Anemone Fish in the Coral Reef of Raimuti Island of Manokwari city

Anemone fish can still be found in the coral reef region not far from Raimuti island. This is the smallest island in the Dorey bay of Manokwari. When I went snorkeling with two Russian tourists, Alex Sokolov and Vitaliy Golovko, on 16 March 2011, we were able to see the Damselfish around 1 kilometer to the south of the Raimuti island. We went there at 4 p.m. to avoid strong sunlight that could burn our skins. At that time the waters around Arfai region and Raimuti island were calm. We saw hundreds of species of fish that live in the coral reef areas. I took some pictures of them but they were not as good as what Alex Sokolov did. One of them was an anemonefish. I think it was a Clark's Anemonefish (Amphiprion clarkii). However, this coral reef fish was similar to Sebae Anemonefish that has a white stripe at the top of rear back that goes toward its tail. Because this fish did not have the white line, so, I concluded that it was a Clark's Anemonefish. Now I can identify the names of the coral reef fish because a biologist from the United States gave me a book entitled Reef Fish Identification - Tropical Pacific (see the book at the end of this article). This book is suitable for snorkelers and scuba divers who want to know more about the species of fish that live in the Tropical Pacific region. Before receiving this book, it's very difficult for me to identify the reef fish which consist of thousands of species.

After the Russian tourists, I went to Arfai again the next day with two Dutch tourists, Victor Dykman and Anne Bijleveld. This time we were able to see another species of anemone fish. Moisture from sea water covered the lens of my watercasing. That's why I could not take the underwater picture of this famous Nemo fish. Anemonefish is small fish that live among the anemone. It is often called clown fish but children like to call it Nemo fish after the famous animated movie Finding Nemo which is distributed by Walt Disney Pictures.

As a travel writer, I have been promoting the waters around Arfai region and Raimuti island as an alternative destination for tourists who want to see the beauty of the underwater world of coral reef in affordable price.
Snorkeling in Raimuti island is much cheaper than scuba diving in places that have been commercialized with the construction of numerous diving resorts. If you plan to visit Manokwari city this year and want to do some snorkelings, you can contact me by email to: peace4wp@gmail.com. I will be happy to arrange your trip and guide you to this beautiful marine environment of West Papua. Also read: Coral Reef Fish in Mansinam island.

Urban Forest in Manokwari

The size of urban forest in Manokwari has been significantly reduced since five years ago when the province of West Papua was reactivated. Almost all of the clove and tropical fruit gardens in what was known as Manggoapi have now gone. In the past the area of what is now known as Bumi Marina was full of clove plantation, rambutan, and durian gardens.

Signicant deforestation is now going on in Sowi and Arfai hills. This greatly effects the air and water quality in Manokwari - the capital of West Papua province of Indonesia. Urban forests in Manokwari have to be preserved. Socially they have recreational values. People go to the nearby forest during holidays. Even until today, hundreds of people still go to Sowi hill near the DPRD office to take aerial pictures Manokwari city that stretches along the Dorey bay. Tree planting program among the communities in Manokwari should be encouraged again.
In addition to their social functions, urban forests in Manokwari intercept dust and gaseous pollutants that are released by motorcycles and cars moving in the city. Therefore tree and vegetation planting must not be ignored particularly along the roadsides of the crowded streets. Because trees and other green vegetation filter the dirty air, they automatically reduce the pollution and spread of viral and bacterial diseases.
Urban forests also give environmental benefits to us. Manokwari is located close to the equator. It receives sunlight all year round. The temperature in this city is warm. The existence of trees in this city provides shades that may reduce the air conditioning cost of houses near the trees.
As a travel writer, I often guide tourists who visit Manokwari city to Table Mountain. It is located in the north of Manokwari. Tropical rainforest that covers the mountain constantly supplies water to people living along the coastal region of Manokwari city. In this region, people get water by digging wells. Because the number of population in the city is rising, the need of clean water is also rising. To maintain the water quality in lowland region, we need to plant trees in the city. Every household must have at least one or two trees around their front or backyard.

Title: Dorey bay of Manokwari

Painter: Charles Roring

Media: Watercolor on paper

Year: May 2011

Size: A3

If we don't give special attention to the preservation of trees inside the city, the beautiful urban forest that we have right now will disappear soon and can only be enjoyed from photograph or from my new watercolor painting above. Talking about painting, it is one of my favorite hobbies. I prefer watercolor to oil color. My working condition does not allow me to paint with oil color. Today I use Pentel 18 Watercolors and Derwent 72 Watercolour Pencils. As for the paper, I like to use cold press Canson 200 gsm, acid free paper. The translucent effect of this media makes my artworks look bright and colorful. I just finished painting this landscape of Manokwari bay two days ago. If you are interested in buying it, please, contact me via my e-mail charlesroring@gmail.com. by Charles Roring
Also read: Traveling under the canopy of tropical rainforest

Small wooden house of Arfak tribe in Kwau village of Arfak mountains

The small wooden house below is a typical traditional dwelling place of Hatam people. Hatam is one of the indigenous tribes who live in Arfak mountains of Manokwari regency in West Papua province of Indonesia. The house was built on a slope in Kwau village. I went there on 14 April 2011 with Ad Rappange - a tourist from Switzerland. Two crews from TOP TV - Nadia Siregar and Edo also went with us. Most of the traditional wooden houses have similar designs. The interior is not divided into smaller rooms like what we have in the city. The walls were made of bark reinforced with wooden sticks. The floor is made of bamboo supported by a lot of wooden posts. The Papuan do not use nails to join the wooden posts and beams. They tight them with split rattan. The houses do not have windows.

This traditional wooden house does not experience a lot of changes both in the design and method of construction. The only noticeable change that we can see in most of the houses is the roof material. In the past, the Hatam tribe used pandanus leaves as roofs. Now most of them have been replaced by corrugated metal roof called seng that is more resistant to rain. Because the houses do not have ceilings, the temperature inside the house is usually high during sunny days. 

The Hatam people like to grow flower around their houses. Although there is a high demand for fresh flowers in Manokwari city, they don't consider it as market or business opportunity. For them flowers are decorative plants that can beautify their houses and their Kwau village. The cool temperature in Kwau village makes the flowers grow well without any need of fertilizer. 

In recent years, villagers have constructed concrete houses in Kwau village. The concrete house actually is not suitable for them because the interior temperature will be colder at nights. However, they build the houses to show to other people that economically they are not poor. In most cases, I see that although they already have got a new concrete house, they still live in their traditional wooden houses that are warmer at nights. Kwau village is located on a slope in Arfak mountains some 1350 meters above sea level. by Charles Roring

Also read:  

Ceiling and windows of a wooden house

Wooden house frame from Minahasa;

Wooden house and alleyway of Kyoto

Wooden houses in Senopi

Wood as house construction material is still abundant in West Papua especially in District Senopi. From church, to villagers homes and from school to priest house, most of them were built with wood. The most popular tree for home building in District Senopi is Kayu Besi and Kayu Matoa. In the past, when chain saw and wood working machinery had not entered Senopi village, the indigenous Papuan built their traditional homes that were called rumah kaki seribu manually. The walls of these houses were made of barks whereas the floors were made of bamboo. For the roofs, they used thatched palm leaves. Today, we cannot not see that kind of rumah kaki seribu anymore. Most of the timber houses have been constructed from wooden blocks and panels that were cut using chain saw and other wood working tools.

The windows that we do not see in the traditional kaki seribu house design have been installed in the modern timber houses in Senopi. Many households in Senopi receive solar panels from the government as power resource for their radios and lamps. Unfortunately, the quality of these panels is low. Many of them cannot produce enough electricity anymore.

Although the houses are now using panels and blocks cut from big tree, their designs are not the same as the wooden houses that we usually see in Manokwari city. Most of the wooden houses in the city have floors made directly on the ground. Floors of Senopi houses are still around 1 meter above the ground adopting the traditional style of Rumah Kaki Seribu. The space under the floor allows air to flow freely and provides natural cooling for the house.  Wooden house is relatively an eco-friendly home. In addition, the empty space is mostly allocated for animals such as pigs, and chickens. So, it is not surprising if we hardly ever see any pigpens in Senopi. by Charles Roring
Also read: wooden house and alleyway of Kyoto

Wooden House Frame from Minahasa

Wood has been used as home construction materials since ancient times. Wooden house frame that you can see in this article is typically from Minahasa. The species of wood that is chosen for pillars is aliwoswos, besi (iron wood) and other hardwood that is available in the timber market. The walls are usually made of Cempaka wood (Elmeralia ovallis). People in the mountainous region of Minahasa choose wooden houses because they are more resistant to earthquakes which sometimes hit the region that is surrounded by several active volcanoes. Posts are strengthened or stiffened using braces that are bolted or nailed to the beams of the house to ensure that it will not collapse when hit by strong earthquakes.

Before the house is erected on certain location, its posts, windows, and doors have to be manufactured by builders in their workshops. They will build the house to check whether all the construction parts of have been made according to the request from the owner. When the house is complete, it will be dismantled and shipped to where it will be erected.
Because the wooden house from Minahasa has attracted a lot of buyers from various different islands in Indonesia and abroad, the length of the frames and other parts of the house has been shortened to fit the standard size of a big container. Customers who want to buy a wooden house from Minahasa have to make sure that the frames of the house have been cut from hard wood material such as iron wood or merbau. In addition, the wood panels should be from old timber. by Charles Roring
Also read: Wooden house from Kwau village in Arfak mountains