IFEROUANE , Dec 11 — Dishes of spit-roasted lamb were served and the sound of electric guitars echoed across the pink Saharan dunes towards the Air Mountains.The desert, he said, “is where we were born, where we grew up, and reminds us of where we come from.”
After attending concerts and beauty pageants, festival-goers spent long hours reclining on mats where, in between rounds of tea, discussion ranged from the merits of Toyota pick-up trucks to barely-concealed regionalism.If not for the pervasive presence of troops to provide security, this scene could have taken place some two decades ago.
For those wishing to visit the festival in Iferouane, the French authorities recommended postponement. At nearby Chiriet, the Ishumars’ trucks bearing recognisable white flags remained at a discreet distance. They flanked a rowdy race between some 80 drivers speeding through the sand.