This is the 4th and final episode of the series, where we are visiting Chinese related places all around Southeast Asia. Each episode is in another country. 3rd episode from a Chinese village in Thailand: ua-cam.com/video/QQnmEpOQxnc/v-deo.htmlsi=PAQHtcQjFnT3aodc Check out Nomad esim here: www.getnomad.app/?
I think the USA has bigger influences on Cambodia than China! The US dollars can be used everywhere in Cambodia, nearly replacing local riels. But not Chinese yuan. And as you can see, lots of Western tourists rush into Cambodia every year, and some Western old men search for improper sex with very young Cambodian girls or boys...
The "Royal Group" (皇家集团) is a Cambodian local big company, not a company from China! When you see its trilingual sign (with Chinese characters) on the island, it just means that the "Royal Group" did lots of cooperation with Chinese. But the Cambodian company - "Royal Group" itself is not from China!
@@akl4709 No! Please stop your lies! UA-cam is of your motherland - USA! The fact is: If anyone says anything positive about China, the comments are getting deleted!!
i like how you’re not just going around for the sake of sight seeing, but that you’re also trying to tell a story about these places. it makes your videos interesting.
I appreciate these videos, they show a side of things I never knew before. I'm a Chinese architect, and because of your videos, I looked up a lot of information about these cities,I will definitely visit these cities in the future.Thank you Ken.
The "Royal Group" (皇家集团) is a Cambodian local big company, not a company from China! When you see its trilingual sign (with Chinese characters) on the island, it just means that the "Royal Group" did lots of cooperation with Chinese. But the Cambodian company - "Royal Group" itself is not from China!
Royal Group is a Cambodian conglomerate that own the investment of the two islands, Koh Rong and Koh Rong Sanlem. Chinese company is just one of the companies that they work with.
Glad I found you. Subscribed. Great informative video. I’m moving to Cambodia in April and I’m enjoying learning all I can about Cambodia before I arrive.
Is definitely an eye opening video showcasing Chinese influence on this part of Cambodia. Unfortunately there r many unfinished buldings seen here n there. Compared to Laos, there r more buildings of Chinese architecture but not so in Cambodia. The hotel u stayed with a beach view is nice. U do enjoy yr motorcycle ride n finally u reached an awesome beach telling us u were stranded there with yr friends back in 2019. Bless u, Ken that u were saved by a party boat when u were stranded at Koh Rong island. I truly enjoyed today's video. Tqvm, Ken. Stay safe n healthy.👍👍🙏😍
What a great video, Ken. Your narration is always good and l love the way you convey all those information about the projects/developments in Sihanoukville and Koh Rong. Well, regarding all those projects which have Chinese influence, l guess there are pros and cons. Anyway, that beach in Koh Rong is indeed beautiful...white fine sand and crystal clear water. Yeah, l remember that old video where you and your friends were stranded there 😅😃 Well, another fantastic episode and l can't thank you enough. Love this interesting and informative series. Keep up the great works, Ken.
Royal group is not Chinese. It is owned by a Cambodian billionaire. The group owns telecommunication companies like cellcard, ezecom. it also own banks, insurance company, hotels, private schools, real estate. I heard it also own so much land on koh rong. These are just the well-known businesses that I know of, there could be more. It's a big group
This video is a great mix of Cambodia vacation and a commentary on the Chinese influence in Cambodia. I enjoy your videos but this one is superlative. Thanks.
I went to cambodia before. One tip from me. It would be better to just hire any one tuk tuk for USD10 per day to bring you around. Negotiate with them. Maybe USD20 for 3 days plus tips (buy them lunch, drinks, etc.) They usually will agree. Because it's difficult for them to get passengers anyway. (Edit. I'm not suggesting to short change or exploit tuk tuk drivers. But that's the "market price". At least from my experience last year.)
I really liked this Ken. Went to Koh Rong in 2010 for scuba diving. Very undeveloped at the time, no roads or hotels to speak of, just a few ramshackle resorts. I wouldn't go back, I prefer to keep the memories of how it once was - blissful.
Was there in 2004 - shudder to see what it's become. I remember when there was sod-all around the golden lions. Serendipity, Otres, Victory Hill, Chez Claude, Monkey Republic - the good old days!
This reminds of Cozumel, a once quiet getaway island off the Yucatan Peninsula. My wife and I went there for our honeymoon in 1983. It was such a charming place and lovely people. Over the years we've been back several times and each time there has gotten to be more time shares and cruise ships. It has now become more of a tourist trap with businesses just trying to soak money from you. I think it's difficult for islands not to be attracted to the prospect of growth, but that seems to be a two edged sword.
Thanks for visiting my birth country Cambodia 🇰🇭 the last time I went back to Cambodia in 2016 please enjoy your time in Cambodia take care bye from milton Ontario Canada 🇨🇦
Local ppl blame Chinese, it just doesn’t make sense, the one loss money are the Chinese investors or the developers, huge money flows in the country and they got nothing in return, I am a Chinese worked in a Chinese real estate development company had a project in one of the south east countries, for my own experience, the unfinished buildings mostly from two reason , first they were not able to sale it as expected which broken the cash flow ，to solve this they can simply lowering the price , second the horrible corruption from local authorities
I was on Koh Rong 2014 when there was no infrastructure at all. I was alone on Paradise Beach and I took some boats around the island. You may find my video about that trip on my channel if you like.
Thank you very much for sharing,I like your Chinese episode.I'm Chinese.I guess the buildings in Sihanoukville and also the ones in Golden Triangle have something to do with online scam
Interesting info on all these abandoned projects in Cambodia.So much has been spent but nothing materialised out of it.Really pathetic.Quite a humour with you sharing about your 2019 visit missing your boat and etc.😂Looking forward to your next vlog!Stay safe Ken!💕🇲🇾🙏
The tuk tuk driver pointed 4 fingers before you got in . English is not wide spread in the older people in Cambodia but most are honest and friendly in my experience
You have no idea how much Chinese spend on gambling. Gambling is illegal in mainland China. Macau, a small Chinese city outside of mainland China had casinos' revenue of $36 billion vs Las Vegas $12 billion in 2019. Countries like Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Singapore, and Malaysia built their casinos mainly to attract Chinese clients. The odds are always in favor of the house. Almost all the customers walk away losing. It's a great way to get large amount of money from the Chinese without any goods exchange.
The vast majority of the money will floe back to Chinese business men. A certain amount to Cambodian politicians and almost none to locals as the casinos were employing Chinese workers. The crime surrounding these casinos was what the local population objected to.
@@stephanguitar9778 In Kent's previous video on Laos, the manager of the casino was a local. Casinos in general do employ many locals and also indirectly. For example, they need hotel maids, housekeepers, plumbers, electricians, bell boys, security guards, restaurant workers, card dealers etc. The spill over effect would be increase sales for local economy, such as increase in ride service(taxi, tuktuk, or uber), restaurant sale, vegetable and meat market sales, local shops sales, local attraction sales, local hawkers sales etc. Even if they bring some Chinese workers, these people will still need to eat and live. That means they need to buy things and rent apartments. If you rent apartments, you need to buy furnitures, cookware, utensils, bed sheets, and basic daily living etc. And you need to see doctors and buy medicines etc when you are sick. Plus, you also see locals at the construction sites. Overall it's a great benefit for the local economy, otherwise, the local governments won't have allowed so any casinos. I don't remember which country or countries: because gambling is a vice, the local government won't let the locals gamble. Only foreigners are allowed. I generally don't like casinos. They need to be tightly regulated.
@@stephanguitar9778 I am not surprised that when there are casinos, there are crimes because there are great money made and lost in an instance. You can read up about organized crime history in Macau and Las Vegas.
"Sihanoukville has no shortage of such ghost buildings. According to the city government, there are roughly 360 unfinished buildings and about 170 others that are completed but remain empty..."
Already 40 out of those 360 unfinished buildings have been continued construction just in last 6 months due to government aid.. And many of those 170 completed but empty buildings are not empty anymore.
Japan next 🙏 I just realized that you had visited Mae Salong before your previous video and had another one about it in 2021 Nice to look at the difference between years
Something with Chinese characters doesn’t mean Chinese investments. Just like lots of restaurants with Chinese characters and English, they just want to attract attention to customers who use these languages.
I never saw chinese characters on a business even it was a simple restaurant in Siem Reap without chinese owners... China is taking over for sure. It differs from cambodian owned places who use english on signs for western tourists...
I hope you don't exaggerate about the old man placing his hand on the young boy to dramatizing your video. I have been to Cambodia many times I don't see such a thing. Cambodia has a bad name but please do not explode it.
12 years or so ago child sexual abuse was rampant here by foreigners and Sihanoukville was the centre of it, but it was eventually cleaned up and then the Chinese came in. So it was an interesting side-note as this was how it was. I think he was very careful how he noted but did not sensationalize it.
I saw that kind of thing in the middle of the park of Phnom Penh. Old western guys with suspiciously young girlfriends. Plural, because there were two sets of them. They didn't act like father-daughter that's for sure.
It’s like Cancun in Mexico, Da Nang, Vietnam, and Golden Triangle, Laos. If you build it, the tourists will come. Some investments will fall and some will succeed. But all in all, it will help the economy in the region or that country.
Per Wikipedia: The Royal Group, based in Phnom Penh, is Cambodia's largest diversified conglomerate and holding company with investments in various industries in the country including telecommunication, media, banking, insurance, resorts, education, property, trading and agriculture.
From Wikipedia also In June 2011, a leaked American diplomatic cable called Royal Group's CEO Kith meng a "relatively young and ruthless gangster," and stated that he was "notorious for using his bodyguards to coerce others into brokering deals."[11] Royal Group has received particular criticism regarding environmental issues in Cambodia, most prominently illegal logging in protected areas,[12] displacing indigenous and destroying rural villages, and harming fishing grounds for hydroelectric projects without compensation or proper environmental assessment reports.[13] Villagers have reported being afraid to speak out due to fears that Royal Group would have them killed, saying that local military and police were watching them at the behest of the conglomerate.[14]
One thing I noticed. You are thinking any site with Chinese signs a Chinese project. But it has English as well. Why don't you think it is a UK/US project? Remember it is Asia where Chinese is spoken in many countries.
Rofl. English is a global language and in China itself, you often have Chinglish even though no one can read or understand it, not even the Chinese themselves. It's all about marketing. There are no American or UK projects of this type in Asia. If there were, they certainly wouldn't place Chinese on them. Why? English is the only international language and it's also the official/de facto official language in those two countries. Besides, everyone speaks English. Everywhere I go in Asia, if I'm not being addressed in the local lingo, I'll be addressed in English as people assume all foreigners speak English.
@@ThePatriot-gm1fg Brits, Americans and Austrlian are the only people who think one should be able get along everywhere with only English. Thus UK/American projects wouldn't have Chinese on their signage, because they are just dumb people. And I'm pretty sure you are from one of these countries as well ;)
You should go and check out the canal that China started digging for Cambodia the day before yesterday. I heard that 500 excavators and 20,000 people are working simultaneously, and they've dug 20 kilometers in just two days
It is super easy to get a local sim in Cambodia, at least 10x cheaper than the Nomad one. right at every airport. for about 6 to 10 dollars for a month. Or 2 dollars for a week..
Hello brother The airport will be construct soon on Koh Rong Island not by Chinese, build by Royal group owner Nak ouknha Kit Meng, he is original cambodian. Warm welcome to Cambodia! Please enjoy your trip in Cambodia 😘
At 10:03 that was uncalled for! I spent two years in Sihanoukville 10 years ago and saw many retirees marrying local women and adopting their kids as their own. I myself dated a divorcee with a child, although since I was mid 20s I didn't raise eyebrows, but still, people should know how to mind their business! If you suspect abuse there's child helpline numbers to call. If not, it's a retiree living his life! In four years that I've lived there none of my western acquaintances ever got involved in abuse.
@@anchoimaimai No, he was being judgemental! There's a story of a Frenchman being falsely accused in public. The man lived in Cambodia for many years, speaks the language, and got married, but one day he was out walking with his Cambodian-born daughter and a dumb tourist called him a predator in front of his own daughter!! Is that fair? Do you think his daughter will cherish this childhood memory? I don't live in Cambodia anymore but now I realise just how lucky I was to be a young 25 year old walking around Sihanoukville with my ex girlfriend's daughter and not look suspicious... This issue is based on perception and racism, and at the end of the day it doesn't help save any child!
Hello, we have lived in Cambodia for 4 years and have never seen any children being abused. Do you honestly think if this was happening someone would step in and stop it. Why didn't you film it? You could have then shown it to the police if you were really worried about the child. You could have easily removed that from the Vlog as it turned out to be nothing.
Yes I thought it was very sketchy that he left that part in his video too. I mean this used to be huge problem in Cambodia, and still is, but it's definitely not open like that anymore. 10.-15 years ago, yes you might still see this kind of stuff totally openly done, but not anymore. Even locals are more aware of stuff now.
People are too quick to judge. I used to live in Sihanoukville 10 years ago and dated a divorcee with a child. We went swimming many times, albeit I was in my 20s and thus didn't raise eyebrows. I also met an older Italian gentleman that married a Cambodian woman and adopted her kids after their father ran away. But the most heartbreaking story was that of a French man in Siem Reap who was outside walking with his mixed Cambodian daughter and a tourist called him a predator... Some people should just mind their own business!
The tuk-tuk driver was not bad , he gave you back the change. In Vietnam they don't, if you shouted they give you small notes back thinking you don't know because their currency has a lot of zeros.
In Sihanoukville, there are many construction sites that have been halted, largely because the Chinese construction teams have all been reassigned to work on the Funan Canal. This canal is truly the lifeline for the entire nation of Cambodia, so it naturally takes higher priority. If you have the chance, you should go and see the situation along the Funan Canal. There, you can witness what the world's top infrastructure efficiency looks like.🤣
Far more than "very few". Nearly all formal words and terms originating from Sanskit-Pali are identical in both Thai and Khmer. Around 5% of the vocabulary of Khmer is shared with Thai and there are similarities among a much larger percentage than that.
Really interesting excellent video. I visited Sihanoukville long time back (around 2005) by bus from Phnom Penh. No airport! It was totally beautiful and very few tourists from China or the West. Like another world from today. Cambodian very friendly and helpful of course. Could pay in dollars then too. This is true of many countries as you know. Dollar still dominates...
Most countries are trying to encourage use of their own currencies these days. Dollars still widely used in Cambodia, but nowadays the Riel is gaining traction with most prices shown in both.
That small coconut looking this is Beetle Nuts. Old lady eat them with some leaves and calcium paste. I tried it once, made me so dizzy I had to sat down.
Hi Ken, thanks a lot for these recent news about Sihanoukville and Koh Rong island. I sippose the cake you buy to nomad baker was made with chicken eggs. In Cambodia most of cakes are made with duck eggs that's why he was talking about chicken. (Cambodian usually privilegiate chicken eggs for cooking). One dollar a piece was very expensive and surely not local price but we can't blame them because globaly tourism is not as remunerative as before covid crisis... Love the way you describe the environnement, your reflections and your attention regarding to the young boy with the old man... One more subscriber and a ring ! PS : If you want to know more about local fights regarding Koh Rong's airport have a look to this association called Mother Nature Cambodia.
Yes China supported the Khmer Rouge. So did the USA, Singapore, UK and Australia. Peacock and Fraser fought over the policy. LKY wrote about it in his autobiography. China invaded Vietnam, after Hanoi rightly defeated the KR, and then China were defeated on the border. Nixon started the policy of supporting China against Vietnam. The west could have helped Cambodia, but they selfishly didn't.
Big fan of you Ken, but have to say bit disappointed about the video. Title is about Sihanoukville and then only 20 minutes of 45 minutes is about Sihanoukville. And you only explore the Chinese areas and don't visit places like Otres or city center where locals and westerns hang out. Also yes, around 400 unfinished buildings and around 150 completed but empty buildings in beginning of 2024. Since then already 40 unfinished buildings have been continued, and another 30 in the pipeline to be continued later this year. Also not to forget that over 2000 new buildings built in last 8 years.
And You like what happened to the Seaside Village??? 2000 New Buildings in the last 8 years is Crazy! Theres nothing like it naturally progressing but just Rapid Building! For What??? To Brag to your Neighbors who Built Organically not just Wiping out an Entire City for Development!
@@Iceyfire12 Yes, I do think it's a better place to live now than ever before. I have lived here close to 15 years. And the infra is at it's best now. No brownouts, no water shortages, great roads and wide pavement to walk and bicycle on. Lots of modern condo apartments and houses. And lot of well paid jobs for locals. I guess you are one of those who would like Cambodia stay poor so you can enjoy cheap beer and girls?
As a Chinese, my perspecive is the Chinese investmets should bring them work opprtunity, and all the fundamental construction would improve their quality of life.If this is not the case, the problem lies not with the investment itself but with how it is managed. About the opinion you mentioned that the tourist will arise the price of the property,I am puzzled why locals need to buy properity, they don't own their properity as a local? Also, I have seen many Combodia related videos, including one where a Tuk Tuk drivers said that they are struggling to earn money because their hometown don't have many companies or tourists. Put that into perspective, the investment from China can offer more jobs, which is important for them overall. I personally cannot comprehend discussing environment protection when basic daily lliving conditions are not even guaranteed. We China and Combodia should always want to be good neighbors and cooperate. The last thing we should do is hate each other. Correct me if I am wrong.
You should know that why many SEA nations are afraid of Chinese investment. Because Chinese investment doesn't even bring work opportunity for local. Everything was brought from China. Workers, materials, engines. Everything to be honest.
No you are not wrong. Cambodians do appreciate Chinese investment and Chinese tourists. The country depends on Tourism, especially Chinese. But Cambodia has a not so good reputation that you may have heard. A lot of these rumors about Cambodia are well rumors and made up to create fear in the Chinese tourists where they do not want to visit Cambodia. There has always been a campaign to smear Cambodia. Also, corruption is high here, the poor locals do not benefit in Cambodia. But hopefully cooperation with China will help change that and bring prosperity to everyone.
@@pp-bf2ec I checked your recommendations but all quite pricey! Don’t really need a flashy resort style place. Just need a good budget hotel that’s clean. Was planning to spend most of my time riding a scooter to explore the area.
I have checked some informations about the background of investment in Cambodia. Some are hk based companies. Some are joint ventures. Some are Chinese tycoons who moved out of China a long time ago. Most of them have nothing to do with Chinese government. Anyway Chinese influence in Cambodia has been a big thing for centuries due to history and political and economic relationship
Hi there ken, Right now Im at Sihanoukville as well. been here since 3 years after covid. If you're still here, I would like to invite you for some drinks!
The main reason why you find many empty and unfinished buildings in Shihanoukville Cambodia is that two of Chinese main developers notably Evergrande and Country Garden went bankrupt and hence run out of liquid assets to finance further development owing respectively $300 and $205 billion dollars in debt. Thank you very much and enjoy your day 😊😊
The name of a company like "Royal Group" generally exists in political systems with monarchies, such as Thailand. At least people from the Chinese mainland would avoid using this name when starting a company because the monarchy vanished from this country 100 years ago.
lol Royal Group is a Cambodian company, and Cambodia has king. It's one of the biggest companies in Cambodia, owned by the richest guy in Cambodia. Who is born and raised Cambodian.
This is the 4th and final episode of the series, where we are visiting Chinese related places all around Southeast Asia. Each episode is in another country.
3rd episode from a Chinese village in Thailand: ua-cam.com/video/QQnmEpOQxnc/v-deo.htmlsi=PAQHtcQjFnT3aodc
Check out Nomad esim here: www.getnomad.app/?
Very interesting series. Thank you, for producing something a little different.
I think the USA has bigger influences on Cambodia than China! The US dollars can be used everywhere in Cambodia, nearly replacing local riels. But not Chinese yuan. And as you can see, lots of Western tourists rush into Cambodia every year, and some Western old men search for improper sex with very young Cambodian girls or boys...
The "Royal Group" (皇家集团) is a Cambodian local big company, not a company from China! When you see its trilingual sign (with Chinese characters) on the island, it just means that the "Royal Group" did lots of cooperation with Chinese. But the Cambodian company - "Royal Group" itself is not from China!
@@akl4709 No! Please stop your lies! UA-cam is of your motherland - USA! The fact is: If anyone says anything positive about China, the comments are getting deleted!!
Yea, I never heard of any Chinese company named 'Royal' actually 😅@@Kawah_Kawah
i like how you’re not just going around for the sake of sight seeing, but that you’re also trying to tell a story about these places. it makes your videos interesting.
It seems more like he is trying hard to find bad things about China . thats what he is doing
Excellent reporting. Like a professional journalist. Great overview of Sihanoukville. Thank you hermano.
I appreciate these videos, they show a side of things I never knew before. I'm a Chinese architect, and because of your videos, I looked up a lot of information about these cities,I will definitely visit these cities in the future.Thank you Ken.
The "Royal Group" (皇家集团) is a Cambodian local big company, not a company from China! When you see its trilingual sign (with Chinese characters) on the island, it just means that the "Royal Group" did lots of cooperation with Chinese. But the Cambodian company - "Royal Group" itself is not from China!
@@hermesliteratus882 he actually praises china if you've been keeping up with his videos...not biased at all like others.
He says the truth 😂
@@Orchidee503 ? ? ? ?
@@hermesliteratus882wonder why?
@@hermesliteratus882dog meat restaurants in every city.
Another great ,informative video, thanks Ken. I really enjoyed it. See you next week. South Australia watching. 👏🐝
Royal Group is a Cambodian conglomerate that own the investment of the two islands, Koh Rong and Koh Rong Sanlem.
Chinese company is just one of the companies that they work with.
Thank you for looking out for the small boy
Have a nice trip thanks for visiting our country ✈️❤
Glad I found you. Subscribed. Great informative video. I’m moving to Cambodia in April and I’m enjoying learning all I can about Cambodia before I arrive.
Welcome to the channel 🙏
Is definitely an eye opening video showcasing Chinese influence on this part of Cambodia. Unfortunately there r many unfinished buldings seen here n there. Compared to Laos, there r more buildings of Chinese architecture but not so in Cambodia. The hotel u stayed with a beach view is nice. U do enjoy yr motorcycle ride n finally u reached an awesome beach telling us u were stranded there with yr friends back in 2019. Bless u, Ken that u were saved by a party boat when u were stranded at Koh Rong island. I truly enjoyed today's video. Tqvm, Ken. Stay safe n healthy.👍👍🙏😍
What a great video, Ken. Your narration is always good and l love the way you convey all those information about the projects/developments in Sihanoukville and Koh Rong. Well, regarding all those projects which have Chinese influence, l guess there are pros and cons. Anyway, that beach in Koh Rong is indeed beautiful...white fine sand and crystal clear water. Yeah, l remember that old video where you and your friends were stranded there 😅😃 Well, another fantastic episode and l can't thank you enough. Love this interesting and informative series. Keep up the great works, Ken.
Wow it's cool that you remember that very old video 😅
@@KenAbroad Why do you not reply to the ones who corrected you saying Royal Group is a Cambodian Company?
Good evening, Ken and everyone. A 'like' 👍 first before l enjoy this 47.10 minutes video....wow, a long one. Thanks for sharing, Ken.
Good evening 🙏
Wow, this is so interesting! Interesting to hear your impressions from 2019 and now. The waterfront area with that pier does look beautiful though
Thanks. I'm an American living in Thailand, and I've always wondered about this place.
Kep has more western now.
Royal group is not Chinese. It is owned by a Cambodian billionaire. The group owns telecommunication companies like cellcard, ezecom. it also own banks, insurance company, hotels, private schools, real estate. I heard it also own so much land on koh rong. These are just the well-known businesses that I know of, there could be more. It's a big group
Who’s the Cambodia billionaire?? Bullshit !
No one but , the one controlling the country smh.
@@wildwildwest1662the whitest reaction I’ve seen.
This video is a great mix of Cambodia vacation and a commentary on the Chinese influence in Cambodia. I enjoy your videos but this one is superlative. Thanks.
I went to cambodia before. One tip from me. It would be better to just hire any one tuk tuk for USD10 per day to bring you around. Negotiate with them. Maybe USD20 for 3 days plus tips (buy them lunch, drinks, etc.) They usually will agree. Because it's difficult for them to get passengers anyway. (Edit. I'm not suggesting to short change or exploit tuk tuk drivers. But that's the "market price". At least from my experience last year.)
I really liked this Ken. Went to Koh Rong in 2010 for scuba diving. Very undeveloped at the time, no roads or hotels to speak of, just a few ramshackle resorts. I wouldn't go back, I prefer to keep the memories of how it once was - blissful.
Was there in 2004 - shudder to see what it's become. I remember when there was sod-all around the golden lions. Serendipity, Otres, Victory Hill, Chez Claude, Monkey Republic - the good old days!
Sorry that your cheap dirty sandal wearing backpacker retreat is gone 😢
This reminds of Cozumel, a once quiet getaway island off the Yucatan Peninsula. My wife and I went there for our honeymoon in 1983. It was such a charming place and lovely people. Over the years we've been back several times and each time there has gotten to be more time shares and cruise ships. It has now become more of a tourist trap with businesses just trying to soak money from you. I think it's difficult for islands not to be attracted to the prospect of growth, but that seems to be a two edged sword.
great video thx Ken . look forward to more videos
Nice to see you again, Ken. :-)
Thanks for visiting my birth country Cambodia 🇰🇭 the last time I went back to Cambodia in 2016 please enjoy your time in Cambodia take care bye from milton Ontario Canada 🇨🇦
Local ppl blame Chinese, it just doesn’t make sense, the one loss money are the Chinese investors or the developers, huge money flows in the country and they got nothing in return, I am a Chinese worked in a Chinese real estate development company had a project in one of the south east countries, for my own experience, the unfinished buildings mostly from two reason , first they were not able to sale it as expected which broken the cash flow ，to solve this they can simply lowering the price , second the horrible corruption from local authorities
Blame the chinese gangsters that kidnap and scam. Not sensitive idiots like u
@@akl4709because you’re spreading fake news, promoting hatred
@@artfulinspirations the white westerns want SE to stay poor, and obedient to Western hegemony.
Hahaha 😂😂😂
@@artfulinspirations not many Cambodian love western. It's just bad Chinese made Cambodian feel negative about them.
我去过柬埔寨西港和马德望，认识一群当地小伙子在中国人经营的一家医药厂从事艰辛的工作。当地人比较友好，希望政府能解决腐败把经济搞起来
I was on Koh Rong 2014 when there was no infrastructure at all. I was alone on Paradise Beach and I took some boats around the island. You may find my video about that trip on my channel if you like.
14:16 bro u were at my mom's restaurant. Welcome❤.
he asked if u want a glass or not
Ken,don't make the mistake off going back to beautifull places you have been before...,keep the great memory in mind and discover new places !
Why not? He can do whatever he wants as long as licit
Really 100% genuine experiences. The best travelling channel out there.
Many thanks for your video from Sihanoukville and Koh Rong Cambodia. Good to see your reporting again Herr Ken.
🙏
The airport project in Koh Rong is belong to Cambodian company called Royal Group.
Awesome vid Sir Ken!
Thank you very much for sharing,I like your Chinese episode.I'm Chinese.I guess the buildings in Sihanoukville and also the ones in Golden Triangle have something to do with online scam
Interesting info on all these abandoned projects in Cambodia.So much has been spent but nothing materialised out of it.Really pathetic.Quite a humour with you sharing about your 2019 visit missing your boat and etc.😂Looking forward to your next vlog!Stay safe Ken!💕🇲🇾🙏
Looks better than indian cities
Most definitely!
Pretty low bar lol
Much much much better. Even Sri Lanka is much better than India. If you ask me why, because I went to both countries before.
The restaurant was definitely not all Chinese… lots of Cambodians, viets and Koreans go there on vacation as well … comon Ken
Seems to me that you may have got this wrong Ken. Time for me to investigate and debunk this video.
The tuk tuk driver pointed 4 fingers before you got in . English is not wide spread in the older people in Cambodia but most are honest and friendly in my experience
You have no idea how much Chinese spend on gambling. Gambling is illegal in mainland China. Macau, a small Chinese city outside of mainland China had casinos' revenue of $36 billion vs Las Vegas $12 billion in 2019. Countries like Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Singapore, and Malaysia built their casinos mainly to attract Chinese clients. The odds are always in favor of the house. Almost all the customers walk away losing. It's a great way to get large amount of money from the Chinese without any goods exchange.
The vast majority of the money will floe back to Chinese business men. A certain amount to Cambodian politicians and almost none to locals as the casinos were employing Chinese workers. The crime surrounding these casinos was what the local population objected to.
@@stephanguitar9778 In Kent's previous video on Laos, the manager of the casino was a local. Casinos in general do employ many locals and also indirectly. For example, they need hotel maids, housekeepers, plumbers, electricians, bell boys, security guards, restaurant workers, card dealers etc. The spill over effect would be increase sales for local economy, such as increase in ride service(taxi, tuktuk, or uber), restaurant sale, vegetable and meat market sales, local shops sales, local attraction sales, local hawkers sales etc. Even if they bring some Chinese workers, these people will still need to eat and live. That means they need to buy things and rent apartments. If you rent apartments, you need to buy furnitures, cookware, utensils, bed sheets, and basic daily living etc. And you need to see doctors and buy medicines etc when you are sick. Plus, you also see locals at the construction sites. Overall it's a great benefit for the local economy, otherwise, the local governments won't have allowed so any casinos. I don't remember which country or countries: because gambling is a vice, the local government won't let the locals gamble. Only foreigners are allowed. I generally don't like casinos. They need to be tightly regulated.
@@stephanguitar9778 I am not surprised that when there are casinos, there are crimes because there are great money made and lost in an instance. You can read up about organized crime history in Macau and Las Vegas.
@@stephanguitar9778 Don’t Cambodian locals go to casinos to spend money?
Your end story is adding fun part of the trip with past memory.
Royal Group is a Cambodian company founded by a Cambodian/Australian man.
"Sihanoukville has no shortage of such ghost buildings. According to the city government, there are roughly 360 unfinished buildings and about 170 others that are completed but remain empty..."
Already 40 out of those 360 unfinished buildings have been continued construction just in last 6 months due to government aid.. And many of those 170 completed but empty buildings are not empty anymore.
Japan next 🙏
I just realized that you had visited Mae Salong before your previous video and had another one about it in 2021
Nice to look at the difference between years
Something with Chinese characters doesn’t mean Chinese investments. Just like lots of restaurants with Chinese characters and English, they just want to attract attention to customers who use these languages.
In places like Sihanoukville, it almost certainly means there is Chinese involvement.
I never saw chinese characters on a business even it was a simple restaurant in Siem Reap without chinese owners... China is taking over for sure. It differs from cambodian owned places who use english on signs for western tourists...
The beach is beautiful 😍
I hope you don't exaggerate about the old man placing his hand on the young boy to dramatizing your video. I have been to Cambodia many times I don't see such a thing. Cambodia has a bad name but please do not explode it.
12 years or so ago child sexual abuse was rampant here by foreigners and Sihanoukville was the centre of it, but it was eventually cleaned up and then the Chinese came in. So it was an interesting side-note as this was how it was. I think he was very careful how he noted but did not sensationalize it.
I saw that kind of thing in the middle of the park of Phnom Penh. Old western guys with suspiciously young girlfriends. Plural, because there were two sets of them. They didn't act like father-daughter that's for sure.
Thanks for sharing.
It’s like Cancun in Mexico, Da Nang, Vietnam, and Golden Triangle, Laos. If you build it, the tourists will come. Some investments will fall and some will succeed. But all in all, it will help the economy in the region or that country.
Per Wikipedia:
The Royal Group, based in Phnom Penh, is Cambodia's largest diversified conglomerate and holding company with investments in various industries in the country including telecommunication, media, banking, insurance, resorts, education, property, trading and agriculture.
From Wikipedia also
In June 2011, a leaked American diplomatic cable called Royal Group's CEO Kith meng a "relatively young and ruthless gangster," and stated that he was "notorious for using his bodyguards to coerce others into brokering deals."[11] Royal Group has received particular criticism regarding environmental issues in Cambodia, most prominently illegal logging in protected areas,[12] displacing indigenous and destroying rural villages, and harming fishing grounds for hydroelectric projects without compensation or proper environmental assessment reports.[13] Villagers have reported being afraid to speak out due to fears that Royal Group would have them killed, saying that local military and police were watching them at the behest of the conglomerate.[14]
Very interesting. From a fellow German living in Siem Reap 😊
One thing I noticed. You are thinking any site with Chinese signs a Chinese project. But it has English as well. Why don't you think it is a UK/US project? Remember it is Asia where Chinese is spoken in many countries.
Most funny is that one of the projects he shown with Chinese signs was project for Marriott :D
Nonsense. This was purely a Chinese Las Vegas run by mafia.
Rofl. English is a global language and in China itself, you often have Chinglish even though no one can read or understand it, not even the Chinese themselves. It's all about marketing. There are no American or UK projects of this type in Asia. If there were, they certainly wouldn't place Chinese on them. Why? English is the only international language and it's also the official/de facto official language in those two countries. Besides, everyone speaks English. Everywhere I go in Asia, if I'm not being addressed in the local lingo, I'll be addressed in English as people assume all foreigners speak English.
@@ThePatriot-gm1fg Brits, Americans and Austrlian are the only people who think one should be able get along everywhere with only English. Thus UK/American projects wouldn't have Chinese on their signage, because they are just dumb people. And I'm pretty sure you are from one of these countries as well ;)
Thank you for the very nice video. Have a nice trip always
You should go and check out the canal that China started digging for Cambodia the day before yesterday. I heard that 500 excavators and 20,000 people are working simultaneously, and they've dug 20 kilometers in just two days
2500台挖掘机，15天10公里，如果2天20公里18天就挖完了😁
Wow I would love to see that
@@akl4709 Go study SE Asia geography before you comment.
@@akl4709China already have access to the sea, numb nuts.
What? How can China access a canal in the middle of Cambodia. Check the map dude. @@akl4709
The girl at reception for ticket is my cousin 😭 this is so random haha
She speaks great English. Is she married😊
It is super easy to get a local sim in Cambodia, at least 10x cheaper than the Nomad one. right at every airport. for about 6 to 10 dollars for a month. Or 2 dollars for a week..
Hello brother
The airport will be construct soon on Koh Rong Island not by Chinese, build by Royal group owner Nak ouknha Kit Meng, he is original cambodian.
Warm welcome to Cambodia!
Please enjoy your trip in Cambodia 😘
you think Cambodia has all the construction tech for a modern airport?
CAMBODIA is also a BEAUTIFUL PLACE .just enjoy your trip KEN.😮
With my limited Khmer, I think the waiter on the beach ask you if you want a glass for your beer.
At 10:03 that was uncalled for! I spent two years in Sihanoukville 10 years ago and saw many retirees marrying local women and adopting their kids as their own. I myself dated a divorcee with a child, although since I was mid 20s I didn't raise eyebrows, but still, people should know how to mind their business!
If you suspect abuse there's child helpline numbers to call. If not, it's a retiree living his life! In four years that I've lived there none of my western acquaintances ever got involved in abuse.
He was just pointing out where the area is notorious for pedo take advantage of the people there. He did say he was observant and not pre-judge
@@anchoimaimai No, he was being judgemental! There's a story of a Frenchman being falsely accused in public. The man lived in Cambodia for many years, speaks the language, and got married, but one day he was out walking with his Cambodian-born daughter and a dumb tourist called him a predator in front of his own daughter!! Is that fair? Do you think his daughter will cherish this childhood memory?
I don't live in Cambodia anymore but now I realise just how lucky I was to be a young 25 year old walking around Sihanoukville with my ex girlfriend's daughter and not look suspicious... This issue is based on perception and racism, and at the end of the day it doesn't help save any child!
Lol yeah, it is totally uncalled for. If he was really worried, could've gone there and strike a conversation with the man
14.13 I think he was asking if you need a glass. Sounds similar to Thai language. You were thinking of „nam keng“ which means ice in Thai.
Wow finally you visited cambodia
Hello, we have lived in Cambodia for 4 years and have never seen any children being abused. Do you honestly think if this was happening someone would step in and stop it. Why didn't you film it? You could have then shown it to the police if you were really worried about the child. You could have easily removed that from the Vlog as it turned out to be nothing.
Yes I thought it was very sketchy that he left that part in his video too. I mean this used to be huge problem in Cambodia, and still is, but it's definitely not open like that anymore. 10.-15 years ago, yes you might still see this kind of stuff totally openly done, but not anymore. Even locals are more aware of stuff now.
People are too quick to judge. I used to live in Sihanoukville 10 years ago and dated a divorcee with a child. We went swimming many times, albeit I was in my 20s and thus didn't raise eyebrows. I also met an older Italian gentleman that married a Cambodian woman and adopted her kids after their father ran away.
But the most heartbreaking story was that of a French man in Siem Reap who was outside walking with his mixed Cambodian daughter and a tourist called him a predator...
Some people should just mind their own business!
The tuk-tuk driver was not bad , he gave you back the change. In Vietnam they don't, if you shouted they give you small notes back thinking you don't know because their currency has a lot of zeros.
There are thousands of stalled projects in Da Nang, but no one ever complains or trashes them. Lolz
Try contacting Thyda, she has a Cambodian youtube channel and can show you some foods, I think she lives in the province north of sihanouk not too far
In Sihanoukville, there are many construction sites that have been halted, largely because the Chinese construction teams have all been reassigned to work on the Funan Canal. This canal is truly the lifeline for the entire nation of Cambodia, so it naturally takes higher priority. If you have the chance, you should go and see the situation along the Funan Canal. There, you can witness what the world's top infrastructure efficiency looks like.🤣
The local waiter says កែវ Koe mean Glasses,
Only very few Khmer words similar to Thai, because we had few things to influence each other.
Far more than "very few". Nearly all formal words and terms originating from Sanskit-Pali are identical in both Thai and Khmer. Around 5% of the vocabulary of Khmer is shared with Thai and there are similarities among a much larger percentage than that.
Really interesting excellent video. I visited Sihanoukville long time back (around 2005) by bus from Phnom Penh. No airport! It was totally beautiful and very few tourists from China or the West. Like another world from today. Cambodian very friendly and helpful of course. Could pay in dollars then too. This is true of many countries as you know. Dollar still dominates...
Most countries are trying to encourage use of their own currencies these days. Dollars still widely used in Cambodia, but nowadays the Riel is gaining traction with most prices shown in both.
It's not good idea to accuse someone to be "predator" without knowing the background condition.
He didn't accuse anyone. He didn't film him because he is not sure. It is unfortunately common that this happens tho
That small coconut looking this is Beetle Nuts. Old lady eat them with some leaves and calcium paste. I tried it once, made me so dizzy I had to sat down.
Hi Ken, missing your video, no new video this week? Hope you are ok, going to all these "not so safe" places. Take care .... 💖
New video will probably come out end of next week ✌️
I love the video!
I like Korean Walker and send it to you!!😍😍😍
Hi Ken, thanks a lot for these recent news about Sihanoukville and Koh Rong island.
I sippose the cake you buy to nomad baker was made with chicken eggs. In Cambodia most of cakes are made with duck eggs that's why he was talking about chicken. (Cambodian usually privilegiate chicken eggs for cooking).
One dollar a piece was very expensive and surely not local price but we can't blame them because globaly tourism is not as remunerative as before covid crisis...
Love the way you describe the environnement, your reflections and your attention regarding to the young boy with the old man...
One more subscriber and a ring !
PS : If you want to know more about local fights regarding Koh Rong's airport have a look to this association called Mother Nature Cambodia.
Thank you 🙏
Interesting!
Didn't watch the video yet, but the answer to your title. Yes.
Hi Ken. Thanks for the video. I wish the plague not move to LoS.
Yes China supported the Khmer Rouge. So did the USA, Singapore, UK and Australia. Peacock and Fraser fought over the policy. LKY wrote about it in his autobiography. China invaded Vietnam, after Hanoi rightly defeated the KR, and then China were defeated on the border. Nixon started the policy of supporting China against Vietnam. The west could have helped Cambodia, but they selfishly didn't.
Royal Group means king family. It is obviously not a Chinese company. Maybe a local company with royal links.
Big fan of you Ken, but have to say bit disappointed about the video. Title is about Sihanoukville and then only 20 minutes of 45 minutes is about Sihanoukville. And you only explore the Chinese areas and don't visit places like Otres or city center where locals and westerns hang out.
Also yes, around 400 unfinished buildings and around 150 completed but empty buildings in beginning of 2024. Since then already 40 unfinished buildings have been continued, and another 30 in the pipeline to be continued later this year. Also not to forget that over 2000 new buildings built in last 8 years.
And You like what happened to the Seaside Village??? 2000 New Buildings in the last 8 years is Crazy! Theres nothing like it naturally progressing but just Rapid Building! For What??? To Brag to your Neighbors who Built Organically not just Wiping out an Entire City for Development!
@@hermesliteratus882he has real experience with them. Scourge of the earth.
@@Iceyfire12 Yes, I do think it's a better place to live now than ever before. I have lived here close to 15 years. And the infra is at it's best now. No brownouts, no water shortages, great roads and wide pavement to walk and bicycle on. Lots of modern condo apartments and houses. And lot of well paid jobs for locals. I guess you are one of those who would like Cambodia stay poor so you can enjoy cheap beer and girls?
@@maggiechan33 of course the Chinese Support Sihanoukville 😂
@@hermesliteratus882 Time for me to debunk this video
As a Chinese, my perspecive is the Chinese investmets should bring them work opprtunity, and all the fundamental construction would improve their quality of life.If this is not the case, the problem lies not with the investment itself but with how it is managed.
About the opinion you mentioned that the tourist will arise the price of the property,I am puzzled why locals need to buy properity, they don't own their properity as a local?
Also, I have seen many Combodia related videos, including one where a Tuk Tuk drivers said that they are struggling to earn money because their hometown don't have many companies or tourists. Put that into perspective, the investment from China can offer more jobs, which is important for them overall. I personally cannot comprehend discussing environment protection when basic daily lliving conditions are not even guaranteed.
We China and Combodia should always want to be good neighbors and cooperate. The last thing we should do is hate each other.
Correct me if I am wrong.
You should know that why many SEA nations are afraid of Chinese investment. Because Chinese investment doesn't even bring work opportunity for local. Everything was brought from China. Workers, materials, engines. Everything to be honest.
I like everything about China. However, the western countries are trying so hard to paint bad image about China.
No you are not wrong. Cambodians do appreciate Chinese investment and Chinese tourists. The country depends on Tourism, especially Chinese. But Cambodia has a not so good reputation that you may have heard. A lot of these rumors about Cambodia are well rumors and made up to create fear in the Chinese tourists where they do not want to visit Cambodia. There has always been a campaign to smear Cambodia. Also, corruption is high here, the poor locals do not benefit in Cambodia. But hopefully cooperation with China will help change that and bring prosperity to everyone.
Hi Ken, I’m planning to visit Sihanoukville city next week. What hotel did you stay at there?
Most popular hotels are at Otres Beach area.
@@monatan3536 Can you please name one? Or would like a good clean budget hotel in the city.
@@wrd980 White Boutique Hotel, Sahaa Beach Resort, Sea Breeze Resort, Sok Sabay Resort are all great in Otres area.
@@pp-bf2ec Great tips!! Many thanks 🙏
@@pp-bf2ec I checked your recommendations but all quite pricey! Don’t really need a flashy resort style place. Just need a good budget hotel that’s clean. Was planning to spend most of my time riding a scooter to explore the area.
wow, everything is so expensive on the island....
Local Fan here Ken , there is a new resort call Bay of Light it worth a visit in sihanouk ville , here is another must go places Siemreap - Battambang
I have checked some informations about the background of investment in Cambodia. Some are hk based companies. Some are joint ventures. Some are Chinese tycoons who moved out of China a long time ago. Most of them have nothing to do with Chinese government. Anyway Chinese influence in Cambodia has been a big thing for centuries due to history and political and economic relationship
Hi there ken, Right now Im at Sihanoukville as well. been here since 3 years after covid. If you're still here, I would like to invite you for some drinks!
The main reason why you find many empty and unfinished buildings in Shihanoukville Cambodia is that two of Chinese main developers notably Evergrande and Country Garden went bankrupt and hence run out of liquid assets to finance further development owing respectively $300 and $205 billion dollars in debt. Thank you very much and enjoy your day 😊😊
have a nice trip
Rome was not built in one day. It takes time. Sihanouk Ville will be on par with Phnom Penh in the near future.
Love your work mate. Investors plus
Ken, time to upgrade your camera. 4K@50fps is outdated 😂
Seems just fine to me.
SoutEast Asia 101, always take small money with you 😂 Love your videos by the way.
I lived there from 10-12. Everyone was swimming but not now. sad
Wow - have not been there is about 12 years
Wow, I’m so old I remember my friends stories of surviving the killing fields....
Royal Group is Cambodia company.... own by KIT MENG
The name of a company like "Royal Group" generally exists in political systems with monarchies, such as Thailand. At least people from the Chinese mainland would avoid using this name when starting a company because the monarchy vanished from this country 100 years ago.
lol Royal Group is a Cambodian company, and Cambodia has king. It's one of the biggest companies in Cambodia, owned by the richest guy in Cambodia. Who is born and raised Cambodian.
Ken, did you use filter on the camera? Why you look like a big eye princess?
@11:03 They should install security cameras in area like this and catch the guy.
If only someone had a camera to film it and show the police.....😂😂😂
Chinese resorts in Cambodia 😊 thanks for sharing the video 👍