Bengasi

Understand

The people of Benghazi are incredibly friendly. However, very few people speak any English and, because of the writing style (which is written right to left in Arabic), it can be almost impossible to recognize any public signs if you don’t know how to speak or read Arabic. Most things can, however, be sorted out with a bit of pointing and hand waving. The name derives from the Ottoman Turkish word Marsa ibn Ghazi who was a Turkish soldier.

The dress code is not as liberal as in Tripoli, and women should keep themselves covered - not because there would be trouble, but just out of respect. However, locals do not expect non-Muslim visitors to thoroughly comply with their customs.

People in Tripoli like a good argument and may shout at one another, but this is not an indication of any trouble. Even if it sounds harsh to you, if you understand Arabic, you will find out it is generally nothing of any consequence.

If you travel on a tourist visa, you must get the hotel staff to have your passport stamped or visit the local police station to register where you are staying and get a stamp in your passport - otherwise, you will not find it easy to leave the country.

If you wish to drive out of the city and visit the ruins or other sites of interest, you can get a local guide, but you will need a permit from the local tourist office before you may leave the city.

Eat

Anything. There is nothing that isn't acceptable to the western palate - the food can be quite spicy, although not excessively so.

Traditional Libyan fare appears to be couscous, kebabs, spicy potatoes, salads, and nothing that you wouldn't find in London.

There are a number of good restaurants. Although very basic by western standards, they do produce good meals. Round the back of the Tibesti Hotel there are some good Turkish restaurants; most of their food is very edible, and the prices are very reasonable.

Generally, service is very slow, so leave a good amount of time to have a meal. There are kebab takeaways if you are in a hurry, but in a hotel you can wait 30 minutes to get a waiter to take your order or bring you a menu. To save time it is often easier to pay for your meal/drinks as they are served, before saving the half-hour wait to get a bill.

The food is generally served a little cooler than you expect - it is generally warm rather than hot, and the chips are worth avoiding as they tend to be rubbery.

Drink

Alcohol is not allowed in Libya. The best things to drink are:

Coffee, although they do seem to want to give you Nescafe, as they think it's pretty cool; but just about everywhere you can get cappuccino or Arabian coffee, which are pretty good.

The mango juice is good and very thick.

Coke, Lilt, and 7Up cans are popular, as well as the lemon and mint teas.

Alcohol-free beer is widely available (Becks), as is 'Spitz', which tastes like campari or cough mixture. If you really want alcohol, wine is available from butcher's shops, but it's expensive (whisky is about USD 100 per bottle). It is said that the penalty for being caught drunk or with alcohol is to be driven back to your hotel room by the police. While this sounds safer than riding the local taxis, such approach is not recommended.

Sleep

Standards of maintenance are not always perfect and service can be slow, the rating system does not really correspond to international guidelines. Consider bringing your own towels.