Sunday was again a beautifully hot sunny day. We boarded a train for the 90 minute journey up the coast to the community of Tigre. Tigre, named after the jaguars that used to inhabit the area, used to be an important commercial port and is now a busy tourist destination. It marks the entry point to the Paraná Delta, an interconnecting web of rivers and streams which are now bordered by fancy rowing clubs, holiday camps, hotels and holiday homes. The latter range from small huts to huge mansions owned by the rich and famous.

The old docks and warehouses have been transformed into a pretty Camden-like shopping district selling boutique homewares as well as the usual tat you find in such places. We wandered around, picking up odds and sods for Christmas and eating lunch in a lovely little place overlooking the river. Well, the terrace overlooked the river but it was full and so we ate inside. The air con made this a far preferable choice from my point of view!

After lunch we boarded one of the many tour boats that cruised around the river network. Ours was a lovely old wooden one, far more in keeping with the ambience than some of the more modern ones racing around. The river and its banks were packed with holiday makers enjoying the hot Christmas weather, and some of the houses and hotels really are spectacular. Despite the economic woes of the country, there's clearly some money here. A lovely place indeed.

We caught the more touristic Tren de la Costa back to BA. This (I presume) recently refurbished and reopened line follows an old coastal line along which the old Victorian-style stations have been converted into restaurants, antique fairs, boutique garden centres and the like. You could easily spend a pleasant day hopping on and off. It also passes through some of the more upmarket neighbourhoods outside BA, a property hunter's dream!

That evening Fabrice and I entertained his family at the apartment. Stopping in a supermarket on the way back, we got back to the apartment to find we had somehow neglected to empty all of the shopping basket at the checkout. Our minds aren't what they used to be! This meant a madcap dash around the neighbourhood to find a supermarket still open on the Sunday evening before Christmas. Luckily the trusty Disco was still open, and hence packed with people stocking up, and so the evening was saved albeit a little behind schedule.