Bridge over the River Kwai

Dung and I took the long weekend to head over to Kanchanaburi, site of the famed Bridge over the River Kwai. Allied POWs built the bridge and about 300 km worth of railway through Thailand and into Burma, losing about 15,000 lives along the way. About 100,000 civilians from Thailand and other countries lost their lives, too. How can 115,000 people die building a railway for a little over a year? Disease and malnutrition, I suppose, those were pretty lousy working conditions back then. The bridge isn't so much to speak of, just a metal bridge across the river, and I think the movie was more legend than anything else. Nevertheless, Kanchanaburi has used the movie to build up a decent little tourist industry. Not too much else around there, but we ate good river fish at a couple restaurants along the river, hung out by the pool at our place, which was also right along the river.