Traveling to Apollonia and Cyrene

Remains of Italian small gage railroad.

More about our trip east in early June:  After getting settled into a Benghazi guesthouse, we made arrangements for a driver to take us to the ancient Greek cities of Apollonia and Cyrene, which were some distance east of Benghazi. However, we managed to make the trip in a day because the roads along the coast are excellent and our driver had no problem traveling at speeds between 130 to 150 kph. His name was Muftah, and he spoke excellent English, had made this trip many times, and was very knowledgeable.  We had a very pleasant day with him.

The cave of Omar al-Mukhtar.

The trip begins along the coastal plane and moves gradually towards the Jebel al-Akhdar (Green Mountains). The mountains are anything but green as you rise to the first of two plateaus. These hills look a lot like many parts of the western U.S. By the time you get to the second plateau, there is a lot more foliage.

Entrance to the cave restaurant.

There are many abandoned farmhouses along the way that are all of similar design. These are the farms that were created for Italian immigrants during the occupation of this area that began in 1911 and continued until the Italian defeat in W.W.II. Many Libyans do not look Arabic this can be attributed to the fact that an estimated 66,000 Italians were abandoned in Libya after the war.

Lounge seating in the cave restaurant.

Driving the side roads that wind through the hills can be a treat. Along the way, we passed many caves that had been used by the Sanusi resistance in fighting the Italians; this included the cave of Omar al-Mukhtar. Nearby are the remains of a narrow-gage Italian railway that had been built to pacify the area after al-Mukhtar’s execution. The story of al-Mukhtar’s resistance fight against the Italians can be seen in the 1981 film Lion of the Desert, staring Anthony Quinn.

Party seating in the cave restaurant.

We stopped for lunch along the way at a location that Mustah recommended. This was a local resort that had a restaurant, which had been built into a cave complex. The caves had been expanded to accommodate several large underground dinning rooms. The restaurant was well lit and coolness of the underground environment offered a pleasant respite from the Libyan sun.