Vacation Thailand - River Kwai ... by ash-hotel.com
MAP
K
anchanaburi
is one of the most beautiful provinces of Thailand, with a very delightful landscape.It is
already well-known among War-historians and movie-buffs as the site of the
notorious "Death Railway" and the "Bridge over the River Kwai" and
among archaeolegists for its Neolithic burial grounds. Yet, the province also has numerous
other places of interest for the nature loving visitor who wants to spend longer time
here.
Kanchanaburi is about 128 kilometers west of Bangkok approximately 2 1/2 hours ride
by car over a good road.
The town of Kanchanaburi is located at the point where two tributaries, the Kwai
Noi and Kwai Yai (which have their source in the Ta-Nao-Si Range) meet and from the
Mae-Khong River.
The present provincial capital is a relatively new town built by King Rama III in
1833. The old town was 18 kilometers away.
Attractions
The Bridge over the River Kwai
This famous bridge is lacoated about 4 kilometers from T.A.T. Office, on
the bank of Khwae Yai river.
It was brought from Java by the Japanese Army and was assembled at the River Kwai
by the war prisoners. Bombed several times in 1945, it was rebuilt after the war again.
The curved spans of the bridge are the original sections. An estimated 16,000 was
prisoners and 49,000 impressed labourers died during the construction of the bridge and
the Death-Railway line that leads to Burma.
Kanchanaburi War Cemetery
This cemetery contains the remains of 6,982 war prisoners who lost their
lives during the Captivity of the Japane
se Army that forced them to build the
Bridge over the River Kwai and the Death Railway.
The Japanese following their invasion of
Thailand during World War II, brought British, Dutch, Australian and American prisoners to
Thailand by the Southern route. Impressed laboures were also used to complete the rush
construction of the railroad, which is an alternative to the sea route, to Rangoon via
Singapore and the Strait of Malacca since the sea route was being closed in by Allied
submarines and aircrafts.
Chong-Kai War Cemetery
The Chong-Kai Cemetery is smaller but more peaceful than the one in town. It is
also neatly arranged with all kinds of beautiful flowers planting, and hedged. It contains
the remains of 1,750 prisoners of war.
This place can be reached by boats which are available at the pier in front of the
town gate and also from the agent at the Bridge.
Tham Khao Pun
This cave is located about 1 kilometer from the Chong-Kai War Cemetery.
There is a temple in front of the cave. Inside this cave housing many beautiful Buddha
images of different gestures which would make your climbing worthwhile. The stalacitites
and stalagmites are interesting too.
Jeath War Museum
JEATH stands for Japan, England, America, Australia, Thailand and Holland.
The museum is a reconstructed p.o.w.s. (The prisoners of war in the second world war
during 1942-1943) thatched detention hut. Living quarters inside comprise raised bamboo
bunks running the length of the long hut. One can see how each p.o.w. was alloted a
scrimping living spaces on the bunks. On the walls of the huts are posted actual, enlarged
photos and illustrations of the "atrocities" against the prisoners, and the
severe living conditions of the p.o.w.s. The museum is on the bank of the Mae Klong River
inside Wat (Monastery) Chai Chumphon.
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Hell - Fire Pass
One of the toughest rock cuttings the allied POWS had to hack
through in order to get the Burma Railway finished. At least 400 of the 1000 -men work
force died here. Some old sections of the track have been put back in place by the
Australian Army, which funds the upkeep of the area as a memorial to those who died here.
Every year on ANZAC Day, a dawn service is held here by the Defense Attaches of Australia
and New Zealand,and veterans who served here return to take part, haunting
Muang Sing City
This ancient site is located on a steep bank of the Kwai Noi River
where the waterway narrows and becomes fast flowing. The 800 year-old city ruins are of
considerable archaeological interest, and the principal structure, the Khmer Prasat Muang
Singh (Tower of the City of Lions) is believed to have been the westernmost outpost of the
Angkor-centred Khmer empire. Skeletal remains dating back some 2,000 years have been
unearthed, and a wide range of artefacts, including temple carvings, religious statuary,
implements and pottery shards indicate the once-thriving city must have been inhabited
from approximately the 12th to 14th centuries.
Ban Kao Museum
8 kilometres from Prasat Muang Singh, and 35 kilometres from
Kanchanaburi, this also overlooks the Kwai Noi River. The museum was constructed beside a
Neolithic burial site discovered by an Allied prisoner of war during the construction of
Death Railway'. Some 4,000 years ago, Neolithic man lived, roamed and hunted beside the
Kwai rivers, sheltering beneath rock overhangs or in nearby caves. The Ban Kao museum
houses skeletal remains, pots, axe heads, jewellery made from animal bones , and other
artefacts dating from that era.
Sai Yok Noi Waterfall
Also known as Khao Phang Waterfall, 60 kilometres from town. The
roadside cascade is best visited between July and September , when water is most
plentiful, and is located 2 kilomet
res north west of Nam Tok
Railway Station, the terminus of the branch line originating in the provincial capital and
which crosses the world-famous bridge.
Sai Yok Yai Waterfall
This flows directly into the Kwai Noi River, and is the most
popular attraction in the 300-square kilometre Sai Yok National Park. The park contains
several interesting caves besides the Lawa. The Daowadung Cave, which also entails a river
trip for visits, is the most popular. South of the Sai Yok Yai Waterfall, is another
cascade flowing into the river, the Nam Jone Waterfall. Wildlife in Sai Yok's deciduous
forests include small mammals such as bats, squirrels, and deer, and numerous bird
species, including wreathed hornbills and blue-winged pittas. Human presence at Sai Yok is
known to date back to the Stone Age, and the Sai Yok Yai Waterfall has been repeatedly
celebrated in Thai poetry and song.
The Lawa Cave
The largest cave inthe area, has stalactites and stalagmites in
several chambers. Visitors may take boats from the Kwai Noi River Pak Saeng Pier, at
Tambon Tha Sacs (southwest of Nam Tok Railway Station and Sai Yok Noi Waterfall) to
explore this cave, and travel afterwards upstream to the riverine Sai Yok Yai Waterfall
Sangkla
Buri
This petite settlement, some 225 kilometres from
Kanchanaburi, edges the northernmost extremities of the Khao Laem reservoir. The scenic
75-kilometre route from Khao Laem largely parallels the reservoir, passes several raft
complexes, botanical gardens and roadside cascades, and vistas of partly submerged trees
crowding the reservoir banks.
Three Pagodas
Pass
This even smaller settlement, 241 kilometres from Kanchanaburi,
marks the rugged Thai - Burma border, and is the site of a small but thriving border
market. Visitors are allowed to enter the neighbouring Burmese settlement between 6.00 AM
and 6.00 PM (when the border is closed). The three miniature pagodas are memorials to what
was the traditional invasion route favoured by Burmese soldiers during the Ayutthaya
period (1350-1767).
Wat Wangka Wiwekaram
This extensive temple on the southern outskirts of Sangkla Buri
edges the Khao Laem reservoir. The complex is constructed in an unusual pastiche of Thai,
Indian and Burmese Buddhist architectural styles, and the abbot is highly revered among
local people, including tribal folk and Burmese.
Bo Phloi
Some 40 kilometres from Kanchanaburi, and just off Route 3086,
this area is famed for locally mined blue sapphires and semi-precious materials such as
onyx. A Jewellery Handicraft Centre enable visitors to see how these materials are made i
o finished jewellery creations.
Kanchanaburi
Safari Park
This brand new enclave, near Bo Phloi, dominatcd by a man-made
hill adorned with decorative pavilions, hosts numerous African and Asian mammal Asian
mammals, including giraffes, zebras, lions, tigers and elephants in carefuls landscaped
envirous.
Erawan National Park
65 kilometres from Kanchanaburi, this 550-square-kilometre
national park is the site of the 7-tiered Erawan Waterfall, widely regarded as being one
of Thailand's loveliest cascades. A mountainside forest setting includes dense bamboo
groves which support numerous bird species.The park's other major attraction is the
spectacular Prathat Cave which contains monumental stalagmites.
Sri Nagarind Dam
69 kilometres from Kanchanaburi, and just 4 kilometres north of
the Erawan national park, this massive structure marks the southernmost extremity of an
extensive reservoir, which is part of yet another national park.
Sri Nagarind National Park
This park covers 1,532 square kilometres. Park headquarters are
105 kilometres from Kanchanaburi . Major park attractions include the lovely 7-tiered Huay
Kamin Waterfall, boat trips on the scenic reservoir, and encroaching deciduous forest and
bamboo groves where kingfishers, parrots, bee-eaters, hornbills, woodpeckers, thrushes,
babblers and numerous other bird species are readily seen. Larger, more elusive mammals
within the park's remoter areas include deer, elephants and tigers. Phra and Niramit Caves
near the park headquarters comprise other attractions.
