Firehorse in Cambodia

Jyri Manninen | Kajura

In the Chinese Zodiac, 2026 is the Year of the Firehorse. I, myself, was born in 1966, which is the previous year that the Firehorse occurred. This reoccurrence now in 2026, after the completion of the full 60 year cycle, is considered to be the ‘return’ or ‘mirror’ year.

Inspired by my brother-from-another-mother back in Finland, and who is currently working on various AI related projects, I decided, for the very first time, to ‘have a chat’ with AI (in this case OpenAI), and the core topic was indeed in regards to the characteristics, as well as the many other aspects, of the Firehorse, including possible differences between the 1966 and 2026 years, and whether there were any other interesting perspectives that could be worth exploring.

In this video, I address the first of the 3 main questions that I asked, and it was mostly about the general nature and tendencies of the 2026 Firehorse year, and how it may related to all people, and also, more specifically, to me as an actual ‘returning’ FIrehorse myself. While the 2 remaining questions will be addressed in later videos, please just sit back and enjoy this opening narrative, with a nice backdrop from another local village moto tour here in Siem Reap, Cambodia with Kelly’s MC. The day out included a visit to a well known pagoda, Prasat Lpeuk Teuk Thla Bopharam, which is located about 10km out of town, and one that is, in fact, intimately connected with the Chinese Zodiac, as you may notice if you look carefully, as I wander around the grounds of the pagoda complex.

Anyway, thank you for taking the time to watch this latest video, and I wish you all a happy and prosperous Chinese Firehorse New Year, which officially started on the 17th of February, the day on which I published this.

Be blessed,
George

Ricefields and Beer!

Jyri Manninen | Kajura

With Kelly’s MC, we headed off for a moto tour of a rural village area, which is located some 20km north-east of Siem Reap. After leaving our usual starting place at The River Coffee, it didn’t take long to find ourselves on some super secluded and peaceful countryside dirt roads; and we were even fortunate enough to come across the locals busy at work with their communal rice thrashing. Before heading back home, we also took the opportunity to go for a short trail walk, before finishing with some ‘cold beverages of our choice’ at the local village shop.


Thank you for being here, and I hope that you enjoy the scenery and vibes, as Cambodia truly is the Kingdom of Wonder!

Be blessed,
George

The Devil’s Playground

Jyri Manninen | Kajura

On my Saigon Side Quest, in addition to doing the usual site seeing, I decided to do a walking tour of the famous, or should I say infamous, Bui Vien Street in District 1 of Ho Chi Minh City. Now, I did the filming quite early, soon after dark at around 7.30pm, but it was already getting very busy. So, you could imagine what goes on there after midnight, at the epicentre of nightlife activities in a city of some 14 million people.

Apart from showing you just the chaos of the Party Zone, I also explored the relative tranquility of the narrow alleyway network between the buildings, as well as a walk through Saigon’s Central Park, where people were still exercising and socialising. What a contrast to what was happening just a few hundred metres away!

While this type of scene is so far removed from my own areas of interest, I still found it fascinating to observe the variety and vibrant of the area in its entirety, especially the contrast between what I consider the good and, well, not so good … but that’s just my own view. Feel free to make up your own conclusion as you, hopefully, enjoy this walk through The Devil’s Playground.

Be blessed,
George