Completely alone with a 5 yr Thai kid for 3 days.

[Chairman Mao]

Slightly different from Silent Ninja's thread.

I'll be completely alone (missus will be working for the 3 days )

So we're taking a lovely little 5 yr old neice down to stay with us for a week at new years. A few days in BKK, then down to an Island for a few more days. She stayed with us for a few days 18 months ago and loved it - Siam Ocean World, Dusit zoo etc). Lovely kid, lovely temperment.

Tickets are booked, but now the missus' schedule has changed and will have to work for the 3 days she's in BKK.

So that leaves me, and the 5 year old girl, alone, all day. With a rather large language barrier. Which is kinda daunting.

What activities can I do, I don't want to take her too far away from where we live/work (city centre) so kinda rules out taking her to Siam water park etc.

Go to the park, feed the fish, turtles etc. play on the swings, eat ice cream, colour in some colouring books, play with some dolls (no laughing please), play some basic English teaching games.

Okay, that's half a day filled. Go back to Dusit zoo, that's another 1/2 day filled.

Only 2 more to go.

[kfjvkjvk]

Cartoon channel is your friend.

[Chairman Mao]

True. Okay as back up, and maybe a 2 hour filler.

Anyone know of like a children's park type place around the city centre in one of the shopping centres maybe. Where thay have a little kid's cinema and activity place with lots of slides and those big nets filled with plastic balls for them to suffocate in etc?

[kfjvkjvk]

My mate's wife takes her ones to central in Pink Klaou for that kind of thing. perhaps all centrals have them?

Give her a pen and paper and tell her to do her Christmas list, that'll do you for an extra couple of hours. You can put her on amazon.co.uk for ideas.

Parents might not be so buzzing with you for that though.

[Loy Toy]

I think your making a mountain out of a mole-hill mate!

3 days of cable TV, which she probably doesn't have access to up country, air-conditioning, some books and paper and colour pencils and lots of nice food would be more than sufficient entertainment.

Sometimes adults go out of their way to please children and do things opposite to what the children want to do.

You could also practice your Thai and you never know she may teach you some English!

Bangkok is a nightmare for kids and that's why I moved out.

[Chairman Mao]

Jamboree Land in The Emporium off Phrom Phrong looks like fun for a kid.

As does this place. A fun kid's discovery museum up by Chatujak.

As does going ice skating.

Open Ice Skate is a smaller rink located on the fourth floor of Imperial Lad Prao. Like the name suggests, this rink is open so don't be surprised if your skating skills are admired by onlookers from every floor above. All-day skating costs 100 baht from Monday to Friday, 120 baht on weekends, inclusive of skate rental. Admission for non-skaters is 30 baht. Lessons (around 30 - 45 minutes) from qualified coaches can also be had.
Location: Imperial Lad Prao (Big C Superstore), Lad Prao
Open: 09:00 - 21:00
Contact: +66 (0)2 934 9252-3

[Chairman Mao]

Give her a pen and paper and tell her to do her Christmas list,

Could do that, but she won't understand me.

3 days of cable TV, which she probably doesn't have access to up country, air-conditioning, some books and paper and colour pencils and lots of nice food would be more than sufficient entertainment.

Sometimes adults go out of their way to please children and do things opposite to what the children want to do.

You could also practice your Thai and you never know she may teach you some English!

Bangkok is a nightmare for kids and that's why I moved out.

Probably true, but I hardly want her to waste the opportunity to do things like ice-skating etc etc just out of sheer laziness. Plonk her in front of a TV for 3 days solid, hardly much of a holiday even if she doesn't realize what she's missing. Nah, she has enough barbie dvds at home. I want to stimulate her brain a little bit. Let's not be lazy.

[kfjvkjvk]

I don't know about ice skating. I can see you taking the kid back with missing fingers.

I think LT is right, you are trying to pack a bit much in, they are not too hard to entertain really. Probably due your excitement about having a kid around though, so fair enough.

Jamboree sounds good.

Children's discovery centre also looks pretty cool from the outside of it, and near to JJ park and JJ market where fish and animal section will be open. Kids love that sort of stuff.

[Takeovers]

I don't know about ice skating. I can see you taking the kid back with missing fingers.

I think LT is right, you are trying to pack a bit much in, they are not too hard to entertain really. Probably due your excitement about having a kid around though, so fair enough.

Jamboree sounds good.

Children's discovery centre also looks pretty cool from the outside of it, and near to JJ park and JJ market where fish and animal section will be open. Kids love that sort of stuff.

Agree with kfj.

You don't need to pack too much activity into the day for a child that age. Get her out to the recommended places. That will cover half of the day. For the remaining time a childrens book, some paper and color pens are fine and even some time of TV is not too bad.

Maybe get a Memory game because that is some activity you can share with her. But you need to be somewhat stressresistant for that. A five year old will beat you easily.

[Loy Toy]

And you have a computer!

My 6 year old daughter could sit at the computer all day playing entertaining and educational games and programes and plus you have the discovery channel..........don't you?

You could also buy her a little puppy like a St. Bernard or a Great Dane and that will keep her amused............as well as her parents and when she returns home!

[Bangyai]

1 ) Try the Mall at Bang Kair. They have an artificial beach come water park on the roof and a big fish pond and stream flowing through the ground floor.

2) Go to Suan Rot Fy , behind Chatuchak market, hire a couple of bikes and peddle around the park. There is a childrens area with a paddling pool too and also a boating lake. Oh, and also a Butterfly Museum. Forget weekends though....packed out. Nearby, also at the back of Chatuchak market, there is an indoor childrens activity centre. I got picked up by one of the mums there once, which was a bonus.

3) Dusit zoo is cheap and passes a few hours.

4 ) Suan Siam water park. Kids love it but again, crowded on weekends. But you did say this was too far for you .

5 ) Dreamworld out near Rangsit.....amusement park.

[artist]

Try deep sea fishing

[Stinky]

I'll be completely alone (missus will be working for the 3 days )

Do you not have any friends with Thai speaking kids that you could take her to play with?

[the dogcatcher]

PLAYSTATION 3. Solved.

[blackgang]

So that leaves me, and the 5 year old girl, alone, all day. With a rather large language barrier. Which is kinda daunting.

You will soon know what it would be like to have Panda visit for 3 days then won't you.?

[Fondles]

Take her to a boy bar to learn bout the birds N Bees

[Chairman Mao]

Do you not have any friends with Thai speaking kids that you could take her to play with?

None of my mates have kids.

1 ) Try the Mall at Bang Kair. They have an artificial beach come water park on the roof and a big fish pond and stream flowing through the ground floor.

2) Go to Suan Rot Fy , behind Chatuchak market, hire a couple of bikes and peddle around the park. There is a childrens area with a paddling pool too and also a boating lake. Oh, and also a Butterfly Museum. Forget weekends though....packed out. Nearby, also at the back of Chatuchak market, there is an indoor childrens activity centre. I got picked up by one of the mums there once, which was a bonus.

3) Dusit zoo is cheap and passes a few hours.

4 ) Suan Siam water park. Kids love it but again, crowded on weekends. But you did say this was too far for you .

5 ) Dreamworld out near Rangsit.....amusement park.

Will do the stuff around chatuchak, but think the rest is too far away, just in case she suddenly gets upset or scared or something. Swimming pools etc are out as I ain't going into the chicks dressing room, and sure as hell ain't bringing some 5 yr old Thai girl into my one.

But cheers, think it's just about covered with the small ice skating rink, the Jambooree thing in Emporium, the kid's discovery museum etc up in Chatuchak and Dusit zoo.

Should be fun. Will report back.

[S Landreth]

Esplanade,….bowling for a few hours…..they have the some lanes that have gutter guards (lanes 2 and 3???) that will not allow the ball to fall into the gutter and she’ll do OK knocking down some pins
Computer keeps the score,… not that it really matters to a 5 year old and you can get off the subway at Thailand Cultural Center and it is just a short walk away (1/2 day of fun,.they will also serve lunch and dinner,…….food)

You might enjoy yourself also,.some of the girls that work there are pretty cute

there is also a Christmas show (A Christmas Carol,…Disney cartoon) playing at the movie theater at Esplanade,.see it in Thai even if you don’t understand,….she’ll enjoy it (maybe,…might be spooky for a 5 year old)

http://www.majorcineplex.com/movie_detail.php?mid=313

at home you could teach her to play WAR,….you remember the card game,.. it is so easy and will teach her greater and less than with numbers (10 beats a 7,..so the person with the 10 gets both cards to add to their deck,……………..4 beats a 2 so the player with the 4 gets to add them to their deck,…etc),….the person with the most cards in the end wins

[crippen]

I thought this was going to be a Paul Gadd Thread.

[jandajoy]

Hire a Thai speaking maid for the week, or the services of a Thai speaking female friend.

[Stinky]

^A full service maid would work well

[Chairman Mao]

maid woulda kinda defeat the purpose of the bonding thing.

Unless it's me bonding with the maid, which would be perfectly okay.

[pescator]

I spent 6 months travelling the kingdom with my 5 years old son.
Had to stay the first 2 weeks in BKK as he had a bad cold and fever.
We sure didn´t enjoy that much expect from several visits to the Dusit Zoo.
I got him out of Bkk when he was feeling better and took him to Koh Samet and Koh Chang for a few months.
In retrospect those were the best times we had during that trip.
He didnt need much more than a nice quiet beach to entertain himself. Neither did I actually. Swimming, fishing, a few boat trips with longtails with a glass bottom so you could watch the fish from inside the boat was a big hit.
I realize that this is not exactly a comparable situation to yours as he is a boy and no language barrier, but chances are that she will enjoy that too.
Of course local thais thought I was a great dad, travelling alone with a 5 year old son.
I think you will have just as much attentiion as I did.
A side benefit

[jandajoy]

snorkeling and swimming ?

Can she swim?

If she likes the water that's it done and dusted.

[reinvented]

where you are mate
walks around the park next to the emporioum are good
bike riding around sirikit park
funarioum on the end of soi 26 is great too but not cheap, but you can sit down and read the paper whilst she has at it

show her rhe sights on the river and the white folk down khao san etc
chatuchak is always good with kids and you can take in the kids museum which is ok
take her to see a movie and a bit of shopping and yer good for 3 days