Through the Anti-Atlas - Tafraoute

We head towards the Anti-Atlas, our next destination is Tafraoute, a beautiful oasis city at 1000m. We pass through surreal desert landscapes (on very good gravel roads), spend the night somewhere in the middle of nowhere, and pass through the stunning Ait-Mansour Valley.

Close to Tafraoute are the brightly colored rocks (Les Peintures), which were first painted in 1985 by Jean Vérame, a Belgian artist - really crazy. Since Ramadan ends today, there is nothing going on and we wander around almost alone... Mia is excited, especially about the pink rocks that match her Bibi Blocksberg T-shirt perfectly 🤣.

Right around the corner are the two picturesque villages of Afella Adai and Adai, also surrounded by round stone formations.

We find a great parking spot in the middle of palm trees and near the rocks, and luckily it's not crowded here... as we later find out, from January to mid-April it's always packed. The temperatures are pleasant at 25 degrees, and there is a gentle breeze... perfect.

We immediately notice the warm and unobtrusive atmosphere in the town... locals pass by our parking spot on bike or on foot, everyone greets friendly, no one wants to sell us anything. We also experience this later while shopping in town, it's totally relaxed and we blend in pleasantly - only Mia gets hugged spontaneously from time to time... but she's used to it by now 😘.

After a peaceful night in this beautiful place, we decide to stay one more day - also because today, Saturday, Aid al-Fitr (the end of Ramadan, translated as "the small festival") is celebrated and we are curious if we can experience a little bit of it in a small town.

We walk into town around noon and it's absolutely dead - no shops open, a ghost town. Only at the playground does a Moroccan family join us - they insist on giving Mia and me chocolate bars, and I am handed the smallest of 4 children - just a few months old 🤣.

I try to start a conversation with my Arabic translator, which doesn't work out, but that doesn't matter, it was just really nice.

We walk back to the parking spot, enjoy the afternoon sun, and plan our next destinations while Mia climbs around the round rocks - everything is so relaxed.

In the evening, we try our luck again to go shopping and have something to eat, and it works out somewhat.

After dinner, we walk through the town and it's transformed - everyone with two legs is on the streets, in festive clothes, whether men or women, the little girls in princess dresses (Mia is temporarily upset that she didn't bring her "Elsa dress" because everyone here is even fancier than at a wedding... except for us 🤣), popcorn carts, etc. - the atmosphere is truly special and we are glad we stayed and got a taste of it...

The next morning, we head south, through barren canyons, oasis villages, and a rocky desert, and stop at a small campsite in Buizarkarne, which isn't particularly nice but has a very friendly owner.

We are greeted with a delicious welcome tea, and besides us, there is only a French retired couple in their motorhome and a Brazilian.

When Basti asks where his car is, he laughs and brings out his Thule bike trailer (in jogging mode, i.e. without a bike) - with a sign that says "walking around the world"!

He has been (re)traveling for 610 days, because he had to pause due to COVID-19 after starting off in 2018. He does everything on foot, no buses, no hitchhiking... crazy.

From here, he plans to continue through Mauritania to Senegal, with 1300 kilometers along the lonely Moroccan coast ahead of him... crazy.

Our campsite owner is visited by a friend and they make traditional music together... Mia gets to hold the Ribab, the traditional Berber instrument... the best moments often happen spontaneously and cannot be planned.

We do another small round of laundry because no dryer can compete with these desert temperatures, and tomorrow we'll continue towards the coast.