I will never take washing my hands, flushing the toilet, clean dishes, or showers for granted ever again.Of course I know that there have been other things that I have had to do without for a bit and made the same promise, only to completely forget what I was never going to forget to appreciate. Hmmmm… Maybe I should start writing these things down…. Yet another reason to write a blog!
We have had water now for one day after living without running water for 12 days, that is right, the whole time my mom has been visiting we have been without running water. I am sure that she will want to return post-haste after roughing it for so long. Luckily she is still here for another 6 days, so I have an opportunity to make her fall in LOVE with Thailand still.
My sister was supposed to be here this evening, but unfortunately was struck down with kidney stones this week. Poor sister, she seriously got a bum deal this week. The good news is that I am now going to harass persuade her to visit us for Christmas. What a wonderful Christmas that will be! Please pray for her if you can, I know that she is very disappointed that she couldn’t make it here, not to mention the amount of pain she is in.
We are settling in here in Hua Hin. We are trying to figure out if it is the place we want to be for the next couple months. It is a very relaxed town, and our villa is amazing, but there are not many things for Z to do. Of course she can play on the beach or in the pool, but as far as having other children to play with, I am having difficulty finding other English speakers with kids her age. I will keep trying though. I know there are tons of kids here, it just comes down to meeting other parents, whether they speak English or not. She just needs some friends to play with.
We are going to Bangkok early next week to show my mom the tourist sites, which I am actually very excited about. It has been a long time since I have made the effort to see the Golden Buddha, the Bangkok night markets, or the Grand Palace. The last couple of times we were there it was all mall shopping (YUCK!). I am excited to be a tourist for a couple of days, instead of a traveler, and write about what we see for you guys.
Until then, we will do some touristy things here in Hua Hin and I will tell you all about them on Friday! Thank you again for reading and please keep my sister in your thoughts/prayers!
And Three To Go 
Do they need to be English speakers? I know it’s easier from your perspective, but P and T don’t seem to mind either way. I like how it brings out their non-verbal communication skills.
I actually would LOVE for z to meet some kids, whether they speak Thai, English, Swedish… Whatever I can find. The problem is that I have not found a place that she can play with other kids. Let alone make lasting friendships. There is no Thai or English playgroups or even playgrounds here that I can find. The town is much more geared for older expats and I haven’t been here long enough to find where the locals take their kids to play.
Even when we have taken her to the beach, we haven’t seen any children. I am going to keep looking and trying though 🙂
Ok, I see. Well, that’s hard. It can be tough breaking into parenting circles without a common language, and then your kids can’t even get started! If you can find the playground where everyone hangs out it’s different.
Good luck trying. You never know – you might turn the next corner and everything is revealed!
So true, that is what I am hoping for 🙂
I was going to say the same as Bronwyn. The boys started palying with Italian kids before we found English kids and to be honest they enjoy the locals more! If the villa is lovely I’d hang in there a little longer 🙂
I’m with B and C: kids can play without a common language. When we there, our kids got to play with the kids of a Thai restaurant owner. They had a ball and even us parents had a nice chat when they were not working. I was quite happy to keep an eye on their kids too when they were working and kids wanted to play outside (obviously only short while here and there, we didnt want to impose)
I just have to find some places with kids, we haven’t seen any kids really around (that aren’t helping out at their parents restaurant or booth), especially z’s age.
In every other country/place we have visited we had playgrounds or play areas we frequented where we got to know other despite what language they spoke. Hua Hin has been different so far, but I am still trying 🙂 it will either happen or not, either way, it’s a great experience for us all. 🙂
I remember being surprised too about not finding playgrounds (there was one pretty horrible concrete one with some steel things and without a shade a bit to the main beach from the main street).. But I think it is about the life style too: there they have a lot family businesses and people work long hours tending their kids at the same time. But I think there was an indoor playground upstairs in Market Village, or do I mix with some other city now?
I will check out the market village and the playground you mention. Thank you for the help!
I am glad you have water again! I am sorry your sister is sick, please tell her to get well really soon, and I hope she can make it for christmas! I hope you find children to play with your little one 🙂
Thank you! 🙂
I just wanted to make a quick comment that I really should proofread better before I post 🙂 I was just feeling a bit frustrated with the lack of children’s play areas in Hua Hin and was obviously not clear at all. I, in no way, feel that Z needs to have english speaking children to play with, I was just saying that there is a lack of activities for toddlers here in Hua Hin and it can be difficult to find other parents with children her age (Thai language classes here I come). Thank you for all your help and suggestions!