Leptis Magnus (Roman Ruins in Libya)

Thanks. Thats what I was afraid of.

Thanks so much. There are some amazing photos of the place, and some glowing reviews on TA. But perhaps the geo-politics will change in the future.

These ruins are my only interest in Libya. If you were 'in the neighbourhood' it looks like a day trip from Tripoli. I carry a Canadian passport, but as an aging solo woman traveler, I never investigated it further.
Michael Pallin (of Monty Python cum travel writer fame) did a Sahara documentary and managed to get in and out of Libya. He raved about these ruins. I enjoyed the whole documentary. Maybe you find it through an extended library loan or online somewhere. It also made me curious about Mali and Niger, but they aren't easy to travel either.

I recommend checking the Department of State website anytime you are looking to travel out of the country. Here is the Libya page: https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/traveladvisories/libya-travel-advisory.html

Leptis Magna... you can add it to the list of "perhaps one day" along with Palmyra, Krak des Chevaliers, Persepolis, Meroë, Lalibela

Segobriga in central Spain is similar but on a smaller scale.

Thanks Carlos. I have seen the aqueduct in Segovia, and want to see more of the Roman ruins in Merida, outside Seville, Tarragon, etc. There were many Roman battles fought in Spain including some of Ceasar's civil war. I wonder if there are any Carthaginian remnants?

Thanks Carlos. I have seen the aqueduct in Segovia, and want to see more of the Roman ruins in Merida, outside Seville, Tarragon, etc. There were many Roman battles fought in Spain including some of Ceasar's civil war. I wonder if there are any Carthaginian remnants?

Oh yes I am well aware 😁 the classical history of Spain and the Mediterranean is a bit of a special fancy with me. Regarding Carthaginian sites in Spain, they are rare but you can look at Cartagena (Carthago Nova) - most diverse collection of ancient sites in a single city of Spain, including preserved Carthaginian City Walls, one of the few remains of Carthaginian archaeology still out there.

Further south you have Cadiz, the oldest city continuously inhabited in western Europe, founded by the Phoenicians back in the late bronze age. Cadiz's archeology museum has artifacts found from the Phoenician and later Punic/Carthaginian periods.

The Ancient Greeks also had colonies in Spain, north of Barcelona is Empúries the site of the ancient ruins of a Greek colony from the 6th–3rd century BC. It's quite unique as the ruins sit right on the Costa Brava overlooking the sea. The area is also the site of an ancient Roman town called Emporiæ from the 2nd century BC - 6th century AD. There is a pretty good museum on-site containing artifacts and mosaics of the Roman and Greek periods called the Museu d'Arqueologia de Catalunya - Empúries.

Of course all the Roman stuff in Spain is too vast to count, but you can add Saguntum, Les Ferreres Aqueduct, Baelo Claudia, Roman walls of Lugo, Villa Romana de Noheda, and the Tower of Hercules to your Roman wish list

Looks really fascinating - wish I could visit.

Have you considered hitting the Roman sites in Algeria? In fact I leave for Algeria tomorrow and planning on visiting Tiddis, Timgad, Djemila and Tipiza among other sites. Also planning on visiting Carthage and other sites in Tunisa later in the year.

In case you are interested, getting a visa from the consulate in NY was straightforward- visa issued in 3 days. Total time was about 9-10 days due to the postal system

Thanks Carlos and Arnold

Isn't Barcelona named after Hannibal Barca? Do you know about battle sites like Munda, Ilerda, etc? I know that Ceasar Augustus visited Spain and started the cities of Zaragoza and Merida. I have been to Cadiz - supposedly Ceasar saw a statue of Alexander the Great and felt inadequate that he had not accomplished much by the same age. Do you know if any of that exists?

Arnold - please keep us posted about Algeria. I did not think to go there, because I had the idea that people were fleeing there in those refugee ships. But I have not really kept up what is going on now.