When visiting buildings, forts and ancient ruins we’ve all asked the common questions, such as “How old is it?”, “When was it built?”, “Who lived here?” and “What was it for?

These well scripted questions do not always work so well in Indonesia where many of the highlights of travelling across the archipelago are natural phenomenon — volcanoes, beaches, islands, lakes, endemic species, forests, stunning vistas and, for those who are bold enough to take a look under the surface of the sea, incredible coral reefs.

North Sulawesi has become known as one of Indonesia’s hot spots for scuba diving. Not only is it easy to access from both Jakarta and Bali, but it showcases all of the highlights for which diving in Indonesia is famous and the diversity for which it is renowned in one very unique area.

You’ll find towering walls in Bunaken Marine Park, incredible reefs adorned with kaleidoscopic soft corals around Bangka Island and let’s not overlook that downright freaky stretch of water known as the Lembeh Strait, which has even been dubbed as the “twilight zone” and the “critter capital of the world.”

With some 150 dive sites to explore in North Sulawesi and some of the most unusual marine life to see, exploring this entire area in a single trip is hard to picture.

One man named Hanny Batuna did spend an entire life time getting to know this incredible underwater paradise. He was one of the first ever divers to duck below the waves in this incredible area.

Not only did he dedicate a lifetime to exploring he also dedicated a lifetime to protecting this unique environment.

During World War II, North Sulawesi was occupied by the Japanese and at that time Paulus Batuna worked for the Dutch Government as an army doctor.

Through the course of his work, Paulus treated a Japanese officer who was responsible for army communications. As the war escalated, execution orders were said to be given for several personnel who were working for the Dutch. Among the list of names was that of Paulus.

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Paulus was saved by the Japanese officer who he had previously treated and it was because of that small miracle he was able to go on to raise four sons; two of whom became doctors as well as divers — Hanny Batuna and Sander Batuna.

Sander and Hanny would often joke about who was the first to dive scuba diver in North Sulawesi but following the war years they were influential in bringing not only conservation and diving to the region but also in bringing medicine and health education to the people of North Sulawesi.

Hanny and his wife Ineke went on to build their flagship dive resort Murex in the small village of Kalasey just outside of Manado, in 1988.

The dive resort is on the seafront with views over to Bunaken and Manado Tua and it sits in a lush tropical garden, which is rich in orchids, trees and local flora and fauna. It’s easy to imagine this being one man’s personal Eden where he could enjoy time with friends and family whilst surrounded by nature.

Hanny’s list of accomplishments

is considerable. Not only did he pioneer diving and create Murex, which stands as a legacy to him today, he was also behind The Serenade, which was one of the first ever “liveaboard” dive vessels in the area.

Hanny was at the forefront of marine protection and conservation in the Lembeh Strait and he campaigned, along with other marine activists, against the large fishing nets that were used there in the late 1990’s. He was even reported to have been in the water cutting nets in order to free trapped marine species.

The man was also one of the founders of the Lembeh Preservation Society, which later went on to form marine sanctuaries from Tankoko Reserve to Bunaken.

Read also: Diving, snorkeling contribute to harming Indonesia's coral reefs: Study

The area surrounding Bunaken Island (and Mantehage, Siladen, Nain and Manado Tua) became formally registered as a marine park in 1991, making it one the first marine protected areas in Indonesia.

These waters are home to over 390 species of coral and more than 1,500 species of fish as well as many mollusc, reptile and marine mammal species.

The park covers vertical walls, sea grass beds and the thriving coral reefs that Hanny came to know and love.

His accomplishments extended well beyond protecting the underwater realm of North Sulawesi. As a diving pioneer, he spearheaded diving and marine tourism in the province, which brought jobs and opportunities to local people in the area.

He taught countless locals how to dive and trained them in how to guide foreign guests around the reefs as well as training boat captains and staff at Murex Dive Resorts as well as those that went on to work elsewhere.

Diving tourism now thrives in North Sulawesi and is a major economy that employs a large proportion of the community both directly and indirectly.

Hanny’s daughter, Angelique Batuna, followed in her father’s footsteps and worked as a Project Manager for WWF Indonesia on the Bunaken National Park Project and more recently has been campaigning against illegal mining on Bangka Island.

Angelique said for her, her father is her hero, someone she could depend on at any situation, including in fighting for marine protection. “He taught me about courage and honesty. To fight for what we believe in,” she said.

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