Update

I just wanted to give you guys an update on what has been floating my boat recently... 

1) No Faking It - Since being on honeymoon I have somehow acquired a great tan, even though I didn't actually do any sunbathing and miraculously managed not to get burnt this time! I love the fact that I don't have to faff around with self tan and I can just enjoy being a darker hue of my self.  There's something about having a tan that makes me feel more confident, my makeup looks better and more even and I feel more glamourous whe I get dressed up for a night out.  I wore SPF40 every day all over my face and body while I was on honeymoon so I'm glad that I managed to get a tan the safe way.  Clinique Super City Block was a god send over the whole holiday because it's brilliant for protecting your face from the sun without blocking your pores and causing spots. Love it!

2) Silver and Taupe Eyeshadows - I don't know about you but as soon as I saw Kylie's video for All The Lovers, I instantly adored the pale silver and taupe combination on her eyes.  It went perfectly with the soft peach blushed cheeks and apricot lips!  I have tried it out a couple of times already with the eyeshadows pictured which are Korres White e/s and L'Oreal's Astral Taupe e/s.  The effect is just plain gorgeous and by adding some black liquid eyeliner to the upper eye lid, it just completes everything and emphasises the eyes in such a beautiful way.  It's a strange combination that I may not have thought of myself but try it out for yourselves!

3) Cetaphil - I finally discovered these wonder products for myself whilst I was in Hong Kong.  Me and Chris were strolling past a drugstore in the city centre and I spotted a pack of Cetaphil cleanser and moisturising cream.  I've heard about them alot in the past but its not always easy to get hold of them in the UK.  I snapped up a pack containing a huge soap-free cleanser bottle and a small moisturising cream tester for very dry skin.  The reason I was adamant I was going to try them is because the skin on my chin and upper lip had become quite dry due to all the sun exposure and I really needed some products that were gentle and would restore the moisture back into my face.  Within 24 hours of using these two products, the dry skin was gone! I LOVE these two products and if you have dry skin then check them out because they are amazing.  I've heard the cleanser is great for all skin types as well.

4) Macadamia Healing Oil Treatment - I said before I went away that I would be trying out this product as a way of protecting my hair from the sun.  You all saw the pics of my hair from a couple of years ago when it got frazzled on holiday.  Well this product single-handedly saved my hair on the honeymoon.  The temperatures soared to 40oC on some days and we spent most of the day walking around.  I applied a small amount of this treatment to my damp hair every morning and dried it as normal.  It acts as a natural sun screen and left my hair soft, smooth, super shiny and really hydrated.  My hair is in great condition at the moment and I put it all down to the daily use of this oil treatment.  It worked like a dream!

5) Mistresses - I have always loved this programme and when I saw they were doing another series, I was so excited! I think the acting and storylines are fantastic and it always leaves me on the edge of my seat.  I think it's great when a tv programme can really grip you and make you care about all the characters.  If you haven't seen the new series, you can watch all the episodes on BBC i Player here.  I would highly recommend it!  Don't watch it expecting it to be Sex & The City because it's definitely in a different place.  It deals less with fashion and frivolity and more with relationship dynamics.


6) Is it just me or does this video make you wanna round up all your friends and do a 'skip-off'???!

What is floating your boat the moment?

Honeymoon Pics Part 3: Hong Kong

This was the part of the honeymoon I had been looking forward to the most and we had a fantastic start when a lovely lady on the reception desk at the Shangri-La Hong Kong, upgraded our room and sent champagne and chocolates up on our first night!I knew I would have to be quick in getting a chocolate since Chris consumed around 4 all at once! Don't worry though, I got my fair share!

On our first day we decided to go to Ocean Park as we heard it was alot better than Disneyland in HK.  It has a Giant Panda, Red Panda and Gater sanctuary.  Above was the view of the other side of the park as we took a cable car across the hills.  I was slightly nervous of how up we were since the cable car was a bit rickety!

I could have spent hours watching the Giant Pandas, they were soooo cute and cuddly looking! The red pandas were unbelievably adorable as well, kind of like big red racoons.  I tried to get some good photos but it was really difficult to catch the Red Pandas since they are very fast! We went on lots of rides at the park and luckily we both love rollercoasters so we were in our element!

I persuaded Chris to get a souvenir from Ocean Park...a cute panda teddy that we named Xiong (pronounced Shawn) which means 'bear' in Chinese.  As soon as our friends saw it they wanted one too!ha ha.  Here's a pic of Xiong helping Chris to navigate around the park...

This is the amazing view of the harbour from our hotel room at night...it really was breath taking when we saw that view on our first night.  There's a laser show at 8pm every night too so that's always cool to see!

We also went to the Bird Garden were people take along their pet birds in ornate cages and hang them from trees...it's apparently a very old tradition.  Although all the guide books said this was a must see, we were quite saddened when we arrived and realised that there were alot of tropical birds for sale as well.  The big parrots were kept 10 in a cage and I was almost in tears looking at them.  No one had mentioned to us that there was such cruelty there.  We were disgusted to be quite honest and left.  I decided not to post pictures of this as I felt it was too upsetting.

We went up Peak Tower and this was the brilliant view of Hong Kong island from the top...

Here's us looking very windswept (notice the red blotchy mosquito bitten legs on me!)...

Chris often amuses himself by making faces at me! There were endless escalators to get to the top of Peak Tower...thank god we didn't have to climb steps!

We headed over to Lan Kwai Fong, a nightlife area with loads of pubs, bars and nightclubs.  We, of course, had to have a drink in an Irish pub! It was pretty quiet as we were there at 6pm...we thought we would start early!

The Phillipino staff, namely Avonne and Ryan, in the Irish pub were so lovely and friendly to us.  They really made us feel so welcome and chatted to us about the local area and where we should go.  It's meeting genuine people like that which can really make your holiday.

On our last day, we decided to go and see the Po Lin Monastry and Giant Buddha.  You have to get a cable car up to it and the views were just unbelievable...

As you can see, we were VERY high up but the cable car was really sturdy this time so I could forget my nerves and just enjoy the ride.  The cable car had a glass floor so you could look down and see everything as you passed over it.

There's nothing quite like seeing the Giant Buddha on the hill as you come over the last hill, it's pretty spectacular...

I thought the architecture at the monastry was really beautiful against the backdrop of the lush mountains...

There were 268 steps to reach the Buddha at the top...

It really felt like a very spiritual place and we both felt like this was our favourite day of the whole honeymoon.  There were 6 statues surrounding the Buddha called the offering of the 6 devas...

This was the view once you get to the top...we didn't know that Hong Kong was surrounded by over 200 islands...

This place was truly unforgettable...

There was also a 'Wisdom Path' that you can follow and apparently people walk this to reach enlightenment.  Once you reach the end of the path, you come across these wooden pillars arranged in a figure of 8 to represent infinity...

I was speechless at this point, you just have to stop and take it all in.

Once we walked back down, we went to see a presentation about Buddhism and where it all started.  Then the Shaolin Monks show that was on.  These guys are pretty damn impressive!

Overall, we felt that the Po Lin monastry has become quite a commercial area for tourists however nothing can take away from the amazing feeling you get from walking up to the Giant Buddha and the Wisdom Path.  You feel like you are connecting with nature because you are surrounded by mountains and lush greenery, I can see why this is a place of worship and a place of peace.

So that now concludes all our honeymoon highlights!  I hope you guys enjoyed seeing what we got up to and hopefully it will help those of you who were thinking of visiting that part of the world.  If you want any advice or tips, please just ask me!

Honeymoon Pics Part 2: Sabah (Borneo)

So the second stop on our honeymoon was Sabah in Borneo and I cannot explain to you how amazing this place was. 

When we arrived at the hotel, they struck a gong and a group of musicians started playing a little native tune - we felt like royalty! (until we realised that they do this every time new guests arrive!ha ha).  The hotel itself is quite open plan and the reception is more like a huge, beautiful wooden beach hut.  Above is the view of part of the hotel from the beach. 

It only took about 3 and a half hours to fly there from Kuala Lumpur so we weren't too tired to have a walk along the perfect beach before dinner.  It was a private beach and pretty secluded so there weren't too many people around.  We decided to sit and watch the sunset before going for dinner (this pic looks a bit like a sunglasses advert!)...

On our first day, I was sooooo excited to go and see the Orangutans in the sanctuary next to the hotel.  I have always wanted to see Orangutans for real and I was glad to see that they have a fantastic sanctuary for orphaned Orangutans.  You aren't allowed to touch, hold or provoke them which is good because that means they can be released back into the wild without becoming too used to human contact.  The biggest threat to Orangutans in Malaysia is Palm Oil plantations that ravage the landscape and leave less and less forested areas for the Orangutans to live.  Sadly, alot of Orangutans are killed by Palm oil plantation workers when they are found looking for food on the land.  This leaves poor little Orangutan babies alone and vulnerable and alot of the time, locals would take them home and keep them as pets either chained up or in a cage.  Thankfully people in the area are becoming more educated about why this cannot continue to happen and why it's so important to keep these amazing animals wild.  This guy is called Reg and he is 5 years old....

Although he is 5, he was like a little baby.  Although they try and keep human contact to a minimum, he had to be bottle fed when he was younger as he refused to eat on his own accord.  So he seems to think that one of the sanctuary rangers, Bedley, was his 'papa'.  It was amazing to see how much they act like humans and the expressions on their faces.  In this pic, he was begging Bedley for a hug, but obviously this kind of thing isn't encouraged.  He eventually gave up trying to get a hug off his papa and moved on to get a cuddle from his Orangutan pal instead.

We spent quite alot of time chilling out at the beach-side bar and every night, there was a peacock who decided he wanted some attention!

The sunsets at this place were something else and I never got bored of watching them, there's something kind of magica about that time of day when the sun bathes everything in an orangey, pinky glow (photographs NEVER do these things justice)...

I must admit that for alot of our time at Sabah, I had to get over any ideas of looking glamourous and don some cargo trousers and trainers.  We wanted to do some horse trekking along the beach and this was the first time Chris had done it (how nerdy do we look!ha ha)...

We messed around on the beach alot and this was my attempt to catch some air...

Once again, glamour out of the window as we were told to cover our legs and wear 'sensible' shoes whilst we did a canopy walk through the jungle...

We also went on a nocturnal animal watch where you sit in a hide in the jungle and watch all the different animals walking around.  That was really cool!  After a hot day in the sun, there was nothing better than an ice cold cocktail.  We discovered an amazing one called the 'Ocean Mojito'...delicious!

There were 4 individual pergolas on the beach and you could book to have a meal on one of them with your own personal butler to serve you all night.  We tried to book this but we were told that they were fully booked for the next few days.  However, we got a phonecall on our second last night to say that there had been a cancellation.  We couldn't believe our luck! We even did a nerdy little victory dance...yes we're THAT uncool!ha ha

It was such a special night and having the chance to have dinner alone and be waited on hand and foot made the night even more memorable.  Our butler was called Shardy and he was the most lovely guy who made us so comfortable.  He spent all night running back and forth and was genuinely interested in us as people.  Excuse the blurry quality of the photo below, just wanted to give you guys an idea of what the pergola looked like...

Shardy surprised us at the end of the meal with this dessert for us to share and Chris is such a chocoholic that he scooped up all the chocolate sauce writing!...

On our last day we took a boat trip out to one of the islands to go snorkelling...although I chickened out because I have a real fear of the open sea and the creatures that are lurking around.  If something brushes past my legs then I just freak out!  Chris had a great time in the water while I soaked up some rays.  The island we went to was beautiful...

We were sad to leave Borneo but I definitely wasn't sad to leave the mosquitos! That was the only bad thing that happened.  Not only did I get eaten alive but I found out pretty quickly that I'm actually allergic to Mosquito bites.  Luckily they only got my legs but I had at least 20 bites on each leg, they were swollen and VERY red.  It got to the stage where people were staring at my legs when I walked past.  It got me down a bit at first and then I just thought "don't be so stupid Laura, you're in an amazing place, just enjoy it and get over it".  I ended up having to go to the doctor when I got to Hong Kong to get anti-biotics and anti-histamines because a couple of the bites got infected...nice!  Even now, I can still see the marks on my legs but I guess you have to expect these things if you go trekking around in the jungle! Me and Chris have never been into spending a whole holiday lying on the beach.  We enjoy doing different activites especially if it involves nature...that of course comes with it's pitfalls but it doesn't change the fact that we had a fantastic time!

Honeymoon Pics Part 1: Kuala Lumpur

I won't bore you guys with every single pic we took on honeymoon (there WERE alot!) but I will post a selection of the best ones and talk a bit about what we did (not THAT kind of stuff! You lot have dirty minds!).

First stop on the honeymoon merry-go-round was Kuala Lumpur.  We were both really tired after the 12 hour flight but we were so excited to land and have a look around.  We stayed in the Shangri La in the city centre, it was very opulent and the staff were so friendly! It took a while to get used to being treated like a V.I.P and I kept feeling guilty about everyone running around after me.  We quickly realised that everything is pretty cheap in Malaysia so we went to town on romantic meals and treating ourselves to some shopping! Here's a quick look at our hotel...

Before we did anything, we both had a full body massage to try and sort out our swollen legs and ankles after the long flight.  It was heaven! Then one of the first things we saw was the KLCC Shopping Mall which had just about every shop you could wish for...Chanel, Jimmy Choo, Burberry, Gucci, Louis Vuitton, etc!

I was in makeup shopping heaven...

Next up was the famous Petronas Towers...

We popped along to the Chinese market and Chris was brave enough to try a 'fish pedicure'.  Basically it's a tank full of small fish that eat the dead skin from your feet...gross! They were waiting in anticipation for Chris to put his feet in, opening and closing their mouths...that was enough to put me off! Chris was wriggling around and said it tickled at first but then it became really relaxing...I'll take his word for it!

We also had a look around a bird park and met some new friends...

All the birds seemed pretty intelligent and were chattering away. The Hornbill on our laps was so funny, he was really chilled out and acted like a dog - he was quite happy being shown lots of attention.  I was a bit nervous of the big grey parrot on my shoulder though...I'm sure he was eyeing up my ear for lunch!

Here's the view of the Petronas Towers from our hotel room at night...

On our last day, we headed out of the city to see the Batu Caves, which is a Hindu temple and place of worship.  That day was a scorcher!...

It was a bit of a slog to get to the top in the baking heat...

I couldn't believe the amount of monkeys hanging around the place and they were so used to humans.  Often they would try and take food from your hands so I was keeping my ice cream close by!  Nothing was coming between me and my strawberry Cornetto!!!

All the walking around that day was a bit too much for Chris though...

We did loads of stuff in Kuala Lumpur but we'd be here day if I posted all of our photographs! We also went to a beautiful butterfly park, went up the KL tower, visited the palace and went to Chinatown. We really enjoyed our time there and I really felt like I learnt alot about the culture and history.  The thing I was most impressed about was the fact that there are so many different races and religions there but the people live in harmony with one another.  Everyone mixes together in everyday life and there doesn't seem to be any animosity.  There's not many places in the world that can say that.