Beyond managing a guesthouse in Ouirgane, journalist and writer Jaouad Mdidech shares the experience of a lifetime and glimpses of many others in Escapades in the High Atlas. Through an introspective lens, the recently published work by Le Fennec offers a thoughtful reflection on resilience and community life. Tucked into the High Atlas Mountains, not far from the adventure hotspot of Asni, the village of Ouirgane stands proud, shaped by shared history, communal living, and quiet resilience. Since the late 20th century, this small village has become a welcoming home for mountain guesthouses. It's here that Moroccan journalist and writer Jaouad Mdidech sets the scene for his latest book, Escapades dans le Haut Atlas (Le Fennec, 2025). From 2019 to 2023, Mdidech ran a guesthouse (Kasbah Ouirgane), an experience that became the foundation for this immersive work. Blending his journalist's curiosity with a writer's eye for detail, he crafts a narrative that's both deeply lived and keenly observed. A veteran reporter and the author of two memoirs recounting his political imprisonment between 1975 and 1989, Mdidech draws on his life to inform every page. He first ventured into travel writing with Visages et paysages au cœur du Maroc (L'Harmattan, 2017). Now, he returns to the genre, compelled by a powerful need to reconnect with life's essentials. It began with a moment of clarity, an impulse to leave the familiar behind. A lifelong city dweller with a deep love of nature, Mdidech had a revelation while reporting on the Tinmel Mosque: in the calm of this landscape, he felt he could finally breathe again. Far from the bustle of Casablanca, he imagined continuing his decades-long journey of introspection, while drawing fresh inspiration for the manuscripts he has long kept close, meditations on time, memory, and change. Lives That Flow Like a River That's the rhythm Mdidech sets in Escapades dans le Haut Atlas. Through a deeply personal lens, he brings to life the places, faces, and everyday rituals of Ouirgane. Locals, visitors, and regulars become characters—rich, warm, and unforgettable—like the cast of a novel. Yet these are real people, with real lives shaped by struggle and surprise. With a storyteller's empathy, Mdidech captures their stories without ever turning them into spectacle, all while weaving in a near-literary style. This isn't a patchwork of memories, but a carefully crafted reflection, built from years of conversations, shared moments, and hard-earned friendships. Philosophical, literary, and political references flow seamlessly through the text, anchoring the narrative in both history and the present day. The result is layered and textured, much like the mountain landscape that inspired it. In a nod to fellow travelers and journalists, Mdidech sketches portraits of villagers with gentle humor and genuine affection: Kenza and Benoît, Zahra, Momo, Mouh, the Aït Bérouille. He honors their dreams and their daily lives with honesty and warmth. Woven throughout is the memory of his father, Mohamed Tsoul Mdidech, whose posthumous memoirs he edited, along with nods to authors and thinkers who've shaped his worldview, from Fatema Mernissi and Amin Maalouf to Victor Hugo, Fouad Laroui, Khadija Mohsen-Finan, Alfred de Musset, Jean d'Ormesson, Paul Eluard, William Wordsworth, and Samuel Taylor. Jaouad Mdidech Ouirgane's Beating Heart As the book unfolds, Mdidech turns his time at the Kasbah into a kind of quiet conversation with the reader. The guesthouse becomes a place of reflection, a gateway to self and to others. His writing travels through familiar village landmarks, the souk, the café, the dam, the Roseraie, the Sanglier, Chez Momo, Sel d'Ailleurs, and the many places filled with stories. He also explores Ouirgane's spiritual heritage, from the Tassaft zaouia to the nearby Jewish zaouia, not far from Moulay Brahim and Amizmiz. At the heart of it all, he pays tribute to Ouirgane's local civil society, its soul and driving force. He highlights the connections forged between guesthouse owners and community organizations, showing how tourism has grown into something deeper: a commitment to the place and its people. He spotlights grassroots efforts, from Education for All, which supports local children's schooling, to Tamounte, which empowers women, and Afak, which champions sustainable development. For Mdidech, the community's true wealth lies in its people, those born here, those who've returned, and those who now call it home. A few meters from Ouirgane, the high-altitude natural sports circuit offers breathtaking landscapes / Ph. Ghita Zine (Yabiladi) This village, marked by the floods of the 1990s, the COVID-19 crisis, and the 2023 earthquake, becomes a mirror, a place to see both ourselves and others more clearly. In Escapades dans le Haut Atlas, Jaouad Mdidech offers a moving meditation on the beauty and fragility of life's many threads, threads that may feel familiar to any reader.
