 | Sihanoukville, or Snooky, is a port city on Cambodia’s coast that was popular with backpackers in the 1990s thanks to its empty beaches - an alternative to the tourist haunts in Thailand. But now the backpackers are being run out of town by a new wave of tourists. Last year 120k Chinese came to the city — four times as many as the previous year. They flock here for one reason, to gamble. |  30 casinos cater almost exclusively to Chinese gamblers. Another 70 more are under construction. |
 | Waves of Chinese development have turned Sihanoukville into a construction site. Thousands of Chinese labourers toil around the clock erecting buildings with names such as Blue Bay Casino Condos and Wisney World, a US$1 billion casino and theme park. More than 6,000 mostly Chinese witnessed the inauguration ceremony of 'Wisney World.' |  |
 | Shootings are common now. So are assassinations, kidnappings, extortion and brawls — blamed on Chinese tourists and Chinese expatriates. Cambodians are not allowed to enter the casinos unless they work there. 15 years ago Serendipity Beach was pristine. Today rubble-covered land is signposted by billboards with Mandarin lettering and renderings of posh high-rise hotels. |  |
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