OUTSIDE BANGKOK: THE BRIDGE OVER THE RIVER KWAI & KANCHANABURI WAR CEMETERY

When most people think of the "Bridge Over the River Kwai", they recall the famous film starring Alec Guiness and William Holden or the book written by Pierre Boulle. Like many historical movies (and novels), that one was a fictional story loosely based on fact and when you visit the actual Bridge, it looks like nothing like the one you've seen on TV (and given the ending of that film, how could it?)

The fate of the actual Bridge did differ from the one in the movie. In reality, the Bridge was bombed by Allied planes and the structure that remains today is merely a reconstruction (the curved pieces are still original though).


The area around the Bridge is nothing like the movie either. In my mind I had visions of the vast jungle that was depicted in the film, but when we got there, that was just not the case. The whole area is a city center and very touristy. There are a lot of restaurants, places to buy souvenirs and other stuff like that.

You can actually walk across the Bridge, but it's safer to stay in the middle, because the sides have huge, gaping holes where one could actually fall through. This wasn't the greatest bridge for a bunch of kids to cross, but since we just let them sit on a bunch of full grown tigers the day before, we were still feeling a bit adventurous.

Every once in awhile, an actual train would cross the Bridge and you would have to stand to the side to avoid being flattened.

Thankfully, there are still a few things around the Bridge to remind visitors that this is a war memorial and not just some tourist trap.

The Bridge was an OK place to visit, if for no other reason to say that you've been there. You could never say that about the other place made famous by author Pierre Boulle (that would be the Planet of the Apes).

Down the road from the Bridge is the Kanchnaburi War Cemetery. Like other similar places I've visited in the past (Arlington National Cemetary for example), this is a somber location where one can go and reflect on the tremendous sacrifices that others made during times of war.


The cemetery was a gift from the people of Thailand to the countries whose sailors, soldiers and military pilots died here.

While the Cemetery seems large enough, the 6982 Allied prisoners buried here only represents a small portion of the 100,000 or so men who gave their lives for the cause of freedom in this region.

The inscriptions on the gravestones are heartbreaking and one can only imagine how the families of the men buried here felt during this time. I don't want to get overly political, but it is sad to think that cemeteries such as these will still be necessary to honor the brave men and women fighting in the current war. You would think that after 50-plus years, the people in charge would find a better way, but that just doesn't seem to be the case.

There are many graves for unknown soldiers as well. So sad...

A trip to Kanchnaburi and the Bridge over the River Kwai just isn't complete without a visit to the Cemetery as well. Even if you spend just a short time there, it really helps put World War II (and the idea of war in general) in the proper perspective.