Your Own Peaceful Living Dome In Rural Thailand

Dome home 2nd story (Steve Areen)On a large organic mango farm, far into the countryside of northeastern Thailand, Steve Areen built a little house under a dome for under $10K. Enjoy the video tour below!

Once a teacher in Nicaragua, Steve’s been a traveler for around 22 years. From his website, here’s the story of Steve’s “dome home”:

The builder aloft (Steve Areen)

“In 2011 I had a wonderful visit with my friend Hajjar Gibran. For years he has inspired me with his creative ideas. This time he was building domes at his retreat center in northeast Thailand. He and his wife offered me a spot on their mango farm to build my own dome.

With Hajjar’s guidance and design ideas, along with my own, and his son-in-law Tao’s masonry skills, I had my dome home up and painted in six weeks.

The cost for the basic structure was under $6000. It took a few more weeks to add the details, such as doors, screens, pond, upstairs structure, stonework and landscaping. All this, including furnishings, was under $3000. Bringing my total cost to about $9,000. Please keep in mind this is in cost-friendly Thailand.”

Steve makes this marvelous living dome available for “Dome Stays” while he’s traveling.  All he asks is for guests to give it some loving, and to help with costs by making a small donation.

Dome home interior (Areen)“Giving my dome home ‘loving’ is simply giving it some care…  watering my plants and keeping it clean. You can also take on a wonderful project, like creating a garden, making improvements, or maybe even adding your artistic touch. Other projects may include teaching English to the village kids and making compressed earth blocks for ongoing projects on the property.”
Steve says those staying in his living dome should plan to be pretty self sufficient, as they may be on their own for a while.Little markets abound where you can get supplies and food.  Dome home sink (Areen)You can also visit Miracle Springs for Lumyai’s amazing cuisine. Bikes are available for use. The mango farm is very peaceful, and in the mornings a soft gong from the nearby monastery peals throughout the countryside.

Other comforts of the Dome Home: a filtration system for its well water, a hot water heater for the shower, and 3G Internet service.

For more information and images of the living dome, please visit here. The song “Reflection” which plays with the video is from Steve’s Bird of Passage CD, available here.

Cheers to the inventive architect, builder, musician, and sometime resident!

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