{"version":"1.0","provider_name":"Ayush Tours Jaipur","provider_url":"https:\/\/ayushtoursjaipur.com","author_name":"admin","author_url":"https:\/\/ayushtoursjaipur.com\/index.php\/author\/gotravelblue\/","title":"Thailand - Ayush Tours Jaipur","type":"rich","width":600,"height":338,"html":"<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"RzNgI1a6rQ\"><a href=\"https:\/\/ayushtoursjaipur.com\/index.php\/2020\/01\/17\/thailand\/\">Thailand<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" src=\"https:\/\/ayushtoursjaipur.com\/index.php\/2020\/01\/17\/thailand\/embed\/#?secret=RzNgI1a6rQ\" width=\"600\" height=\"338\" title=\"&#8220;Thailand&#8221; &#8212; Ayush Tours Jaipur\" data-secret=\"RzNgI1a6rQ\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\"><\/iframe><script type=\"text\/javascript\">\n\/*! This file is auto-generated *\/\n!function(c,d){\"use strict\";var e=!1,o=!1;if(d.querySelector)if(c.addEventListener)e=!0;if(c.wp=c.wp||{},c.wp.receiveEmbedMessage);else if(c.wp.receiveEmbedMessage=function(e){var t=e.data;if(!t);else if(!(t.secret||t.message||t.value));else if(\/[^a-zA-Z0-9]\/.test(t.secret));else{for(var r,s,a,i=d.querySelectorAll('iframe[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),n=d.querySelectorAll('blockquote[data-secret=\"'+t.secret+'\"]'),o=new RegExp(\"^https?:$\",\"i\"),l=0;l<n.length;l++)n[l].style.display=\"none\";for(l=0;l<i.length;l++)if(r=i[l],e.source!==r.contentWindow);else{if(r.removeAttribute(\"style\"),\"height\"===t.message){if(1e3<(s=parseInt(t.value,10)))s=1e3;else if(~~s<200)s=200;r.height=s}if(\"link\"===t.message)if(s=d.createElement(\"a\"),a=d.createElement(\"a\"),s.href=r.getAttribute(\"src\"),a.href=t.value,!o.test(a.protocol));else if(a.host===s.host)if(d.activeElement===r)c.top.location.href=t.value}}},e)c.addEventListener(\"message\",c.wp.receiveEmbedMessage,!1),d.addEventListener(\"DOMContentLoaded\",t,!1),c.addEventListener(\"load\",t,!1);function t(){if(o);else{o=!0;for(var e,t,r,s=-1!==navigator.appVersion.indexOf(\"MSIE 10\"),a=!!navigator.userAgent.match(\/Trident.*rv:11\\.\/),i=d.querySelectorAll(\"iframe.wp-embedded-content\"),n=0;n<i.length;n++){if(!(r=(t=i[n]).getAttribute(\"data-secret\")))r=Math.random().toString(36).substr(2,10),t.src+=\"#?secret=\"+r,t.setAttribute(\"data-secret\",r);if(s||a)(e=t.cloneNode(!0)).removeAttribute(\"security\"),t.parentNode.replaceChild(e,t);t.contentWindow.postMessage({message:\"ready\",secret:r},\"*\")}}}}(window,document);\n<\/script>\n","thumbnail_url":"https:\/\/ayushtoursjaipur.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/01\/Thailand-8.jpg","thumbnail_width":1500,"thumbnail_height":600,"description":"TO HELLFIRE AND BACK: TRAVELLING THE THAILAND \u2013 BURMA RAILWAY. The \u201cDeath Railway\u00a0\u201d was built during World War Two between 1941 and 1943 with the aim of linking Thailand to Myanmar (Burma) by rail so that Japanese forces, who had invaded Thailand at the time, could move weapons, soldiers and equipment into Myanmar and push the allied forces further back into India and beyond. During less than two years of building this railway, over 100,000 people died. I\u2019d heard about the history of the Death Railway at school, but it wasn\u2019t until watching&nbsp;The Railway Man&nbsp;which stars Colin Firth and Nicole Kidman&nbsp;(a watch I recommend) on a flight last year that I learnt some about it. When I arrived in Thailand a week ago the history\/railway geek in me knew that I had&nbsp;to go and see it. Travelling the Thailand Burma Railway The Death Railway itself starts in Nong Pladuk, about 50km west of Bangkok, where the line meets the Bangkok \u2013 Singapore express route. \u00a0From Nong Pladuk it weaves slowly northwestwards through dust bowl suburbian planes to Kanchanaburi \u2013 home to the infamous\u00a0Bridge Over the River Kwai\u00a0After the train crosses the river and legendary bridge the scenery becomes steadily more spectacular with jungle, mountains, and the winding river to the left hand side. \u00a0The train comes to a crawl as it prepares to creak over the\u00a0pack of cards wooden bridge,\u00a0or\u00a0Wampo Viaduct. Photo: Approaching the Wampo Viaduct from Nam Tok. Travelling the Death Railway today The line today runs up to Nam Tok, about half its original route up to the Three Pagodas Pass and into Myanmar. &nbsp;In 1945, at the end of the war, the British tore up four kilometres of track on the Thai side of the border out of fear that Karen separatists would use the railway as a supply route into Myanmar. &nbsp;The remainder of the railway was passed to Thai control, but was deemed not profitable to run the majority of the route and so fell into disrepair, was dug up, or was flooded. Trains still run today, largely as a tourism venture, from Bangkok\u2019s Thonburi Noi station up to Nam Tok and back again, taking about five hours in total.Soul Travel Blog uses affiliate links throughout the site and in this post, which provide me with a small commission on products or services purchased through these links, at no extra cost to you. Thanks for your support!&nbsp; On reaching Nam Tok, I went to visit\u00a0Hellfire Pass. \u00a0It was here that many of the lives were lost as prisoners and asian workers were forced to work through the night through monsoons and stifling heat, malnourished and using only hammer, chisel and dynamite to carve cuttings through meters of dense limestone rock. \u00a0Hellfire Pass got its name from the flickers of flames and torches as the captive workers worked like ghosts through the night. The conditions, either in work or at the squalid camps, or through torture at the hands of the Japanese and Korean guards brought the death toll for this railway to over 100,000 lives in less than 2 years. I\u2019d always been under the assumption that those lives had all been prisoners of war: British, Australians, New Zealanders, etc. But alongside the 12,000 British Dutch and Australian deaths, there were up to&nbsp;90,000 Asians&nbsp;who were recruited as labourers \u2013 initially promised good wages and living conditions \u2013 from Malaysia, Thailand, Myanmar, Indonesia and even India, who died. &nbsp; The tributes today \u2013 from the cemetery at Kanchanaburi that is maintained lovingly by the war graves commission and tended by Thai women \u2013 to the tributes of western governments, particularly Australia are profoundly touching. Two very informative museums, one in\u00a0Kanchanaburi\u00a0\u00a0and one at Hellfire Pass have also been set up by Australians. These places moved me deeply. It\u2019s a strange feeling sitting on a train moving along a track when you know how that track has been built. &nbsp;The journey in itself might seem a bit morbid, but I was moved by the number of Asian tourists, Thais, and school children that were making this trip. &nbsp;In both directions, the train was packed. Practicalities: Getting There, Away, and Where to Stay Option One&nbsp;would be to explore the Thailand Burma Railway as part of a day trip from Bangkok. Taking the first train from Bangkok to Nam Tok allows you to take in the entire route, alight at Nam Tok to visit Hellfire Pass (you\u2019ll need to take a Song-Thaew or taxi from Nam Tok), and take the afternoon train back to Bangkok the same day. The journey from Bangkok to Nam Tok takes about Four and a half hours. This option is a lot of train for one day (9 hours if you do both ways) and does not allow you any time to explore Kanchanaburi. I\u2019d only encourage this option if you only have one day. If you have anymore time, instead I would recommend\u2026 Option Two\u00a0is to take the train from Bangkok Noi to Kanchanaburi and base yourself there for one or two nights. On day one take the morning train from Bangkok Noi to Kanchanaburi. Find\u00a0places to stay in Kanchanaburi here. I stayed in budget\u00a0VN Guesthouse\u00a0which is on the river (some rooms are on the floating section on the water which is really relaxing!) and has amazing views from the restaurant. For the afternoon of day one explore Kanchanaburi, go take photos of the Bridge over the River Kwai, wander around the war cemetery and visit the Death Railway museum in the town. On day two, take the morning train from Kanchanaburi up to Nam Tok and explore Hellfire Pass from there (same as One Day itinerary) and from there either take the train back to Kanchanaburi, or to Bangkok if not staying another night. I found that this was the perfect option for travelling the Thailand Burma railway. The ever-helpful\u00a0Man in Seat 61\u00a0has loads of information and train times to help further in planning this trip. Option Three&nbsp;is one I do&nbsp;not&nbsp;personally recommend, as [&hellip;]"}