South-East Asia Destination

By: Allan C. Batten

One of the more interesting aspects of business life in Thailand is the annual or biannual company outing.

Officially, the event is an extension of the office, but in a more relaxed atmosphere. The reality though is that there is normally one official company meeting where the directors or senior managers give a pep talk to the staff, and the remainder of the long weekend is about getting on better with your colleagues, making new friends, and generally having a really outstanding short break. And, as a “farang”, a foreigner in Thai, the more that you enter into the spirit of the break, the more you will enjoy it. Of course, there will be times that you make a complete ass of yourself, but hey, it’s a break, it’s free, and it can be real fun!

A while back, I went on one such company outing, having been invited by my local business partner to join the company for their first outing of the year. The destination was a “resort” hotel, the River Kwai Village Hotel, or “Jungle Resort” in Sai Yok district of Kanchanaburi province, which is about another sixty kilometers after the province’s capital, Kanchanaburi city.

Sai Yok is very much like many of the districts in Kanchanaburi province, in that it has lush forests and jungles, beautiful rivers and streams, including outstanding waterfalls in the rainy season, and, of course, as in everywhere else in Thailand some very interesting temples.

A little more than four hours after getting on the luxury coach in Bangkok we arrived at the Rive Kwai Village hotel. By car you can probably do it in two and half hours, but if you have ever been on a company outing in Thailand, you will know that you must stop every two hours for the obligatory snack!

Straight into the company meeting on the first morning, and three very short pep talks later, we were into the action packed weekend. The hotel is on the banks Kwai Noi river, and many of the rooms have superb river and mountain views, so the first day was set aside exploring the river on a Thai style raft. This is not to be confused with western rafts – these are house boats and are big enough for forty people, towed by powerful long tail boats, and come with a mobile disco., food and a complete range of beverages sufficient for a great day out.

The Kwai Noi is remarkably untouched by pollution at this point, and is ideal for swimming in the many large shaded pools that dot the banks of the river. Add in some great views, unspoiled jungle, excellent al fresco food and a few beers and you have all of the ingredients to make a truly marvelous day out in Thailand.

The second day was made up of an extraordinarily well oiled tour of many districts around Kanchanaburi districts. Methods of transport included our luxury coach, the local train, and mini buses. For me, the highlight of the day was going to the Prasat Muang Sing Historical Park via the local train from Kanchanaburi city to the station at Tha Kilen. Parts of this line follow the path of the infamous Death railway, and you have to wonder in awe just how the unfortunate souls forced into labor during WWII could have ever built it.

Prasat Muang Sing was probably built during the height of the Khmer influence and is conjectured to be an outpost of Angkor. As such, the style of the ruins is Khmer. From my description you can sense that, whilst some information is available about its origins, much is still unclear. This may be partially because the site was overgrown, much in the same way that the Angkor temple complex went, and Prasat Muang Sing was only restored around thirty five years ago.

This was the final stop of the weekend, and it was back to Tha Kilen, to pick up the coach, which had somehow miraculously appeared at the station to take us back to Bangkok!

For those of you that are not lucky enough to have such a weekend organized for you, then I have a couple of suggestions for you. Hire a car in Bangkok; I recommend Thai Rent A Car, (+66 (0) 2737 8888), and drive to Kanchanaburi. This will give you complete freedom to travel around and explore this remarkable province that borders on to Myanmar. Alternatively, go to the Southern Bus Terminal (Sai Tai Mai) in Bangkok by taxi or the 511 aircon bus, and then take another aircon bus to Kanchanaburi city.

I prefer driving there, but it can be a somewhat nerve racking experience. I have also taken the bus, and this a very viable and inexpensive option and also allows you freedom to choose from a complete range of tour and hotel packages when you arrive at Kanchanaburi.

And finally, albeit a little late, a happy and prosperous 2009 to my friends at the Thailand Web Zone, www.thailandwebzone.com, which is a new Thai social networking and Thailand community site. Share information in Thai forums and Thailand articles, meet people, share photos, music and video, find & submit information on Thailand travel. Make new friends from all over the world! For those readers who have not visited TWZ, go have a look now!