B: The Vietnamese have a proverb: anyone who teaches you a word – or even half a word – is your teacher. On Teachers’ Day, people show their gratitude to their current and former teachers, and anyone else who has inspired or guided them in life.
A: Richard Nowak of the US reported listening to a news story on November 18th about the “Teachers of the Year 2019” award. 183 teachers, standouts among Vietnam’s 1.4 million teachers, were honored at a ceremony at Hanoi’s Temple of Literature.
 The Temple of Literature |
B: He wrote: “The Sunday Show had an interesting segment on Vietnamese Teachers’ Day, traditional education in Vietnam, and the old examination system. Formerly, students began studying with local scholars when they were as young as 4 years old. Examinations were held every 3 years at the local, national and Royal Court level.
B: Honoring education and teachers is a long tradition in Vietnam. Temples of literature built by feudal dynasties can be found in many other localities.
A: The Temple of Literature in Hanoi was built in 1070 during the Ly dynasty to honor Confucius and award doctorate degrees to Vietnam’s hihest ranking scholars. In 1076, King Ly Nhan Tong built an Imperial Academy within the Temple of Literature. This Academy, the first university in Vietnam, held national and Royal Court examinations.
 Altar of teacher Chu Van An in the Temple of Literature |
B: Hue Temple of Literature in Hue was built during the Nguyen Dynasty in 1808. King Gia Long and his Imperial Court chose a low hill beyond the Thien My Pagoda, on the left bank of the Perfume River, to build an imposing Temple of Literature. The complex once included 50 constructions, including 32 steles bearing the names of doctors and four other steles.
A: The Temple of Literature was renovated many times and many secondary constructions were built by later Kings. Steles bearing doctors' names were erected in the yard of the main temple between 1831 and 1919.
B: To commemorate Teachers’ Day, VOV has run inspirational stories about dedicated teachers teaching in disadvantaged areas. Ali Sahardi of Bangladesh says: “VOV told me about mountain schools where the teachers are also foster parents.” H.M.Tarek, President of the Utsha DX Corner in Bangladesh, said: “Thank you for the Sunday Show about education in Vietnam.”
A: I’m reading an email from Leonardo Santiago of Venezuela. He says: “It has been a long time since I last sent you any letters or reception reports. Please accept my apologies for the long time I have taken getting in touch with you again. In this short e-mail, I want to inform you that I have been listening to you regularly. I like hearing the news, the reports, and the Vietnamese music in your broadcasts.”
A: Welcome back, Leonardo. We were very glad to receive your email and learn that you’re still listening to our programs. We’ve forwarded your reception report to our technical department. Thank you for contacting us again after such a long time! We look forward to receiving more feedback from you.
B: We also welcome back Ahmed Mohammed Mohammed El Masry of Egypt who listened and sent feedback to VOV a long time ago. Ahmed said he practices English skills by listening to shortwave stations and VOV. He wishes a Happy New Year to all the VOV staff.
A: This week we welcome Luděk Košek, a new listener of the Czech Republic. He said he tuned in to a VOV program for the first time on November 12th on 1242 khz. We’ll send you our frequency list and program guide of the English program. In the meantime, please tune in to VOV’s English program broadcast to Europe on the frequency of 7280khz and 9730khz. Ludek, we hope you’ll continue to tune in to our program.
B: Siddhartha Bhattacharjee, President of the Chaitak Listeners Club, asked what is the biggest mountain in Vietnam. Mount Fansipan is part of the Hoang Lien Son Mountain range in Lao Cai province and is often referred to as the rooftop of Indochina. It looks over terraced rice fields and ethnic villages from a height of 3,143 meters.
 Trekking to Fansipan summit |
A: Trekkers to the Fansipan summit are advised not to go alone, because the trails are dangerous. It’s wise to take a local guide and porter, who knows the route and an is experienced trekker. Some guides know the harderst and most breathtaking routes like the back of their hand.
B: An easier way to reach Fansipan summit is by cable car. Just take a seat in a car and within 15 minutes you will be at the top of Fansipan.
 Old route to Fansipan summit |
A: Conquering Fansipan used to take climbers two to four days of hard trekking but even couch potatoes can now reach “Indochina’s Roof” in just 15 minutes.
B: The ride from the station in Muong Thanh Valley to the top of Fansipan is an amazing journey. During the trip, you will float above the beautiful Muong Hoa Valley and the dense primeval forests covering the majestic Hoang Lien Son Mountains.
 View from a cable car to the Fansipan summit in a clear summer day |
A: From the arrival station you must climb a further 600 steps to the top of Fansipan peak. It’s a short distance, but steep and slippery because it’s always rainy there. It’s also very windy, so it will feel much colder with the wind chill factor when the temperature goes down to 3 DC.
 Cable car to Fansipan summit in a cloudy day |
B: This week we acknowledge an email from Eddy Prabowo of Indonesia, who listened to our program on November 16th on 9840khz. SINPO rating was all 4s. Eddy noted that the audio was relatively strong and clean, with only minor fading, minor QRM from another station, and minor buzzing.
A: Madhab Chandra Sagour of India said the signal of the program on November 14th was strong and steady. He listened on a Grundig YB 400 with an external 2-metre antenna.
B: Thank you all for your reports and feedback. We’ll send you QSL cards to confirm. We welcome your feedback at: English Service, VOVworld, the Voice of Vietnam, 45 Ba Trieu street, Hanoi, Vietnam. Or you can email us at englishsection@vov.org.vn. You’re invited to visit us online at vovworld.vn, where you can hear both live and recorded programs.
A: Check out our VOV Media App, available on both the IOS and Android platform to hear our live broadcasts. We look forward to your feedback on the mobile version of vovworld.vn. Once again, thank you all for listening. Goodbye until next time.