Who are we?
We are an Egyptian company since 2019 that combines the blue wonders with exploring ourselves. It consists of a Swedish-Egyptian duo, a dive instructor, and a yoga teacher, who found each other through their passion for giving people a genuine experience and a huge love for the sea. We met at a diving center in Port Ghalib, a Marina near Marsa Alam, and became good friends. Between dives, there was a lot of talk about dreams and life goals, and we found our dreams were aligned. We felt an amazing connection and a common feeling of trust in each other and started planning for the future.
Sustainable Natur
Our values and hearts lie in sustainability, and we strive to let this nature experience also help foster the conservation of this unique place.
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We are guests of Mother Nature, and having as little impact as possible is central to how we want to operate. Whether it is reducing our carbon footprint or our use of plastic, we try to improve, to do more, and to do better.
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We are trying to eliminate disposable plastic and offer all our customers refill bottles for water.
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We strive to use boats with a common interest for sustainability with as little impact on the environment as possible. We still have a long way to go.
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We want to give back to the sea, among other things, by offering to participate in a clean-up day on one of the islands near Sataya.
What shoud we name the company?
We knew what we wanted to do for people but we could’nt find the name in our hearts.
One morning Mido called Marie and told her he had a dream. He said he was dreaming about Al Thuraya star cluster, because it’s shining really bright in Sataya, and told her the story of the seven sisters.
Al Thuraya, The Seven Sisters - The arabic name of the pleiadians star cluster
The Titan God, Atlas and the Oceanid, Pleione had seven daughters, Maia, Electra, Alcyone, Taygete, Asterope, Celaeno, and Merop.
One day while traveling, the sisters and their mother met the giant hunter Orion. He fell in love with the young women and started to pursue them. After being chased for years, the God of Thunder, Zeus turned them into doves to help them escape. They flew into the sky to become the cluster of stars.
The sense moral
This is a story that many of us can relate to. Feeling chased by society's expectations and how we get shaped into something that isn't our truest self, so that we blend in, can sometimes lead to dispiritedness. It can sometimes feel like we have been put in a place in life without any choices, possibilities and control of our own future. Getting stuck in life and not feeling free to pursue our dreams because of fear. It's not easy to break free from.
So we stay stay in place, a fixed cluster of stars, unaware that Orion is just a figment of our own imagination, a fantasy ghost. But if we let go of that fear, there are endless possibilities of what we are capable of.
The Seven Sisters Dolphin Retreat was born.
A retreat can act as a catalyst for us to figure things out, start listening to our hearts and not always following logic. Connecting with nature can also help us to find our spirituality and a meeting with the dolphins, who are known to feel empathy, can almost act as a mirror in front of us.
Al Thuraya, the Pleiades in arabic, is now the name we choose because the future is more than Sataya for us. Egypt is an amazing country with so much to offer, and we have just begun scratching the surface.
Sataya - A Place to heal
This place has the perfect conditions for a retreat. Connecting with nature and at the same time with your body, mind and soul. Letting go of what you don't need in your life anymore it's perfectly alined together with the dolphin encounters. There are many who testify about how the dolphins can help you let go of fear, grief and sadness when they interact with you. We have seen with our own eyes how people where going from reserved, and even scared, to fearless. How they bloomed and discovered themselves in the water. It's was truly amazing to be a part of. Read more about Sataya & the dolphins.
Marie Pleione
For the last 5 years, I have dedicated myself to helping people find their true calling and overcoming self-doubts.
I took a huge leap of faith and gave up a secure life in Sweden to pursue a calling from the dolphins. After 20 years of marriage, I realized I had become completely comfortable and unfilled. I needed to find myself, and I had a huge hunger in me to create a different life. I missed a purpose, a community of like-minded people. I wanted to wake up in the morning and feel that I was connected to nature and made a good impact on the world.
My love for the sea goes beyond passion. It's a calling. Scuba diving, free diving, and yoga have such a common feeling. It's about being present, in the moment.
I'm a Hatha/Yin yoga teacher, a Reiki healer, a life coach, and a divemaster.
When I first came to Sataya, it felt like this was meant to be.
Meeting the dolphins changed me. My frequency, my thoughts, and my approach to life. Before, I was completely driven by fear of everything in my life, and for the first time, I felt I could do anything I set my mind to.
My yoga teaching is about self-healing, restoring, accepting your feelings, and not running away from them. The mind and soul need a bigger space in our approach to pain. We are storing a lot of emotions in our body.
Many say that dolphins can heal you. I can't tell you if this is true, but I feel their calming energy when I am in the water with them. It is the same presence that I feel when I go into my breathing exercises in my yoga practice. It’s all about calming down your nervous system to be able to navigate through everything that is happening inside you. Finding some clearness and self reflection.
My Journey
"Breath is the link between mind and body" Dan Brule
My passion is trying to help people overcome pain, fear, and anxiety with awareness of our body, mind, and soul. To share the self-healing knowledge with people. There is so much wisdom that we can tap into if we start listening to the song in our hearts and the voice of our bodies. Find our truth and dare to face the challenges that can make us overcome our fears. That is where our journey begins...
I have been through it all. Panic attacks, severe chronic back pain (I couldn't walk, and they wanted to operate on me) , self-doubt, low self-esteem, fear of failure, fear of life, fear of everything...
From scared to fearless.
When I was younger I saw life as a big adventure an in my early adult years I began scuba diving and fell in love with the sea. One day I was on a vacation in the Caribbean I had very traumatic scuba experience and after that I was diving with a lot of anxiety. For many years I was always felling scared and uncomfortable under the surface but was hoping the feeling would go away. But it didn't.
Yoga together with a caring guide gave me back my love to the sea.
One Divemaster in Egypt took me under his wing, making me realize I was creating this fear by overthinking. He gently taught me everything from the start and at my own pace. I understood that knowledge of compassion is a wonderful way to attack fear.
I remember the first night in Sataya as if it were yesterday. It was a combination of an awakening of my soul. Finding my calling and having an epiphany in the eye of a dolphin. I wasn't true to myself, what I wanted from life, and I never cried so much in my life. That moment was the biggest epiphany I had ever had.
So I went alone to Egypt to search for my calling.
My Egyptian friend was trying to persuade me to come to Egypt that summer to swim with dolphins, and to be honest, I had no idea what to expect. But doing a solo trip was a perfect way for me to try my new fearless approach.
And this is something I never regret doing. My life changed completely. It was like opening the door to a magical fairytale land where time was completely different, and dreams came true.
I'm no longer letting fear get in the way of my passions.
Today, I'm pursuing my dream and putting all my heart and love into this company. I moved on my own to Egypt, and I gained so many friends, sisters, and brothers, and the story has just begun. I feel so blessed for this journey and hope to inspire others to follow their dreams.
