Erawan waterfalls

On my second whole day in Kanchanaburi I decided to visit Erawan waterfalls. There are many independent tours which will take you there by minibus but I felt these were too expensive for the amount of time I wanted to be there and so I opted for the local bus instead. My plan was to catch the 11:00 bus  to the falls and get the last bus back at 16:00. However this is Thailand and I should have realised by now that it is pretty pointless making plans which involve specific time frames.

I arrived at the bus station around 10:40 and brought my ticket (very reasonable at around 50p!). There was only one other person on the bus when I boarded so I had my pick of seats. Taking into account the heat I chose to sit opposite the middle doors as these are rarely closed on local buses during transit. The interior of the bus was unique to say the least but I was loving the purple and turquoise interior complete with mini potted garden on the dashboard. It also appeared as if our driver today was Mickey Mouse!

Although the bus was interesting I was starting to get twitchy as I watched the clock roll on to 11:15, 11:30, 11:45!!! People were getting on in dribs and drabs but with no real rush and the driver was nowhere to be seen. Eventually the bus pulled out of the station at 11:55 (yay at last).

It seemed to me as if the driver and the conductor were playing a very well rehearsed game of 'how many people can you squeeze on a bus at once'. When I thought there was no possible way they would stop to let more on, that's just what they did. There were even people sitting on the platform which housed the gearstick and sitting on the steps by the open doors swinging their legs worryingly close to the road (I was having 'risk assessment' palpitations!). Luckily we arrived at our destination with all legs intact.

The trip was meant to take 1.5hrs but ended up taking closer to 2hrs. Also, with the delay in leaving the station it meant we arrived at the waterfalls just before 14:00 instead of at 12:30 which is the time I was expecting. This only gave me 2hrs to walk to the waterfalls and back before the last bus back to Kanchanaburi. Undeterred by this I set off down a tree lined forest path and listened to the chorus of birds and insects. There was a small breeze which caused the tall bamboo to gently sway and resulted in a crackling sound which was both eerie and hypnotically peaceful all at once. I then stumbled across a flutter of butterfly's flying low to the ground and watched as they danced in the sun light.

I managed to see 3 waterfalls in the end which were beautiful with white flowing water and inviting turquoise pools surrounded by large rocks and trees. It was quite busy and the flat areas by the pools were crammed with local families enjoying lazy picnics. I decided to swim in the fist pool and as I approached I smelt a faint whiff of something not all that pleasant in the air (I thought the smell may be from the stagnant water at the pool edges and the closest I can liken it is to the smell of wet dog!). This did not put me off however and I carefully made my way over the rocks and into the water which was very refreshingly freezing cold.

The pools were full of fish which are very partial to the dry skin off your peoples feet (bearing in mind these were big fish and not the dainty little ones you see in spas). While people fled terrified from these fish all around me I sat back on the rocks and watched fascinated as they flocked around my feet and nibbled at my skin. I'm ashamed to admit that my feet are not in the best condition and these fish must have thought it was happy hour at the all-you-can-eat buffet (I simultaneously was thinking 'free foot treatment'!).

I wish I had longer to explore the rest of the waterfalls as I find being close to water very relaxing. Next time I plan a trip in Thailand I will remember to give myself at least 2hrs leeway on all journey times (a valuable travel lesson right there).