Today we were set to do an odd mix of activities. We had booked a tour which included a visit to the JEATH (Japan, England, America, Thailand, Holland) Museum, a train journey across the bridge over the river Kwai and through the Vietnamese countryside, an elephant ride and a bamboo raft ride. The JEATH Museum contained information about the POWs and slaves who built the 'Death Railway' between Thailand and Burma and had a replica of a hut which was used to house the prisoners. 61,000 POWs and over 200,000 Asian slaves were used to construct it. Once the railway line was completed, 16,000 Allied soldiers and over 100,000 Asian slaves were dead. For every kilometre of track that was built, 38 POWs lost their lives. We both continue to be surprised at how much suffering and death this part of the world has seen.

After visiting the museum, we were given the option of a longtail boat ride up to the bridge, which would supposedly make the bridge more photogenic. Although this boat ride was never discussed in the itinerary and it was at an extra cost, we went along with it. We kept our mouths shut as we sped along the river; the colour of the water was reminiscent of Stoke-on-Trent canals and we defintiely didn't want any of that in our mouths. Once we arrived at the bridge we discovered how touristy it was. It was a bizarre experience to see people smiling for photos stood in front of a bridge which was built by POWs and cost the lives of so many people. There were also lots of local people who had set up market stalls and were selling the usual array of tat. The contrast between the present and what I could only imagine the past was like was striking. If local people can make a living and support their families in this way then perhaps it's nice that some good has come from a railway line which has such a horrible past.

We paid a bit extra to guarantee a seat on the train and the extra money entitled us to a packed lunch and as many drink refills as we could handle. For a 2 hour train journey and for 2 people travelling on a budget, it turned out to be money well spent. After passing through the countryside we stopped and were told to leave the train. We appeared to be in the middle of nowhere and we weren't even at a train station but our guide reassured us that we were at the right place. Luckily we were, and it was here that we got into a van and went to the Elephant Camp. We were quickly shown to our ride and Emma managed to retain all her ladylike poise as she mounted the elephant. Now, I hadn't realised quite how big elephants were. I was surprised at the size of a cow when Emma took me into a field full of them, so you can imagine my surprise at the size of the behemoth we were sat on. We plodded along, took a dip in the river, where our elephant relieved herself and then plodded along some more. All of a sudden, the "driver" hopped off and motioned for us to move into the "driver's seat", AKA the elephant's head. We both had a go and Emma seemed much more relaxed than me as I was constantly thinking of scenarios in which the elephant went rogue, pulled us from it's back, attempted to kill us and left us reviewing our life choices. However, the ride was brilliant and we then headed down to the river for our ride on a bamboo raft. This was definitely in the top one of most pointless things I have ever done. We were towed up river for about 5 minutes and then released to float back down stream. I was also made to wear an oversized lifejacket which smothered my face when I sat down. Even though I could have spent my time better watching paint dry, high on adrenalin from the elephant ride, I was in good spirits.