1-Benghazi :

The second largest city in Libya with a population of 850.000 ,and is situated on the eastern side of the Gulf of Sirt . Founded in 116 BC and it was one of the five cities in Cyrenaica during the Greek period ,the settlement was called Eusperides ,thought to be the site of the legendary Garden of Hesperides of Golden Apples fame.
By 249 B.C, Benghazi was called Berenica, named after the wife of Ptolemy III of Egypt ,who subjected Cyrenaica to Egyptian rule and married Berenica. The name Benghazi came about in the 16th century (Islamic period) when the city was renamed after IBN Ghazi ,a local holy man .
In 1911 the Italians laid siege to the city from the sea and it effectively became an Italian fortress in the face of fierce resistance by tribes from the surrounding areas .
The resistance took 20 years to subdue and it was only in the 1930s that the city was built up into what was virtually an Italian city in North Africa.

Is 70 k.m north-east of Benghazi on the coast road .Founded around 510 BC.-Tocra was one of the first ports settled from Cyrene .It was renamed Arsinoe ,after the wife of Ptolemy II ,and latter it was known as Cleopatris after the daughter of Cleopatris and Mark Antony .From the time of the Ptolemies,the city shared a similar history with its sister city,Ptolemais,37 k.m .farther along the coast .The entrance to the ruins of the original city is through the gate of the old Turkish fort .The fort appears to have been built on the foundations of a much earlier church or temple, and there are some tombs carved into the side of sunken pit nearby .The walls of the city have been partially excavated and within their circumference can be seen the remain of two Christian churches and a large Hellenistic colonnaded courtyard and portico

Once it was the capital of Cyrenaica as a whole. It is situated on an attractive stretch of coast fringed by palm trees. The beach here is open and often deserted ,with good bathing and soft sand. The famous archaeological monuments are :
- Four Seasons Palace , and Palace of columns ,which was decorated by rare mosaics floors.
Forum.
Water cistern. Considered one of the biggest cisterns in the classic world.
Two Roman theatres .
The Greek theatre –cut in the rocks.
Byzantine Baths.
Circus.
The domed Hellenistic Mausoleum..
Some of the other important monuments are not yet excavated and the site ,as a whole ,can present a challenge to the imagination. It is worth persevering to see the excavated buildings, even though it is quite a hike round the site…

25 km west of Al-Bayda, is well worth a visit .There is a Turkish fort ,visible from the road ,and a Byzantine west church with a mosaic floor . The main reason for visiting the site ,however , is to see the wonderful collection of 50 square mosaic panels which were discovered nearby , in the East church, and are now mounted in a museum on the site .
They originally came from the floor of a basilica and depict a wide and interesting range of subjects .The panels are in beautiful condition ,and one depicts the only known representation of the Pharos Lighthouse at Alexandria. One of the wonders of the ancient world .The mosaics date from the early 6th century and they indicate the presence of a wealthy and prominent Christian community at that time.

South of Al-Bayda, about 60 km away in the south jebel road ,in the small village of Slonta. Inside the carved temple there is an abundance of huddled carved figures, of both humans and animals ,which are quite unique and rather lovely .A facsimile of the carving can be seen in the Tripoli Museum.

It was Cyrene's harbor. It name came from the "God" Apollo .This harbor was well-known for exporting the medical plant "Silvium" which was stamped on its coin . It's the most rewarding of the Greek cities to visit. For those with snorkeling or diving equipment there are underwater ruins just offshore from
the ruins, part of the city having been submerged over the centuries .
The most important ruins are :
- --The Acropolis, on the southeast hill.
- --The church of the three Angles design .
- -- The Hellenistic theatre .
- --Baths.
- --The Byzantine palace.
- --The city Hellenistic walls.