Born (in 1968) and raised as a German in South Africa, I grew up on the flat plains of the Highveld of the then western Transvaal. The closest town was 25km away and the closest German school 40km from home. I spent my first school years in boarding school and this did not change for high school when the distance was close to 300km. After school, I studied photography and was lucky to find a job at the State Theatre in Pretoria, South Africa.
I have always had an interest in the performing arts and have been working in the world of theatre for over 20 years, starting off as an assistant to the photographer, good old Bob, and working my way up to Chief Photographer and Graphic Designer. In those years I not only spent time with local artists and performers from all over the world but also spent a lot of time backstage to widen my horizon and experience. When the theatre was closed in 2000, I started freelancing as a photographer, designer and web-master. I also worked as stage manager for locally-based American artist Joseph Clark. I have worked for him on numerous corporate and other stages in South Africa and abroad – from Cape Town to Hamburg (Germany).
Fate took me to a half-day job at the St.Peters congregation in central Pretoria as office/venue manager in 2007. My duties included – amongst others – all the accounting and other money matters, office administration, computer and network maintenance. Toward the end of 2010, I felt that there was still something missing in my life and I decided ‘now or never’ and enrolled at a somatology academy to become a Massage and Holistic Therapist.
2013-14 saw me working as a therapist in a day spa where I was soon promoted to manager. These were challenging and educational years but I am glad to say that close to all my clients got off the massage table very relaxed, refreshed and pain-free after a session with me.
2015 saw me taking a sabbatical time out from everything. That’s where my trip came in. For many years this idea of doing a pilgrimage type walk was brooding in the back of my mind. The original idea was to walk from Munich in the south of Germany all the way to Berlin. As my idea became a plan, I extended the route to Hamburg in the north and then another 200km south again to Osnabrück – the city my father came from. I interrupted my tour with seminars and workshops, getting to know different modalities and massage techniques.
Upon returning from my big adventure, I started freelancing as a Massage Therapist, incorporating all the new skills I learned during my travels. After some years, I took a position at a five-star lodge close to the Kruger National Park. I managed the spa and therapists and helped out with events and general guest administration. From there I went to Cape Town to further my training in the hospitality industry with a Butler course. I did an internship in Namibia and then returned to Pretoria where I managed a guesthouse until it closed down during the pandemic. I was inspired and excited to share my gift as healing-facilitator through the magical art of massage on a full-time basis again and that’s what I am doing now.
As for the more personal stuff, well, let’s just say that I am an independent bachelor, love animals and nature, enjoy doing glass-art, loved my long hair when I still had some, still love the theatre, dislike social media (even if I spend to much time on it) and can be a real couch potato when the movie is good and the beer is cold.
Well, that’s me in a nutshell. Let’s wait and see what the future holds…