Floating Markets and Thai Whiskey
Damnoen Saduak -> Kanchanaburi, 2nd April 2002
The main attraction in Damnoen are the famous 'Floating Markets', a
traditional Thai practice that only continues today in a few places.
 The
best time to see the markets in between 6am and 8am, before the big
tour groups arrive. So I woke up at 6am, aiming to be there by
6:30am. I went to the main bridge, near my hotel, and looked down
expecting to see a river full of little wooden boats, but it was
completely empty. I quickly deduced that this was the wrong river,
and after a 2.5km walk following some vague signs, I soon found was
I was looking for.
It only takes place on a small section of the khlong (canal) but
it's quite amazing to watch. Dozens of small, wooden boats, laden to
the top with fresh fruit, vegetables and other wares crowd the tiny
canal. A single, elderly person, wearing the large, traditional,
wicker Thai hat mans each boat, deftly avoiding all the other
traffic in the khlong. They row from person to person, chatting in
the tonal Thai tongue or trading items.
It is possible the hire a boat and go along the river, checking out
the goods closely, but that costs money, too much money if you're on
your own (you have to hire the whole boat). Besides, walking along
the side of the canal is nice because you can see everything at your
own pace. It actually takes a bit of effort & searching to find an
entrance to the walkways along the canal, I think they REALLY want
you to hire a boat.
After taking a few photos and absorbing the amazing atmosphere of
the place, I jumped on a Sawngthaew and headed back to town.
Grabbing my bags I went to the bus station and luckily the bus I
wanted was just about to leave so I jumped on. After a short drive
back to Nakhon Pathom, I changed over to a train in order to reach
Kanchanaburi. The train ride between Nakhon Pathom & Kanchanaburi is
one of the most scenic journeys around, much better than coach.
Luckily for me, the train was late (or I would have missed it)!
The journey passed quickly. I watched the Thai people around me,
especially the mother with 2 young children. I may be on the other
side of the world, immersed in a totally different culture, but
watching a mother with her children is the same anywhere. Whatever
language we speak, or whatever culture we live in, there are some
things that are the same throughout the human race. This is one of
them.
I watched the mountains and greenery roll into view. Only 2 hours
from the hustle, bustle and greyness of Bangkok is the amazing
natural sights of Kanchanaburi province. I breathed in deeply, my
lungs grateful for some fresh, clean air.
When I reached Kanchanaburi, the train was greeted by the usual
hoard of touts offering transport and accommodation. I quickly found
a samlor driver (kind of like a rickshaw, a bike attached to a small
carriage when the customer sits) and headed off to my guest house.
It was interesting riding in this samlor, it must take some strong
legs to propel this little vehicle along with me & my backpack in
the back. I bet he's glad that this place is flat! Most tourists
call them Rickshaws, so the locals have started calling them that
too, bu rickshaws are slightly different. I impressed them by
calling the vehicles by their proper name!
After a short ride through Kanchanaburi, we reached the guest house.
I then had a delicious lunch of a coconut & cashew massama curry.
Afterwards I decided to hire a bike. Kanchanaburi is a long, thin
town, spread over 5km, so walking, especially in the heat, isn't
really worth it.
Riding around town on my bike was good fun, every samlor driver I
passed chatted briefly with me, I guess we were linked by our use of
'pedal power'!
The roads in Kanchanaburi are annoyingly one-way, so getting
anywhere by car is a bit of a pain. Luckily, everyone in Thailand
who's only got two wheels goes the wrong way down these roads
anyway, so I followed suit.
I soon located the first place I was looking for, the JEATH war
museum. Kanchaniburi is famous for having the 'Bridge Over the River
Kwai' in it. Apart from featuring in a movie, it was an important
part of the infamous 'Death Railway' built by POW held by the
Japanese. The treatment was harsh & brutal and most people who
worked on the railway died. The railway is still in use today, and
the bridge is visited by many tourists.
The JEATH war museum (JEATH stands for Japan, England, Australia,
America, Thailand, Holland, the 6 nations involved in the war) is a
small, but interesting set-up, run by monks. The museum is housed in
a reconstructed Allied POW thatched hut. There is a small collection
of paintings & drawings, done secretly by the POWs showing the
terrible, inhumane treatment that the POW endured. Photos weren't
allowed, so sketches were done. Some of the pictures are quite
harrowing and bring home some of the pain and suffering of these
men. The cartoonish pictures of tropical diseases and the
punishments are some of the most powerful.
The JEATH war museum is quite small, so after a brief look round, I
took the longish ride to the War Cemetery (Don Rak). It's a very
peaceful place, few tourists come here. There are countless graves,
many marked with "A man who died for his country" because so many
were unidentified. The places has a very sombre feel.
I then visited the famous Bridge. It's nothing spectacular, but
seeing as I'm here, I can't not see it. There are dozens of stalls
set up by locals, hoping to entice the many tourists. Deftly
side-stepping the stalls I took the short walk over the bridge and
looked out over the river. It's quite scenic and very peaceful.
After gazing for a few minutes, I moved on.
The final sight I saw was the rather strange World War 2 museum.
Confusingly it also calls itself the JEATH Museum, but it is
completely unrelated to the previous place. Like my Rough Guide
warned, it is a slightly cynical collection of unrelated war
memorabilia and tacky model men in various POW scenarios. The only
powerful, emotional exhibit is a glass tomb containing the remains
of 106 prisoners of war. It's a strange collection, not well
explained and I think it's only real purpose is to get money out of
the 1000s of tourists that come to the bridge.
For the rest of the afternoon I cycled around the town, watching
Thai life pass by. Then at about 6:30pm I returned the bike.
Tomorrow I'm going to take the train to Nam Tok, the end of the
line, and one of the most spectacular parts of the railway. It cuts
through some amazing terrain, but conversely, it was one of the most
laborious parts to construct, costing the lives of 1000s more POWs.
The dark history of the railway always hangs over the spectacular
views between Kanchanaburi & Nam Tok.
The train actually leaves at 6am, so as I want to lie in as long as
possible, I decided to take the walk to the station now, so I know
how long it takes to reach it from my guest house.
On my walk over there, I passed a couple of men and women sitting in
a mat on the pavement in the traditional style of Thai relaxation.
They were sitting cross-legged, chatting and drinking the infamous
Thai whiskey. They asked me where I was going, and after a few
minutes chatting, they invited me to join them.
For the next few hours I sat with these guys, chatting about Thai
life, drinking Thai whiskey and eating. They were really friendly
people, all about 35 years old. Soon, their children turned up, a
motley crew of 4 youngsters, loud & lively. After the introductions
were done, I was invited to come with them to see the Chinese Circus
that was in town! Sure!
So, just after it got dark, we all jumped in the back of a truck,
and off we went. This would be completely illegal at home, 5 people
all sitting on the floor in the back of a pick-up style truck, but
it's common practice here! It was good fun driving there. The wind
rushed by, the trees zoomed past, the stars were out and the night
was peaceful. Full of Thai whiskey, my compatriots were very
peaceful & cheerful too!
We reached a small clearing in the middle of the forest where there
was a small crowd gathered around a group of Chinese acrobats,
dressed in bright yellow & red. They were climbing up & down poles,
and one was dressed as a dragon, acting out a traditional story.
There were loads of fire-works that really impressed the locals, heh,
they should see some of the fireworks I've seen before, in Disney
World!
After the show, we walked over to the temple where the ceremony was
targeted, this was a festival related to the Chinese Buddha. We were
blessed by a lady dressed in Chinese robes with some strong perfume.
She looked quite comical, with a huge exaggerated expression on her
face, I think she was doing it for fun...
There was a big lay out of traditional Thai/Chinese food, for free.
So we tucked in, I was assured it was all vegetables only, no fish.
After we'd had our fill, we headed back to town.
On the way, we suddenly stopped, then all the kids jumped out and
started running along the road, while one of the guys drove the car
slowly behind them. I soon worked out that they were trying to catch
some frogs! The road was covered in them! Using the headlights of
the car, they would find one, sneak up on it and try to catch it! It
was really funny to watch, the whole family got involved in it! This
must be some sort of traditional Thai family fun! This continued for
about 30 minutes, before we continued on the journey.
When we got back, I thanked them all for what they'd done. The lady
insisted I swap addresses with here daughter who was starting to
learn English at school. An English pen-pal would be really useful.
After all they'd done for me, how could I refuse?!
Full with tasty food, and a bit too much Thai whiskey, I stumbled
back to my room and fell fast asleep
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