Don't worry folks only a couple more days and I will be finished with the holiday ramble....
We awoke this morning for our last day on the luxurious Eastern and Oriental Express. We had a much better nights sleep (thank goodness) and we put it down to the fact that when we were in Butterworth yesterday they swapped the engine to the other end of the train. This meant that our carriage is now closer to the front of the train which makes for a smoother ride......well for us anyway. It probably also explains why dinner was so hard to eat last night because the restaurant carriages are now towards the back end of the train. Also at the rear of the train is the observation carriage. This carriage is roofed but open along the sides which makes it great for watching the passing scenery. With our arrival at our next stop delayed for about 4 hours we decided to spend some time in the observation carriage. I mentioned the other day about the 2 girls on the photo shoot for Canon, well there is also a German film crew making a documentary on the train.......maybe we will feature on it.....lol! They were in the observation car this morning......actually getting in everyones way......but despite this we still enjoyed the views.
Due to the delay we were called to an earlier than normal lunch.....11.30am so that we would be finished by the time the train arrived at the River Kwae and it's famous bridge. I didn't quite know what to expect but there was a bustling and busy place with lots of tourists. We disembarked and then took photos as the train backed over the bridge for us.
This time we chose the raft tour down the river while an English historian gave us a wonderfully informative talk on the history of the Bridge and the Thai - Burma Railway in World War II.
We then visited the Museum (no photos allowed inside)
but really didn't have anywhere long enough there.....another hour would have been great. We also missed out on taking a closer look at the beautifully kept war cemetery......only a photo over the fence.
The rest of the afternoon was spent travelling through the Thai countryside as we made our way towards Bangkok. I must admit some of the scenes along the railway line in Bangkok would certainly not feature in the glossy travel brochures that you see......the 'hidden' side of this city of over 8 million people. Arriving at the station we disembarked for the last time.
We said goodbye to Woody and also some of the other staff that we had got to know over the last three days.
I was worried that our transfer guide might have forgotten us.....after all we were 4 hours late.......Russell said it would just be another adventure......but not knowing the name of our Hotel would certainly make it that! But there she was.....Rabbit.....yes that is her real name......phew! After an interesting taxi ride we boarded the river taxi that belonged to the Hotel where we were staying.....right on the edge of the Chao Phraya River. We dined by the edge of the river and have decided to have an early night as after spending 3 days on the train we are having a hard time getting our 'land' legs working properly. I actually feel like the hotel room is rocking.......hope it is better tomorrow!
Dills of the Day : The fearless motorcycle riders of Thailand.....the most we saw on the one bike was four...Dad, Mum, and 2 kids....no helmets, no safety gear....wonder how many accidents they have?
Linda :)
Comments