A. One week passed so quickly and here we are again with letters and emails from listeners around the world. Let’s start today’s Letter Box with a beautiful postcard from Robert Krolikowski, who lives in New York.
B. Oh, this Easter card looks really cute! Thank you very much, Robert. You said you want us to forward you our seasonal broadcasting schedule and other information about our station.
A. No problem, we’ve forwarded your address to the person in charge of the broadcasting schedule and she’ll send you something soon.
B. The latest development at our station is the creation of a website, www.vovworld.vn, where listeners now can easily access our programs. You can choose to listen live or catch our the programs on demand, because we’re streaming programs on the web.
A. We store on the web programs from the whole week for your convenience. The website also provides the programs’ content in text and much more. As radio reporters, were now just beginners in providing web content and we highly appreciate your feedback so we can do a better job.
A. Another listener from the US, Carlie Forsythe, who lives in Madison, Wisconsin, sent us her first letter:
B. “I unexpectedly found a Voice of Vietnam broadcast in English on 6175 kHz while scanning the shortwave dial. I tuned in from 03:54 to 04:00 on March 26th, which incidentally is nearly 11 in the evening on March 25th here. What I heard began with English language news/features with a female presenter and guest, then shifted to a Michael Jackson song.”
A. She went on to write: “I heard one clear Voice of Vietnam ID and two repetitions of the station’s mailing address before the broadcast language changed from English to Spanish at the top of the hour. Fair signal, some static causing difficulty copying.”
B. It’s great that you found us, so we have an additional friend from the US. We’ll immediately send you our program guide and frequency list so that you can continue tuning in our broadcasts. For your information, this is the English program of Radio the Voice of Vietnam, broadcast on shortwave to listeners around the world.
A. We broadcast daily from Monday to Sunday. Each day’s programming begins with news bulletins to update you on what’s happening in Vietnam. That’s then followed by Current Affairs, which gives Vietnam’s point of view on various domestic and international issues. Each day adds other features to give you a full panorama of Vietnam’s land, personalities, culture, society and economy.
B. We hope to hear from you again soon with more reception reports and feedback.
A. A German listener Jens Adolph of Leizpig sent us a postal mail with detailed reception reports for February 14th and March 17th.
B. On the 14th of February, Mr. Adolph listened to our program from 11:40 to 12:10 UTC on the frequency of 9840 kHz. He caught some news about the situation in Egypt, employment in Vietnam, vocational training in rural areas and some Vietnamese music.
A. On the 17th of March, Mr. Adolph listened to us for 25 minutes, starting at 18:00 hours UTC on the frequency of 5955 kHz. He said that there was no reception after 18:25 UTC because of local interference.
B. We’re sorry about that inconvenience and we have forwarded your feedback to our technical department. Mr. Adolph, who is a historian and a Dxer since 1981, also wrote: “Your programs are of great interest, every day. Please send me your QSL card and latest station information”.
A. Thank you very much for your keen interest in VOV programs. We hope to continue hearing from you in the future. Your reports tallied well with our station log, so we’ll immediately send you our QSL card to acknowledge your listening.
B. You’re listening to the Letter Box on Radio the Voice of Vietnam. We’re Kim Chi and Truong Giang, acknowledging letters and emails that we received during the week. So stay tuned.
A. Mr. Vidmantas Stilius of Lithuania wrote: “It is my pleasure indeed to send you this reception report. One of the reasons is that after a few years’ break due to my extreme work schedule, I am back to my old hobby of DX-ing, and it’s great to scan the bands and hear familiar interval signals and even voices again. I’m 52 now, and started DX-ing exactly 37 years ago, in March 1975. Since then, I have received verifications from more than 100 countries worldwide.”
B. It’s great to hear from you. Welcome back to the radio world. We feel especially privileged to have you because, as you said, you are the only active DX-er in your country at the moment. Yes, we understand that with the expansion of the digital era, many people have turned to the internet. But Radio is still alive. Radio does not necessarily mean a radio set anymore because it’s available on the internet, as you can see from our website at: www.vovworld.vn.
A. We’re stepping into the digital world, trying to be where our listeners are. Keep tuning in, either here on our radio frequency or on our website for live broadcasts as well as on-demand streamed programs.
B. Mr. Stilius also sent a reception report for the broadcast on Sunday, March 25th. He listened from 17:00 to 17:30 hours UTC on 9625 kHz with a SINPO rating of 55544.
A. Thanks a lot, Mr. Stilius, for your enthusiasm and your detailed report. We’ll immediately send you our QSL card. Please stay in touch.