertile seaside town, home to some magnificent ruins at Cyrene and Apollonia. (It's the ancient region of Cyrenaica, a name that still sticks today.) There are mountains, the Jebel Akhdar, speckled with trees (trees!) and bushes, wide expanses of green farm in the valley, and -- it rains. Raining right now, in fact.

Our guides, Khalim and Mohammad, are also very friendly and jovial, cracking jokes already. I feel bad trash-talking their country, which they obviously take much pride in and revel in sharing tidbits of info on. I've already been offered Arabic lessons and a place to stay if I really want to get to know Libya.

SIDE NOTE: That just reminded me about my waiter yesterday morning in Marsa Matrouh (that seems like eons ago...). I got to breakfast, late as usual, and ate alone, as usual. The waiter came by with coffee, etc for me, then came by again to chat. What is your name, where are you from, how old are you (his name is Mahmood, he's 27). Then he says, you have very pretty eyes. Amazing the key phrases one learns of a foreign language... I complimented him on his English, which was actually quite good, and said I'd like to learn Arabic someday. He says, "You touch me... and I'll touch you Arabic." I snickered and said sure thing, didn't have the heart to correct him.

Anyway, back to Libya.

Oh, I think I forgot the rest of Marsa Matrouh. Nothing much happened since we were there just to sleep, but it was BEAUTIFUL. The town is a total resort destination, beach houses and hotels up and down the Mediterranean coast. Being that it's still winter/spring, the whole place was deserted. Think we were the only ones in the hotel (which was brand new). Didn't take away from the amazing beachfront view though.



OK, now on to Libya. Our hotel in Susa is all right. Also brand new (tourism is new here), but very stark. When I'm in a good mood, I think of how much worse it could be. When I'm in a bad mood, it feels like a prison and I want to cry. The walls are sterile white, very little adornment. It's so empty, the room echoes. You can hear every noise in the hall and from adjacent rooms. The winds are so loud outside, it's howling clear across my room to the door. Something smells in the bathroom. Fridge is empty. Dim, dank lighting. But, the bed is comfy and has a fuzzy blankie like mine at home. Food is ehh, but they compensate with dessert.



Today we spent all day at Cyrene, a vast Greek/Roman complex. A whole city, really. Beautiful mosaics, fantastic sculpture (now in the on-site museum). My favorite aspect of the site, however, was the presence of nature. It's like an open-air museum, you can climb all up on the ruins (which you could NEVER do in the States or even Europe). Grass and wildflowers and trees have just grown up and around the rubble, simply taking back their natural land. I love when nature wins.





To add to that, we had a wildlife element. Here we are, touring millenia-old historic sites, and we turn a corner, and there's a cow. Just hanging out, chewing on some grass. Cows roam freely about the site, a natural lawn-mowing service. I saw a turtle ambling through the brush, too.



Our guide at the site, a Libyan man, worked on the initial Italian excavations for twelve years, beginning in 1970. Really interesting guy, excellent English (which he spoke with an Italian accent).

Lunch was good. Couscous and veggies. Here is where Libya wins: Our bus here (after trading in the shack on wheels that plucked us from the border) is so much better than the one in Egypt. It's like being on an airplane, in Economy Plus.

OK, sleepytime.
(read: my hand hurts from writing.)