I really did miss the patriotism and red, white and blue today. Normally, the 4th of July is the big opening weekend for my family. We celebrate by watching fireworks at the Boston Esplanade or at Provincetown (Cape Cod) or Tanglewood (Lenox, MA). However, this 4th of July, I found myself focusing on the American, Thai and Japanese involvement in World War II.

Dr. Charnvit Kasetsiri, from the Southeast Asian Studies Program at Thammasat University, accompanied our group on our visit to "The Bridge on the River Kwai" and other historic WWII landmarks. Also joining our group was Thammasat students, "Tae," "Air," and "Elliot". Dr. Charnvit is a brilliant scholar and a delightful person. He shared his memories of him growing up in the area near the bridge, WWII history, Thai history and politics, his views on current Thai politics and events and his keen knowledge an interest in movies.

As we departed Bangkok, we passed the "Democracy Monument." Dr. Charnvit gave us a moving account of the 1973 uprising led by students of Thammasat University. We were to watch the movie "Bridge Over River Kwai" but we did not bring it along. Instead, we watched a video of the "Student Uprising." It added to our understanding at Thailand and the country's internal problems and political history.

En route we first stopped at Nakom Panom to see "The Biggest Pagoda In The World." It is en route to the King's sea resort. It is one of the wealthiest temples in Thailand. Many, many people come to visit. Local legend tells that a prince killed his father. He then built this pagoda to atone for his sin. He said he would build it as high as the doves fly.

We continued our ride. The bridge is about 150 km (100 miles from Bangkok)- about 2 hours ride. During WWII, the "Death Railway" was built by Allied prisoners of war and conscripted Southeast Asians. Japan wanted to use Thailand as a place from which to attack the British. These men that built the bridge lived under mortifying conditions.

Before we viewed the bridge we stopped to pay homage to soldiers that died building the bridge at a British cemetery in Kanchaburi. Some of us also made a quick visit to the new "Death Railway Museum," adjacent to the cemetery. As we approached the Bridge on the River Kwai, we came upon quite a different sight than anticipated. There were tourists galore, cameras clicking, beautiful restaurants along the water, people walking across the bridge taking photos, an occasional train along the track, families, couples and tourists all out for an interesting summer outing. On both sides of the river were marketplaces. On the opposite side of the river there was a mother and baby elephant for the tourists' pleasure to see a photograph.

Though Dr. Charnvit gave us all the history, dreadful statistics and so much valuable information about this site, the day turned out to be a delightful excursion. We had lunch on the River Kwai Floating Restaurant. The food was good, the view was perfect and the violinist was excellent. There were also lots of wonderful fish dishes on the menu.

So, this year we celebrated our wonderful country without bands and music, fireworks and sparklers, but by learning more about what makes our country so special. Each of us thought about and remembered those that fought and those that died on Thai soil during WWII. The events on the Bridge stepped out of American films and into American reality!