About 80 miles away from Bangkok is Kanchanaburi, the city with the bridge over River Kwai. I wanted to spend a few days here to learn more of the history and to enjoy the slower pace in comparison to the craziness of Bangkok. To get there, I opted to take the local approach and bought my $3 train ticket from Thonburi train station in Bangkok. Does $3 for a two-and-a-half-hour train ride sound suspicious? Well, it’s a special experience. First, train timetables are more general guides, and by no means are they absolutes. Second, it’s over 100 degrees Fahrenheit outside, and there is no air conditioning inside the train, so make sure to sit next to a working window. Third, be quick to get on the train so you can get in a carriage that has some padded seats. Otherwise, you and your rear end will have to make the trek via wooden seats. The train at times feels like it's going 1 mph, and the tracks are so close to homes that if your hand is hanging out the window, you’ll either lose it or you’ll come away with a few extra undies from someone's drying laundry. It feels as though there are a hundred stops, and you just want to get out of the train and push it faster. But would I do it again? Absolutely! That is the local experience, and if you have patience, you can take in the countryside scenery, and as the train puffs along, locals selling food and drinks will pop on and off the train at different stops, so you won’t go hungry or thirsty if you were ill-prepared for the train ride. Also, having some cleaning wipes comes in handy because if it hasn’t rained in a while, it can be extremely dusty and you may need to wipe off layers of dirt from yourself (face, hands and arms) every so often. Are you wondering if I’m sure I wouldn’t rather just take an air-conditioned, clean coach to Kanchanaburi? Yes, yes, I’m sure. Train! Train! Train!
Disembarking at the River Kwai stop in Kanchanaburi, and the first thing in view is the famous bridge over the River Kwai - oh and the hundred people standing on the tracks on the bridge. The train blows its horn signaling that it's ready to move, and the people scatter like ants. I can’t believe how many people line the bridge and am curious if anyone has ever fallen off. It’s an odd site coming from lawsuit central U.S. where that type of safety risk would have lawyers drooling. Yet that could be said with many things in Southeast Asia - it’s just a whole different beast here, and I’m soaking up every minute.
While in Kanchanaburi, I did a day trip up to the Hellfire Pass segment of the Burma-Thailand "Death Railway." The railway was for the Japanese and built by forced labor, including labor from WWII POWs. When you start walking through the woods to the stretch of the pass, you look up to the left and right and see the large rock hovering above on both sides, menacingly looking down at you. You are shocked to think of how the men actually cleared a path through this rock using the most primitive of tools and dynamite. No heavy machinery was used. Then in addition to the pass, there were also the bridges they were building, again without proper equipment or plans, in harsh conditions and with a lack of food. Many lives were lost in the process, hence the nickname the "Death Railway." Trains no longer run through this segment, but you can still see areas where the iron track is laid. It’s a somber sight but gives you such respect for those workers.
During the day, I also went to a seven-tiered waterfall, but it was so dry that water was only flowing through the first five tiers. You could climb up to each tier, and most had areas large enough to take a dip. I hiked up to the fifth tier as I wanted to get away from the crowds for the utmost quiet. To get in the water, I had to carefully butt-scooch my way in as the rocks had a layer of moss on them, making them as slippery as Crisco. I found a spot shallow enough to keep cool while also avoiding the fish. If I had brought a fishing net, I could have caught my dinner as the fish were quite long and plump in size. I like to eat fish and look at them through glass, but I don’t care for them giving me up-close-and-personal greetings.
On my final day in Kanchanaburi, I got up shortly after sunrise to walk down to the bridge over the River Kwai. It was intensely quiet as none of the street vendors were out - only the birds and the bugs were awake with the sound of the water in the background. I was able to walk the bridge almost completely alone. People often ask me if I get lonely, and for the most part, the answer is no. It just gives you time to think - as much time as you want - or maybe not to think, just walk.
