The Beauty of Dorey bay in Manokwari of West Papua

Manokwari city - the capital of West Papua province in the Republic of Indonesia is located in the Dorey bay of Manokwari. This is one of the most beautiful bays in the world? Well, if you read this statement, you might say that I am exaggregating something. Well, it is not my statement, it is a statement from a world traveler whom I met. Here in the bay, there are some tropical islands have spectacular view with rich coral reefs and shipwrecks around them. The Dorey bay of Manokwari has been attracting tourists and researchers from around the world. 

 In 1855, European evangelists - Otto and his wife and Geisler landed in Mansinam, the largest isle in the Dorey bay to preach Christianity to the indigenous Papuan people. Two years later British Naturalist, Alfred Russel Wallace visited the Dorey bay to study the natural history of New Guinea and birds of paradise. Later he published The Malay Archipelago. He talked alot about the nature and lifestyle of the indigenous Papuan who were great artists. In 1920s Prince Leopold from Belgium visited the Dorey bay of this New Guinea (now known as West Papua) also to study the birds of paradise. This year alone 2010, I have escorted tourists from Russian, Norway, England and the Netherlands traveling around the Dorey bay of Manokwari. 

 At the south of this bay, beautiful blue mountain called Pegunungan Arfak, stretches from west to south east of the bay. At the foot of this bay, tourists can enjoy the beauty of Lake Kabori. There are still many beautiful things that tourists can see while visiting Dorey bay of Manokwari city in West Papua province of the Republic of Indonesia. I will write about them one by one and upload my travel journal to this blog. If after reading the posts in this blog and you become interested in visiting this city, you can contact me, Charles Roring, as your travel guide via my email: peace4wp@gmail.com

Dorey bay of Manokwari City

Dorey bay is the name which Alfred Russel Wallace, a British naturalist, mentioned in his book "The Malay Archipelago". He came to the bay in 1858 to conduct research on birds of paradise and anything that was related to natural history of New Guinea island. Since then people who read his book have come from all over the world to Manokwari to see with their own eyes this beautiful Dorey bay.
Well, in general it is similar to other bays in the world. But every bay has its own history and uniqueness. Here in Dorey bay, tourists can travel around some small islands. The most famous one is Mansinam. It is a small island that is located at the outer most part of the bay. Mansinam became the first to receive German missionaries who went to this Netherlands New Guinea to preach Christianity. Mansinam is considered by the indigenous Papuan people as the island of civilization.
The photographs that I show below is about children in Mansinam island who were fishing at the harbor. They have been resized, and optimized in Adobe Photoshop CS3 before being uploaded into this blog. 

Children were fishing at a jetty in Mansinam

During World War II era, Japanese forces constructed a lot of bomb shelters to defend Manokwari against their enemies, the Allied forces. The Imperial Japanese Army deployed 50,000 soldiers to Western New Guinea to reinforce their defense line in the Pacific. Lieutenant General Fusataro Teshima from 2nd Army led the troops and chose Manokwari as their headquarters. 

Activities that can be done around the small islands of Dorey bay are swimming, snorkeling, scuba diving, hiking and bird watching. Tourists can also meet the villagers who live in Mansinam and Lemon islands and have friendly conversation with them about interesting topics. For shipwrecks sites, Dorey bay is the best in Indonesia.

If you want to snorkel or scuba dive in Dorey bay, don't forget to bring your own gear. Although these Mansinam and Lemon islands are located close enough to Manokwari city, they are very calm. The pace of living looks slow.

 As a tourist guide, I provide a tour package for tourists who want to travel around the islands in Dorey and see the beauty of their coral reef.

Coral reef and butterfly fish in Mansinam island

Don't forget to contact me via email: peace4wp@gmail.com when you have arrived in Manokwari city, I will be happy to be your tourist guide and arrange your tour around the city or even deeper into the interior region of Papua that is suitable to your needs and physical condition. by Charles Roring
Also read: 

Hiking, Snorkeling, and Freediving in Manokwari