Podlasie have a magnificent natural countryside, in many instances unique in Europe. Podlasie lies North-east of Warsaw and is an unspoiled land of many unique attractions including the primaeval Bialowieza Forest and the marshy valleys of the Narew and Biebrza Rivers with a staggering profusion of wildlife.

The Białowieża Forest: land of the European bison
Some 200 km north-east of Warsaw, you'll find Europe's largest natural forest, the Puszcza Białowieska (Białowieża Forest - 150,000 ha, of which 65,000 belong to Poland, and the rest to Belarus), the last patch of the primaeval forest that once extended across the European lowlands. The Białowieża National Park (Poland's oldest, established in 1932) has been inscribed on the list of World Biosphere Reserves and the UNESCO World Heritage List (it is the only site in Poland that has entered both lists). For many years environmentalists have been suggesting that the national park should cover the entire forest (now only about 18% of it is under protection) as in Belarus, but no decision has been made yet.

The statistics are impressive: the Białowieża National Park is home to 21 species of trees (26 in the entire forest), 56 species of bushes, and some 5,000 species of other plants, often endemic, including over 3,000 fungi (almost 430 cap mushrooms), 277 lichens, and almost 200 mosses. As many as 11,559 species of animals have been counted so far (including 9,284 species of insects). The most famous denizens are the free-ranging European bison, but there are many others: wolves, lynxes, elks, wild boar, otters and ermines. The forest is also the habitat of wildfowl, its black storks, cranes, capercaillies, black grouse, snowy owls and eagle owls - a great attraction not only for bird-watchers.

Białowieża itself is worth a visit. It's an old village with traditional wooden houses and an Orthodox church (most of the two thousand residents are Orthodox Christians). It is a popular tourist and scientific centre and most likely the "best educated" village in Poland, with a staggering number of scientists (chiefly biologists).

Another place of interest is the Site of Power (Miejsce Mocy) near Białowieża. Amid oaks and pines, sometimes with multiple trunks growing out of the same roots, there is a mysterious stone ring. Diviners claim that it generates an exceptionally strong magnetic field beneficial for humans. This strange energy removes fatigue and relieves pain. Białowieża is said to be situated on a transcontinental radiation line which connects places like Gniezno, a legendary cult place in the Hartz Mountains, and a Catharist chapel in Druggelte, Westphalia.