Today I’m going to tell you very little, as we’ve spent the entire day with our backsides glued to the car seats. We’ve broken our absolute record for the trip, devouring a whopping 380 kilometres in one go! Those of you who follow us know we really don't like these marathon drives, but in this part of the map, the steppe is so infinite and empty that there is absolutely nothing to see.

To my human's surprise, the road quality around here is turning out to be wonderful. In general, the tarmac is very, very good—super smooth and without the treacherous potholes that Dad Edu feared so much. It’s almost a pleasure to see the camper rolling along. What’s more, as we got closer to Aktobe, things got even more serious and the road turned into a proper dual carriageway, with two lanes in each direction. A black carpet in the middle of nowhere!

We didn’t leave very early—you know we take our mornings with doggy philosophy—and we only stopped a couple of times to stretch our legs. The rest areas around here deserve a special mention because they are quite something. Imagine a paved esplanade next to the road in the middle of absolute nowhere. Don't look for trees or natural shade, because they don’t exist. The only things for shelter from the sun are some picnic benches with a small concrete or metal structure overhead.

And the toilets? Good heavens, they make you want to hold it until the next border. They’re just a shack with a hole in the ground, a traditional long-drop latrine that you can smell a kilometre away. Mind you, they do have a logistical detail that Dad Edu found very curious: almost all of them have a sort of concrete ramp or bridge to drive the car onto, so you can inspect the undercarriage in case you’ve broken something on the bumpy route. Very well thought out for adventurers, but zero glamour.

After so much desert of tarmac, around seven in the evening we finally reached our destination: the Aktobe reservoir, located just south of the city. I almost cried with excitement to see green! There is some vegetation here and even some real trees. The place was very quiet; there were just a few families spending the day having barbecues, and they were already packing up to head home.

Dad Edu inspected the terrain and found a perfect spot, more or less sheltered from the wind and right on the bank of the reservoir. Just as we were parking, a man approached us with his teenage son; they were among those enjoying the barbecue. The lad was so amazed by our explorer van that he insisted on a photo with Dad Edu and the camper. The father, delighted, took the official photo for us with his mobile and also with Dad Edu’s so he could have the memory at home. They left me out of the frame this time; it seems the house on wheels took all the limelight.

Right now, we are very comfortable, listening to the sound of the water and enjoying a landscape that, at last, is changing colour. Time for a nice dinner and to rest our legs, as today's record has left us absolutely shattered.