Upon waking, my eyes were reluctant to open. The sunshine poured through the large bedroom windows of my hotel room – which oddly resembled an office space – and I was eager for another day on the road.

Much to our dismay, we had to skip breakfast as we were pushed for time. A long drive to the beautiful town of Barlinek , the Nordic walking capital
of Europe, lay ahead of us, where we were expecting to don our hiking gear and try our hands at the enjoyable sport. Don’t worry readers, I had no clue what Nordic walking entailed either (don’t Nordic people walk like we do?!), until enlightened by Marcin: two poles are used to propel, stabilize and support the
hiker. The drive was lengthy – 90 minutes in total. Marcin took the wheel, while I played DJ; I was frantically skipping radio stations to avoid being subjected to The Beatles once more. the view from the window was as stunning as ever.

Once we’d parked up at a rather official looking race track, and had been welcomed officially over the intrusive tannoy system, I was informed that I’d be starting in the race, which just so happened to be the Official Polish national championships! Nervously, I accepted and threw on the Barlinek T-shirt that I’d been given, much to the excitement of our tour guide.

I made my way to the start line as Marcin took up a position to film. Nordic walking is apparently a serious business in Poland! Tensions were high as competitors jostled for pole position. One athlete in particular stood with a certain arrogance, like the Usain Bolt of Nordic walking. It seemed that the winning prize of a bike and a shiny trophy was enough of an allure to eradicate friendly sportsmanship. Competitiveness, it seemed, was a universal mindset.

‘TRZY! DRUGA! JEDEN!’ and, with a thunderous crash, the race began. Walkers exploded from the start line, with sticks flailing in all directions. I walked for approximately 100m before bowing out, and allowing someone else to take the glory; after all, it would have been an injustice if I, a Brit, had won the Polish national championships.

Also present at the race was the ‘Queen of the Forest’, as
she was so labelled by our tour guide. A young lady, who had won the right to upkeep a tradition of Barlinek and dress in a floor-length green gown, awarded me a competitors medal. I posed on the podium before heading off for lunch. All this competing builds an appetite!

After admiring the palace of onions (named after the spherical roofs which adorned two turrets), we dined on potatoes, meat and gherkins, then headed to our accommodation for the night – The Barlinecki Ośrodek Kultury – for a welcomed chance to freshen up. The hotel doubles as a kind of cultural forum, sitting on a hill overlooking the touristic, quaint town, offering a range of cultural activities, from pottery and ceramics to cinema screenings!

We reconvened with our guide in the centre of town as the clock struck 2pm. He didn’t hesitate in demonstrating his passion for his hometown, identifying a number of town attractions. The first of which was a park, which sat on the bank of the broad lake, and was dedicated to the memory of the famous chess player, Emanuel Lasker, who was the world chess champion from 1894 to 1921. I had just enough time to defeat Marcin at chess, before our toor guide escorted us to the town’s museum.

We were treated to a great range of exhibitions! From scenes which depicted the town in a bygone era, to a glass box containing the world’s smallest Nordic walking poles, Barlinek museum appealed to the child in me and had me disappointed to leave. A treat was in store, however, and we made our way back to the large lake which extended into the distance.

After our motor boating experience in Szczecin, both Marcin and I were thrilled to take to the water once more, to explore Barlinek from the most rewarding perspective. In doing so, we also spotted the world’s largest Nordic walking poles, which stand erected on a bank of the lake. The sun shone brightly through the clouds, as our boat rocked with each wave. We admired the unending scenic views before setting course for the shore.