During World War II, the Japanese used war prisoners to build a railway connecting Thailand with Myanmar. It became known as the Death Railway and a book and a movie – both named the Bridge Over the River Kwai - were made telling the story; it is estimated than 16000 POW's died here. In a great show of their versatility, the Thais have changed the name of the river passing below the famous bridge, so that it would fit the name wrongly used by Pierre Boulle while writing his book. He got right the details of the Death Railway running parallel to the River Kwai but assumed that the bridge just north of Kanchnaburi crossed over the same river; however, it was the Mae Khlung flowing below it. Once tourists began searching for the famous sight, the river was renamed and the Mae Khlung became the Kwai Yai (Big Kwai) north of the confluence with the Kwai Noi (Little Kwai). South of the rivers' junction, the river returns to its ancestral name.

There were two bridges, both built by prisoners of war - a wooden one was completed in February 1943 and was superseded a few months later by the steel bridge seen today. The steel bridge spans were brought from Java by the Japanese, and are all original apart from the two straight-sided spans which were installed after the war to replace spans destroyed by allied bombing in 1945.

On the town's side of the bridge there are a museum (the JEATH War Museum), coffee shops, souvenir shops and a couple of steam locomotives on static display. It is possible to walk across the bridge on the wooden planks and visit on the other side the market selling Burmese merchandise.

The War Cemetery is in the northern side of town and offers green lawns and colorful flowers. It has graves of British, Australian and Dutch prisoners of war, who died during the construction of the bridge. The name, nationality and unit of the soldier are written in small golden plates over every grave. Sometimes personal sentences were added.

There are three daily passenger trains from Kanchanaburi’s Railway station, close to the Allied War Cemetery, all of which call at the River Kwai Bridge station. The current terminus is at Nam Tok and after crossing the bridge, it runs along the scenic River Kwai, passing over the equally impressive Wampo Viaduct, also built by prisoners of war. There may be a special tourists train from Hualamphong, Bangkok. From Nam Tok there is a 13:00 train back to Kanchanaburi.

The bridge is about five kilometers northwest from the town center; a truck from the bus terminal costs six Baht, while from inside the terminal drivers ask for ten times that.

Buses from Bangkok are relatively slow, because they pass through Nakhon Pathom and Ban Pong; they leave at all times from the Southern Terminal and their prices vary between sixty to eighty Baht.

We started early (6.30 a.m.) and our first stop was at the Jeath War Museum. It’s not a huge place, and it’s built as if it was the prisoner’s hut. There are a variety of artifacts, including some of the bombs that destroyed the bridge, photographs of the prisoners, drawings by the prisoners and a number of press cuttings. A chilling reminder to the futility of war and the cruelty that man can bestow on man.

Next we visited the Chong Kai War cemetery. You cannot remain unmoved by this, especially if you examine the headstones, note the ages of the "victims," and recall the quote from the Jeath Museum, "If you work hard, you will be treated well, but if you do not work hard, you will be punished." The cemetery is kept immaculate, the grass freshly mowed, the dead flowers all de-headed and the headstones neatly cleaned and polished (whilst we were there, workers were conscientiously maintaining the plot).

And then onto Kanchanaburi , the start of our rail journey on "Death Railway." We had a little time in the town to sightsee. There are some old engines here and the obligatory souvenir shop, but mostly people take the time to walk the length of the bridge. You’ll need to carefully pick your way over the sleepers; it would be fairly easy to fall between. Passing other tourists sometimes needed great agility! Over the other side of the river, there’s a small market just asking to be visited. Nothing special, but worth a look.

We then waited for the train to make our journey. We had reserved seats, but our guide indicated, after numerous clandestine discussions with Railway Officials, that she would have to refund the booking fee because the train we were expecting had been delayed. Indeed, two trains had not left the terminus yet, and the next one into Kanchanaburi may or may not have spaces for us. Luckily, the train arrived before we wilted under the heat, and hard wooden seats in crammed, hot carriages beckoned us. We balanced precariously on the seats and crossed over the bridge that previously we had walked, and then a slight acceleration of the train and a total collapse of our seat. It really is hard to retain dignity as you slide onto the floor!

The journey along the route was stuffed with scenery. Views of the Kwai Yai River, the Three Pagodas Pass, small market towns, fields of industrious workers and, in the middle of nowhere, a gigantic reclining gold Buddha (keep your eyes open on the righthand side of the train!). I spent a bit of time standing at the back of the train. What an experience - but remember to hang on, as the ride’s somewhat bumpy. The journey over the part of the track supported by giant wooden "trestles" feels incredibly precarious, but what a view and what a sensation.

You will be left with the questions why and how. I just don’t have the answer!

We did the visit to the Bridge on the River Kwai as part of a short tour from Bangkok. We arranged to stay at the River Kwai Resort, which was absolutely unmissable. From the open air restaurant (open on three sides) through to the beautiful rooms with ornate carvings with balconies overlooking the river this resort had it all. We had our own personal tour guide who took us up river to fresh water springs that fed the River and down river to join the railway for a train trip. We could have spent hours more looking at the Jeath war museum and the area around it.

The World War II based film, "The Bridge Over the River Kwai", which depicted war prisoners buiding a railroad the Japanese could use to invade Burma, wasn’t entirely Hollywood fiction. There WAS such a bridge ... it WAS built by a combination of Allied prisoners of war and civilian conscripts ... and an estimated 60,000 of them died building "The Railway of Death."

Come ride it with me.

Allied bombers destroyed the original bridge in 1945, but it was rebuilt with some of the original steelwork. The barges that once housed equipment or prisoners are now pricey floating resort camps, easily photographed from the train or while crossing the bridge. The train will stop at the site of at least one of the huge P.O.W. camps as it winds through narrow rights-of-way carved out of the jungle and over WW II-era wooden trestles. At Nam Tok, 210 km northwest of Bangkok, you can get off and stretch while the locomotive is switched for the return trip. And, watch the hordes of tourists who boarded at the bridge return to their waiting buses and let you and a few locals have the train to yourselves again.

If you’re willing to take a bus back to Bangkok, you can leave the train at Kanchanaburi (The Kwai Bridge Station, not downtown), walk across the bridge as often as your like, and visit the five-nation military cemetery and museum nearby. Be warned that there are two bus terminals, one for air-conditioned "executive" buses and the other for locals. They are 3-4 km from the bridge and you may have trouble finding a ride. (Mine was an elderly Thai gentleman who gestured me onto the back of his motor scooter but took me to the wrong bus station.)

There are two River Kwai trains. The first is an air-conditioned tourist special, using "Sprinter Express" equipment designed for intercity service and leaving from Hua Lumphong Station at 0630. It allows time for visiting the bridge and cemetery as well as Nam Tok, saving you the bus ride. The second is a 3rd-class local from Bangkok Noi, about a 1-km walk from the river taxi pier at Thon Buri, on the west bank of the Chao Phraya. It leaves at the more civilized hour of 0735, from a station more conveniently reached from riverfront hotels --- IF you’re agile enough to ride the boats. The equipment is somewhat more modern that it was when I photographed it in 1993, but still has open windows and those antique metal sun louvers. I much preferred it to the sealed windows of the tourist special.

This trip can be one of your more memorable days in Southeast Asia --- especially if you saw the movie.

I did this as a day tour and as such it was worth the money for me as I was on my own and at this time a little nervous. The bridge is a pretty ordinary steel bridge but there are nice views of the river and floating resturants. No historic stuff at all. I went on the train along death railway and enjoyed the trip. I was able to imagine the enourmous difficulties faced by the POW''s and the others who built the bridge and the railway.

If you visit independently stay for a couple of days and hire a taxi to visit local sights as the scenery is quite spectacular.