As the owner of Rongo Backpacker & Gallery Paul Murray gets to meet a LOT of interesting people. Here are Karamea Radio interviews with a some of them…You’re Welcome!
Urban permaculturalist Eri Suzuki visited the LivingInPeace Permaculture Project in Sunny Karamea at the top of the West Coast of the South Island of New Zealand to exchange ideas and learn about rural permaculture. She chats with DJ C-Rap (Paul Murray) about her work in the Tokyo Urban Permaculture project and the reasons she has invested her life in permaculture practice and philosophy and her experience in visting the LivingInPeace Project and her stay at Rongo (home of Karamea Radio 107.5 FM).
The interview includes music from the Permaculture music troupe Formidable Vegetable Sound System and Climbing Tree.
For more information about Eri Suzuki and her work in permaculture, check out the following links:
www.deliciousjourneyforlife.com/
www.tokyourbanpermaculture.com/
www.edible-media.com
www.edibleschoolyard-japan.org/
More information on the LivingInPeace Permaculture Project:
www.livinginpeace.com
livinginpeace.com/ja/ (In Japanese)
www.facebook.com/LivingInPeaceProject/
Singaporean musician, singer-songwriter and lovely person Ms Debra Khng is visiting New Zealand and came to Karamea to stay with us at Rongo Backpackers & Gallery (Home of Karamea Radio) for several weeks. She talks with DJ C-Rap about her musical journey and sings one of her original songs “BlackForest Birthday” for us…Have a listen to what she has to say and to her beautiful song.
For more information about Debra Khng check out the following links:
debrakhng.bandcamp.com
www.youtube.com/debrakhng91
www.facebook.com/DebraKhng.music
Aussie traveller Mr Lee Traynor arrived at Rongo Backpackers & Gallery in Karamea at the top of the West Coast of the South Island of New Zealand after completing a four day walk through the wilds of the Kahurangi National Park along the Heaphy Track.
Over dinner at Rongo, Lee informed us he was involved in the establishment of 3PBS FM radio station in Melbourne almost 40 years ago. PBS 106.7FM is still broadcasting today and the station has grown into a large cooperatively owned community radio broadcaster that hosts about 80 programmes every week.
Lee was interested in our community radio station Karamea Radio 107.5 FM and DJ C-Rap was keen to have a chat with him about his broadcasting background, life as a teacher of technical English at a university in Hanover, Germany, and his experience walking the Heaphy Track.
To hear more of Lee Traynor’s New Zealand advenures, check out his TravelBlog:
DJ C-Rap Interview with Jeremy & Constance from WilderWheels: March 8, 2017
Jeremy and Constance from Sydney, Australia, arrived in Karamea at the top of the West Coast of the South Island of New Zealand after walking through the Heaphy Track with their WilderWheels scooters.
They stayed with us at Rongo Backpackers & Gallery (home of Karamea Radio 107.5 FM) and agreed to a radio interview about their adventures in New Zealand and their WilderWheels invention.
WilderWheels is a scooter, it’s a walking pole, it’s a paddle, it’s a shovel, it’s a trolley…It’s set to revolutionise how we move around and interact with the great outdoors.
DJ C Rap talks with the intrepid travellers about their scooters before they head off on their next adventure into the wilds of the Kahurangi National Park.
Check out their Web site: www.WilderWheels.com
and their travelblog: www.TitterPlatt.wordpress.com
DJ C Rap Interview with Intrepid Traveller Mr Roy Smith: March 2, 2017
DJ C-Rap Interview with Blues Musician Ruth Wyand: April 1, 2016
Ruth Wyand, a blues musician from Kill Devil Hells North Carolina in the United States, stayed with us at Rongo Backpackers & Gallery in Karamea, West Coast, New Zealand on her tour of Aotearoa.
Ms Wyand was here a couple of years ago and played an educational gig at the Last Resort featuring her music and a presentation about the historical influence of female blues musicians like Ma Rainey, Nina Simone, Memphis Minnie, Bonnie Raitt and Billie Holiday called “Mama’s Got the Blues,” which is also the title of her album on the subject.
She is also the musical director of the Mustang Outreach Program that encourages and finds underprivileged and “troubled” kids into music.
DJ C-Rap finds out a little bit about her, they discuss the Mustang Outreach Program, the madness that is the U.S. Primaries, some little-known facts about the Wright Brothers and her upcoming gig at the Little Wanganui Hall Saturday night.
Check out her Web sites:
Check her out live at the Little Wanganui Hall on April 2, 2016 @ 7:30 p.m. $10 at the door…buy a CD or download her songs on from her Web site (cheaper than i-Tunes Store!)
DJ Crap Interview German Cyclist Niclas Eschner: September 8, 2015
Interview with Photographer Arwen Dyer: July 21, 2015
DJ Crap (Paul Murray) interviews 2015 LivingInPeace Project Resident Artist, Australian Photographer Arwen Dyer about her time in Karamea at the top of the West Coast of the South Island of New Zealand.
Tasmanian native, Ms Dyer specialises in nature, abstract, night and macro photography and spent two weeks at the LivingInPeace Project as a resident artist in July 2015.
See Arwen Dyer’s photographs here:
Interview with Rocket Scientist Dr Duncan Steel: June 10, 2015
Dr Duncan Steel, a bonafide Rocket Scientist, arrived in Karamea as a guest at Rongo Backpackers & Gallery (home of Karamea Radio 107.5 FM) and agreed to an interview with DJ Crap about his experiences working for NASA, astrobiology, space junk, the “Fifth Domain of Warfare” and its implications for New Zealand, the Large Hadron Collider, Project SpaceGuard, missing Malaysian Airlines Flight MH370, the importance of travel, Anthropogenic Global Warming (AGW), the Sex Pistols, alien life forms, geopolitics, the assassination of former U.S. President John F. Kennedy…everything from asteroids to hemorrhoids…the actual interview was over 90 minutes, but a computer failure toward the end of the interview meant that much of it was lost to the ether…perhaps the NSA was listening?
I hope you enjoy this very interesting conversation with a highly educated and personable gentleman…thank you for agreeing to be interviewed on Karamea Radio Dr Steel… I’m sure we’ll all sleep more soundly with the knowledge that clever fellas like yourself are working hard to ensure we’re not smashed out of our beds by a meteorite!
Dr Duncan Steel: www.DuncanSteel.com (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duncan_Steel)
Interview with Swedish Anglers: January 309, 2015
Swedish friends Normann Kotzurek and Stig Fagergren came to Karamea at the top of the West Coast of the South Island of New Zealand to catch BIG trout. They embarked on an intrepid journey into the wilds of the Kahurangi National Park in search of the world’s best fishing and emerged with an amazing tale of adventure 11 days later…this is their story.
My Dream Fish New Zealand: www.MyDreamFish.com
Interview with Bon Vivant Carole Beauclerk: January 8, 2015
Paul Murray (DJ Crap) Interviews 71-year-old U.S. traveller Carole Beauclerk about her experience on the Heaphy Track, one of New Zealand’s “Great Walks” and a life spent well doing all sorts of interesting things from taking ayahuasca with an Ecuadorian shaman in the 70s to sleeping with a 25 yr-old Congolese drummer on her 50th birthday in Tokyo…something for everyone here…that’s Karamea Radio folks…thanks for listening!
Interview with Israeli Traveller Arnin Amit: January 3, 2015
DJ Crap interviews Israeli Traveller Arnon Amit, who is thought to be the first ever person to complete the Heaphy Track in a wheelchair. Assisted by his brother Nadav and friends Maayan and Gul, Arnon arrived at Rongo Backpackers & Gallery in Karamea at the top of the West Coast of the South Island of New Zealand after a five-day adventure on the Heaphy Track to show the world that it is possible to do the Heaphy without the use of your legs!
Thanks for staying at Rongo team and for taking the time to chat with DJ Crap on Karamea Radio. Happy Trails and keep on keeping on! Shalom Aleichem…Peace be with you!
Interview with “Light Healer” MeWe: December 10, 2014
Aussie character Me-We arrived in Karamea with his mobile light-healing cart that he has pulled around New Zealand stopping off to provide his biophotonic light-healing services to all and sundry along the way. He stayed at Rongo Backpackers & Gallery in Karamea and agreed to a radio interview with DJ Crap to discuss his past, present and future. A most interesting chap indeed, part Aussie larrikin, part ethereal, new-age hippy renegade, Me-We thoroughly believes in himself and what he has to offer…the world needs more people like this guy!
Interview with Buller District Councillor Sheryl Rhind: July 25, 2014
Almost a year after having been elected to the Buller District Council as regional representative for the Seddon Ward, Councillor Sheryl Rhind returns to the Karamea Radio studio to talk with Paul Murray (DJ Crap) about her experience.
Topics include: Broadband Internet, Civil Defense, Reticulated Water Supply, 1080, Mountain Biking, the Oparara Valley Track as well as the influence of central Government on local politics.
This interview is of principal interest to people living in Karamea region of the Buller District, but also provides listeners with a window on life at the top of the West Coast of the South Island of New Zealand.
Interview with German Artist Almut Prang: June 25, 2014
2014 LivingInPeace Project Resident Artist Almut Prange speaks with project founder Paul Murray on Karamea Radio 107.5 FM about her experience, life in Karamea, art, travel and her future plans.
Interview with Italian Traveller Lorenzo Sebastio: June 25, 2014
Lorenzo Sebastio (28) is a traveller, there’s not many of them left. He has walked halfway across New Zealand from the very north tip at Cape Reinga to Karamea at the top of the West Coast of the South Island where he stopped for the night at Rongo Backpackers & Gallery…home of Karamea Radio 107.5 FM where spoke with Paul Murray about his journey before he heads of down the West Coast to Bluff the southernmost tip of the New Zealand mainland.
Interview with Student Nurse Eloise Clayton: April 16, 2016
Eloise Clayton is nearing the end of her nursing studies and came to the small rural community of Karamea at the top of the West Coast of the South Island of New Zealand to complete the practical training component of her degree. She was here for about six weeks and really got involved with the community and met most people in the district. She agreed to have a chat about her experience with DJ Crap on Karamea Radio 107.5 FM.
Interview with Canadian Artist Dejana Lukac: March 2014
Dejana Lukac from Alberta, Canada, came to Karamea for a couple of months in the summer of 2014 on the LivingInPeace Project artist-in-residency programme. Her art combines natural and found objects with man-made materials to create an entirely new object. The harmony of the nature contrasts with artificial products like foam and acrylic paint that seem to enhance and highlight each entity. Thank you Dejana for coming to Karamea and being a resident artist at the LivingInPeace Project.
Web site: Dejana Lukac: lukacdejana.wix.com/dejanalukac
Interview with Northern Irish Artist Norma Burrowes: March 2014
Northern Ireland photographer and textile artist Norma Burrowes was a resident artist for the LivingInPeace Project in the summer of 2010. She returned to Karamea at the top of the West Coast of the South Island of New Zealand in March 2014 for a second residency and spoke with Paul Murray on Karamea Radio about her art, life experiences and upcoming exhibition at Rongo Backpackers & Gallery on March 17, 2014.
Interview with Trail Runners Vicki and Vicki: January 7, 2014
Trail Runners Vicki Woolley & Vicki Quinn arrived in Karamea after running the Heaphy Track in two days. They stayed at Rongo Backpackers & Gallery in Karamea and enjoyed a Heaphy Conqueror’s Feast, visited the Oparara Basin arches and caves the following day and ran back to Karamea along the Oparara Valley Track…tomorrow, they’re off to Vicki Woolley’s old hometown of Seddonville to take on the newest MTB track in New Zealand…The Old Ghost Road…Happy Trails for 2014 and beyond Super Vickis!
Vicki Woolley is the N.Z. Editor for TrailRun Magazine: www.TrailRun.com She is a single mum on her annual one week holiday….Vicki Quinn is her friend and fellow trail runner. Welcome to Karamea Ladies….
Interview with Permaculturalist Robina McCurdy: October 11, 2014
Paul Murray interviews Local Food Resilience/Security educator Robina McCurdy about her Local Food Resilience workshop at Rongo Backpackers & Gallery in Karamea on Saturday October 12 (9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.)and the presentation the previous evening (October 11, 7-9 p.m.) Robina is a founding member of the Tui Community in Golden Bay and a passionate and enthusiastic champion of growing food, permaculture, biodynamics and building strong communities.
Radio NZ Interview with Permaculuralists Paul and Pete
Radio New Zealand Presenter Cosmo Kentish-Barnes visits Karamea and talks with LivingInPeace Project Founder Paul Murray and “Permaculture” Pete Cureen about their respective ventures.
Interview with Buller Council Deputy Mayor Rosalie Sampson
Paul Murray interviews Buller District Council Deputy Mayor and candidate in the upcoming BDC elections Rosalie Sampson about her 24 years on the Council, Water, Rubbish, Mountain Biking and other issues important to the people of Karamea and the Buller District.
Interview with Buller Council Mayoral Candidate Margaret Montgomery
Paul Murray interviews Buller District Council Mayoral Candidate Margaret Montgomery about her nine years as a Councillor, important issues facing the Buller District, ideas about improving the lot for Buller residents her background, experience, business life and family. Essential listening for people interested in making an informed vote in the October election.
Interview with West Coast Conservation Board Chair Stewart Robinson
A Karamea Radio Interview with West Coast Conservation Board Chair Stewart Robertson discussing the role of the WCCB, conservation issues facing the West Coast and the challenges ahead for the West Coast Department of Conservation staff in maintaining a large tract of New Zealand’s national parkland.
Interview with Buller Council Candidate Sheryl Rhind
Buller District Council election candidate Sheryl Rhind chats with Paul Murray on Karamea Radio about who she is, what she stands for and why she wants to represent Karamea, the Seddon Ward and the Buller District as a Councillor.
Crystal (Chuying) and Cindy (Xingxin) are the first Wwoofers from mainland China to come to Karamea to lend a hand at Rongo and the LivinginPeace Project. Paul Murray (aka DJ Crap) interviews them about their lives in China and their experiences travelling in New Zealand.
Interview with Buller Council Mayoral Candidate Garry Howard
Garry Howard is a candidate for Buller District Council Mayor in the upcoming election. He drops by Karamea Radio for a chat with Karamea Radio DJ Paul Murray about his candidacy, vision for the Buller District, the main issues facing the Council, mining, tourism, environment as well as his personal history…Compulsory listening for anyone interested in the Buller and its governance.
For more information about Garry Howard:
Rick Lucas Interview with LivingInPeace Project Founder Paul Murray
Interview with Intrepid Traveller Brando Yelavich
Brandon Yelavich is attempting to be the first person to circumnavigate the New Zealand coastline on foot. He is also raising money for Ronald McDonald House, a charity that assists parents of sick children. He arrived at Rongo Backpackers & Gallery in Karamea at the top of the West Coast of the South Island on July 18, 2013 and dropped in to Karamea Radio 107.5 FM and had a chat with DJ Crap about his exploit.
Read about Brando’s Adventure Here:
Auckland Lad Attempts 1st Lap of N.Z. Coast on Foot:
The Rongolian Star 