Arrrrrgh!!!!  I worked them on 12 meters, but I see my call was busted to K1ZJS!  K1ZJH isn't the best call to bust pileups

I sent in my ADIF from the ARRL Contest last weekend
after the contest ended last night.
Sent in about 8pm eastern time.
I had the confirmation back
within 10 minutes.

I would think the perfect time for a station to operate from the Vatican would be during the conclave, or after the new pope has been elected. A special event station commemorating the election might not be a bad idea.

The Vatican will be packed with tourists and reporters at those times and I don't know if that throws a monkey wrench into the idea but I agree with you. It's packed with tourists once a week when the pope says Mass from St. Peter's sqaure.  I got within 20 feet of Pope Benedict and it was quite a thrill.

Maybe one of the Italian members of this forum can comment on the idea. I only have the Vatican worked on 2 bands but no LoTW.

73,

Chris/NU1O

There is no doubt that of late 17 has been a great band. I have a local friend with 12 meters but he does his thing and I do mine.

I would not have bought a log periodic. I'd rather have an extremely potent signal on 3 bands but I am a bit greedy with antennas. 

73,

Chris/NU1O

When someone sets their goals or standards low enough, its easy to be very successful. (But to generate a false sense of above average accomplishment.)

73,  Gene AF3Y

Col,

You have a well read ham news site and Ivan gives two phone numbers on his QRZ page.  Why don't you call him and get his side of the story?  I don't think Ivan should be blamed if Sri Lanka is a corrupt society and one of their soldiers let him hold his AK-47, or if he gained other favors with cold hard cash.

To me, the bigger story is I have been a ham for almost a quarter century and I have only managed to get one QSL from a Sri Lankan ham, Nelson, 4S7NE, who has the courtesy to have a mailing address outside of the country.

VA2WT, Guy, writes on your site that Sri Lanka has a big problem with their postal workers robbing the money from our envelopes which is what I always thought was the problem. If those of us outside Sri Lanka know their postal workers have been rifling through ham mail for decades and stealing our money shouldn't the resident hams in Sri Lanka also be aware of the problem?  Yet, only one ham in the whole country makes it easy to get a QSL.

For some balance, why don't you interview the head of the Sri Lankan Amateur Radio Society and ask if they know they have a theft problem, and if so, why they don't make it easier for foreigners to get a QSL?  You might also inquire about the availability of the Internet in Sri Lanka. It would be nice if some of their hams used LoTW but Internet service maybe prohibitively expensive in Sri Lanka.

I think either interview would make for a good read and both would really be terrific.

73,

Chris/NU1O

 
Mr.Tom
Ravensbergerstr.55,
32312 Luebbecke,
GERMANY

I used the same address and did eventually receive my card.

When this was briefly posted on QRZ.com I believe Tom indicated that he needed $3USD plus an SAE
for a return card.  Given increases in postage rates I might consider including at least $4USD.

GL de harry, W6DXO

Thanks for all comments; they are really useful and / or encouraging.
My antenna is a nearly horizontal loop, slightly sloping from the terrace of my QTH down to the garden. The perimeter of the loop (an irregular polygon encompassing as much space as I could) is around 140m. The highest part of this polygon is some 30 feet over the ground, and the lowest is just about 10ft. I feed it through a remote SGC auto tuner.
I have noticed the loop shows some directivity towards the US, but I can't tell for sure. I haven't modeled it yet anyway. Signals from N and E usually come through consistently weaker, but of course I need to keep on testing and trying to figure how this antenna really works. Time is a limitation; I don't really have much spare time.
The rig is a Kenwood TS590, which is a very fine receiver, and I am just using 100W. I have a beam I haven't put up yet, and I am also bringing in a vertical for 40 and 80 next time I get some leave. 160 is going to be a challenge. No high trees around, and no space for decent RX antennas for the top band, but I will do my best anyway.
I don't know how long I will stay here. I work in the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN OCHA) and things in Mali are tough in that respect as you can imagine. Security is a big concern, so everyone is keeping the head more or less low and living with a degree of anxiety, but Bamako feels safe. Life here is pretty much normal, and the city is otherwise one of the most interesting places on planet Earth to live in. It is very beautiful too; the views over the Niger river I have from the window of my shack are just stunning (the house is partially built on the river). Check out the link below to see what I mean.
There are other hams in Bamako, such as my friend Hamadoun TZ6HY, but they are not very active these days. And authorities are just not issuing new licenses (you may know that the state of exception was officially declared in Mali a few weeks ago in light of the present situation and has not been lifted yet). In that sense I was very privileged to be given a license, but the authorities let me know very clearly when they gave it to me they were making a very "exceptional exception". It took some trying to get it, too.

I confirm through LoTW, or through W3HNK for the real thing. As you probably know Joe is about the best QSL manager that there is, and he tells me the cards will be out of the print within a week or so.

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8324/8438229006_635a0e0916.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8230/8438228876_824ff89edb.jpg

Thanks for your patience in the pile up. I am looking forward to working everyone out there

Best regards from Mali, and 73

Fernando
TZ6BB (aka EA4BB)
ex Z21BB, ST2BF, D2BB, TU5JL, 9Q5BB

I had also worked and confirmed TZ6TR but I wanted a back-up for DXCC purposes.

Fernando is a great CW op and I also just received my LOTW confirmation for TZ6BB. 

I encourage everyone who needs TZ to work Fernando ASAP given the volatile political environment
over there there is no telling how soon he may need to go QRT.

73 de harry, W6DXO

I worked TZ6TR this past September and got his address from a JA who had got a card from him. I am still waiting! Getting the TZ6BB confirmed in 4 days is indeed nice!

I have worked all of those, except ZS8, with 100 watts and a dipole or random wire, so it can be done with a hexbeam.

John AF5CC

35 feet is a half wavelength on 20 meters so it may work better than you are anticipating.

73 and good luck,

Chris/NU1O