Podcasts

I wish that I was living in a country where I had to commute using public transportation. I used to love the time I spend on the Tube when I lived in London and Montreal. For it gives you 15-30 minutes of alone time where you can either read your book or listen to your iPod/iPhone. I miss those minutes more recently as I have gotten into Podcasts. They are great weekly downloads of anything you want to follow. I find it amazing that the word itself is quite new, being used for the first time in 2004 by Ben Hammersley in the Guardian. The idea is very revolutionary as it brings the power of the internet into the hands of anyone, like YouTube, Twitter and Blogs.

Liberating the listeners from time and place, and allowing them to talk back to the programme-makers is one thing: liberating the programme-makers is even better. You can get away with a lot more on the internet

On my iPhone I have various podcasts, some are music related (Guardian and NYTimes), some are humour (Chris Moyles, and Ricky Gervais), I get a weekly 15 minute Coffee Break French, and I have a few political shows (Guardian Politics, BBC World Forum, BBC 4 From Our Correspondent). 

What is great about them is that its a walking radio, and its a radio where you can choose what you want to hear. As you can see most of my podcasts are British ones, as I miss listening to BBC Radio 1 and reading the Guardian on a daily basis. Having Chris Moyles on my iPhone makes my morning coffee in the Sana'a sun that much more enjoyable, and I find myself laughing even before I have my first sip of coffee (and if you know me you know that this is an accomplishment). Listening to the Guardian.NYTs music weekly podcasts, introduces me to new music, at the same time explaining new genres to someone who isn't very in the know. The Guardian Books gives me access to various authors I like as they interview them, and I always end up having a book to download on my iPad Kindle.

All this to say, that if you haven't gotten into podcasts, then please do. They are a great way of getting great information and listening to your favourite comedians/authors/artists and introduces you to new ones. 

Good Day and Good Luck