Sabratha
Sabratha is located about an hour's drive west of Tripoli. The roads are excellent.
The first impression is the sheer size of the place. The ruins span about two miles across.
The position on the coastline couldn't be better. A reef about 100 yards off shore creates a small harbor.
This mosaic deck was the perfect evening spot.
This Temple of Isis is the eastermost of the buildings. In the distance to the left is the large theatre building.
Spider woman!
The theatre is magnificent. A perfect setting with the Meditterranean as backdrop.
A final look. The acoustics are perfect.
About a kilometer east of the theatre is where the ampitheatre is located, just to my left from this position.
Looks like it would seat about 5000 persons. The ditches in the floor were normally covered by heavy beams and dirt, and allowed special entry to the arena, depending on the "show". You can see the theatre in the center far distance.
A closer look at one of the trenches.
A somewhat distorted full panorama from the middle of the floor.
Entrance for the paying customer. Gladiator and animal pens/rooms are located on either side of this entrance and the one on the opposite side of the stadium.
This is the small fishing village just west of the site. We decided to take a look at Sabratha's beaches while here...
And this is it. Pretty hard to beat this. Very clear water covers a funny bump in the sand bottom, and the dark blue is where the sand bar ends in deep water. For the really sharp sighted, there is a large school of fish just off the beach on the left about a third of the way in from the left edge.
We stopped for some delicious peaches, apricots and strawberries on the way back.
On the outskirts of Tripoli our driver asked if we wanted to see a local museum. Intrigued, we said sure. The museum is located in a landowner's former back yard. While digging there about 15 years ago he discovered some buried caves. They turned out to be part of a Punic (Phoenecians from Carthage - 700-300 BC) burial ground. Found inside some of the tombs were many urns, jewelry, and personal belongings. And, inside the tombs, exquisite wall paintings.
This is a tunnel leading to one of the tombs. Urns still intact.
Entry to a tomb
Wow!
Not bad for 2500 years ago. Only a small portion of the tombs have been opened and researched so far. Something to look forward to.