Away from my projects, I love being outdoors: in the cockpit, underwater, on the bike or simply barefoot on the beach. Here I share what drives me and what my life on the north coast of the Dominican Republic looks like.
For me, flying is the most beautiful form of freedom. As a private pilot with a PPL(A), I flew from my home airfields of Bremgarten, Freiburg and Aschaffenburg, over the Black Forest, along the Rhine and far beyond.
From the Breezer ultralight to the classic Cessna, the modern Cirrus and the Aquila A210, I’ve had the chance to fly many aircraft. A special highlight was a flight in the Aero L-39 Albatros, a military jet trainer.
For almost five years I’ve been living in Cabarete, right by the sea. The day often starts with a walk along the water, while the sand is still cool and the kiters are still asleep.
In the evening I head to one of the beach bars: feet in the sand, a cold Presidente or a mojito in hand, bachata from the speakers and a sunset that looks different every time.
As a former competitive swimmer, water has always been my element. Below the surface everything goes quiet, and that’s exactly what I love about diving.
From Open Water Diver through Advanced to Rescue Diver, I’ve built up my training step by step. In the Caribbean, reefs, turtles, rays and wrecks are right on my doorstep, for example off Sosúa. There I dive with Divecenter Merlin.
Growing up in Freiburg, I had the Black Forest right on my doorstep. My personal highlight was the mountain bike marathon on the Feldberg: lots of elevation, tough climbs and an indescribable feeling at the finish line.
Today I ride on red earth through sugarcane and cacao fields and over the hills behind the coast. The trails here are wild, dusty and gloriously green.
In the Austrian Alps I battled my way through roaring whitewater and, while canyoning, climbed, slid and jumped through gorges into crystal-clear pools. That’s teamwork and pure adrenaline.
The Dominican Republic has plenty to offer here too: the 27 waterfalls of Damajagua near Puerto Plata and the whitewater of the Río Yaque del Norte near Jarabacoa.
If you love flying that much, sooner or later you want to take to the air without a plane, too. In Alsace I jumped out of an aircraft: the door opens, the wind roars, and then come seconds you never forget.
Then the canopy opens, sudden silence, and the view across the Rhine plain all the way to the Black Forest. It’s the perfect complement to my flying.
Warm wind in your face, the scent of the sea and the tropics, and winding roads: riding a motorcycle in the Caribbean is a way of life of its own. The coastal road winds past bays and palm trees, and up in the mountains it gets greener and cooler.
Here, though, the motorcycle is also part of everyday life. Whether to the market, the beach or to see friends: on two wheels you’re right in the thick of it.
The north coast gets the Atlantic swell, and the waves here are simply fun. With a bodyboard, a few strong strokes are enough and the wave carries you toward the beach.
Alongside surfing and kiting, the bodyboard is my easiest way into the water: grab it, nothing to set up, just jump in.
For over three years, Frankfurt was my home. The reason was my projects in the banking sector, so I lived right in the middle of it all, between glass façades, bank towers and the River Main.
Projects and meetings by day, the view over the illuminated skyline by night: this mix of pace and perspective made my time in Frankfurt special.
Cars fascinate me, in everyday life as much as on the racetrack. Privately, I loved driving with the top down in my Audi S5 Cabriolet: roof down, enjoy the sound, freedom on four wheels.
Things got really exciting at the Audi Driving Experience: helmet on, into the R8 V10 and out on the test track to feel what a sports car like that can do, and to learn how to control it at the limit.
Getting out on a motorboat is one of my favorite ways to spend time on the water. In Switzerland we cruised across clear mountain lakes framed by rock faces and Alpine panoramas, always with the wakeboard on board.
I’ve also been out on the boat in Mallorca and in Ampuriabrava on Spain’s Costa Brava. A very special moment was the first boat trip with Nora when she was little: life jacket on and a smile that says it all.
In 2020 I moved to Frankfurt for work; today I’ve been living in Cabarete on the north coast for almost five years. Life here is colorful, loud, warm-hearted and sometimes chaotic, and that’s exactly what makes it special.
Everyday life means the colmado on the corner, fruit and vegetables from the market, motoconchos, merengue from every other house and people who always have time for a chat. Behind it all is my idea of life: honesty, respect, authenticity and freedom.
Puerto Plata is the gateway to my stretch of coast, Santiago the heart of the interior and Santo Domingo the historic capital. If you want to understand the Dominican Republic, you should know all three.
Columbus is said to have named the town when he saw the clouds above the mountain shimmering silver: “Puerto de Plata”, silver harbor. Today Puerto Plata is the capital of the north coast and only about 20 minutes from Cabarete.
The country’s second-largest city lies in the fertile Cibao Valley and is one of the oldest cities in the Americas. Santiago is down-to-earth and hard-working. Tobacco, cigars and rum are big here, and it is the home of merengue típico.
Founded by Bartholomew Columbus at the end of the 15th century, Santo Domingo is the oldest continuously inhabited European city in the Americas. Today the capital is a vibrant metropolis of colonial history, the Malecón and nightlife.
“My dream: to live close to nature, someday on a ranch by a river, self-sufficient and with lots of freedom.”Gerd Wintermantel
Some photos on this page were not taken by me; they come from Wikimedia Commons and are available under free licenses:
.jpg){kind=link}
