Through the wilderness on gravel roads: Upon crossing the Rio Palena in southern Chile, the vegetation evokes flashbacks of the science fiction film “Avatar”. Teamwork: The passengers work together to clear a tree from the road, to continue their southbound journey in the NEOPLAN Cityliner. 56,593 residents is the population of Ushuaia, the world’s southernmost city and almost in sight of Antarctica. will be whipping cold rain through the air just moments later. In any event, the wind keeps rattling the vehicle continuously, so steady steering remains a challenge that extends for hours – which makes merely reaching for a water bottle a carefully considered move. UPON ARRIVAL IN USHUAIA, the Cityliner has clocked almost 4,700 kilometres. On the vehicle’s right side, the outside mirror, the headlamp, luggage compartment lock and rear navigation light are all missing, fallen by the wayside. The opening mechanism on the back entry door is causing problems. And at some point during the long and dusty stretch- es, the 220-volt transformer has conked out. Everything else, however, is working just fine. The Cityliner’s chassis can handle the bad roads without a hitch, while its pace of 80 kilometres per hour proves the ideal speed for the most rugged and rutted tracks in order to move ahead with a minimum of rattling. Just how driveable conditions actually are, remains a suspense factor throughout the entire journey, especially when rainfall the day before has caused chaos on numerous motorways. After all, the NEOPLAN coach is decidedly not a high-slung all-terrain vehicle, in contrast to the many mud-covered ones heading in the opposite direction, with annoyed-looking drivers at the wheel. Turn- ing around is not an option, for in the end, this very journey is its own reward. At the end of the day, the chore of cleaning the coach, scrubbing off the mud and clay that clings to the vehicle in vast patches, proves not quite as pleasant. Yet, day after day, there is no such thing as quitting: not on this trip, not for this group and not for this coach. THE FERRY PASSAGES always present a challenge: Driving from Santiago to Tierra del Fuego requires the crossing of numerous riv- ers, lakes and fjords. Just about every ferry boarding and disembarkment process is an adventurous undertaking for the coach, for its few centimetres of self-powered hoisting potential is never sufficient. Only by placing thick planks underneath the wheels, can the vehicle actually make it onto the vessel. The ferry staff have plenty of practice, however, and the journey continues without a hitch. Interestingly enough, two characteristics in this landscape evoke the imagery of road trips through northern Europe, particularly Norway: the constantly recurring ferry cross- ings, as well as the omnipresence of fjords. A marked similarity between two regions that could hardly be farther apart – another fascinating feature of Mother Earth. A massive landslide in the south of Chile ultimately requires an unplanned, eight-hour overnight crossing via an unscheduled emer- gency ferry ride, to circumnavigate a stretch of blocked road. Passengers and drivers must spend the night on the ferry benches, which, fortunately, are even upholstered. Inside the ferry vessel, the captain has turned up the heat, as nights can be uncomfortably chilly. In addition, the ferry is not too crowded, so every 37