Filine

so i decided to go pick up my luggage on the 7th of May ... i took the train with about 30 others at 5'30am ... as they had been in this very special place the local worshippers/retreaters got their traintickets for free ... just when i felt as one i was faced again that i'm the one sticking out ... in any way you can see it and thus had to pay for the train ticket ... oh well ... c'est la vie ... and who cares ... a few dollars more on an experience of a lifetime ... when i got back to Kanchanaburi it turned out my guesthouse was full accept for the luxurious airconditioned double bed rooms for which i then had to pay 4x as much ... i respectfully declined and ... read more

as written in previous blog, 120,000 people died constructing the railway of Death of whom approx 5000 Dutchies (of whom most died during construction of bridge) ... 12,000 english and approx 75-80,000 chinese ... most deaths were related to hunger and diseases ... with SO many chinese souls departing their physical bodies on and near this spot I'm surprised it has taken them so long to build a chinese temple next to the bridge ... m not sure when they started construction however as they're only now nearing completion it must have taken at least a few decades to get a proper place of worship ... My last official temple visit was a brutal one going there ... on a bycicle up a mountain in 45C ... i did get on mi way early (round 7ish) ... read more

The change of trainstations in Bangkok was rough ... 45C and thus hid out in the 7/11 airconditioned supermarket ... the 2.5 hr ride took about 4 and obviously was sitting at the wrong side of the train ... best to watch the pictures again ...... read more

Chiang Mai is the biggest town in the North ... it's very spread out with in the center the old town of Chiang Mai which is a LARGE block (with hundreds, if not thousands of soi/little streets) surrounded by a modern town ... takes mi about 15-20 minutes to drive from one side to the next, so u can image how the large the area is ... many IMPORTANT thai temples r here, which was seen in mi last blog ... i wanted to go into the monestery around my birthday, however now i was close to the center, had a nice, although VERY hot, room in a wonderful maze ... i decided i was gonna face mi worst fear, m afraid of heights ... thereafter i would just see and let the day take mi ... read more

As i still was in the travelers trail and so far every economy of every village i've visited comprised out of a variety of guesthouses and restaurants to support the mostly young visitors from other countries ... as was this tiny little river town, thus after my difficult hike and two cycles of sleep ii ventured out to some local hill villages ... just when i was about to decide which road to take leaving town, i saw a couple walking ahead of mi ... i thought this can't be ... those long legs belong to Chantal, the dutch girl i shared the 'bush' toilet with when the slowboat stopped to let off some locals at a small village on our way to muang ngoi ... and so another chance encounter in the middle of the ... read more