Burma Railway, Kanchanaburi, Thailand

On to the Burma Railway "Death Railway" constructed by allied POWs under the harsh direction of the Japanese Army during World War 2.  Over 100,000 men died during the 20 months it took to construct the 258 mile railway.  90,000 of whom were Asians "hired" by the Japanese to build the railway.  On 20 September, we traveled by bus, train, boat, and foot back to a hotel in Bangkok from Pattaya.  The next day we took what remains of the Burma Railway to Kanchanaburi to the Bridge on the River Kwai.  The following day we took the train to the end of the line at Nam Tok and then by scooter to Hellfire Pass.  We spent an extra day in Kanchanaburi regrouping for the next leg of our journey to Hanoi, Vietnam on 24 September. (Paul)

One of the unexploded bombs dropped on the railway by the allies toward the end of World War 2.

The "Bridge on the River Kwai" that inspired the movie.  This is the actual bridge built by allied POWs and still in use today.  The middle two spans were bombed by the allies toward the end of the war.

Hellfire Pass chiseled out of the mountain by hand and dynamite by Australian, British, Dutch, and a few American POWs without any heavy equipment.

Cemetery in Kanchanaburi that is the final resting place for thousands of British, Australian, Dutch, and American POWs that died building the Burma Railway.

Once the dynamite detonated, the workers hauled the smaller rock fragments off in these carts.

A sweet looking resort along the way.

One of the many stops along the way on the 3rd class commuter train from Bangkok.

Lots and lots of jungle!

The seats don't recline, but hey, you don't have to worry about the AC being too cold.

Without any current information in Trip Advisor for the town of Nam Tok, we asked a waiter where we might find a scooter to rent.  Score!  No way were we going to pay $23 for a taxi to take us 12 miles (and back) when we could go by scooter for half of that.

This gives you an appreciation for just how much rock the POWs had to move.

In Kanchanaburi we stayed in a floating raft bungalow on the river.

Cool looking bridge that appears to be closed, but I suppose you could try it if you dare.  We did not.

These are EVERYWHERE!

There are other beers than Chang in Thailand, but "elephant beer" is really good.

This squat toilet is on the train - not sure what you hold onto.  Better have good balance.

Trestle built by allied POWs in the background.  Also, cool that you can take a two and a half hour train ride for $2.89 with the windows rolled down.  No one babysits you and reminds you of the obvious need to keep your body parts inside the train when going through the jungle.

Boxcar used to transport allied POWs several days from Singapore.  Up to 28 men were stacked into these railcars.

These mountains seem to explain, in part, why there is a border between Myanmar (Burma) and Thailand that otherwise doesn't make sense when looking at a map.

Another cool trestle made by POWs during World War 2.  I don't know for sure, but several of the piers look like their members consist of the original teak logs.  I know....only an engineer would even look that close.  Oh, and the concrete is holding up really well in case you were wondering.

  Chickens everywhere.

Another "Wat" (temple) en route to another hotel.

There are more dogs than chickens. Apparently, according to Buddhism, these may be somebody's uncles reincarnated. So, they are left alone and treated pretty well.  I'm not sure how to explain cattle, pigs, and chickens that don't seem to be as lucky.

This was our "guest house" for our last night in Kanchanaburi.  Nice rooms among the jungle motif.

Pattaya, Thailand

We left the southern islands on 16 September.  After taxi, boat, bus, airplane, and another taxi, we arrived at my roommate, Greg's (from West Point) house.  He and his wife, Laurie, and their six kids opened their home to us and showed us the sights around Pattaya.  (Paul)

One of the many golf courses in the area - all are immaculate.  Each golfer is required to have his/her own caddy and cart.

At the Sanctuary of Truth - a giant building intricately carved from wood.  They take their temple's and monuments VERY seriously.

One of the many golf courses in the area.  Hopefully, my back will be better the next time we are in town in a few weeks.

Greg, Laurie, Kassie, and Paul on Walking Street.  We had to put the picture in black and white because the neon fluorescent lights were too overpowering.

Walking Street -- If you've never heard of it, Google it.  This is a G - rated blog.  The GI's got it all started during R&R during the Vietnam War.

A typical "lady boy" bartender on Walking Street. You had better not have too many drinks because you will be fooled.

Bhudda on the mountain.  What else do you do with a mountain that was a quarry during the Vietnam War used to build roads and runways?

Botanical gardens in Pattaya.  These are giant, too!

Cultural show at the botanical garden that demonstrated song, dance, and wardrobe from each region in Thailand.  We also saw an elephant show where the elephants did all sorts of cools stuff like shooting baskets, kicking soccer balls into goals, dancing, throwing giant darts at balloons.  Amazing! However, I'm not allowed to post any pictures because of Kassie's protest against the inhumane treatment of animals.  I feel sorry for them, too.  But those elephants were AWESOME!

Koh Samui 13-16 September

Another beautiful island!  We took a short ferry crossing from Koh Pha Ngan to Koh Samui.  Koh Samui is Thailand's third largest island and lies 36 miles from the mainland in the Gulf of Thailand.  Our first night we stayed on Lamai beach area which was too touristy, noisy and crowded for us.  We stayed in a basic beach front bungalow for $18/nt.  Judging from all the fancy resorts around us, we seemed to have picked the blue light special hotel.    It was clean, had air, and perfect for our budget though.  We really don't care about fancy hotels....just need a clean room bed, shower, and air conditioning.  It's really surprising how inexpensive everything is over here!   After 1 night on Lamai beach we wanted to get away from the tourist and noise and experience more of the local flare.  We hitched a ride to the west side of the island and found a perfect beach bungalow on a deserted stretch of beach in Lipa Noi. Unfortunately,  Paul tweaked his back (old injury ) so we decided to just stay put for a couple days--usually takes that long for the ol' guy to get moving normal again ;)  We had planned to get another scooter and explore this island but instead I took the opportunity to walk around the town and surrounding area while Paul read every article in the Economist back at the bungalow.  I also had my first Thai massage.  It was an experience!  I was a little shocked when she climbed on the table and straddled my back. At that point I wasn't sure what I had signed up for!   She had all my limbs contorted in every direction using her feet.    Thank God she only weighed about 90 lbs!
So far I think we have mastered 2 Thai words.  This part of the island isn't geared for tourists so most of the menus aren't in English and most of the time we have no idea what we are eating but it's delicious!!   We eat most of our meals on road side stands.  The food is amazing.  Back to the mainland tomorrow. 

I'm not sure what this fruit is but we see it everywhere

Pier to catch ferry

One of the Ferry boats

Arriving to Koh Samui

Our second bungalow on the West side only $20/nt...and yes it comes with beds. 

dinner choices

table garnish

one of the many road side food stands we eat from

beaches on the east coast.  We liked the west side better