Remote Festival Attracts Fans From All Over The World

It takes hours of travel across sandy dunes and rocky terrain to get to one of the world's most remote music festivals. However, this doesn't seem to deter fans of Mali's "Festival of the Desert", who make the pilgrimage annually in mid-January.

The three-day event, which attracts people from all over the world, is held in the village of Essakane, Mali in West Africa. The nearest city Timbucktu, is three hours away. With no paved roads, the journey can only be made in four-wheel drive vehicles or on camels. The only accommodation available is tents.

The festival, which is in its eight year, was started by the Tuaregs - the local people of Mali, to expose the world to their culture. Over the years, the festival has become quite popular and is one of the few festivals where top Western musicians like Robert Plant (Led Zeppelin) share the stage with local celebrities like Ali Farka Toure (Africa's most renown singer and guitarist) and Oumou Sangare (Mali's most popular female singer).

During the day, the festival features cultural and traditional events, which includes camel rides, traditional songs and dancing by the local women as well as exhibitions. In the evening, the desert is lit up with lights and the music starts, with most emphasis given to Saharan and African music. This year the festival will be held from January 10th through 12th.

Enjoy the two video clips below - the first one gives a glimpse of the local traditional dancing that takes place during the day, while the second one is a performance by Africa's two famous singers Ali Farka Toure and Oumou Sangare.

Sources: festival-au-desert.org, sfgate,com