Any true blue Singaporean would know that our nation gained independence on 9th August 1965, and that we have cultural enclaves like Chinatown, Little India and Kampong Gelam. But there’s much more to our heritage than just these basic facts.
To understand your identity as a Singaporean better, it’s time to take a deep dive into your roots with Heritage Hunter Volume 2. It’s a virtual treasure hunt that will bring you all over pages on Roots to solve riddles until you find a hidden chest. Plus, you’ll stand a chance to win prizes like a smartwatch or a 2D1N staycation at a heritage hotel when you do. Here’s how to get started:
Image credit: National Heritage Board
This virtual treasure hunt will have you working your noggin like Sherlock Holmes. Come 22nd February 2022, get your first clue on National Heritage Board’s Instagram or Facebook page. You can even go directly to the landing page of Roots to start your game from there.
Click on this scroll for your first clue
Solve the riddle based on the clue, which could be in the form of written word, video or a pixelated visual, then look for the corresponding webpage on Roots.
Hint: Don’t limit yourself to just cultural places you know – your clues could be pointing you towards items, people and even legends.
Look out for these gold coins to move on to your next clue
You’ll know you’ve hit the right webpage when you scroll down to the bottom and see a gleaming gold coin. Click on it and it’ll reveal your next clue. Again, search through the website for your next gold coin, and repeat these steps until you find the treasure chest.
Once you’ve located it, you can congratulate yourself for winning your first virtual treasure hunt on Heritage Hunter. Fill in your details to secure your spot in the weekly lucky draw.
Don’t dawdle on this hunt as the clues are only valid from Tuesday to Sunday, 11.59PM weekly. But no worries if you’ve missed the deadline, you’ll get a fresh batch of clues and new chances to win on 1st and 8th March 2022.
While it’s virtual treasure you’re hunting, your conquests will translate into actual prizes IRL. Each week, there’ll be three winners who will walk away with $100 in shopping vouchers each, and one who will get a smartwatch worth $599.
Even if you aren’t picked for the weekly prize, all successful entries will be pooled into the grand lucky draw. This time round, the winners can set their sights on bigger prizes:
If the last time you learnt about Singapore’s heritage was on a school excursion, it’s time to rediscover the rich culture this tiny red dot has to offer beyond just whatever you may find in your history books.
By playing Heritage Hunter Volume 2, you’ll get to learn more about everyday things intrinsic to our collective Singaporean culture. Take the recent Chinese New Year celebrations that just ended for example. On Roots, you can read about how yu sheng came to be, and why lion dances – loud as they are – are welcomed performances each year.
Fun fact: Modern day yu sheng is just a year older than Singapore, having made its debut on the second day of CNY in 1964
These are just the tip of the iceberg on Singapore’s heritage. It’s easy to go down the rabbit hole of Singapore history with articles on hawker centres, and award-winning town planning in Tampines. Take a look around if you haven’t already, you’ll be able to play a fun game, stand a chance to win prizes, plus learn something new about Singapore along the way.
This post was brought to you by National Heritage Board.
Photography by Loo Jie Ling and Clement Sim.
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