Diving in Bunaken : Underwater Beauty on Sulawesi Island – Indonesia

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What do you imagine when you hear about “the sea”? Many things we might say when we hear the word "sea". Maybe, in your head you will think about the beach, the blue color of the sea, the bright sky, the sunset, or the stunning marine life. For some people, the sea is like a mystery. Because we don't know what's in it, sometimes we see the black and dark side of the sea, but there are many sides of the sea that make us fascinated and amazed, especially when we get a good diving spot.

Indonesia has a lot of beaches and seas that have underwater beauty that can be said to be "paradise on earth". Starting from "Sabang - Aceh to Raja Ampat - West Papua" has an underwater beauty that makes everyone who comes want to drown with the beauty of the Indonesian sea. Several years ago, before I got married and was single, I had the opportunity to visit one of the best diving spots in Indonesia, namely Bunaken Island.



Bunaken Marine Park

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Bunaken is one of the mainstays of tourism in Indonesia, for diving tourism which is located on Sulewasi Island. Bunaken is also considered one of the best diving destinations in the world. This island is known as a place that has preserved coral reefs, beautiful types of colorful fish, and various other underwater beauties.

At that time, I and several colleagues at Non-Government Organizations engaged in conservation and the environment went to Bunaken, to learn about diving and take diving certification for beginners. According to some of our colleagues who have been there, Bunaken is perfect for beginners because we don't need to dive too deep to enjoy the amazing underwater beauty.

To get to Bunaken Island (Bunaken National Park), there is only one transportation route using a chartered boat. Many choices of ships with various prices and facilities that we can choose. The best way to choose a chartered ship is to use a ship according to the number of passengers who will go across. At that time, our group brought about 18 people to cross to Bunaken Island. Of course, you don't want to drown because you board a ship that is not in accordance with the transportation load.

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The distance between Manado and Bunaken Island is about 40 minutes by all types of boats. Along the way we were entertained by the stunning natural scenery. We were lucky when we crossed the weather it was very sunny, as the sun greeted us to arrive at Bunaken. According to the captain of the ship, this crossing is largely determined by the weather. If the weather is bad and high waves appear, the trip will be postponed until the weather is favorable.



Learn to Dive

We only had five days to learn to dive on Bunaken Island. At that time the majority of our group were novice divers who only came with recklessness and curiosity. I also doubted whether at that time I could dive or later just be a spectator. We took a short course by an instructor on how to technically do a dive.

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There is one sentence from the instructor that I still remember, namely “not because we are good at swimming, we think we will be good at diving. Because they are two different things.” The instructors are always improving us who are beginners not to dive too deep. In addition, our diving instructors provide information about three important components that must be remembered and mastered before diving, namely how to breathe with the regulator (breathing with the mouth position biting the plastic regulator so it doesn't come off), sign language when underwater, and stay calm and don't let go. panic.



Marine Biodiversity

There are no words that can best describe how beautiful the underwater world is in Bunaken, maybe the term "paradise on earth" is suitable for that. We can see various species of fish of various colors and shapes. I was very amazed, seeing this fish was like welcoming us to our arrival.

With the Panasonic Lumix camera, we can capture various types of marine bioyata such as clownfish (finding nemo), seahorses, Puffer blackspot (dog fish), and various other types. I also saw some turtles passing in front of us.

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Turtle

One of the nicknames of Bunaken Marine Park is Turtle Kingdom, this is because Bunaken Marine Park is also known as a home for various turtle species. When we dive here, we can easily find various types of turtles passing in front of us. This area has dozens of healthy turtles, even with a distance of only 5 meters dive. We can see turtle activities such as eating, sleeping, or breathing air.

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The uniqueness of the turtles in Bunaken, they seem to be used to diving activities and seem not afraid of humans. However, we are forbidden to touch the turtle because it can have an unpleasant effect on the turtle and can stress the turtle and die. Currently, Bunaken Marine Park has become a conservation area and there is no longer any hunting for turtle eggs or the turtles themselves.



The experience of diving and enjoying the amazing underwater scenery was one of the best moments in my life that I will never forget. Until now I have never been diving again because it is an activity that really requires a lot of money and I went there while I was still working at a Conservation NGO. I wish I could repeat that moment another time.




About Author


Call me Isdarmady, because I have a full name that is very long, namely Isdarmady Syahputra Ritonga. I am a head of the family who work as Farmers Vegetables Hydroponic and Consultant Hydroponics, sometimes I also sell coffee from various regions in Indonesia.
I have expertise dispensing coffee with a variety of techniques and tools brewing, because I have the desire to make a coffee shop with hydroponics as centerpieces. Help me realize that dream.

Thanks for read, vote, re-blog and support me in Hive. Maybe god will reward the kindness, let’s success together.



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Wow. you got some beautiful marine life out there. I'm so happy to know that sanctuaries like this exist. This is great for the fish and other marine animals and for the environment as well!

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Yes, it's lucky that this place has a sustainable environment and underwater life.

Thank you for stopping by..

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That is gold to know. Wish to have more rivers like this.

You're welcome!

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Soo cool!! It must have been a unique experience!! You are really lucky, underwater life is incredibly beautiful and fascinating!!:)
You took awesome shots, well done!!

!discovery 36
!PIZZA

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