Rediscovering the wireless!
I've always been fascinated to watch new arrivals do several circuits around the site to find their ideal pitch. There are so many factors to take into consideration. Having pitched at The Firs Belper (lovely site) I realised too late that my sat-dish was obstructed by trees. No matter, we had a good stock of DVDs and for the latest news we tuned into dear old Radio Four. I'd forgotten such delights as "Desert Island Discs", "Just a Minute" and "Good Morning". I don't think we'll bother with the sat-dish any more, more weight lost!
Comments
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For sometime now I haven't bothered taking a television but enjoy the radio from early morning and my own CDs during the evening.
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I could live without TV but I couldn't live without spoken word radio. Radio 4 is almost constantly on in our house, car and motorhome, I know what time is by the programmes! Radio 4 and radio 4 extra are repetitive extra on a daily basis and 4 during the week which is a shame.
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We're another "tv less" caravan. I miss the radio in the morning as we tend to be out and about but if it's raining or we're late getting out then it'll be on. We listen to music from cds or mp3/ipod iipod in the evening. If at home I often record a morning show to listen to in the evening.
Sometimes we just enjoy the silence or the birdsong. Neither of us mind a bit of peace and quiet. A shared silence can be as intimate as a shared thought.
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In 30 years of caravanning/motorhome, no TV, no radio, no music. We go for a walk then read a book. How habits differ!
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We always take the TV with us in the UK, but have never bothered with a Sat dish. I do have an extra long aerial wire so we can connect to the bollard on site where the facility exists. However, when we go across to France/ Germany/ Italy etc., we have never bothered with the TV. I wonder what it is that makes us take the TV in the UK but makes us not want to bother with a TV or Sat Dish in Europe. I reckon it is to do with the weather!! We always sit out and sometimes talk to people quite late into the evening. In the UK it gets cooler in the evenings so folk tend to go into their caravans earlier.
Most caravans have a radio fitted in the caravan these days, and we often listen to it especially in the mornings. When in coastal Provence, we usually tune in to Riviera Radio, which broadcasts in English from Monaco.
Literally the only time we buy DVD's these days is when we are away in the caravan, for when the reception is poor. We have one of these TV's with a DVD slot on the side, and we never seem to remember to take DVD's away with us.
I often listen to the radio in the car, both home and away, Usually Classic FM in the UK. When we're in France, I'll sometimes try and find Radio Nostalgie....
David
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Having had a month without TV 'over there' about the only thing I really missed was the News and QuestionTime. Upon my return I find it's the same old, same old anyway.
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We take an oldish television that has a slot for DVD's and a dock for the old IPod Classic. All the music we've ever bought is on there so there's plenty to listen to. Plus we get the radio off the TV digital channels (easier to navigate than the caravan radio).
It's not used much for actual TV - and when we do I miss the facility to watch when we want (not at the scheduled time) and to pause. We take a few DVD's for cold wet nights but somehow I've not changed the selection for years.
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We never take a tv away nowadays. We’ve nearly always toured without one, preferring radio and talking books, nowadays our iPads. Don’t watch TV other than sport, do like the occasional box set if it’s something good. Just had two weeks in a cottage and none of the TVs were used once. Even Mum wasn’t bothered. I have even said to OH we ought to consider if we really need home TVs. We could probably make do with our iPads there as well, but of course there’s the ever growing license fee.
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Love my radio, I take two, a little lithium one which I keep charged up on usb and a solar wind up as back up. Can't be without one! Mostly radio 4, classical FM at bed time but in the van a mixture of TV, pod music, radio. Plus maps and things to read. Timetables today for the little Ravenglass railway.
(Better get cracking, we're running late!) 0 -
Met a couple last week at the site in southern France where we were staying. He had put a dome on the roof of his newish AS van conversion and fitted two Avtek TVs inside - one for the bed area and one for the dinette. They also had space for the Sky box. Impressive!
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Again showing how smart phones have change the way.
I stream radio (internet) to the caravan stereo via a bluetooth receiver plugged into the stereo headphone socket. I can listen to talk stations such as LBC, Talkradio and a few American stations, and podcasts.
I'm still a DVD fan, love box sets, if it wasnt for the rubbish ending, Game of Thrones would be amongst the collection.
And we do stream telly too, only the soaps MUST BE watched live! No idea why, but she does insist, I'm not that brave to suggest other wise.
We also love a good book, even though Cornwall is looking like a washout this summer, no better way to enjoy a good story.
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+1, mifi, tab/phone, streaming-minimum for the maximum👍🏻
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Re The Archers - We have played in our ceilidh band for 40 years. Ages ago we worked an evening with Peter Gadd, (Arnold Peters on stage), the man who acted Jack Woolley. He lived quite close by and was a friendly gent who in real life was also an enthusiastic drummer and barn dance caller.
Mid way through the evening he said something to the audience, then turned, mic in hand, to comment to us, stepped back, and fell off the stage. A true professional, he landed on his back somehow without hurting himself, and simply continued talking as if nothing happened!
His real voice, by the way, was of course Jack Woolley but without the Midlands accent, much smoother and more urbane. We were very sad when he died, he was a nice guy.
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Being long retired our caravanning has again long been a way of “living” our life, just something we do, not a “holiday” break type of thing where the daily routine must be turned on its head.
As part and parcel of “living” we listen to the radio and use a TV if away, be it the UK or our loved France, in the same way as we do when at home.
Incidentally, using a satellite dish is a great way to get excellent wireless radio reception in a “van”. Having one and using it in France as we do does not necessarily imply watching screened TV, unacceptable as doing that appears to be regarded by some others.0
