A courier just delivered a handwritten message to your door. It
reads:
My dear friend and intrepid traveler,
After much planning, I have prepared a new and exciting challenge
for you. Called Around the World in 80
Caches!, it requires patience, ingenuity, and the
ability to handle the unexpected. In this journey, you will be
venturing into several countries, 80 in all, in search of concealed
artifacts. The countries will lead you to continents, and the
continents will lead you to the ultimate prize, hereafter known as
"The World." Based on your experience and past adventures, I am
confident you will succeed. As always, travel safe and be sure to
document your findings. I look forward to hearing all about your
grand expedition.
Your great admirer,
Jules Verne
IMPORTANT NOTE: Information in this cache will help you
solve Asia: ATW80 (GC1MGA9), a
puzzle cache tied to the related countries.
Thailand is a country in Asia that occupies over 514,000 sq.
kilometers, slightly more than twice the size of Wyoming. A
unified Thai kingdom was established in the mid-14th century. Known
as Siam until 1939, Thailand is the only Southeast Asian country
never to have been taken over by a European power. A bloodless
revolution in 1932 led to a constitutional monarchy. In alliance
with Japan during World War II, Thailand became a US treaty ally
following the conflict.
Happier memories bring us the musical, Anna and the King of
Siam, which was later filmed as, The King and
I. The King in these two productions was Rama IV, the last
of the Rama's. All four Rama's are buried in tombs in the
temple Wat Po in the city of Bangkok. Wat Po is located less
than a mile from the Royal Palace.
Also in history is the infamous Bridge Over the River
Kwai. This bridge (or really two bridges, one wooden and one
steel), were needed by the Japanese during World War II, to move
supplies from Bangkok to Rangoon, Burma (now known as
Myanmar). The bridges were the target of Allied aircraft
bombings to disrupt this supply line. Allied POW's were used
to repair the bridges and to be human shields to protect the
bridges from attack.