Uyuni is the largest salty desert in the world but its main characteristic is to be located in…Bolivia… The Bolivian is a being from another planet where there is no hot water (even if indicated in flashy letters on the top of the hotel), no smiles, no roads (already mentioned), nor other word than "gringo" to describe this alien commonly known as tourist. The Bolivian world is made of smoking coaches with super-springs, brand new 4x4 bearing the name of multinational on their sides, walls painted and repainted to the rythm of elections with slogans (such as "Evo…lucion").

We find a hostel in Jujuy but an incident forces us (100 pesos to wash a bag of clothes when it should have been only 30 pesos..) to change: we find the hostel Jujuy, run by Tito a very nice character. We meet some French girls studying medicine on an internship exchange; they financially help the H2 Project by buying the official shirt.

On the morning of the 26/06, we take the direction of Jama, the border post 160km away from Susques. Unfortunately, the symptoms of the previous day are quick to reappear, and the car stops definitely 30km away from the border. Just to make sure to be on time, I decide to hitch-hike, have my passport stamped and then come back.

We set off on the 22nd in the evening for the road of the" train of the clouds". What a shame it does not work anymore; it is in a western film landscape that the rails follow the cruves of the mountains or that steel bridges go across tiny but deep rivers...

Mema joins us by plane on the Fridsy the 13th. We finish visiting "Salta la linda" together and wait for Vincent's arrival from San Juan where he had a tooth removed. The next day we decide to go to Cachi, a picturesque village 180km to the West of Salta. But before we have to fill up the car (that is unfortunately not yet running on hydrogen) and that is the same story as everyone else: we have to queue because of limited supply of fuel due to roadblocks caused by farmers protesting against raising export taxes).

After Uspallata, we take the road to the North, in the direction of Valle de la Luna. We follow the Andes and on the track we find a mini-desert: it’s the pampa del Leoncito where we make the most of it to take some great shots. And then, as expected, first wheel change without a jack. We visit the observatory and a 2nd puncture forces us to rush to the nearest village: Barreal. That’s where we meet Chupino Lopez, an 83 year old chap who repairs tyres and quikly understands that Vincent’s aching tooth is a problem for all of us…

When I arrive in Mendoza, I realize that the engine leak that has been present since Santiago is now more important and so I decide to take the car back to the garage of PP. Fram. For many reasons, this breakdown will force me to stay in Mendoza for a month and this is why I would like to thank Hostel Savigliano for not chrging m for the length of my stay. The leak turns out to be only an o'ring in the oil radiator; I'm relieved even though we had to dismount the engine twice.

The road I follow is amazing; small laces next to the cliff, blue lakes and only one every 3 hours… On the way I take some info and I learn that the Copahue spa is worth the trip. I arrive in the evening at Loncopue, a village surrounded by indigenous communities (Mapuches).

We spend 2 nights in Esquel (you've probably heard of Esquel following the eruption of the Chalten volcano on the Chilean side). We'll spend our last day horse-riding (cabalgata) with Hector, a special character. He's a true gaucho: the hat, the coat, teh boots, the manners, the machism and even the mate container made with the skin of the testicule of a poor bull. After a few hours riding we reach an improvised campsite (we are allegedly sitting on a hill full of gold but I'll keep the place secret…

I would like to thank Kiki: coming all over from Europe to accompany me 15 days in this adventures, he really needed some nerves. So I would like to show him m gratitude by writing this short post: I will offer 500km of co-driving in the H2 car to the first who can match the pictures below with the following comments:

We eventually arrive in Pico Truncado. It's the moment of emotion. So many km of straight roads to come and visit one of the only 3 hydrogen production plants using renewable energy in the world: we are at the experimental hydrogen production plant of Pico Truncado in Patagonia.

It's another sunny day for our big departure to the South. The time to say goodbye to everybody and we are now heading towards Sierra la Ventana wher we'll spend the night sleeping in the car. The following day we climb to the top of the first mountain we see since we left Buenos Aires. The park rangers are intrigued by the car and it's another occasion to talk about the H2 Project and hydrogen.

The return to Buenos Aires is almost boring if not for a fine that I have to pay 80km before reaching Buenos Aires for allegedly crossing a yellow line. "Allegedly" because whoever has ever come to Argentina knows that yellow lines are barely respected (Argentina has the sad record of the highest number of deaths by road accident with 11.000 a year) and usually the local police doesn't really care.

On the way to Mendoza… The car works perfectly and I can familiarize myself with it. Everything goes well until the 100th km wher I can feel a ligth power loss. Not knowing where the problem comes from and thinking it will be cheaper to have it checked on the Argentinean side, I prefer trying to climb the Andes.

Here I am in Santiago de Chile, a modern capital in comparison with Buenos Aires. I settle down at Hostal Plaza Brasil. Because it's not yet officially open the place is clean and spacious and the few people already there are very nice (apart from an alcoholic). I explain my Project and everyone starts helping me; thank you all again!

Gualeguaychu is a town located 3 hours to the North of Buenos Aires just on the Uruguayan border. Apart for the carnaval, Gualguaychu is also known for being the centre of an international row with the construction of a Swedish paper factory on the  Uruguyan side. Reason for the protest: pollution. However I found out that the level of contamination emitted by the factory was much lower than the most stringent international limits… It seems that in fact the protest is organised because the factory wasn't built n the other side of the river…

Where to start? There are so many things to do in Buenos Aires. you obviously have to visit the Boca (bad reputation), Recoletta (posh), Belgrano (aristocrat), Palermo (over-stated)  neighbourhoods. I rapidly made new friends (too many to cite them all here) that I would like to thank for supporting me in my project.

After having tried the delights of the Caribbean, Guadalupe, Saint Martin, Jamaica (only 1h due to a over-zealous customs official who didn't like my face: I hereby launch a fatwa against him - his name is available upon request - and would strongly recommend not to travel to this country; all my letters to the authorities were left unanswered…), Curacao, here comes Venezuela… without my rucksack (we will be reunited a month later in Buenos Aires).

A passion for adventure, the spices of the unknown and an appetite for discovery; here are the ingredients of a story to tell around a fire. A recipe that I eventually know rather well. Here it goes and all those interested are invited to join it. But before beginning, let me warn you, we are talking about spicy cuisine: a beetle (the car), the South American flavours and of course a bit of experimental cooking: modifying this car to run on hydrogen.