Many years ago, as a teenager, I discovered shortwave radio. My enthusiasm for it grew quickly, and I sat in the evenings in front of my grandmother’s Loewe Opta tube radio, listening to the ether. I also tuned into foreign stations, even if I didn’t understand a word. I was fascinated then, and I still am today. I would write down the frequencies and reception times along with the RST report of the radio stations and send QSL cards after painstakingly finding the address of the radio station without the internet. Eventually, I would even receive a QSL card back. Receiving mail from Asia, Africa, America, or Europe was an event, so much so that the postman would ring the doorbell, delivering the mail with the words, “Mail from Brazil.”
Nowadays, Radio Delta International is my favorite station on the weekends, making it an essential part of my radio listening. Every time I sit in front of my old Siemens tube receiver, model e566 (built in 1957), and tune in to 6170 kHz AM, I am curious about what I will hear. In my eyes, few stations care for their listeners as much as they do. The program is lively and entertaining, the music is great, and Aart even communicates with the listeners during the show. This not only preserves nostalgia but also keeps shortwave alive.
This excites me and gives a feeling of belonging.
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