I am committed to spending a week in a sisaket village over Christmas. How to keep one and an 8 year old boy occupied? 
 

I am contemplating buying some fruit trees to plant at the farm  and help shades the mother in laws house. 
 

might borrow some cars or puppies for the week to entertain  the kid.
 

 

Phone, IPad, laptop, 5G, fast internet, Pepsi and ice cream.  no puppies.   

11 hours ago, Quentin Zen said:

Phone, IPad, laptop, 5G, fast internet, Pepsi and ice cream.  no puppies.   

 Not really my ideal for a week on holiday but probably the most likely scenario. 

Sri Saket is about as rural as it gets. Here are some of the options: 

• One day trip to Sri Saket city. Go to Big C and/or Macro, get some higher quality food stuff than what's procured locally in the village.
• One day trip to Ubon Rachatani city; slightly bigger than Sri Saket City. 
• Stay away from Khao Pra Wihan, which has nice ruins, but there seems to be the obligatory annual trouble at the border with Cambodia. 
• Don't assume they have Wi-Fi in the house, get a package with 50-100GB 5G internet data on your phone.

How far will you be from Kantharalak? 

15 minutes ago, Equatorial said:

Sri Saket is about as rural as it gets. Here are some of the options: 

• One day trip to Sri Saket city. Go to Big C and/or Macro, get some higher quality food stuff than what's procured locally in the village.
• One day trip to Ubon Rachatani city; slightly bigger than Sri Saket City. 
• Stay away from Khao Pra Wihan, which has nice ruins, but there seems to be the obligatory annual trouble at the border with Cambodia. 
• Don't assume they have Wi-Fi in the house, get a package with 50-100GB 5G internet data on your phone.

How far will you be from Kantharalak? 

 

 

Take a jumper it can get chilly in December/January.

 

Nonsense as far as I know regarding khao Preah Vihear - it is not accessible from the Thai side, only the Cambodian side (not for Thais though).

 

One of the best crossings is in the province of Sisaket.....Chong  Sa Ngam.

 

Totally missed out the million bottle temple.... Wat Lan Khuad.

 

Sisaket is one of the best provinces for the supply of fit massage girls.

 

Who borrows puppies.

16 hours ago, rocket2 said:

I am contemplating buying some fruit trees to plant at the farm  and help shades the mother in laws house. 

🌴 Fruit tree are good for shade, should be ready to shade around 10 years. 😂

 

Mango trees are nice and shady 

 

 

6 hours ago, hotandsticky said:

Nonsense as far as I know regarding khao Preah Vihear - it is not accessible from the Thai side, only the Cambodian side (not for Thais though).

 

 

Could be. Things change. I visited a few years ago, from the Thai side... 

 

  

6 hours ago, hotandsticky said:

Totally missed out the million bottle temple.... Wat Lan Khuad.

 

 

Right. That's in Khun Han. Worth visiting... 

 

While in Khun Han, go to Little Bird for some decent farang food... 

Does the son speak Thai? Maybe some games/toys that can be shared with the local kids and maybe left behind. Frisbees, footballs, water guns...... The locals here like Uno. A volleyball kit with a net would be popular.

 

You will be stuck drinking Lao Khao with the men while she works. Do not toast individually, only drink when everyone drinks. Try to mix it with soda to take the edge off. 

 

Lots of temples to see. Be careful about getting stuck with the bills for the family shopping excursions though. I let the Mrs. handle the money because she can say no where I can't but that depends on your relationship.

22 minutes ago, cjinchiangrai said:

Does the son speak Thai? Maybe some games/toys that can be shared with the local kids and maybe left behind. Frisbees, footballs, water guns...... The locals here like Uno. A volleyball kit with a net would be popular.

Think they all speak Khmer, maybe not a good time to go with the border war and all.

23 hours ago, rocket2 said:

I am committed to spending a week in a sisaket village over Christmas. How to keep one and an 8 year old boy occupied? 
 

I am contemplating buying some fruit trees to plant at the farm  and help shades the mother in laws house. 
 

might borrow some cars or puppies for the week to entertain  the kid.
 

 

Get established fruit trees, as large as you can find. Sisaket has good foreign food if you need that, Leos, Hong Kong Garden, Crows Nest. Big C has most of what you need for food to bring home. KFC for kids in Sisaket, and Kantharalak (Lotus). Sisaket Aquarium if the boy's not been there, along with the Zoo. Doing anything that isn't Thai oriented will give him a break from the routine.

17 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

Think they all speak Khmer, maybe not a good time to go with the border war and all.

In khu kan area they speak Khmer.Anyway everybody speak thai too I been to sisaket many times with my exwife.

We went there visit family and bought alot of red/green chili we paid 28 baht/kilo for and sold it in surin for 60 baht/kg.

4 hours ago, Equatorial said:

 

Could be. Things change. I visited a few years ago, from the Thai side... 

 

  

 

Right. That's in Khun Han. Worth visiting... 

 

While in Khun Han, go to Little Bird for some decent farang food... 

 

 

 

I went in 2007, I believe it was closed in 2008.

 

I am not aware, and seriously doubt, that it has opened since.

 

 

21 hours ago, fredwiggy said:

Get established fruit trees, as large as you can find. Sisaket has good foreign food if you need that, Leos, Hong Kong Garden, Crows Nest. Big C has most of what you need for food to bring home. KFC for kids in Sisaket, and Kantharalak (Lotus). Sisaket Aquarium if the boy's not been there, along with the Zoo. Doing anything that isn't Thai oriented will give him a break from the routine.

Really trying to spend the full time on the farm. Sisaket town is nice though. 
 

probablg just borrow a few puppies for him.
 

Mom in law has a giant uncastrated golden retriever that is an absolute humping menace.  We keep him locked up. 

3 minutes ago, rocket2 said:

Really trying to spend the full time on the farm. Sisaket town is nice though. 
 

probablg just borrow a few puppies for him.
 

Mom in law has a giant uncastrated golden retriever that is an absolute humping menace.  We keep him locked up. 

Be careful about dogs here, as most of them are strays and live without love, which makes them wary around humans and sometimes quick to react negatively. I have dogs around my house for many years that are never touched by anyone else besides me. I saw this when they are puppies and they fear everyone that comes near them because many don't like dogs after they are puppies or plain don't like any of them, so they kick them away and hit them with sticks. They are the ones making these dogs more aggressive. There are programs here to spay and neuter dogs but it needs to be stepped up to cover the whole country. If you let your boy around puppies it's okay, as that's likely the only love they'll ever receive. 

On 6/8/2025 at 3:03 AM, blaze master said:

Who borrows puppies.

Who lends them? 

22 hours ago, BritManToo said:

Think they all speak Khmer, maybe not a good time to go with the border war and all.

They speak Isaan, a combination of all three . 

22 hours ago, BritManToo said:

Think they all speak Khmer, maybe not a good time to go with the border war and all.

He's talking about Christmas, 6 months away and seems the 'border war' as you call it is over already.

 

https://www.nationthailand.com/news/general/40050980

2 hours ago, fredwiggy said:

They speak Isaan, a combination of all three . 

Not quite.

 

In Sissaket, also Buriram and Surin, there is central Thai plus three dialects. They are Isaan Laos, Khmer and Gui. Isaan Laos is similar to Central Thai. Khmer and Gui are very different. There is not a language that is a "a combination of all three". 

7 minutes ago, youreavinalaff said:

Not quite.

 

In Sissaket, also Buriram and Surin, there is central Thai plus three dialects. They are Isaan Laos, Khmer and Gui. Isaan Laos is similar to Central Thai. Khmer and Gui are very different. There is not a language that is a "a combination of all three". 

I didn't mean everyone speaks that combination but that combination exists all around Isaan. Some like my girlfriend, speak Thai and Cambodian mixed. In my village, they speak all three combined, some using more Thai than others and most using Laos and Thai mix. I'm not up to speed on the languages so go by what they tell me in both places.

My wife is on her way back from her village in Sisaket at the moment after spending a week visiting her dad while I stayed at our home in Phuket.  I haven't been to the village for several years because my father-in-law was staying in Phuket, but now that he has returned to the village my wife goes twice a year and I will go every 2 years.

Here are a few suggestions for things to do in the village.

1)  Arrange to have screens installed on the windows at the family home before you go.  It's not expensive at all.  Then you can leave all the windows wide open day and night and not be eaten alive.  You may want to buy a couple extra fans, too.

2) Consider sleeping at a nearby resort and going to the farm during the day.  If you're near Khun Han I recommend Rerawardi Resort. It's owned by a German/Thai couple.

They have a nice restaurant, good pool, and bake fresh bread every day.  You will find a number of English speakers, mainly German and Scandanavian, at the bar in the evenings.

3) Treat a group of kids from the village to a visit to a public swimming pool.  I was treated like a rock star when I did that.  The kids were so excited and had a wonderful time.

4) Samrong Kiat Waterfall is worth a visit if you're near Khun Han.

5) Kantharalak has a couple decent bars if you're in that area.

6) Taking the Golden to a vet and having him neutered won't change his personality but may reduce his urge to hump everything.

 

Hope you have an enjoyable stay.

I suggest you go with no preconceived ideas and go with the flow, otherwise you will only be disappointed.

 

A open mind is best especially if the house has limited facilities for sleeping, and washing yourself.

 

By that I mean a mattress on the floor and and a bowl over your head as a shower, get more than that and it will easy, 555

 

Best of luck 

6 hours ago, westsail said:

2) Consider sleeping at a nearby resort and going to the farm during the day.  If you're near Khun Han I recommend Rerawardi Resort. It's owned by a German/Thai couple.

They have a nice restaurant, good pool, and bake fresh bread every day.  You will find a number of English speakers, mainly German and Scandanavian, at the bar in the evenings.

 

Agreed! If you find the sleeping arrangements at the house not to your liking (heat, mosquitoes, no proper bed, no shower, etc.), I would definitely consider a more suitable accommodations. I've done so in the past, many times! 

 

Rerawadi has outstanding farang food. 

 

For accomodations, there are two resorts nearby (within 10 km of Rerawadi) that I prefer - Coco Bar in Pran (not the one in Khun Han), and also Pongsin Resort. Both under 1,000 per night (although might be higher during Christmas). 

5 hours ago, Andycoops said:

I suggest you go with no preconceived ideas and go with the flow, otherwise you will only be disappointed.

 

A open mind is best especially if the house has limited facilities for sleeping, and washing yourself.

 

By that I mean a mattress on the floor and and a bowl over your head as a shower, get more than that and it will easy, 555

 

Best of luck 

There's nothing  better than using a bowl with cold water to shower after a hot day. Instant refreshment. In winter, the first bowl is a bit chilly but then no problem. Great. 

10 hours ago, youreavinalaff said:

there is central Thai plus three dialects. They are Isaan Laos, Khmer and Gui.

 

What is Gui? I have not heard of that one. In Sri Saket, there is also a dialekt called Suay. 

5 minutes ago, Equatorial said:

 

What is Gui? I have not heard of that one. In Sri Saket, there is also a dialekt called Suay. 

Suay is an incorrect pronunciation of Gui. Probably a pronunciation lost over time.

 

It's the language spoken by the original elephant herders. Some historians have suggested it's the oldest language in the area and the Gui people predate the Northern Khmers.

 

The correct word for "Suay" is actually "Gui".

Fishing, bicycle riding, bird spotting, drone flying (imo - with cameras is best), teach him to swim (or at least be able to float). Air rifle shooting or archery (at targets) is really popular with boys (IME).  

On 6/7/2025 at 12:32 PM, rocket2 said:

I am committed to spending a week in a sisaket village over Christmas. How to keep one and an 8 year old boy occupied? 
 

I am contemplating buying some fruit trees to plant at the farm  and help shades the mother in laws house. 
 

might borrow some cars or puppies for the week to entertain  the kid.
 

 

Hiking, walking,  cooking  teach the kid to cook, a very useful skill; if you have a car and some land- then let him drive,

Ask him what he wants to do!

54 minutes ago, Magictoad said:

if you have a car and some land- then let him drive,

Great suggestion.

On 6/7/2025 at 12:32 PM, rocket2 said:

I am committed to spending a week in a sisaket village over Christmas. How to keep one and an 8 year old boy occupied? 
 

I am contemplating buying some fruit trees to plant at the farm  and help shades the mother in laws house. 
 

might borrow some cars or puppies for the week to entertain  the kid.
 

 

Oh dear - trials and tribulations of a custodian for an 8-year old, eh?

Sounds like you don't have much idea about parental responsibilities.

Try relaxing in peaceful surroundings and enjoy the atmosphere, your kid's development and getting involved in village-like things.

You might enjoy it.

Sounds as though it is something unfamiliar to you. 

But I'm sure that isn't the case - but then again, having to ask advice on here.........?