Cambodia: The rise and fall of Pub Street, the most notorious party strip in the country

Just a handful of visitors populate Pub Street in Siem Reap, Cambodia, on a recent evening – a far cry from the busy crowds and hedonistic atmosphere of the party strip just eight months ago. - Jorge Rodriguez/SCMP

PHNOM PENH, Aug 17 (SCMP): It’s midnight on a Friday in what should be the peak summer season on Cambodia’s most renowned nightlife strip, in the north-western city of Siem Reap. Garish red signs overhead proclaim “Pub Street” but elsewhere the road is in near-total darkness.

The atmosphere is ghostly, with barely a soul visible save for a few shadowy figures making their way home. The lights of the occasional tuk-tuk pierce the gloom, the drivers emerging from the half-light to offer rides to uninterested passers-by.