Back to Bangkok and Kanchanaburi Thailand

After a really comfy overnight train ride from Nong Khai Thailand (across the river from Vientiane) I arrived back in Bangkok. The lower two seats make up into a bed with a curtain and a foam mattress. Really comfy.

Dropped off my bags and it was time to hit Chinatown for some serious shopping.

There is a Swensen's in the mall at the end of my route. What else was a hot shopper to do?

Koi in a pond at one of the hotels on Khao San Road.

After one night in Bangkok I stored my bags and headed up river to Kanchanaburi. I took a taxi to the Southern Bus Terminal in Bangkok to catch the bus. Very easy and organized. There was even a hostess on the bus who served us cold water.

Flowers in the hotel yard.

I checked in a looked around for a place to eat lunch. Most of the bars and restaurants on my strip only seemed to open later in the evening. I finally found a place called the Jolly Frog ..a big backpacker hotel..open at all hours and had some fried rice served in a pineapple.

It was quite good and only 50 baht. A real bargain these days.

Hmmmm....I wonder what that's all about?

My fancy room. The bed, fridge and tv were on a platform which made getting on a bit interesting.

My bathroom had one section with the toilet and sink and that opened out to a huge shower which included this garden!

A view of the garden part from inside the room.

The hotel pool

River Kwai Raft Floating and our Hotel

Walking down the hill to our hotel. The main dining room and kitchen are straight ahead.
The back of some of the guest rooms. Some of them had airconditioning but it wasn't really necessary the night we were there. There were also big fans in the rooms.

View from the river.

We took a speedboat out to the rafts.

We weren't allowed to wear shoes in the hotel and crossing the bamboo could be an "ouch".

The dining area out on the river. That is a bathroom in the corner for the use of tour groups who just come to the restaurant for lunch.

The main dining area.

The snack bar with nice cold sodas.

We took the speed boat out to the rafts for a run.

They tied several rafts together.

There sere several beautiful houses and hotels along our stretch of the river.

Ohhhhh. That feels good.

A classier boat outside an upscale hotel.

Here we go.

Our hotel from the river. Our rooms were on the far right. The cost of the tour for two days, all meals, elephant ride and overnight was 1200 baht. ($35) The same tour booked online from the U.S. was at least $100. We booked it locally the day before we went. I find this variation in price is true pretty much everywhere, and most especially in India. I didn't have to pay extra for a single room either.