A: We’re receiving an increasing number of letters from Japanese listeners one year after Japan was hit by a disastrous earth quake and tsunami. It seems life has gradually returned to normal there and our Japanese Dx’ers have been able to resume their hobby. Toshiya Nishimura of Fukui province emailed us on March 3rd after listening to our Saturday program on 12020 khz. Using a Chinese Degen De1103 radio with a vertical antenna, he caught our signal with good quality -SINPO rating at all 4s.
B: Nishimura said many Japanese companies have invested in Vietnam and he hopes the bilateral relations will continue to develop. The Japan External Trade Organization has rated Vietnam’s infrastructure second to Thailand in Southeast Asia but says Vietnam has the advantage of cheaper and more skillful labor. The organization predicts that more Japanese automobile manufacturers will shift their plants in other countries to Vietnam to produce cars for the US and EU markets.
A: Since the beginning of this year, three Japanese retail groups – Takashimaya, Aeon, and Family Mart – have introduced supermarket projects in Ho Chi Minh City, focusing on the high-end and middle market segments. Let’s read some more letters from Japanese listeners. Mitsunori Kawazoe of Tsu City, the capital of Mie Prefecture, reported listening to our program on March 1st on 12020 khz. The frequency of 12020 khz is the best in Japan and local listeners are happy to pull this frequency. Kawazoe noted SINPO at 45444 on his SONY ICF – SW 7600 receiver.
B: With clear listening conditions, Kawazoe enjoyed the program very much, especially the Economy segment about rising foreign direct investment in Vietnam, and the Discovery Vietnam feature on Con Dao island. Kawazoe said he’s very interested in Vietnamese history and he hopes he’ll visit this site one day. From Ota-ku, Tokyo, Yoshihiro Kusanagi sent us a post mail reporting on our February 12th program. He commented that the signal is always strong on 12020 khz, but noise is sometimes severe during the winter in Tokyo. SINPO rating was 45333.
A: Because of some severe noise, he couldn’t decipher our story on Cape Ca Mau National Park, so he’ll check it out on our website. Here are letters from Hideaki Ishida of Niiza city and Fumito Hokamura of Fukuoka province, who listened to our programs in February. We get their feedback on a weekly basis, but because of the slowness of snail mail, the letters often arrive in our office a month after they’re posted. We’d like to express our great appreciation to you Japanese listeners for your interest in our program and your constructive feedback. You’ll soon receive QSL cards to confirm your reports.
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A: Here I have a letter from Victor Goonetilleke of Sri Lanka who wrote: “I have been your listener for a long time, but due to expensive airmail I do not write often. However, I’d like to tell you that whenever I can, I listen to your broadcasts. Your shortwave broadcast is the only way I can, and will listen as the Internet is too expensive. I’m so sorry that some of the stations I used to listen to in Europe have stopped shortwave broadcasts. Please continue to serve our interest in your country.”
B: Thank you very much for your interest in our station and we surely will continue our shortwave broadcasts. In some of our previous Letter Box shows, we informed our worldwide listeners about VOV’s development strategy, which considers shortwave broadcast one of our primary channels for communicating with the world. Victor went on to say: “It’s not possible to get any information about your country from any of the major TV or radio stations. So VOV is our only link with your country. I’m very happy to hear a lot of information.”
A: It’s a bit sad to hear that you’re unable to get information about our country from other sources. We know that since war ended nearly 40 years ago, Vietnam has been regarded as a war-torn country. But we have been gradually integrating regionally and internationally for a decade, and we’re now trying to inform the world about our political stability, lucrative business environment, friendly culture, and attractive tourism. Vietnam has strengthened relations with all countries and participated in a number of international organizations and forums. We hope in the near future you will hear more about our country on major TV and Radio stations.
B: Until then, please keep tuning in to our channel to monitor the latest developments in Vietnam and our views of regional and world events. We’ve checked your reception report for March 1st on 12020 khz. It corresponds well with our station log so we’ll definitely confirm it with a QSL card. Here I have an email from Christer Brunstrom of Sweden who caught our program on March 3rd on 5955 khz and noted excellent SINPO of 45444. Christer said he particular appreciated the very nice music show about Hanoi.
A: He told us: “I’m planning to do a story about VOV for a Swedish Radio magazine. It will be titled “We have listened to the VOV”. However, it will have to wait until after March 26th as I would like to include the times and frequencies for the summer season. In the meantime, I plan to listen to your various shows during the week as my story will spotlight the programming.”
B: We’re happy to hear about your plan. If you need any material on our station, just ask. In a couple of weeks, we’ll inform listeners of all frequency and time changes for our summer broadcasting schedule by on-air announcement, emails, and post mails. The information will also be available on our website at vovworld.vn. We count on you to send us a copy of the magazine when your article is published. Thank you in advance.
A: Hazairin Junep of Indonesia emailed us saying he monitored our program on March 3rd from the airport in Bangkok, Thailand. He used a Sony SW ICF 11 with no extra antenna and caught the signal with excellent quality. SINPO rating was all 5s. Junep said he had an enjoyable time listening to the music show with songs about Hanoi.
B: Thank you Junep for spending time on our channel even though you were on an overseas trip. Your technical remarks are useful for us to assess our radio signal in other countries. From England, Mike Horsfield informed us that he was pleased to hear our program in his new location in North Lancashire, which is near Scotland. He observed the frequency 9730 khz on his Realistic DX-394 with built-in telescopic antenna. Problems included a hiss and fading for several seconds. Mike wrote: “I managed to hear the news. One topic was the raising of Tra fish. I have not tried that. I could try if possible when I see them being sold.”
A: Keep your eyes peeled for Vietnamese Tra fish the next time you go shopping. There are many ways to eat this delicious and nutritious fish. You can fry, stew, or bake it with a spicy sauce, or spicy crumb coating. You can also surf for numerous interesting and easy Tra fish recipes on the internet. Remember to tell us when you’ve tried it.
We welcome your comments at:
English program,
Overseas Service,
Radio Voice of Vietnam
45 Ba Trieu street-Hanoi-Vietnam