Daniel and Alana in Bangkok

There sure were a lot of people at Daniel’s birthday party Thursday night. In fact, I have never seen Hua Hin so busy! I am not sure whether everyone was there to help Alana and I celebrate Daniel’s birthday or were there for the 14th Asian Conference being held from February 27th. Maybe the guys with the suits and shiny shoes were security officials and not Daniel revelers??

Daniel and Alana are easy guests. Sightseeing was a piece of cake as I learned all about the first class hotels Bangkok has to offer as we moved from the Cha Praya hotels

for coffee and reading the paper, to other first class hotels to use the hong nam and so on. Now the only place Daniel will consider staying are at 6 star facilities.( other than my apartment) The Alila hotel, where they stayed in Cha-Am is the fanciest hotel I have ever seen. The coolest thing is the shower head that comes right out of the ceiling in the middle of the bathroom. It is like you are in the middle of a rain forest! Last night we ate in the new Meridien Hotel in Bangkok. Miraculously Daniel found it and it has only been up for two months.

Daniel is a great guy to travel with. You will never be lost. As we were approaching the Alila hotel in Cha-Am, our cab driver had no idea where it was. Even though Daniel had never been there before, he directed him right in. He also has a sense for language and even though he might not be a risk taker and speak, he understands quite a lot of Thai (I think). Actually I am quite amazed at how much he understands in so short a time.

It is a pleasure for me to see Daniel and Alana having so much fun in each other’s company and they seem to make a great pair. Their personalities complement each other, rather well. I guess as a father you take pride in seeing how well your children turn out. I remember being a few minutes late to pick him up at his primary school and he used to cry if I was a minute late. At the airport, when I was a few minutes late he was patiently waiting for me with his Blackberry in hand asking where I was. He looked so professional with his carry-on luggage having just walked off the plane and customs in record time. He was so self-assured. It is also fun to be able to talk about things at some length and not be interrupted by either me going to sleep or Daniel taking a morning business call as we talk on Skype.

I was also so proud of them when there was a mix-up at the airport and Alana had to miss her flight to Australia. They both seem to take it in their stride and simply got the problem fixed and made new arrangements. How wonderful as a parent to see such autonomy and self-confidence in your children.

What am I going to do when they leave? I might have to go back to eating the street food. and staying in 3 star hotels ,God forbid!