Hello and welcome to VOV’s Letter Box, a weekly feature dedicated to our listeners throughout the world. We are Mai Phuong and Phuong Khanh.
A: We’d like to welcome back to our broadcasts Mr. James Camilli of the US. In a letter to VOV this week, James wrote: “I’m a long listener of yours and recently moved to a new location. I’m happy to report that I brought all my radio equipment with me to my new location. And tonight, for the first time, I tuned in successfully to your English broadcasts on 12005 khz. The signal was quite strong and I had no trouble enjoying your broadcast. I use a Grundig field radio with an indoor wire antenna and a separate ground wire”.
B: Thank you very much, James, for tuning in to VOV and thanks for your greetings on Vietnam’s National Day. This week, we received a batch of letters from Rabi Sankar Bosu of the “New Horizon Radio Listeners’ Club” in India.
A: After listening to our broadcast on September 7 from 1600 to 1630 UTC on the frequency of 7220, Rabi Sankar Bosu wrote: “I’m overwhelmed to hear the encouraging comments of several listeners in different countries regarding the role of Radio the Voice of Vietnam in today’s program. I would like to salute VOV broadcasters who faced numerous hardships while working under heavy bombardments during Vietnam’s resistance war”.
Vietnam and India treasure time-honored relationship |
B: Mr. Bosu continued: “In our state of West Bengal, Vietnam is a household name. Perhaps you are well aware of the fact that in West Bengal in the 1960s, the protest chant of solidarity was “Amar nam, Tomar nam, Vietnam Vietnam”. Literally translated it means “My name, your name, Vietnam Vietnam”. The word “name” in Bengali rhymes with the name of your country. This was the period when Vietnam was engaged in its fierce fight for liberation”.
A: Thank you very much for tuning in to our programs and for your love for Vietnam. We’ll send you QSL cards to confirm your reports.
B: We’d like to say hello to Staffan Crona of Sweden, who listened to our program on September 16 on the frequency of 9730 kz. In his letter, Staffan Crona shared with us his interest in listening to radio saying he became a shortwave listener about 50 years ago and his interest in radio and later in audio made him study electronics.
B: Gerry Neumann of the UK sent us an email this week confirming that he received his certificate for VOV’s contest “What do you know about Vietnam”. He wrote: “What a lovely surprise to receive the souvenir plaque for my participation in the 2015 “What do you know about Vietnam” contest yesterday and my certificate of merit for the same contest which came today. Thank you so much for both items. The plaque has found a place of honor beside the brass drum and the clock I received from VOV previously. My continued good wishes to the staff of VOV and thanks for all the many hours of broadcasting in different languages to listeners of VOV around the world”.
A: It’s great to hear that you have received your certificate of merit for the contest. We have sent out certificates of merits to all participants in VOV’s 2015 contest “What do you know about Vietnam” and were hoping to hear back from all of you. The award ceremony will be held in Vietnam on Friday. September 25. Photos of the ceremony will be posted on our website.
Vietnamese children are celebrating the Mid-Autumn festival these days |
B: This week, Vietnamese people inside and outside Vietnam, especially the children are celebrating the Mid-Autumn festival which is observed on the full moon day of the 8th lunar month. For children, this is one of the most exciting festivals because they receive lots of toys and enjoy moon cakes. Handmade toys are traditional for children during the Mid-Autumn festival.
A: In the days preceding the Mid-Autumn festival, which falls on the 15th day of the 8th lunar month or September 27th this year, Hang Ma street in Hanoi’s Old Quarter is already bustling with colorful toys on sale. In recent years, handmade toys have been replaced with imported toys but are still in great demand by the kids. Shops on Hang Ma street display paper masks depicting traditional characters like the Land genie, pigs, buffaloes, rabbits, and lions as well as paper lanterns of various shapes, styles and sizes.
B: Parents want to buy traditional Vietnamese toys for their children because they are beautiful and fun to play with and at the same time they are associated with Vietnam’s culture and history.
Traditional toys inspire children during the Mid-Autumn festival |
A: Playing with traditional toys that are handmade by Vietnamese craftsmen, is a way to promote Vietnamese culture and teach children about the national traditions. It is good to make sure children understand the messages and stories behind traditional toys like carp-lanterns, star-shaped lanterns and paper doctors because it teaches them about Vietnamese culture and inspires patriotism.
B: Children often carry star-shaped lanterns during the Mid-Autumn festival. The star-shaped lantern is a symbol of the festival. It lights the children’s way to the future. Small drums are best-sellers at the Mid-Autumn market because they remind people of the days when drums urged soldiers to fight for the nation.
A: Traditional Vietnamese toys are handmade in handicraft villages on the outskirts of Hanoi. These days, craftsmen work from dawn to dusk because of the full moon festival. Paper doctors are in great demand. Parents buy them for their children during the Mid-Autumn festival to inspire them to study hard.
Paper doctors are in great demand during the Mid-Autumn festival |
B: Although many newer toys are available at the Mid-Autumn market, traditional toys remain popular because they are associated with the parents’ childhood. Their popularity shows how much Vietnamese people value their tradition and culture even in today’s modern world.
B: On today’s show, we’d like to acknowledge letters and emails from Richard Lemke of Canada, Mizanur Rahman, Rafiqul Islam, and Razak Hoshin and the Sarak International Radio Listeners’ Club of Bangladesh, Takao Mizuike of Japan, Muneer KP of the United Arab Emirates, and Francis Lawlor of Ireland. We greatly appreciate your feedback about our broadcasts and will send you QSL cards to confirm your reports. We look forward to hearing more from you.
B: We welcome your feedback at: English section, VOV World Service, Voice of Vietnam, 45 Ba Trieu Street, Hanoi, Vietnam. Or you can email us at: englishsection@vov.org.vn. Tune in to additional English programs on our website at vovworld.vn. Good bye. See you next time.