I recently went for a walk with friends in Tafraout. It is a splendid little town of a few thousand inhabitants. Shaped like a basin, it is surrounded by a mountain range made up of large rocks. The small town has a particular look that makes you love it at first sight.

The development effort accomplished is revealed to visitors as they stroll along. A model village has been built on the outskirts of the centre. It is very successful. It would have been desirable, however, to provide for the village roads using local slate, which is close at hand, instead of cement paving stones, which are certainly more expensive.

In one day, I do not claim to have visited every nook and cranny of Tafraout. What we did see, however, thanks to the guided tour by a young Tafraouti, is wonderful. Tafraout is in itself a sumptuous work of art. On the immense rocks perched on the mountains, one can see, thanks to the effects of erosion, human and animal shapes. The most famous rocks are those representing Napoleon's hat and the lion's head. For the locals, the image of Napoleon had always been referred to locally as the thumb of the hand.

The walk continued with a visit to an old traditional house located in the rural part of the town. In exchange for a ten-dirham coin per person, a charming septuagenarian, who is blind, Hadj Abdeslam, gives a tour of the three-storey house, commenting on the lifestyles and housing of his parents and ancestors. The explanations about the argan tree and its methods of preparation and consumption are very instructive. He taught us that agricultural practice has completely disappeared from the region. The cause is not always drought, nor the departure of young people who choose to emigrate elsewhere, but rather the proliferation of wild boar that systematically ravages all crops. The pleasant visit ended in the living room located at the top of the traditional house, reserved for guests. Over a good glass of tea prepared by his grandson, Hadj Abdeslam plays music on a zither and, in a very soft voice, curiously sings the best pieces from the Pearl of the North. He spent thirty years of his life in Tangier as a merchant. The people of Tafraout have always been known for having worked as merchants throughout the national territory.

We then took a track to visit the "painted rocks". These are large rocks in the shape of pebbles that were, a long time ago, entirely painted blue, red, orange, and other colours by a Belgian artist who often came to the region. Damaged by bad weather, the colours, we were told, were entirely restored by a paint manufacturer.

Near this site, we were intrigued by the sound of deafening music coming from a place in the middle of the mountains. As we approached to contemplate the spectacle, our guide informed us that it was a group of young Europeans who had been camping there for a month and a half. The local authorities had allegedly authorised them to settle there and camp as a group of young "hippies". By listening to their music and looking at them more closely, we quickly realised that the young people in question, occupying this beautiful place, were none other than fans of so-called "Techno rave" music. This music, which claims to be free and delirious, was born in Detroit in the USA. It then spread to Germany and England. It is a real nuisance for the local flora and fauna. The young people who listen to this techno music are generally uneducated outcasts, often with a very harsh family background, living in hardship and on social benefits from their government. One can find skinheads, some of whom are of far-right persuasion. Many of these young people in question are known for their heavy consumption of alcohol and drugs. They have strange morals. It is for this reason that a certain number of mayors in France prohibit the camping of techno-rave parties on their territory.

Commenting on this curious discovery for us, our young guide explained that the local authorities had accepted them, believing that these young people were "hippies" who could, as was the case for Essaouira, enhance the city's brand image. What a mix of genres! He then recounted the events that had occurred since the arrival of this "underground" movement on the spot. They led a certain number of local youths into the consumption of their favourite products. There were even a few cases of paedophilia and one involving a young girl in a suicide attempt. According to our guide, the young people in question also cause a lot of inconvenience when they go to the city centre for supplies. They park their vehicles anywhere and are especially very unpleasant and rude to the local population. They show them no respect.

This is certainly not the way we are going to promote tourism in Morocco. The Tafraout region, the land of Mokhtar Soussi and Mohamed Khaïr-Eddine, deserves better. It is perfectly suited by its beauty to host authentic festivals that value its heritage and its human and cultural potential.