Hellfire Pass and More 6/20/2008

This morning we had to check out of our hotel (Thong Yo Hotel in Thong Pha Phum) at 7:45am. Clearly, I skipped breakfast and opted for a granola bar later. We took a local bus after a short transfer of a songthaew to go visit the Hellfire Pass and Memorial Museum. We arrived there around 9:15am. Before entering the museum, our group walked down an intense amount of stairs the actual Hellfire Pass. This pass was carved out of the limestone mountains by POWs of WWII by order of the Japanese. The point was to build a connecting railway from Burma through Thailand and into Malaysia. Living and working conditions were atrocious and the men were brutally beaten and even killed by the Japanese guards. Seeing this site and the museum was almost on the same level of horrificness as when I vistited the concetration camp in Germany. The only difference is I have never heard of Hellfire Pass or anything in this region of the world from WWII. I know this is due to the fact there was little American involvement (less than 4000 men were sent to this area with almost all returning home) but it frustrates me that our knowledge is limited to events only having to do with the US. I feel as if I was cheated from some understanding; spending time in the museum put into new perspective why the US and Japan were in unstable ground.

After spending about 2 hours here, we took a songthaew to the Nam Tok train station, where we had lunch. The train we had to take was old, rickety, and had wooden benches. It lurched back and forth and was really loud. This was nothing like the trains I had taken in Europe. The train ride was about 2 hours long, but on the way we passed a mountain the Thais call “Woman Pregnant With Baby.” The way the mountain was shaped, you could see it as if she was lying down. Pretty cool.

When we got close to Kanchanburi, our train passed over the infamous Bridge over the River Kwae (not “Kwai” as the westernized world knows it). Right when we got off the train, there were 10 rickshaws (bikes with covered seats on them) waiting to take each on of us to our guesthouse. My poor driver must have been about 50 years old and a very small man. Not only was I in the rickshaw, but also my 35 pound backpack. The poor man grunted and said something in Thai to another driver when he tried to take off! It was really cool riding this way until we merged off from the small alleyway onto a 3-lane main road with a heavy flow of traffic. I’m sure my face registered pure fear because we went from one side of the road to another in the middle of cars, buses, and trucks! Dangerous? I think so.

The rickshaw driver dropped us off at Apple Guesthouse, a beautiful garden-like setting. Thankfully our rooms were clean and cooled by fan. Bonus: European toilet… just a little low. This was a pleasant change from the past night’s accommodations. The rest of the afternoon the 5 of us girls walked down the main street, which was very touristy and hosted many signs and menus in English. Before dinner I had a chance to call home, the first time since I had left. While email is nice and convenient, hearing a familiar voice is a pleasant feeling. Dinner was at 7pm, and the Suzie and spent the rest of the evening packing and preparing for a morning of hiking up the Erawan Waterfalls.