We spent four nights in Bangkok and ten nights in Pattaya. Over the four day in Bankok we did a lot of sightseeing. The temples are beautiful.
photographs copyright 2007
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Spectacular statues.
We went on the Chao Praya river in a long-tailed boat and saw this beautiful riverside temple and this river house.
This is the Burma Railway (Bridge over the River Kwai) where thousands of Thai people and Prisoners of War lost their lives. You can read more about it here.
We went on the railway and here's the view on the left side of the train, and the view from the right. The POWs and locals excavated the 17 metre deep and 110-m long cutting through solid limestone and quartz rock in only 12 weeks. This is the infamous Hellfire Pass.
There's also the JEATH museum which replicates the huts that the POWs lived in, here's the legend. JEATH stands for Japan, England, America, Australia, Thailand and Holland, representing the nationalities of the prisoners of war (POW's) who were forced to work on the construction of the famous Bridge over the River Kwai.
We also visited the cemetery at Kanchanaburi . It is beautifully looked after by locals who can be seen on their hands and knees cutting the grass around the memorial stones with scissors. It is heartbreaking to read the memorials, I cried for the young men (some the same age as my sons at the time) who lost their lives there.Bangkok traffic is a sight to behold as are some of the things that are sold in the street - Pigs snouts!
Suffice to say we didn't try them we opted for the more conventional banquet.
And you can get a manicure anywhere, including on the beach! MWM woke up just as she said "What colour you want on your toes?" She had already put a shiny base coat on!
Of course we had to go to a Ladyboy show.
This kind ladyboy posed for our camera after the show.
And, just to complete a perfect holiday, we were upgraded to Business Class on the flight home!
My knee
Sunday 13th May
Feels really good today. I'm getting about a bit more inside without the crutch.
