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Dumaguete is referred to as a university town because of the presence of four universities and a number of other colleges where students of the province converge to enroll for tertiary education. The city is also a popular educational destination for students of surrounding provinces and cities in Visayas and Mindanao. The city is best known for Silliman University, the country's first Protestant university and the first American private university in Asia. There are also 12 elementary schools and 9 high schools. The city's student population is estimated at 30,000. The city attracts a considerable number of foreign tourists, particularly Europeans, because of easy ferry access from Cebu City, the availability of beach resorts and dive sites, and the attraction of dolphin and whale watching in nearby Bais City. The city has a domestic airport which provides daily flights to and from Manila and Cebu City through Cebu Pacific and Philippine Airlines. The power source of the city comes from the geothermal plant in Palinpinon, Valencia. The city is also a focal point for telecommunications because of its redundant fiber optic lines serving as the landing point for fiber optic cables which links Manila, the capital of the Philippines with the cities south of Luzon. |