What is your favourite form of physical exercise?
‘Walking is free’ a former colleague of mine stated when asked what his favourite hobby was. He loves walking and has been walking through several countries in Europe and even got stranded in a snowy forest Sweden once.
Walking is free, yes, but how did you get there in the first place?
I remember keeping the strength in my eyeballs to not rolled back into my skulls. Walking is free, yes, if you have a ‘strong ‘ passport and the means to do so – I had neither at that moment.
Eight years later, here I am, together with my partner, we are ‘walking’ and thoroughly enjoying it too. So far, we walked up a few hills in Transylvania, strolled along the river Danube through a few old streets in Bratislava and Budapest, hiked the Kumano Kodo pilgrimage route (Nakahechi), scrambled along the coastal shore in Pohang etc. We are now in Taiwan and have been wandering up the hills here and there.
Do I agree with him that walking is the best hobby because it’s free? Yes, but to be able to walk in many wonderful places is still a privilege.
I can’t deny that walking in the local areas can get us further and further away from ‘home’ but we won’t be here if I hadn’t unlock a strong travel document that allows me (and us) to go visa free in most countries around the globe.
So, yea, walking is my favourite form of physical activity. Whether it is free or not is depending on where you want to take your feet to … I guess.
