Sihanoukville is now worlds away from the somewhat sleepy place it was in 2010, having turned into a Cambodian Macau of sorts, awash in casinos and the problems that come along with these businesses.
Occheuteal Beach 🏖️
Sihanoukville, Cambodia is a place that has changed rapidly over the last 15 years, and Occheuteal Beach has been situated right at the heart of that change.
When I used to visit Sihanoukville the big stories were always about the Russian and Turkish mafia fighting for control of the underworld there, with a few drive-by shootings and assassinations occurring every year. Locals couldn't have imagined the Triads would be much more violently prolific than the Russian an Turkish mafias.
At some point the Chinese government began eyeing the Cambodian coast, now owning nearly all of the country's coastline, as well as most of Sihanoukville's beachfront property. This town is now full of skyscrapers and casinos from massive Chinese investment, which strangely enough has already partially failed.
What Can We Do, Smoke Joint? 😮💨
Weed-friendly beach bar shacks no longer seem like a serious threat to the Cambodian culture when compared to the Chinese influx of money, influence and power. The overwhelming majority of Chinese citizens in Cambodia spend their money at Chinese-owned business, so the trickle-down economics don't even reach the ordinary working class Cambodians of this once sleepy town.
Let's Get Zen 🧘♂️
These pictures are now a bit historic I guess, as Sihanoukville will never be the same again. When I was here roughly 10 years ago, the sight of a pensive handful of monks and their orange robes contrasting with the blue sea made start snapping away with the camera.
These very beaches later became polluted with the unfiltered sewage runoff from the Chinese-owned casinos, making it a serious health hazard to go swim here. Things are changing though, and the Cambodian public has now pressured the government to shutter several of the worst casinos.
Hopefully the future is much brighter for Sihanoukville and Occheuteal Beach, but COVID-19 certainly ruined a lot of the Chinese tourism this town is now reliant upon.