Kanchanaburi

Two hours northwest of Bangkok is a small town called Kanchanaburi, which is mostly a jumping point to some of Thailand's more famous waterfalls. I took a very authentic Thai bus to get here, and it was fun being the only non-Thai person around. Kanchanaburi is also a historical town, playing a big part in WWII for the Japanese. Here, there is a famous railway where Allied POW's were brought by the thousands to build a railway linking Burma to Thailand across the Mae Klong River. In town there were some interesting museums recounting important events, including the bombing of the railway bridge by the Allies, destroying the link.

The town itself is extremely quiet and laidback, with a nice mix of tourists and weekend Thai visitors. It's a bit more country, and it doesn't have the same big city smell of Bangkok. Although quiet, there is a great stretch of restaraunts and eclectic bars with various open-air, beachy themes. But it wasn't long before I met some people at my hostel, where I am paying about $3.50 a night for a bed and a cold shower.

Tim is a fellow traveller from the Netherlands, who spent four months working on a farm in New Zealand. Graham is a stand up comic from England who hates You Tube... "All you see now a days on that thing is dogs jumping, cats laughing, and babies smoking cigarettes. Yeah, it's just not for me."