A TWO-WEEK break turned into a journey of a lifetime for a young Blackburn man.

Mohammed Nissar, of Davonport Road, set off on his mammoth journey in January of this year. He returned nine months later having visited 62 major towns and cities in the Far East, Australasia and North America.

The former Beardwood High School and Saint Mary's College pupil travelled alone for much of the time in some of the world's most dangerous regions. Nissar, as he known to many of his friends, told us, "People always asked me if I ever got into any trouble of any sort. I never did thankfully.

"I was supposed to go for a short holiday but I thought I might as well carry on travelling."

"I always wanted to travel after I had graduated because I knew when I started working I wouldn't get a chance like this again. I would certainly suggest it to any students who have a year between their studies to give it a try."

Nissar funded much of his travels through working in some of the places he visited.

"I worked for a while in Australia. But then when you begin travelling you can't really stop. I used planes, trains, cars, boats and even cycled to get around. But there is nothing better than simply walking from one area to another. Although a ten-hour jungle trek isn't for the faint hearted."

One of the highlights of his travels was a visit to the 13th century Anghar Temples in Siem Reap, Vietnam, and the infamous Killing Fields, of Phnom Penh, which featured in the 1984 Oscar winning film.

"The people in the Far East are some of the friendliest in the world. It was strange also travelling through different cultures in a very short space of time."

"Much of the time I stayed in youth hostels which I would suggest to anyone travelling alone because you end up meeting likeminded normal people."

Nissar's trip also saw him spend time in the United States where he was able to meet Muslims in Chicago. "I visited the mosque in downtown Chicago and spoke to quite few Muslims about life there in post September 11th."

"They were courteous and were very interested to hear about life in Britain."

Despite travelling in varying climates remarkably Nissar says he never got ill once.

"Sydney experienced it's coldest winter in 15 years whilst I was there. But I'll tell you one thing nothing compares to the winter chill in the North of England."

Whilst in Sydney, Nissar was also able to watch his favourite football team Blackburn Rovers lift the Worthington Cup at 4 o'clock in the morning. And what did he miss about home. Well, what most young men miss ... their mum's cooking!