Mailbox

This week in Mailbox: Where and how you listen to us; photo on Radio Prague's summer season leaflet; competition questions. Listeners quoted: Mukesh Kumar, India; Andrew Yoder, Victor Maddex, James Ronda, Larry Cohen, USA; Kelly Barr Canada; D.M. Cook, UK.

Hello and welcome to Mailbox. You may remember that in previous editions I have asked Radio Prague listeners to include in their reception reports and letters a little note about where and how they listen to us. Let's start with our regular shortwave listener Mukesh Kumar who listens to us in the city of Muzaffarpur in Northeast India.

"Muzaffarpur is located in the middle Gangetic Plain near the Burhi Gandak River, a tributary of the Ganges River. The city is surrounded by productive agricultural land and is an important centre for agriculturally based industries, including rice and sugar milling and wholesale trade. Muzaffarpur is also famous for its litchi orchards. Trade is the most important economic activity in the city, which is served by a railroad junction connecting it to Nepal. The University of Bihar (founded in 1952) is in Muzaffarpur."

Andrew Yoder listens to Radio Prague in Pennsylvania.

"I listen to shortwave on a variety of receivers, some very old wood-cabinet radios, some communications grade. Although I use the Internet constantly, I don't listen to any music or programs on it."

Victor Maddex also listens to us in the United States.

"Just thought I would let you know that there are still listeners using shortwave. I have recently purchased a new car, amazingly it has shortwave on the radio, only the 49m band. I have tuned into your broadcasts on my way home from work in the evenings. Thanks for the interesting programs and company. I hope you will be continuing to broadcast on shortwave."

On a similar note, this message came from James Ronda, USA.

"At a time when so many broadcasters are leaving shortwave, thank you for staying on the air waves and providing such good programmes."

...And Larry Cohen is also from the US.

"I really enjoy your programs which I consider to be 'Food for the Head'...you leave most of the other International Services in the dust...my biggest fear is that you will cut your service to North America in the way that many of the other International Short Wave stations have done over the past several years...please don't follow them into obscurity!"

And Kelly Barr listens to Radio Prague in Labrador, Canada.

"I was listening to your broadcast this morning on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) Radio Overnight program. I like listening to the different international radio broadcasts. I believe they help give myself and others a feeling for what is going on with our brothers and sisters on other parts of this Planet. They certainly give me a sense that the whole world is one country."

Thank you very much for those warm letters. Before we get to our listeners' competitions, our regular shortwave listener D.M. Cook from Scotland sent us this question about Radio Prague's programme leaflet for the summer broadcasting season:

"The photo of staff on the front page must be more than the English section?"

Yes, you are quite right. Because this year Radio Prague celebrates its 70th birthday, the idea was to take a photo of all the staff of our station, including all of its six language sections. Obviously, some people were away or in the studio when the photo was taken, but most of us are in there.

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Now it's time to repeat our annual competition question:

In the meantime you can still take part in our monthly competition to win Radio Prague's goodies.

This month we are asking you to list all Czech Nobel Prize winners. I won't tell you how many there are but we want the complete list. Please send your answers to Radio Prague, 12099, Prague, Czech Republic or [email protected] by the end of April.