Kanchanaburi - August 2007

After returning to Thailand, Weena and I took a short trip to Kanchanaburi. This city was made famous by the movie 'Bridge on the River Kwai.' During WWII, the Japanese used prisoners of war and conscripts from Malaysia and other countries in SE Asia to build a railway to support their war efforts in Burma. The conditions were extremely bad and many tens of thousands died from malnutrition and disease. There is an excellent museum where one can learn a great deal about the history of that period.

This area is also very beautiful. There are limestone mountains with beautiful waterfalls. The water would be very refreshing, but the rain was refreshing enough when we visited.

Here I am with the famous bridge in the background...

This is one of the trains used during WWII to transport supplies to the war front in Burma...

Here is Weena on the famous bridge...

And at Erawan falls in a national park in this area. It's a beautiful place...

A visit to the Maldives

Weena and I took a 5 day trip to the Maldives. We spend almost all that time at Makunudu island in the north Male atoll. The Maldives are a chain of over 1100 islands and home to 300,000+ people. Tourism is tightly controlled by the government, but we mainly enjoyed the beach and reefs around our island. This is truly a tropical paradise. The sunsets are beautiful, the reefs great for snorkeling or diving, and the resorts are a great place to relax.

On the day of our return to Thailand, we spent a few hours visiting Male, the capital. It's a small city, and a few hours was enough to see the sights, from the main mosque to the markets.

Here I am walking the streets of Male...

Here is a view of the market...


And some school children on a field trip...

The Maldives is definitely a great vacation destination. It's a bit far from the U.S., but if you ever get the chance, take the trip.

Archeological sites

Other stops in our travels in northern Thailand included visits to the ruins of the kingdom of Sukothai in Sukothai and Kamphaengphet. Thai script was developed by King Ramkhamhaeg but is has been modified since then. Anyway. There are many temples that are quite impressive and definitely worh the visit.

The ruins at Sukothai are spread over a large area, so we rented bicycles to take a tour.

During the Sykothai period, this region was known for the production of glazed ceramics called sangkhalok. These are still produced in modern kilns, but ruins for old kilns are still easy to find.