The River Kwai, the Elephant Trek, and Everything in Between

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Today I got up at 6:30 to catch my 7am ride. I am off on a Thai adventure!

We all piled into the van, and as we discovered, had some plans the same and some plans different since we bought different tour packages. I soon discovered that the Thai tourism industry is quite impressive since they are able to move people around from one van to another to get then to the right place at the right time and somehow they don't seem to lose people.

Our first stop was in Kanchanaburi, about two and a half hours west of Bangkok. We stopped at the Kanchanaburi Allied War Cemetery. It was large, quiet, and peaceful. Most of the stones had dedications by parents and only a few were from wives--a stark reminder of how young the men were.

Our next stop just down the road was the WWII and JEATH museum, conveniently located on the Kwai River. The museum was interesting and I did learn a little, but seeing the bridge was unreal. Obviously, I saw the movie in eighth grade social studies like everyone else, but to see it--and feel it--made the story come alive. I walked across the bridge and took photos of the river. It's a beautiful area, really, and it's hard to imagine such horrendous things happened there not so long ago.

After walking the bridge under the sun's harsh rays I stopped and bought some coconut ice cream. It was served in a coconut shell with some coconut meat in the bottom. Quite a steal for 20 baht, or 60 cents. I sat on a bench by the museum and watched the river and the bridge while enjoying the hot sun.

We stopped at a roadside cafe for lunch. Two of the three dishes were vegetarian so I was pleased. Mildly annoyed, though, that if you wanted something to drink with lunch you had to purchase it extra.

We drove down to the river and took a long boat upstream. Then we all climbed up and out of the boat and onto a bamboo raft. We floated downstream for about half an hour. It was so calm and peaceful. I just wish my tour group had been a bit quieter--the Japanese girls kept squealing when their shoes got wet. (They eventually took them off.)

Then our group split up (for the second time) and my group went to see the elephants. We were required to have two people per elephant so I ended up sharing a ten year old elephant with a nice guy from Ireland. The trek was short but it was an awesome experience. I was surprised by how rough and dry elephant skin is!
The elephant people cleverly make it so you can't snap any photos of yourself on the elephant so you'll buy the one souvenir photo they take of you. The 100 baht goes to helping the animals do I didn't mind. Besides, I wanted proof I'd done it!

After we all bought our photos (and we all did) we drove down the road to rejoin part of our group at the waterfall. It was beautiful and unexciting. Some of the people visiting were not. Let's just politely say it made for interesting people watching--it was a fashion parade of horrors. The things people will wear when they're hot...
You can swim at the waterfall, which my travel agency neglected to tell me. So I sat, hot and sweaty, watching others cool off and jump off rocks, climb rocks in flip-flops, and smoke cigarettes. Paradise!

The last part of my tour package was a ride on the Death Railway. The ticket cost was in addition to the initial tour cost and the train is necessary if you want to meet up with your minivan again. Nice.
The ride was long and made frequent stops (most of them for school children), but the scenery was amazing. We rode along through fields, past temples and schools, and finally along the Kwai River. We then rode over the Kwai River, but not on THE bridge. The views were breathtaking.

Arrived back in Bangkok after an extra-long ride home. In the minivan we were starting to wonder if our driver was paid by the hour. Julie and Margot weren't back from their adventures, so I had time to shower and clean up before we went out for a late dinner around 8pm. We all drank Thai iced tea, which is made with condensed milk and reminded me a lot of Vietnamese coffee. I had curry with shrimp and squid for dinner.

After dinner, Julie and I went out in search of beach dresses and tank tops for me. It's just too hot for tshirts and China doesn't sell tank tops because they're still considered inappropriate. I ended up buying two dresses. One matches my bikinis perfectly (hot pink/magenta and black) and the other is dark green with butterflies. I will be much cooler in these clothes than in the few things I brought with me. Thank goodness I packed light! We celebrated my success with kiwi and pomegranate shakes.

After all off that we met up with Margot for food massages. Heavenly. Exactly what I needed to relax and fall asleep.

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Photos

Kanchanaburi War Cemetery
Where the POW victims of the Death Railway are honored.

Across the Bridge!
I walked across the bridge, the whole time hoping I wouldn't fall in.

Dish it up!
Coconut ice served in a coconut shell with coconut meat on the bottom. The most refreshing thing so far!

On the Raft
Riding a bamboo raft is a relaxing experience. Be warned, your feet get wet since it floats in--rather than on--the water.

Yep, that's me
My co-pilot was another single in the tour group. Our driver has been driving for ten years.

The waterfall
I still have no idea why this was supposed to be exciting.

The Kwai River
Taken from the Death Railway

Small Town
Taken from the Death Railway

Kwai River
Taken from the Death Railway