Is this how Pattaya looked like in the 1970's or something? Could be, but it is a very recent picture, and it is not Pattaya.
I was here earlier this year however, for the third time, as I wanted a real beach, a quiet and relaxing place, and some peace (yeah, believe me, Pattaya gets boring after a while: only sexy girls in noisy bars with indecent proposals, every day, again and again...).
Well, I hope this place will never become "New Pattaya", but when you walk around here and see all the new hotels growing like mushrooms, I fear it really might become a smaller, second Pattaya. There are just a few bars now, comparable to beer bars, but no gogo places, no Sabai rooms, no big supermarkets or McDonalds around every corner, just one small dancing, and in the center one bar that everyone seems to know in this beach town, called Freedom bar. It's a pity, there are better places then this Freedom bar. When I was there and wanted to take a picture with my girlfriend, I was not allowed to, because of some French arrogant guy threatened to throw my camera into pieces, behaving as if Cambodia would still be a French colony. For one second I wanted to do something very ugly, but my friend told me to stay calm, put the camera away, and shut up.
If he would have asked me in a polite way, I could understand, but not like this!
99% of the people in France are nice people I think, as I have met a few nice French too, but I happened to meet the most ridiculous, arrogant jerks here in this "freedom" bar, I guess. Later on, other french speaking jerks with the same bad attitude entered the bar. I left, and after a second try I'll never go back. Talking with some cambodian girls, I heard there were problems almost every night in this bar, drunk guys fighting for the most silly reasons.
Better go to Victory Hill where you have a few better options. Well, the good side of the story of a developing Sihanoukville is that probably bars like Freedom will disappear, when they get some new competition with friendly people.
Sihanoukville is a booming place. If you want to see it like it is on the picture, you better hurry.
I'm pretty sure the relaxing, unspoiled beaches will turn into mass tourism within the next 5 years. That's a shame, but there is no way back! With the better infrastructure and the new airport coming this is gonna be a very, busy place like Siem Reap already is (in fact, there is not a real airport now, as the only plane, a Tupolev, crashed into the mountains in 2007 and was not replaced). I was on the bus...;-)
I prefer Ochheutal beach now, pitch black at night when I was there, with only one small, nice bar called Dolphin. It's not even something you could call a bar, as the place consists only of some chairs on the beach and close to the sea, a tap and some music.
But it's nice! And hey, pssst... I must not say it, not my stuff, but if you wanna smoke something happy happy, it's available here...
On your own risk of course, as the law is just the same as in Thailand. You know what happens if they catch you: Monkey house!
