A: First on our show today, we’d like to welcome 50-year old Tarek Zeidan from Cairo, Egypt, who has been a shortwave listener for more than 25 years. He wrote that he used to pick up VOV broadcasts some time ago and decided to send a report on VOV broadcast on May 4^th on the frequency of 7220. Mr. Zeidan asked whether we have any special reason to broadcast the Letter Box on Wednesday, rather than Sunday as other international networks do.

Summer flowers: Golden Shower trees grow on certain Hanoi streets, like Le Trong Tan, Nguyen Dinh Thi, Lac Long Quan, and surrounding West Lake. The tree’s average height is about 10m. Golden Shower flowers grow in racemes and form yellow eye-catching bunches

B: Thank you, Mr. Zeidan, for tuning in to VOV again. We’ll send you a QSL card to confirm your report. Why do we broadcast the Letter Box on Wednesday? Well, that’s an interesting question. VOV’s English section was first broadcast in 1945 and our Letter Box, which was initially called the Mailbag, has been a weekly feature since those early days.

A:   We dedicate Saturday to reviewing major events of the week and playing music. Our biggest show of the week is on Sunday, when we present the Vietnamese land, people, and culture as well as interesting aspects of contemporary Vietnam. Wednesday, the middle day of the week, we think is the best time to talk with our listeners.

B: We hope that you’ll tune in to our broadcasts regularly and that we’ll receive more feedback from you.

A: We’d like to welcome Mr. Staffan Crona of Sweden to our broadcast. Listening to our program on June 2^nd on the frequency of 7280 at 19:01 UTC, he wrote: “My name is Staffan Crona. I’m 66 years old, with a wife and five children. I was a shortwave listener about 50 years ago and I have made a comeback now.”

B; Thank you for coming back, Mr. Crone. We’ll send you a frequency list, a program schedule and a QSL card to confirm your report. We look forward to hearing more from you.

A: As we have mentioned in previous programs, you can now listen to VOV broadcasts on VOV Media Apps, which can be downloaded on IOS and Android platforms.  Commenting on our new Application, Shivendu Paul of the Metali Listeners’ Club of India wrote: “Now I listen to your programs through shortwave and VOV Media Apps. It’s a very useful app. It helps us learn all about Vietnam. My suggestion is please make the English language version the default after opening VOV5. I think it takes too long to navigate the English news and programs in VOV media app.”

B: Thank you for your suggestion. We’ll forward it to our boss and the technicians to see whether we can make some changes. Meanwhile, we’ll send you a QSL card to confirm your report on our program on May 24 on the frequency of 7220.

Purple – the color of Crape-myrtle flowers, appears at the beginning of the summer. Crape-myrtle flowers are grown in crowded streets

A: In an email to VOV this week, Paul Walker of the US wrote: “The weather is starting to warm up here, but it hasn’t gotten too hot yet. I’d love to have you do a short segment on Vietnam’s weather. We have 4 seasons here in the US in most locations: winter, spring, summer, and fall, which have very different conditions and temperatures. I’d love to hear about what kind of temperatures Vietnam sees each season and what kind of conditions (humidity, rain, snow, etc).

Hanoi in scorching hot days

B: Summer has begun in northern Vietnam. Last week the weather was extremely hot, reaching more than 40 degrees C for several days. It rained on Tuesday so the weather is a little cooler now with temperatures between 27 C and 32 degrees C.

A: Due to wide differences in latitude and topography, Vietnam's climate differs greatly from one region to another. Vietnam has two distinct monsoon seasons. The southwest monsoon brings wet, humid weather to the south while the northeast monsoon delivers drizzly, colder temperatures to the north.

B: Northern Vietnam has four seasons. During the winter months from December to February, the temperature may dip down to 5DC occasionally, even below zero in the mountains. The summer months of June and July are hot, with daytime temperatures reaching 37 DC. Drizzling rains and more tolerable temperatures come in the autumn from August to November, and in the spring from March to April. October and November are the best months to visit since you avoid the domestic tourist flow and also experience more comfortable temperatures and humidity compared with other months. 

A: Vietnam’s central region has warm temperatures all year round, with the hottest months in the middle of the year. The weather from November to April is cooler and drier.

B: Closer to the beach, the level of severity is reduced and the dry wind is replaced by cool ocean breezes.  Central Vietnam is also the most susceptible to natural disasters such as typhoon or flooding. The paradox is, it is also where the most beautiful beaches are.  

A: Southern Vietnam is typically hot all year round with two main seasons: rainy and dry. It is also the most predictable region in terms of weather. The dry season comes to the south from November to April and the wet season from May to October. Summer months from May to August might not be the best time to come since most tourists destinations are packed with tourists and downpours occur quite frequently

B: In summer months from May to August, the capital city Hanoi is very hot with temperatures averaging 32 DC. July is the hottest month when temperatures hover around 38DC. With global warming becoming an increasingly serious problem, summers are now hotter with higher humidity. Heavy rain is a feature of Hanoi’s summer.

A: The mountain areas in northwest and south central Vietnam see little fluctuation in weather condition. It is fairly cool all year round and a great place to escape the heat in the cities. The rainy season here is also from May to September. At the extreme you can see snow flurries in December or January in Sapa.  

Showers make Hanoi cooler

B: Next is an email from Abid Hussain Sajid of Pakistan. He wrote: “After a long time, last night, I listened to your program on the frequency of 7220 from 16:00 to 16:30 UTC. The signal was excellent, very clear and soft voice. This morning, I visited your website. I found some great information about Vietnam. Thanks Voice of Vietnam for this great information. Now, I’m trying to write to you regularly, listen to your program, and visit your website to get information about Vietnam.”

A: Thank you, Mr. Sajid, for listening to VOV. We’d also like to acknowledge letters and emails from Greg Galaski and Richard Nowak of the US and Miss Karobi Hazarika of India. We’ll verify your reports with QSL cards.

A: We welcome your feedback at: English section, VOV World Service, Radio the Voice of Vietnam, 45 Ba Trieu street, Hanoi, Vietnam. You can email us at englishsection@vov.org.vn. You’re invited to visit us online at www.vovworld.vn, where you can hear both live and recorded programs. Good bye until next time.