Meet Our Team
Our Local Experts Share Their Berlin Favorites
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Merren
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Andrew
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Marriette
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Walid
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Jürgen
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Tobi
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Skien
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Christin
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Julian
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Neil
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Erynne
Our Local Experts Share Their Berlin Favorites
Merren
Andrew
Marriette
Walid
Jürgen
Tobi
Skien
Christin
Julian
Neil
Erynne
Merren is an Aussie larrikin who has been living in Berlin since 2013. Having German grandparents, she wanted to get to know more about her heritage and was attracted to the vivacious, edgy, unassuming nature of the capital. She’s always up for a beer and is guaranteed to give you a stirring rendition of the Hof at the Brandenburg Gate.
“I think you’d be hard-pressed to find another city in the world with so many layers of history all meshed together and intertwined than right here in Berlin. Becoming a tour guide has been an incredibly rewarding way to connect with the history of Germany, and a great way to meet people from all over the globe!”
Andrew is a Wisconsin boy who studied History at UW-Madison. He joined the Berlin family two years ago following a stint with the Fat Tire team in Paris, and he’s also been a guide in Prague. After first visiting us here in 2009 though, he knew he would just have to live in Berlin some day!
“I wish everyone could come to Berlin with time to explore the greenness around the city. This is a place surrounded by endless biking, hiking, camping and swimming opportunities. (Feel free to get a Fat Tire trekking bike to get you moving!)”
Marriette is a Berlin veteran originally from the Lake District in Northern England. Her planned three-month stay in Berlin after university started a decade ago and you will now find Marriette dividing her days amongst Segway tours, her sewing machine, finding vintage treasures at Berlin’s many flea markets and enjoying lively open air parties.
“Berlin is rough around the edges to say the least. It’s a living breathing entity and many a traveler have succumbed to its magnetic draw. The city pulls no punches; it’s very unapologetic, it’s raw, and it’s in a constant state of evolution.”
Walid is an ex-Londoner with extensive tour guiding experience and endless stories after 10 years in Berlin. He lives for discussing the depressing division of the city while taking in the edgy street art scene and death-defying graffiti bombing endeavors. He has a talent for weaving an entertaining educational narrative about the recent past and history’s impact on modern-day Berlin.
“My favourite thing about guiding is summer sunshine riverside segwaying with the wind blowing through all three remaining hairs on my scalp! In what other city can you see historic landmarks, graffitied buildings with four lettered "opinions" about the state of increasing capitalism, remnants of The Wall and a deserted ferris wheel from one spot?”
Jürgen is someone you could literally call a world citizen – he’s half German, born in Brazil, yet grew up in India! He moved to Germany at age 18 and, in his years studying Biology in Bremen, he increasingly felt the draw to the amazing and dynamic city of Berlin. When not on tour, he’s studying History and Theory of Culture, writing movie reviews and even producing films as well.
“Berlin is just crazy! It's dynamic, constantly evolving and you'll never get bored. Even after living here for seven years I still love to walk/bike around town to explore. Everyday you'll discover something new, something exciting. Whether it is a café, new street artist or piece of history – it’s amazing!”
Tobi, our charming, bona fide, East German gentleman, is a carpenter-by-trade from the quaint town of Quedlinburg. Mr Sparsbrod (literally "Funny Bread") grew up under the communist regime but made the move to more liberal climes here after the fall of the Wall. These days you’ll find him whizzing around in the summer sunshine loving life on Fat Tire Segways.
“Being a genuine East German, I really enjoy being able to answer the many questions people have about what life was really like growing up behind the Iron Curtain. My stories about the joys of sucking bananas are always a favorite. Strangely.”
Julien, affectionately known in the Fat Tire world as “Skein”, is our charming Zoo shop manager and all-round office guru. Having been with the company since 2006, Julien knows the Fat Tire brand inside out and is on hand to help you with anything bike or Berlin-related!
“Coming from a small town and moving to Berlin in 1998, it was amazing to encounter this constantly changing and evolving city with its cultural diversity and freedom. That was a great and overwhelming experience, and still to this day, I have this funny feeling of vacation when I walk the streets on a day off.”
Christin is an original Berlinerin, a rare and beautiful breed these days. She studied Art History and Anthropology and now spends her days leading Segway tours around her home city. She’s tried to escape a couple of times to the likes of Dublin and London, but always feels that insatiable pull back to Berlin.
“I love Berlin because of the people. It has become so multicultural and I adore watching the change and being part of it. I like to emphasize this on my tours as it’s important to not only give a detailed historical story of Berlin, but to also explain the changes and new influences I’ve seen take effect.”
Julian hails from Toronto, Canada, and originally came to Berlin in 2008 to study German history and cultural anthropology. He is now our Fat Tire Guide Manager, a job that might be reminiscent of his pre-Berlin days when you would have found him captaining tall ships on the wide-open seas. In this time he managed to cross the Atlantic on an 11-meter sailboat – an amazing feat!
“I chose Berlin because it is the city my grandmother grew up in. After spending two months here, I was hooked. Following a few years back in Toronto I decided to make the permanent move over. Four years later I'm still here and loving my adopted home.”
Neil, the tall, charming, English gentleman with a passion for art, design and sport, is one of our Third Reich specialists and most experienced Fat Tire guides. He came to Berlin for the 2006 World Cup and even after living here for over nine years, he loves the way the city always manages to surprise him.
“I was searching for a different way of life and found the individuals and lifestyle in Berlin better suited to me. It’s a beautiful and accepting city to live in despite its turbulent past. I personally feel it is the most important city in Europe in terms of its recent past, and the near future.”
Erynne is a lover of plaid from small-town Ontario, Canada. With a background in German and French literature, she also taught English at a Paris university (and worked for Fat Tire Paris) before moving to Berlin. She is now our Scheduling Manager and brings a whole lot of smiles and laughter to office life.
"I'm not 100% certain why I came to Berlin, but I'm enjoying the spontaneity and adventure. Berlin has taken a strong hold of me; it's a relaxed and non-judgmental city and I love it for that!"