Journey to Bangkok & Kanchanaburi (or Bridge over the river Kwai)

I had booked my ticket through my guest house, an overnight sleeper to Bangkok should take 12 hours.  In Thailand they have a certain way they transport tourists around, pretty sure its to make them spend as much money as possible, as you get transfered from one waiting area to another all of which sell drinks and food, in total I went on 7 different buses before getting on the main bus!  This bus was slightly delayed as it was caught in a massive rubber farmer strike closing of the one and only highway!!

As soon as I got to Bangkok I made my way to the bus terminal, a massive sprawling, multi level station with markets scattered throughout and got on a bus headed to Kanachaburi teh site of the bridge made famous in the bridge over the river Kwai.

The town was a lot more gritty then anywhere I had been so far, lots of bars, lots of 40 - 70 year old male Europeans hanging around, and they didnt strike you as they where here for the memorial sites!

The bridge was quite a sight, with still bullet hole damage from when the Yank planes had strafed it.

Attached to the bridge is a museum called Jeath war museum dedicated to those that lost there lives in the construction of the Railway line (Japan, England, Australia/America, Thailand & Holland).  This museum is very strange but at the same time very Thai.  It is dedicated to those that dies a huge number being Thais, however the part dedicated to the Death Rail line is very small, in fact as you head up the stairs from the main  exhibition  hall you come to a room dedicated to the costumes worn by the Mrs Asia... strange, but as I said very thai trying to make one place a jack of all.

Inside the main chamber there was quite a  eerie collection.  A lareg casket which held the bones of those they couldn't ID, and on top two skeletons of prisoners.  As you looked at the remains of these people you couldn't help but think about the people they use to be, their lives, hopes dream and who they had left behind, and great sadness as you could only imagine that there last remain days would have been filled full of fear and pain, you can only hope that they where  surrounded by the friends they had main in camp...

On my route to here I had met two other ex service guys.  We headed out after visiting the graves to have a couple of drinks and to raise our glasses to those that had lost there lives and to the Royal Marines as it was the 28th Oct.

These two guys, really nice and very well intentioned, and we all had a good night, ending up with a group of local youngster for drinks.  Both served numerous tours of Ireland and I think it had a huge effect on there lives.  They both where now in pretty successful jobs in there 40s, but where doing full moon parties, and heavly partaking in the sex industry by the sounds pretty much every night.  But when they spoke about it, they said they didnt want to continue but some need kept them going back.

I had thought of maybe staying longer, but I was ready to head on so I jumped on the bus back to BK.