Day 30 - Exploring Bridge over River Kwai territory - Mon 25 Mar

Day 30 - Exploring Bridge over River Kwai territory - Mon 25 Mar
Red sunrise over river, early morning dogs barking beat the birds. 3 orange robed monks carrying pannikins walked in front of our parked truck along river; breakfast of muesli and tiny bananas. Walked across bridge to tourist police, not open yet; found laundry and left bag. Drove over our third different bridge over the river Kwai, NW towards Sai Yok and Hellfire Pass. Did not stop at controversial Tiger Temple – suggestion it sells animals on black market. Mistakenly thought this area was jungle, but definitely dry tropics, dusty. Thorny, prickly flowering shrubs do well, bougainvillea, desert rose, and prickly acacia in uncleared forest. 

Agriculture includes trimmed cassava, melons and sugar cane - must be summer harvesting, passing trucks of both burnt sugar poles, and dry cut billets. Irrigation on some properties, tractors towing ploughs/ tillers, smoke thick in air (burnt cane and rubbish). Countryside similar to Burdekin. Fuel and labour cheap, land flat and plentiful. Sage-coloured cassava sticks in perpendicular bundles ready for transport. High hills, rich red volcanic soil, as opposed to dry black soil around River Kwai. Impressive agricultural university, plus livestock and wildlife hospital. Had to slow for immigration checkpoints closing half road, this close to Burma border. Cooler as ascend mountains – nice!

Hellfire Pass and Museum, memorial to more than 100,000 allied POWs and Asian labourers who suffered and died during construction of Thai-Burma railway designed to carry supplies and troops for further Japanese conquest of SEA; opened by John Howard, beautifully maintained, moving site. 400mt walk along old line to the Pass and up ravine. Old sleepers still there and relics of life as slave labour. Scouring on rock shows hammer and tap method and where explosives charged.

Took loop road back via Erawan National Park and waterfall, giant Buddha beside road, in front of rocky hill decorated with yellow flags. Sugar cane fields being burned. Road in was long, came across large dam unexpectedly, huge body of water being let downstream; on up to National Park where we paid entrance fee $14, and were dismayed by more than 20 large tourist buses, a similar number of people movers, and dozens of vehicles in car park. Heaps of scantily clad people going in both directions... 500mts to waterfall which was disappointing given crowds of people (mostly Russians by the accents) and muddy water. Pool of fish at waterfall, looked like freshwater version of milkfish. Left almost immediately and drove back along river until found a break in the barrier, and were rewarded with our own private walk straight into cold clean dam water. 

 Refreshed we closed loop back to Kanchanaburi, past miles of limestone and marble craftsmen at work on monolith sculptures in roadside sales yards. 

Back in time to see laundry ladies tip my clean washing on floor to share out and fold. Grandma undid everything done by her daughter and granddaughter and re-did before she was satisfied to hand over! Miles and Marina arrived in town just as we were heading out for speedboat ride up river - left them behind for the wind in our hair, and dinner on floating restaurant; BoyRob gamely trying the pork knuckle.