Manado, Province of North Sulawesi, Indonesia

The Republic of Indonesia is a nation in Southeast Asia. Comprising 17,508 islands, it is the world’s largest archipelagic state. With a population of over 234 million people, it is the world’s fourth most populous country and the most populous Muslim-majority nation, although officially it is not an Islamic state. North Sulawesi, original called the “Celebes Islands,” is predominantly Christian.

Manado is famous for the Bunaken National Marine Park, which has some of the highest levels of marine biodiversity in the world, with sparkling tropical water that is extremely deep (over 4,000 feet), clear (130 foot visibility), and refreshing in temperature (80° to 84° F or 27° to 29° C). Although the exact number of fish species is unknown, it may be slightly higher than in the Philippines, where there are 2,500 species, or nearly 70% of all fish species known to the Indo-western Pacific. With a population of over 400,000, Manado is the capital of North Sulawesi Province.  This former hub of the Dutch empire sits on the Bay of Manado, surrounded by volcanic mountains, many still active.  In 1658 the Dutch East India Company built a fortress in Manado and the region became Christianized by the Dutch missionaries.