We hired a car and headed north west. Diane was past the worst of her insect bites and allergies but we were both still finding the heat a bit much. We figured that a road trip would fit the bill since, with a nice air conditioned car, we would have somewhere cool to escape to during the day. We collected the car, without any problems, about 11am and tackled the Bangkok roads. Like most cities, Bangkok roads are busy and you really need to pay attention. However, most drivers are quite polite and fairly laid back so driving is nowhere near as stressful as some European capitals.
After about four hours driving we still felt like we were in Bangkok. The road was lined with buildings, businesses, shops and people busy with their daily lives. Almost all the way to Kanchanaburi it seemed to be the same story and, frankly, made for a boring drive. Fortunately, a few miles before we arrived the buildings gave way to fields and we could start to see a little of the countryside. Our hotel was located right next to the River Kwai and set in a large, impressive garden. It was also very quiet. Just a handful of guests in a large hotel. Very peaceful. The food was very good too. Probably some of the tastiest and most authentic Thai food to date.
Next day we went to visit the Bridge over the River Kwai. This has become a memorial to the people who died constructing the Burma Railway during the second world war. Much of what I thought I knew about the bridge came from the 1957 film, Bridge on the River Kwai. Sadly, this is mostly fiction and the film was actually shot in Ceylon. The reality of the 248 mile “death railway” was probably far more horrific than the film or the book it was based on. Between 180,000 and 250,000 Southeast Asian civilians and over 60,000 Allied prisoners of war were subjected to forced labour by the Japanese during its construction. Around 90,000 civilians died, as did more than 12,000 Allied prisoners. Two bridges were built over the Khwae Yai, one wooden and one of steel and concrete. They were both bombed by the RAF and then repaired by allied POWs, several times. In 1946 the British ordered the Japanese POWs to remove large sections of railway to protect British interests in Singapore. The Burma section rapidly fell into disrepair and just a small section of the Thai side in still in use.
We pressed on north and west, stopping to look at a view point in the Khao Laem National Park. Here we discovered that foreigners pay ten times as much as locals for entrance into the parks. The view point was interesting but dulled by the pall of smoke hanging over everything. This was to prove to be a persistent and unpleasant occurrence. Further up the road we were driving past sections of burning forest. Eventually, we arrived at Sangkhla, close to the border to Myanmar. At the Three Pagodas Pass, Thai people can get a day-pass to Myanmar but not foreigners. We took a boat trip on the Khao Laem lake to visit some temples. The two young daughters of the boat owner acted as our guides. One of the temples was being taken over by tree roots giving it a distinct “Indiana Jones” appearance. This was enhanced by the beautiful Buddha inside which has just been given a new coat of gold leaf. From the lake, way off in the distance, we could see another completely enormous Buddha, that was being worked on. Later we attempted to find this immense statue by car but failed.
Back in Sangkla, we stumbled into the middle of a procession. Never discovered what was being celebrated but there was much singing, dancing and bright colours. Everyone seemed very happy. That evening, we walked across the old wooden bridge spanning the Song Kalia river to the Mon village Wang Kha. A quite remarkable structure that looks to be hundreds of years old but was actually built in 1980. At over 400 m, it is Thailand’s longest wooden bridge and the second longest in the world. A pleasant restaurant at the far side was happy to feed us before we crossed back as the sun was setting.
Two days later we were in the jungle. Having reached the end of the road, we set off back towards Kanchanaburi but took a detour eastwards to explore some minor roads. Here we found the Lam Klong Ngu National Park and a sign to the Nang Kruan Waterfall. Getting into the park would have been easier with a 4×4. Then we followed a trail by the river for half an hour before actually arriving at the waterfall. This is an area of tropical rainforest and, where ever farmers are not asserting themselves, there is lush, dense, vibrant green vegetation. We saw butterflies, lizards, many types of bird and even a lizard that was a good 40 cm long. It jumped off its branch into the river before I could photograph it. All felt like a proper jungle adventure. Certainly we were very hot and sweaty at the end of it. Closer to Kanchanaburi we found a hotel which featured floating bedrooms. The novelty value was fun and we did attempt to use the kayak moored outside the bedroom window. It did not go well. Either the boat was very unstable or, more likely, we were very wobbly. We paddled into the river, wobbled a lot and came back. The thought of going into the river, or worse still, swallowing some, was quite enough to bring out my instabilities.
