Monday, February 22, 2021

Radio Garden ~ a new way to travel the world

Look what I found!  We are SO connected with the rest of the world.  I've been listening to music coming from radio stations all over the world, via something called Radio Garden.  It uses a Google Earth map, and you can click on any of the dots to hear that station — anywhere in the world — with good reception.  This illustration above is from a 2016 article about Radio Garden, and I found a Wikipedia article — so it isn't new.  Just new to me.

When I clicked on the link, it centered on a small town near me.  I'm pretty good with maps, so I clicked on what I thought was the Chattanooga area and got WAWL.  Then I clicked again, aiming for the Nashville dot, and got a classical music station in Nashville, where I enjoyed music with a bassoon prominent in it.  I started rotating the world and clicking on the dots — Italy, London, Israel.  I'll bet it would be helpful to listen to native speakers like this, if you're learning a new language.

Actually, it felt to me like time travel.  I listened to stations in places where it was already the next day.  How weird is that?  I "went" to Australia, to India, to Japan.  Here's a radio station in Groningen in the Netherlands.  I found a station in Stadskanaall, close to the home of my friend Margreet in the Netherlands.  This is FUN.  I'll have to save this link.  It's a NEW way to travel the world.

4 comments:

Jinjer-The Intrepid Angeleno said...

THIS IS THE COOLEST THING!!!!! Totally reminds me of when I was a teenager and rock music was my LIFE. I discovered that late in the night my radio could sometimes pick up rock stations from Milwaukee and Chicago, even though I was in Arizona. I thought THAT was the coolest thing but of course it was staticy and faded in and out. How my teenage self would've loved Radio Garden!!! I will have fun with it on her behalf. LOL

Helen's Book Blog said...

I have a vague memory of this feature, but had forgotten about it so thank you for reminding me. I'll tell my mom so she can listen to BBC radio and my daughter so she can practice her Arabic.

Bonnie Jacobs said...

I'm glad this post was helpful to both of you — or should I say ALL of you, since Helen is passing along the information to folks in her family? Enjoy!

Unknown said...

What a great find! I am trying to learn Italian and this will be fun. Thank you, Bonnie-I had never heard of this before, either!

Jane S.