North Maluku - Indonesia

North Maluku is a province in Indonesia. Province of North Maluku is commonly abbreviated as it consists of several islands in the Maluku Islands. North Maluku province consists of 395 islands large and small. The island is inhabited by as many as 64 pieces, which are not inhabited as many as 331 pieces.

It covers the northern part of Maluku Islands, which are split between it and Maluku Province. Maluku Province used to cover the entire group. The planned provincial is Sofifi, on Halmahera, but the current capital and largest population is Ternate Island. So, the capital of North Maluku is Ternate.

In the sixteenth and seventeenth century, the islands of North Maluku were the original “Spice Islands”. At the time, the region was the sole source of cloves. The Dutch, Portuguese, Spanish, and local kingdoms including Ternate and Tidore fought each other for control of the lucrative trade in these spices. Nutmeg trees have since been transported and replanted all around the world and the demand for nutmeg from the original spice islands has ceased, greatly reducing North Maluku’s international importance.

In North Maluku the land makes up just 15 percent of the area’s total surface. In many places the surrounding seas could be thousands of meters deep. North Maluku is in a transition zone between the Asian and Australian fauna and flora, and also between the Malay-based cultures of western Indonesia and those of Melanesia.

North Maluku sits astride one of the world’s most volatile volcanic belts. The region has known more than 70 eruptions in the last 400 years. Tremors and volcanic eruptions are by no means rare events at present. Many islands, in fact, look from a distance like volcanic cones rising right out of the sea.

The old sultan’s palace in Ternate town is now a museum and one of the tourism object. In the vicinity are the ruins of Old Portuguese, Spanish and Dutch forts. The remnants of the Dutch Fort Orange are right in town. About five kilometers west of the town, on the slope of a 1,715-meter tall volcano in the middle of the island, is Afo, with its giant clove tree, said to be more than 350 years old.

Halmahera island as one of the main island lies to the east of Ternate, separated only by a narrow strait. It is a mountainous island, still largely covered with forests. The coastlines are white sand and coral reefs are found in its waters. Offering a beautiful spectacle, Mount Mamuya (930 m) spews burning lava from time to time, adding to the allure of this island. Pearl oyster breeding farms on Mangaliho Island can be reach by motorboat.