On the 2nd February we left for New York - EJ had to fly that night to Perth, Australia and I was to stay in the Crowne Plaza hotel as I was going to a course (which was fantastic) for 2 days (3rd and 4th) with Joel Roberts.

~ Shawn & Chris's Apartment ~ ~ Brooklyn, NY , USA ~

Joel was the No: 1 radio talk show host in LA and now teaches how to get yourself ready and professional for the media - how to make your language concise, how to do an PR interview... etc.

I learned A LOT about myself from observing others!!

I would highly recommend working with Joel and his team if you are about to appear in the public eye - this guy is AWESOME.

From there Joyce, a wonderful woman I met at the course dropped me off in Brooklyn and I spent a GREAT night with Shawn, E.J.'s sister.

Shawn and I reminisced and talked about life and experiences, and then laughed over a Friends rerun (the one of Ross and his "sounds" episode) and then Frasier.

The next day we hung out together in the apartment and I left at 7pm for the airport, for my 2-day flight back to sunshine.

On that morning in New York there was a snowstorm - I didn't think I was going to make it.....but I did!!! So after being stuck on the Brooklyn bridge for 2 hours behind an accident I get to Newark Airport and after a flight delay of 1 hour I'm in the skies at 12 midnight.

I fly by EVA airways - which is a Taiwanese airline. (The food was very strange!)

I am now back in KL. It's hot and cloudy.

I fix up the apartment for Mum and Dad coming tomorrow.

Good morning. It is the 9th February and it is 7.20 am.

For some reason I seem to be waking up early in KL - not that I am knocking that - I have always wanted to be an early bird.

~ Lisa, Stewart and Carol ~ ~ Kuala Lumpur ~

I am on day 7 of my 9-day separation from EJ - so I'm into the home stretch.

I went to the airport to pick up my Mum and Dad last night.

It is so great to see them - and my Dad brought me FUDGE!!!! (3 batches!!!! YYYYYuuuummm!!)

There's a photo of us above.

Last night Mum, Dad and I wandered around the apartment complex and then walked up to the restaurant at the end of the road.

Dad ordered Sweet and Sour chicken, I had my usual Chop Choy (mixed vegetables) and Mum decided to be adventurous and order seafood noodle soup.

She didn't quite get what she thought she would... but it kept her quiet for an hour!!

She practically had a bowl full of noodles, which were really hard to eat - it was amusing to watch.

So we headed to bed around 10: 30 pm and I am hoping that they had a quiet night - sometimes night here can be a little noisy with barking dogs and crowing cockerels!! (I put 2 sets of earplugs beside their bed just in case.and there's no sign of noise from them yet, so fingers crossed!!

~ Raffles Hotel, Singapore ~

This is a picture of it on the left.

We go on Sunday night, they will see EJ a day earlier than they think they will, he's flying into Singapore directly from Perth...

I'll tell them either tonight or tomorrow.

In the meantime take care and I'll let you know what happens.

We had a great day yesterday. Mum, Dad and I went touring around KL and I couldn't believe it - we saw so many things that I didn't even know existed and I have lived here for 3 months!!!

We first went to the Colonial District and Merdaka Square. Merdaka Square is surrounded by amazing architecture. It was a very hot day, and we found ourselves many times sheltering in the shade.

We visited the Central Market, lots of Malaysian crafts & walked around.

We made our way to the Petronas towers (World's highest building).

~ Petronas Towers ~ ~ Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia~

We had a beautiful lunch and I handed Mum an envelope with tickets in - she studied them and then screamed OH!! Tickets to Singapore. they were so surprised it was lovely to see.

We looked around the shopping area and then went up to the "skybridge" in the middle of the towers - E.J. and I didn't even know we could do that - we had been told you could only go in the morning!!

(Don't believe everything you are told in life - explore things on your own - new motto!)

My camera batteries ran out just as I got up there, but I took photos when I went the next time with my sister Catherine,you can check them out here: The "Skybridge" at the Petronas Towers.

The sight is amazing from 44 floors up!

We came back - EJ called from Perth and he's meeting us tomorrow at the airport (hurrah).

Dad got his hair cut.

I haven't told you yet how amazing that experience is.

You get your hair washed at the mirrors as you are sitting up - your head gets shampooed and massaged for about 10 minutes.

Next you get it washed and massaged for another 10 minutes at the sink.

You then get a head, neck and shoulder massage for about 20 minutes - your hair gets cut and before it gets dried you get a back massage again for another 5 minutes - it is a brilliant experience.

The whole thing costs £5.00. Dad has never had a massage - I didn't realize that there are a lot of men (and women) out there who have never had a massage.YOU NEED TO GET ONE THIS WEEK - IMMEDIATELY - YOU WILL LOVE IT AND IT IS GREAT FOR YOUR BODY, MIND AND SPIRIT.

We were up early and set off for Singapore.

There was a beautiful view of a Mosque by sunrise and our plane left around 9am. The flight to Singapore from KL takes 40 minutes.

At the other end, E.J. is waiting!! He has a driver there and we head into Singapore.

Still Mum and Dad have no idea they are going to stay at Raffles Hotel!

We distract them as the taxi pulls into the Hotel: Dad says: "He's pulling in!" and we say

"Welcome to your Hotel for the night - Raffles."

We check in and discover that, through a wonderful friend Victor Kim - who is the chief engineer, we have been put in the PRESIDENTIAL SUITE. This is the best room in the Hotel.Michael Jackson slept there.

It is luxury personified.exquisite, heavenly and we settle quickly in, as I'm sure you can imagine! You can see our photos of Raffles here: Luxury at it's best, Raffles Hotel

We take a tour around Singapore on the Hop On Hop Off Tourist Bus.

Our first stop is Merlion Park: Merlion Park Experience. This is the half mermaid- half lion statue that guards the port. Did you know that Singapore port is the busiest in the WORLD!

The sun is shining, there is a display of Taiwanese Dancing and we decide to charm some snakes!!!.

Evidence to be found here: Merlion Park Experience.

Here's Dad - looking like he is having fun! Emphasis on the word "looking"...

We boarded another bus and headed for Orchard Road - this City and Country is, as you know from our previous visits, so hi-tech - there is a lot to see. We decide to go back to the Hotel and relax there - we have a glass of wine on the balcony - which is ALL OURS! A quick jacuzzi before we get dressed for our evening out.

All in all we had a great day. It is not difficult to sleep in Raffles - the rooms as you can see were glorious.someone turned down our bedcovers and the mat by the bed said "goodnight" as you faced the bed and "good morning" as you got out the next day.a each person had a pair of slippers by their bed.

Thank you Victor and the team at Raffles for a truly memorable experience.

Many famous people have stayed there. Our Presidential Suite normally comes with it's own CHEF as well as dining room to seat 30! I bet there have been some parties there before now! EJ and I go off tech shopping and Mum and Dad lounge around in the foyer sipping Singapore Slings. We come back to see them very comfortably resting themselves and looking very happy!

We lunch with Victor in Doc Cheng's restaurant, which is ANOTHER AMAZING EXPERIENCE. The manager Desmond is a great host and he takes pictures, presents us with souvenirs, photos and a coffee table book of our visit - the food is delicately presented and I have LAVENDER TEA - I would have it again for sure - very relaxing.

Back up to KL and we finish off our tour and Mum and Dad leave for Thailand for a REST!