YOTA Italy Sunday

Today (sunday) at YOTA camp was a day full of excitement. The temperature was making problems again, as G team said: “It was abnormally hot”. (thanks Rich 🙂 ). However, we have experience from yesterday and we know how to deal with it. Our day started with the presentation by Silvano I2YSB and his DXpedition team, famous for numerous activations of African DXCC entities. Mr Murphy visited us, and we had a little blackout. Being inventive, we found some other things to do, like hoisting up the flags of Italy, our host country, YOTA movement, and YOTA Italy 2015. Thanks our team leaders for helping in that.

After managing to drive Mr Murphy away (read: power came back), Silvano and his guys, gave us a glimpse of how it was to work an expedition from Democratic Republic of Kongo, 9Q. They were invited there officially by local Amateur radio union, to help training local hams in operating practices. They did that job perfectly, and also made some serious pile-ups. Well done team, 9Q0HQ 59(9)+ !

Following activity was a presentation of the YOTA month, by Lisa PA2LS, Yentel ON3YH, Tommy ON2TD and Robin. Yentel and Robin, our IT guys are putting a large effort into making YOTA month activity automatized, especially dealing with the logs and the awards. Lisa and Tommy were telling us a bit more about YOTA, and their effort to get more youngsters on the air, to help them make their first steps into the world of one and only, amateur radio.

The presentations finished, some went to the station, while others went for another big event of the entire YOTA camp: the US license exam. Many were anxious about the exam, just like every student before the big exam, and yet at the end everything was OK. The FCC is going to have to issue some licenses:

• 4 Technician
• 13 General
• 4 Extra

Unfortunately, 2 people did not pass 🙁 We wish them better luck next time. And we would also like to express our gratitude to the ARRL Volunteer Examiners Vinicio IK2CIO/N7CIO, Rinaldo IZ1MGH/K4AS and Mauro I1JQJ/K1JQJ, who were there to help our youngsters aquire their US licenses.

 

After the dinner, we started preparing for the biggest event: the intercultural evening. Every team had something interesting to show, to present to the others his country in the best possible way. Tasting food was fun, some was a bit hot, some not, but everyone found something to match his taste to a 1:1 SWR J The evening was mighty interesting. We were dancing together (EI and E7 demonstrated the art of waltz to the others), singing together, taking photos with other youngsters, exchanging QSL cards, souvenirs, different kinds of brochures, etc. The fun went on through the night. The more tired ones went to bed, while the less tired ones stayed up to have some more good time. Some pictures from today can be found here!

73 from Dante on the Air 😉