Thailand, Kanchanaburi - Bridge over the River Kwai

Note from the Author: This was actually a very short trip and I visited only the Kanchanaburi area. The aim was to travel to that famous "Bridge over the River Kwai". You might have read about this famous bridge or watch the movies (as far as I know, there are at least two popular movies featuring this bridge). The trip was during the month of June in 1999 and it was included in this blog for purely nostalgic reasons! - Timothy, Sep 2014

For those who do not know, a short introduction will be that this bridge over the River Kwai in Thailand was supposedly part of the so-called Death Railway. The railway was so-named because many Prisoners-of-War (POW) were forced to built it by the then-Japanese Imperial Army during World War II. In the course of its construction, many died due to the atrocius working conditions. Anyway, I shall leave the more detailed explanations to the history books. Why not, join me and take a tour of the "Bridge over the River Kwai" or the "Bridge on the River Kwai"? And just in case you are wondering over the names, they were actually taken from the two movies I mentioned earlier.

Bridge, River Kwai, Kanchanaburi (1999)

It is amazing to think that this was once an important and strategic battlefield target for both the Allies and the Japanese Imperial Army slightly less than 60 years ago. I did not read the history books about this Bridge but from what I gathered about it from one of the two movies mentioned eralier (can't remember which one), many POWs, made up primarily of British, Australian and New Zealander troops, who surrendered after the fall of Malaya and Singapore, were sent to work here. And while they had to battle against malnutrition, disease, unsympathetic supervisors and many other adverse conditions to built the Bridge, they also had to constantly witness their efforts going down the drain as their comrades flying in from the air, strafed and bombed it. Reason was that upon completion, this Bridge and subsequently the railway that will be built over it, will be an important supply line for the then-Japanese war efforts in South-East Asia. The movie which I watched also shows the emotional trauma that these brave man had to grapple with as they were torn between completing their task and helping the Japanese war effort indirectly or not completing their task and in the process impeding the Japanese war effort. Whatever it is, I salute those who were here during that troubled period in history. 

History aside, the area around the Bridge is now highly commercialised to cater to the scores of tourist arrivals. A bazaar of some sort includes many shops and stalls selling many different types of sourvenirs, related or unrelated to the history of the site. I walked across the Bridge and back and as I did so, I could not help marvelling at the efforts that must have been needed to built this struture using the simplest of tools and equipment many years ago.

Close-up view of the rail track, Kanchanaburi, Thailand (1999)

Was this one of the original trains? I don't think so! But I really don't know, Kanchanaburi, Thailand (1999)

Group photo at the Bridge. I am in the middle. On my left is Clarence and on my right is Wai Nun, Kanchanaburi, Thailand (1999)