Origin Stories
Carlos Gibaja, owner of StarDome, grew up in Ollantaytambo and recounts the inspiration for the dome:
The Land
"Stardome is located on Mt. Antanuca (3500 m), a few miles away from the nearest town, Ollantaytambo.
I have spent much of my life with family and friends exploring this mountain and creating
It’s on this very mountain that I spent a few starry nights each year with my grandfather. After long days of harvesting potatoes, we would sleep through the night with nothing but a few blankets and a campfire.
opportunities for others to access its beauty.
STARS
Every few hours, I would flip from one shoulder to the other, alternating which side of my body the fire warmed. On one side, the warmth felt like a summer sun on my face. But with my back against the fire, I faced something even more idyllic: a sky full of stars.
Millions of stars filled the sky – stars and constellations which I have learned from and carry the meaning of to this day.
A House without a Roof
A Partnership
It's from these nights with my grandfather that I began to dream of a house without a roof so that I could connect to these stars every time I lay awake."
Then came along Bob Berman, a lawyer from Canada, who met Carlos decades later...
"After my wife Jayne died from cancer, I searched for reasons. On a cold, wet day in December 2012, on a remote mountaintop, that’s where I met Carlos for the first time. Little did I know then that our meeting and friendship that followed would transform my life forever.
The Energy
[Carlos is] in tune with the energies of the Mountain Spirits of the Sacred Valley and has shared some of their secrets with me. I have learned to feel the energy from certain people, places, and things I had never felt before. It’s like feeling vibration going through your chest and from there all through your body. Like the energy is giving you a gift or telling you a secret….
The Purpose
In 2018, 6 years after Jayne’s passing, I met Alli in the Canadian Arctic south of Greenland. Since we met, everything I’ve done has been infused with our Love Energy…especially StarDome.
Since that first visit to Peru, I have returned many times, and I have developed a close and unique relationship with Carlos and his Quechuan community. In honor of this relationship, we have curated a one-of-a-kind, spiritual and cultural adventure to provide life-changing, transformative experiences for our guests.
Love has been the inspiration for StarDome. Without Love, nothing meaningful happens in life, and that includes StarDome. Carlos’s Love for the Universe and his grandfather, my Love for Alli, and our Love for our Quechua friends and their healing culture have inspired us to build StarDome and offer its healing energy to the world."*
StarDome is truly a Labour of Love.
To Be Continued... With You!
*Please note that some content has been edited for story-telling purposes
