After visiting Touzer we ventured to the town of Douz. Douz is situated on an Oasis just at the edge of the Sahara. When we visited they were having their annual Festival of the Sahara, which probably made the city more vibrant than usual. The festival includes tribes from across the Sahara (Libya, Algeria, Chad, Tunisa etc..) who come and compete in events and sell their wares. When I was there I couldn't help but compare this event to a Native American Pow Wow or even a state fair back at home. Although much of the festivities were based on tradition, I couldn't help but feel that things had become more focused on the visitors than the participants. The portion of the events that we saw included a camel fight, camel races, dogs killing a bunny (see video), a parade through town and the ceremonial entrance of the tribes. Mostly I really enjoyed just sitting in the stands and watching the crowd. It was much like a baseball game with families buying nuts and water from vendors and having it tossed or handed up through the crowd. After the festival we had trouble finding a cab back to town (the festival grounds are on the opposite side of the oasis from the city) and ended up riding in the back of a passing pickup. The truck contained a family from Douz and we quickly be-friended them. We then joined them at their home for coffee and cookies as we warmed ourselves over a bowl of burning coals. Soon we had met everyone in their family. Meeting this family was one of the highlights of our entire trip and an experience I will not soon forget.