18th April 1992 Day 273

The Diary

We went to the POW cemetery - most of the dead were about our age. The average age was probably about 25. Judging from the JEATH museum the previous day they were about as well off as the Jews at Dachau. Then we made the long walk in the heat to see the bridge. On the way we came across a new war museum - the decor was well done but the English was very poor and there were a lot of factual inaccuracies. 

We wandered over the bridge, Oz got excited about an elephant with a stonker and then we wandered back. We spent the rest of the day in the oasis that was the Jolly Frog although Oz spent a large part of it on the loo. We filled in the guest book and signed ourselves Alec Guinness and Jim Thompson

2012

Apologies to Oz for continually mentioning his illness but it's obviously significant when you are travelling around and wouldn't have made sightseeing in the heat easy at all. Anyway the boot will be on the other foot later on in the diary.

The Dachau reference was there because it's a concentration camp/museum I'd visited a couple of times.

17th April 1992 Day 272

The Diary
Awoke at 5am as officials wandered up and down the carriage saying "Bangkok, Bangkok" so that they could get everyone up early and pack the beds away before we arrived. We decided to head straight to Kanchanaburi. Once out of the station (incredibly busy for 6am) we caught the 53 bus to the river. We then caught an express boat across the river, ignoring requests for us to move our bags down the boat, to Thonburi station.


We bought two 25B tickets and waited for the train. At 8am it left for the 3 hour journey. The wooden seats were definitely not made for sitting on. Just before we arrived a young Thai went along the carriage advertising The Jolly Frog Backpackers. The free ride swung it and we and about 10 others took up the offer. On the way there we realised that the Songkran water throwing festival was still going on - in a big way.


We had a pizza each and set off for the JEATH War Museum with our valuables in plastic bags. We were soaked too many times to count, our faces were whitened several times and it was if we were in the middle of a war zone. The ammo was water and pick-up trucks full of kids patrolled the streets soaking all and sundry refilling from oil drums that the fire-service filled with water. Bus drivers even slowed down so that passengers could be soaked.

The museum was small and a bit tatty but it got across the horror and dreadful conditions that the POWs and coolies endured to build the Death Railway for the Japanese. Outside, the water fight carried on - it seemed a bit inappropriate really. I picked up some photos but had to get them reprinted as they did them too small. We are early and crashed out. And Oz's bottom continues to crash out. And by the way Happy Easter - it's Good Friday.


2012
Kanchanaburi - The Bridge on the River Kwai.


It seems very appropriate to be blogging this on Anzac Day so here are a couple of clips: