WHENEVER investment fund manager Leow Kah Shin needs time out from work, he will go to some of the remotest parts of the world for long, punishing runs.

His idea of a holiday is one which combines his two great loves: running and travelling. So far, he has run through the Sahara desert in North Africa, the dusty basins of the Gobi desert in Asia, through freezing Antarctica and the dry plateaus of the Atacama desert in South America.

'Cities bore me because they look the same everywhere. Such runs take me to places most tourists will never visit,' says Mr Leow, 30, who knows 20 other enthusiasts who run to see the world.

His digital camera, like his water bottle, is always within reach to snap scenery such as the sand dunes of Namibia, which he says change from golden to red depending on the time of day. He has taken pictures of leopard and cheetah paw prints in the sand, snakes and 'crazy- looking bugs the size of your fist'.

'You just have to stop and take pictures to capture the memories,' he says.

The time he takes to complete his runs is secondary to him. The adventure-seeker, who is single, says: 'I'm not out to win the race. It is a vacation and relaxation for me.'

For his holiday next month, he will run around Mount Blanc, the highest peak in the Swiss Alps in Europe, to see, touch and feel the mountain instead of admiring it from afar on a tour bus.He is not alone in thinking that an ideal holiday is to put one's body through the wringer and not being able to shower for a few days. There is a small group of people who put on their running shoes every time they want to see the world.

Read the full story in Tuesday's edition of The Straits Times, Life!