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| Tending the graves Kanchanaburi War Cemetery Thailand |
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| Bridge over the River Kwai Kanchanaburi Thailand |
One cannot leave Bangkok in a hurry! The city just goes on and on but we did eventually get beyond the city limits on our way to the "Good Times" Resort in Kanchanaburi. The trip by road took 3 hours and traffic was well behaved. Once out of the city we passed rice paddies, sugar cane fields, and cows wandering alongside the road! On arrival in Kanchanaburi, we were really spoilt with a river facing room, private balcony and futon style bed. Have you ever tried to get in and out of such a low bed with bad knees? It's worthy of a "laugh a minute" video!
This spot is full of WW2 history so off we headed to view the bridge. We were lucky enough to be on the bridge when a train came past so we vowed to take a ride before leaving this town. The sad story of the Thailand-Burma Railway is depicted in the Kanchanaburi War Cemetery and the Death Railway Museum. So many lives were lost in the construction of this railway - how these folk could work in the searing heat and high humidity, I cannot imagine. It's a tear-jerking experience visiting both the cemetery and the museum. The cemetery is huge, beautifully maintained and shows the many lives lost during this period - British, Indian, Dutch and Australian.
To lighten the sombre mood, we headed off to find the Monkey Pod Tree. The GPS got us lost so we meandered past temples, cows, monks, strange chickens, a huge horse farm until we eventually found the big tree. It's huge - the biggest tree I have ever seen - 20 m high and 25 m wide, it offers shade up to 50m. Thankfully, this tree is protected and well looked after. The warning sign in both English and Thai says "Do Not Scrape the Tree" and "Do not sit Down"
And then, our train trip! We took the train from River Kwai to Nam Tok and back again. Riding on the Death Railway was an incredible experience. The sheer rock face in parts brought home the horrendous tasks that faced the prisoners of war during WW2. The track had a major overhaul in 2016, some 70 years after it was built. The area along the route is mainly agricultural - sugar cane, tapioca and whatever else grows locally. A highly recommended trip.
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| Thai Vendor Kanchanaburi Thailand |
We chatted to this very friendly lady who was selling books on the Death Railway. She did not push us to buy anything but was happy to chat while we waited for the train to Nam Tok.
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| The beautiful River Kwai in Kanchanaburi Thailand |
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| Kanchanabuii Thailand |
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| The Giant Monkey Pod Tree |
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| The beautiful views from the train Konchanaburi to Nam Tok |
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