By Nancy Nais
KUCHING, March 22: DayakDaily’s D’Drift 2023 team has begun their hunt for 12 historical forts across Sarawak from today to March 31.
In conjunction with Sarawak Tourism Board’s (STB) theme of the year that encompasses Sarawak’s heritage, DayakDaily has taken up the mission to locate all 12 forts from Kuching up to Limbang.
A team of three journalists led by Christopher Bishop with Sharon Ling Hui and Ashley Sim will uncover the stories behind these fortified buildings that remain standing until this day.
While the focus will be on the search for these forts, the team is also hoping to uncover some hidden gems in Sarawak along the way, such as unusual local delicacies and other interesting sights and sounds that the region has to offer.
D’Drift 2023 is DayakDaily’s fourth annual statewide trip, where the team will go on-the-ground to write at various districts, sub-districts, towns and settlements across Sarawak.
Officiating the flag-off ceremony at DayakDaily’s office today, Minister for Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts Dato Sri Abdul Karim Rahman Hamzah said he was excited to launch D’Drift for the fourth consecutive year.
He recalled D’Drift had visited several national parks in the previous years and how it was interestingly written to share their eventful experiences.
“I remember right after I launched the previous trip, on the same day they wrote about some places they ate at while they were on the road, and it was published the same day, even before they had reached the national park.
“They wrote about their experiences along the way, which I find very fascinating. Even if the place or food are not really that interesting nor famous, their art of writing and the way they described their experiences has turned it the other way round,” Abdul Karim said at the press conference.
He added that this is also a good way of marketing not only for historical sites, but also shops and restaurants at various stops on the journey.
Congratulating DayakDaily for an average of 40,000 readers daily, Abdul Karim asserts that it has played a large role in promoting tourism not just in Sarawak, but also throughout Malaysia.
“I can see that DayakDaily is very popular. I will make it a point to read it everyday because they are fast in disseminating the news as well,” he added.
Meanwhile, among those who attended the event were Sarawak Tourism Board (STB) chairman Dennis Ngau, STB chief executive officer Sharzede Salleh Askor and Sarawak Forestry Corporation (SFC) Head of Enforcement and Protection Madhan Kifli. — DayakDaily
