Driving in Thailand!

1. Never ones to do it the easy way we decided to hire a car at Bangkok Airport and explore the country this way.Shortly before we left Cyprus I had a conversation with my brother. He asked me if we were thinking of any more property speculation in Cyprus. I told him now that I had retired I had given up risk taking. But he replied you've just told me your hiring a car in Bangkok! Prophetic words indeed. We got our car at the airport and the hire car lady gave us directions. We very quickly got lost and found ourselves driving in downtown Bangkok - still it was an adventure. By some miracle we found ourselves on the right road only to get lost again. Finally salvation arrived in the form of a taxi driver who despairing that we could not understand his directions offered that we follow his taxi which we did for about 20 minutes until we were on the right road again! We got to our first stop -Kanchanaburi the town from where the Japanese started the Thailand leg of the notorious Death Railway as it is now called. We booked into Sam' s House and this morning we firstly went to the bridge from which the film Bridge over the River Kwai is roughly based. The railway is still used and we intend tomorrow to go on it on a 2 hour ride which takes one along the tracks built by the POWs. Afterwards we went to the largest Military War cemetary in South East Asia where some 7000 servicemen are buried - including British, Dutch and Australian. Next to the cemetary is the Railway Museum dedicated to remembering the sacrifices made by the POWs and the Asian civilians who also worked on the railroad and perished as well. It was a very sad and moving experience- something we will never forget. Needless to say it is blisteringly hot but the people are friendly, the food is excellent and cheap and the beer is cold.