From Chiang Rai e took an early morning bus back to Chiang Mai and spent a few hours relaxing – lunch followed by a foot massage! At 5pm our taxi ’songteaw’ took us to the train station for an overnight train towards Bangkok, getting off at Ayuttayah at 4am. However, 2 of our party failed to show up for the train (2 Ozzie blokes over 45, both with a heavy drink problem and severe lack of charm) and we went without them – no great loss! Pizza on the train and general merriement including a trip to the disco car and some silliness before bed at 11pm. In Ayuttayah we had breakfast by the river and took a songteaw tour of some of the main temples an ruins in this old city dating from the 15th century and before when it was Thailand’s capital. Plenty of photos later, it was time for a longer trip to Kanchanaburri, the location of the famous Bridge over the River Kwai. Arriving at sunset, we were taken in rickshaws to the war cemetary and then to the bridge itself. The sun set behind the famous arches and I was amazed to be able to walk along the tracks – with no barriers to prevent you from stepping over the edge. It was magic to walk the bridge albeit with the other tourists. The area has inevitably become a tourist trap with every business calling itself ‘River Kwai’ or ‘ Bridge’ from massages, bars and gift shops to restuarants floating with lanterns on the water. As we left a lively market was warming up, but it was time for our rickshaw guys to get us back to the Apple Guesthouse for dinner.
Archive for January 23rd, 2008
Leaving Chiang Rai by minibus we took a short ride into the are known as the Golden Triangle. The meeting of 2 rivers and the borders of Thailand, Laos, Burma with China visible in the distance. This area was also famed for the mass production of Opium in previous years but thanks to an eradication programme and alternative crops such as coffee, the hill tribe villages and farmers no longer cultivate the poppy crop. After a hot journey, lunch was on the banks of the river watching the long tail boats ferry tourists along the river. Afterwards we visited an Opium museum to learn about how the crop was grown, how the villagers lived with the habit of Opium smoking, and it’s consequences. The exhibits were fascinating and well put together for a small place, and having visited the Akha hill tribe it was more poignant to see them in their previous occupation. Avoiding the midday sun, at 4pm I joined fellow travellers on a small boat to take us at top speed along the river to Laos where for 20 baht (about 30p) we entered the country via a wooden shack and browsed the market on the river bank before returning to Thailand the same way and back to Chiang Rai in the darkness. Busy traffic into the city made the journey longer and by 8pm back at the hotel we all gathered for a dinner in the night bazarre before bed and much needed sleep.
