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Djibouti

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The country of Djibouti is named after its capital and largest settlement. The city is located in the eastern part of the country on the Horn of Africa, approximately 21 km (13 m) northwest of the Somali border.
The Port of Djibouti is strategically located at the crossroads of one of the busiest shipping routes in the world, linking Europe, the Far East, the Horn of Africa, and the Persian Gulf. The port serves as a key refueling and transit center, and is the principal maritime outlet for imports to and exports from neighboring Ethiopia.
Lake Assal is a crater lake at the top of the Great Rift Valley, some 120 km west of Djibouti city. A saline lake, it lies 155 m below sea level in the Afar Triangle. It is the lowest depression on the African continent and is one the world's largest salt reserves.
Lake Abbe also known as Lake Abhe Bad, is a salt lake on the border of Ethiopia and Djibouti. Lake Abbe is the center of the Afar Depression and is largely inaccessible. Stretching for 10 km (6 mi) it comprises a vast landscape of salt flats, covered in clusters of massive, steam-blasting limestone chimneys. Other than Mount Dama Ali, a small dormant volcano, the landscape is almost completely level.
Djibouti's location adjacent to the Red Sea makes it an ideal base for exploration of the area's abundant sea life. The Gulf of Tadjoura and Seven Brothers Islands off Djibouti are home to soft coral reefs and an array of marine creatures.
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