Valle Central to Calama

Right now we are sitting in Calama in a modern Iveco branch. Here it is clean and safe. As soon as you enter, you are reminded to wear a helmet, ear protection, safety goggles, and a mouth mask. Fire alarms and extinguishers are at every corner, but the dangers of the stilt-like heels of the female employees don't seem to be taken seriously.
The reason for our visit is the persistent refusal of our Iveco to take us across the high passes that are omnipresent here. It stops at every incline and always keeps us on the edge of our seats wondering if we will make it. It is in the care of Jorge and Antonio, and we hope they have a few tricks up their sleeves. Otherwise, we face a boring 2500 km detour to cross the Andes at a lower point. Plan B would be to be towed over the pass to Argentina by two nice Swiss people. Of course, that wouldn't look very sovereign. Also, the Swiss people's car is in the workshop for gearbox problems for the second time. As I said, Plan B!
Now over four hours have passed and we are getting hungry. I would even willingly eat some of those monstrosities they sell here under the name of rolls. Our guidebook tells of 13,000 years of civilization history in Chile. In any case, they didn't spend this quite long period of time giving their baked goods some flavor or at least a palate-friendly consistency.
However, the bakers are not responsible for another complication related to baking. It is the road builders. Only through the rattling on the washboard roads do our cookies become so pulverized that we often have to eat them with a spoon.
In culinary terms, we are not very spoiled here anyway. Mostly we eat noodles, every few days we have a piece of meat of the usual quantity and good quality on the grill. We drink Agua con Gas, usually sin gas after the corresponding rattling on the roads. Petra has tried Mate, a South American hot drink. The preparation is very simple: fill half a cup with a hay-like granulate and pour hot water over it. The result is exactly what you would expect. We now have two open kilogram packages, each missing one portion, and we will probably bring them back untouched.
However, the most sensational experiences are always on the way, which is the goal itself. The views are overwhelming, many of the pictures were taken from the moving car. Interesting objects keep appearing (see also older posts), such as the giant trucks that can carry 400 tons. What is also remarkable is the fences along the road. Further south, where there was still vegetation, sheep and cattle herds had to be prevented from escaping. However, we have driven hundreds of kilometers through a landscape devoid of any flora and fauna, and yet someone feels compelled to fence in hundreds of thousands of square kilometers of sand, gravel, and mountains.
Hoping to be back on the road soon, I end this post.

p.s.: I was able to persuade Petra to include the documentation of the Mate tasting: