This is hard work!
I got through about 4-5
unread threads tonight.
And have 15 more to go.
I think I'll have to pause that
so I can write a little bit.
I'll get to your TRs...
but it's gonna be a while.
Let me tell you...
When you first walk into
Diagon Alley... you stop
dead in your tracks.
You're not just in a
Theme Park anymore.
You are actually in the
same land that Harry trod upon.
I wanted to experience Universal
as much as possible without
having to lug a camera along.
So my phone will just have to do.
It was pretty fun, but also
pretty rough.
It was nice to get away
from the usual burgers
or chicken strips.
The Simpson's ride was fun,
if a bit nausea inducing.
After Gringott's I think it was my fave.A little ET was in order.
And in case you forgot...
Yes, it was still stupid hot out.
Then she stopped...
"Playtex? I mean Latex...
Playtex is a whole other monster."
She said it. Not me.
Don't shoot the messenger.
Her response was:
"Watch it. I don't have to
be nice to kids...
this isn't Disney."
You can take a turn down
Knockturn Alley.
Well, it's an awful lot of fried food.
Which would you have chosen??
I kept thinking "He's going to
figure out that he's annoying
everyone around him, right?"
Thanks, Meghan.I just went through this, myself. It can be a long haul for sure! Good for you for making headway. We'll all still be there whenever you get to the others.
No apologies necessary.8 Pages behind... sorry.... will have to comment on the chapter at hand so I can get caught up as my weekend wanes.
Did you enjoy it???But I did enjoy this one a lot having just gotten to Uni for the first time myself.
100% agree with this. I've heard it said they've out-Disney'd Disney.... I'd concur.
Funny.Don't apologize for phone photos; some of my best photos ever were on my I-8.
Oh, no!Yeah... my poor neck!
As do I.Which I try very hard to not do ever at theme parks!
Uh, oh.This was probably the MOST puke-inducing ride I went on.
After Gringott's I think it was my fave.
I agree.May NEVER relented one day. It was FAR hotter than this month, or at least felt like it.
Even better! HAHAH!
Nicely done.
I tend to do this:Which I just avoid if possible. I'll make a rare exception but really have to be in the mood!
That's what I thought.Single. Otherwise WAY more awkward with the "Why are you here?" vibe.
That guy.Some people.
Sheesh it's like you don't know where are areReally... shouldn't vacations be more...
restful?
Yes, definitely the exemplary bag check. We usually stay across the street and walk over, which takes you in near valet parking and I've never seen more than two other people in line there. It's so fast!You get checked when you
get to the dock
(complete with metal detector
and x-ray scanner)
and once through, you're
good to go in either park
or CityWalk.
And since there are far fewer
people boarding from any
resort at one time,
you don't see the nightmarish
Epcot-like bag check lines.
Adding this to my pkondz parenting advice journal in the off-chance that we ever have kids. I came here for trip reports but am leaving with sage parenting advice. Thank you, The Dis.Never pass up a chance to mock
your children.
It builds character and a looming
sense of resentment.
where the main feature seems to be
a bearded hipster eternally vomiting.
It's in my top 3 favorite rides anywhere of all time.We both loved the ride.
I've never been on! I've come to despise water rides in my old age. I wonder what the new ride will be like.It's an okay ride.
One and done,
for us though.
Maybe juuuuuuust maybeMaybe the storyline is better?
Oh wow that's beautifulBut there was this sweets shop.
Definitely not.But probably not.
Well, I don't like bag check,
per se... but I do like how
Universal does it.
You get checked when you
get to the dock
(complete with metal detector
and x-ray scanner)
and once through, you're
good to go in either park
or CityWalk.
I was pleased that there was
no wait, as I wanted Elle to have
the chance to see what the
standby queue looked like.
The ride does afford you with
a wonderful view of Hogwarts.
That alone makes the ride
worth trying at least once.
I was the intelligent one
who went with the frozen.
I'm not saying Elle is dumb...
But yeah, she was dumb
to not get the frozen one too.
I liked that ride.
I liked how the action swung
from one side of the car
to the other.
We headed for Seuss Landing
and hopped onto The Cat in the Hat.
You'd think, though, after seeing
all the warnings posted for this ride,
that it was the most violent and
frightening ride in the entire park!
It was slow, it was relaxing,
and it afforded the rider
with nice views of the area.
As we made our way to the train,
a father with wife and two girls
in tow asked.
"Do you need a ticket?"
Our last dinner on property
was at Vivo, an Italian restaurant.
While we waited, I noted
the clever cheese grater
lighting fixtures in use.
Very nice!I snapped a few shots of a virtually
empty park as we quick-walked.
Pretty(taking one last shot
of the castle as we left)
Noted.First up...
"You're a sick park"
(The J is pronounced "Y", you know.
It's German.)
Yes. I'm always hungry...Are you hungry?
The best way to ride! No waits!We rode Forbidden Journey again.
Why not?
There was over an hour wait,
but with our Express passes,
we were in line at 11:50
and on the ride at 11:59.
Wow!! So many warnings!!You'd think, though, after seeing
all the warnings posted for this ride,
that it was the most violent and
frightening ride in the entire park!
Nice shot!!And, here:
(For all of you lamenting
my lack of a shot of the
dragon breathing fire in
the previous update.
So there.)
Sure did!!Did you see it in this chapter?
See them both?
THAT is such a cool reveal! I was amazed when we were walking through Hogsmeade and then BAM there was the castle. Love your picture of it, too!We rounded a corner
and Hogwarts soared
above us.
Think my principal would mind if I made that my Kindergarten class mantra?Always put your kids down.
It helps build a strong backbone.
One thing I really like about
Universal is the bag check.
Well, I don't like bag check,
per se... but I do like how
Universal does it.
You get checked when you
get to the dock
(complete with metal detector
and x-ray scanner)
and once through, you're
good to go in either park
or CityWalk.
And since there are far fewer
people boarding from any
resort at one time,
you don't see the nightmarish
Epcot-like bag check lines.
We zipped through the
Not-So-Lost Continent.
Meh. Been there many
a times when crossing
a border.
Wait... that's incontinent...
No! That's not it either!
Kinda the opposite actually.
Okay... so this was new to me too.
Ah! Looks like Gryffindor
is leading in the points,
with Slytherin close behind.
Ron: "I once lost a set of car keys.
That's how Mad-Eye Moody
lost his eye."
Hermione: "Ron! That was you?"
Ron: <Hangs head in shame.>
I was the intelligent one
who went with the frozen.
I'm not saying Elle is dumb...
But yeah, she was dumb
to not get the frozen one too.
And if you look closely enough,
you'll spot Stan Lee
(the creator of Spiderman)
appearing in the ride four times.
(I think I spotted him three times.)
While we waited, I noted
the clever cheese grater
lighting fixtures in use.
"Why are we so early?" She asked,
clearly shocked and puzzled.
"That's rope drop, baby!" I exclaimed.
How early????at seven a.m.
Yes, they should...but you're involved.Really... shouldn't vacations be more...
restful?
See? You're involved.Apparently, not so much.
Wow...kinda lazy, doncha think? Ya'll were close.We decided to take one
of the boats from our
resort to the theme park.
Glad it wasn't a capitol idea...you were in the wrong city in Florida.(Which turned out to be
a capital idea!)
I realize EPCOT is old, but you would think they could (okay they could, would) have improved this by now.you don't see the nightmarish
Epcot-like bag check lines.
So, you got the VIP Uni transportation pass too??A boat pulled up as we
were going through.
Perfect timing!
I was thinking I could see the twin props on the seaplane and was thinking pkondz aviation was expanding.You can see the twin
towers of Dr. Doom's Freefall
Yeah, as I said, you were that close to the park, but yet you took the boat.off to the right.
We were that close to the park.
Yes, she does. Are you sure she's not older than you say? I don't know too many her age that isn't grumpy pants when they don't get to sleep until noon.Doesn't she look just a
little too chipper for eight
o'clock on a vacation morning?
Relatively close is good. Relatively speaking.we were still relatively close to the
front of the line.
"That's rope drop, baby!" I exclaimed.
Muwaaahhaaahaahaaa. I've heard that laugh....And then laughed in her face.
, but only the good ones.Because that's what parents do.
Exactly. Also, never pass up a chance to do a dad joke. Everyone loves those and when they groan, it's really just groans of approval like when I scratch my dogs belly.Never pass up a chance to mock
your children.
It builds character and a looming
sense of resentment.
Virtually empty is good. Virtually speaking.I snapped a few shots of a virtually
empty park as we quick-walked.
Pssst....pkondz....your age is showing....the memory is the first thing to go...followed closely by bowel control. You don't have long to wait for your initial statement to be correct. At least we didn't have to see the border crossing look.Wait... that's incontinent...
No! That's not it either!
Kinda the opposite actually.
Okay... so this was new to me too.
I'm gonna go out on a limb and say not so much.Not exactly a glowing recommendation
for eating there, is it?
So, you were your normal self, eh?With elbows flying, feet
kicking and teeth gnashing,
I see it. It's really a Q-36 and she's really Marvin in drag.That lady is definitely
holding her phone in
a rabid-crowd type of way.
I think they're Marvin's sidekicks.And those three guys?
Vicious. Blood-thirsty.
I kinda understand this, but I think this is party what has kept me away from universal...having to stash everything for every ride is not my ideal park experience.You have to leave everything
you ever owned or wanted
to own in those lockers or
you can't ride.
You know, I've never seen any Harry Potter movies (except for maybe 2-3 minutes when my daughter was watching one), but I do know the Kardashians aren't magic...in my opinion pathetic, albeit pathetically rich.Statues honouring various
wizarding VIPs were on display,
such as the Architect, House
founders and Kardashians.
See...now I don't want to go to Uni....I know nothing about the rules and I would rather keep my body parts intact.Passengers who fail to
bow to him are quickly
disembowelled.
Her father's daughter?I was the intelligent one
who went with the frozen.
I'm not saying Elle is dumb...
Ja, ich wusste, dass(The J is pronounced "Y", you know.
It's German.)
Nooooo....I find that sooo hard to believe.(I may have taken some licence
with the accompanying texts.)
I think I'd like it too. We're close to the same age.Toon Lagoon was next up
and… while there aren't any
(dry) rides in the area,
it appealed to me.
Probably because so many
of the 'toons were familiar
remembrances from my
childhood.
You've raised a violent child. And Canadians are supposed to be polite. Sheesh!Elle didn't appreciate it
as much and tried to
get rid of it all!!!
Nope, but I know who!You know what?
Nice to meet you hungry. I'm Doc.I'm hungry.
No!! I already told you, I'm Doc.Are you hungry?
So, wait...you multiplied? Would that make you an amoeba?We were hungry.
I'm not a big split pea fan...leek an potato sounds better, but I don't know what else they might have had either.Leek and potato for Elle
and split pea for me.
Not bad, too!
I've heard many folks say Hulk is the best coaster there, but will remember...front half.It's definitely not for the
faint of heart!
And... word of warning.
We rode it once while
seated at or near the
very front.
We loved it!
So we rode it again
and were seated at the back.
It was much rougher and
we came off the ride feeling
not overly great.
Huh? What? Mama always told me I was special. Can't get much slower.Okay... time to slow things down.
You mean WEDway? I might like this...WEDway is one of my favorites at MK.Our next ride was...
The High in the Sky Seuss Trolley Train Ride!
This ride is similar to Disney's People Mover...
But much slower.
Yeah, probably not. Pictures or it didn't happen.I may have gotten a
peanut butter cup cookie.
But probably not.
Umm, dude...pretty sure you just incriminated yourself...picture!
Frozen better...check!Butterbeer!!!
(And the kid wised up
and ordered the frozen.)
Is this similar to Up in AK? The guy in that show was right behind me once and I thought the bird was going to take my head off.Elle wanted to see how the animal
show ended.
So we watched it again.
This time we were close
to the guy in the audience
that the bird flies up to.
Next time you're in town, we'll have to have you over and have DW make Italian for you. You will be spoiled.I ordered the classic Bolognese.
(Which was, unfortunately,
just okay. I expected better.)
Don't mess with a hangry just older than teenager."Okay, hang on...
I think I want a better
angle and maybe take
the spoon out and...
WHAT ARE YOU DOING???"
Seaplanes and brooms?And...
Did you see it in this chapter?
See them both?
(Not including the two
altered warning signs.)
Guaranteed. He/She will love the idea.Think my principal would mind if I made that my Kindergarten class mantra?
Well, at least for you it was only a second...I'm perpetually confused.Ha! You had me confused there for a second...
Never had frozen or not...guess I'll have to break down and try the dark side.Couldn't agree more. Frozen butterbeer is where it's at!
How old? Mine are in their 20s and 30s and still waiting. Just sayin.ONE DAY she will see the wisdom and thank me!! Still waiting
I generally find that less knobs in my life is a good thing.More Brooms, Less Knobs
As much as I enjoy vacations in Florida, they have been anything but restful. I come home feeling like I need a vacation from my vacation.Really... shouldn't vacations be more...
restful?
I didn't know that. I like how they have it organized. Another point for staying on site at Universal.Well, I don't like bag check,
per se... but I do like how
Universal does it.
You get checked when you
get to the dock
(complete with metal detector
and x-ray scanner)
and once through, you're
good to go in either park
or CityWalk.
I must have an awful lot of character by now.Never pass up a chance to mock
your children.
It builds character and a looming
sense of resentment.
I thought it was interesting you walked to Hogsmeade that way. It's they way I've gone too. But it seems like a lot of people take the Toon Lagoon route. I think it's pretty much even distance wise. But I really like walking around Seuss Landing.Seuss Landing looked fun,
but would have to wait
for later in the afternoon..
We had a broom to ride!
I have never seen it so empty! Of course it's been 5 years since I was in Universal, so I suppose crowds have thinned a bit. But it just goes to show the importance of rope drop.With elbows flying, feet
kicking and teeth gnashing,
we fought our way through
the rabid crowds to our...
Those Kardashians are everywhere. I still can't figure out why.such as the Architect, House
founders and Kardashians.
Imagine if they had put Gryffindor in last place. The uproar!Ah! Looks like Gryffindor
is leading in the points,
with Slytherin close behind.
Frozen. Always frozen.I was the intelligent one
who went with the frozen.
I'm not saying Elle is dumb...
I've never done it. That drop is just too intense for me (I assume by looking at it).We rode You're a Sick Park
River Adventure.
We got slightly moist.
(We rode in the back.)
We moved on.
It's an okay ride.
One and done,
for us though.
I don't think I ever noticed Stan on the ride. If I get back there I'll have to look for him.And if you look closely enough,
you'll spot Stan Lee
(the creator of Spiderman)
appearing in the ride four times.
(I think I spotted him three times.)
Nope. I can't do the Hulk. I'll stick with BTMRR thanks.It's definitely not for the
faint of heart!
I've been on the ride more than any other in Universal. My youngest DD loved it (and probably still would). She would always ask to go on the track that goes inside the restaurant though.Our next ride was...
The High in the Sky Seuss Trolley Train Ride!
This ride is similar to Disney's People Mover...
But much slower.
I've been missing them completely, but finally saw both this time.And...
Did you see it in this chapter?
See them both?
(Not including the two
altered warning signs.)
Need to come visit me Jeff and we'll go to the beach or KSC or whatever. Based on what you've said, I understand why...since it costs so much, you try to squeeze in as much as possible in The time you have...that is exhausting to anyone brotherAs much as I enjoy vacations in Florida, they have been anything but restful. I come home feeling like I need a vacation from my vacation
Let it go, LET IT GO!!!!Frozen. Always frozen.
Our second day at Universal Orlando
started with the alarm waking us
at seven a.m.
Really... shouldn't vacations be more...
restful?
One thing I really like about
Universal is the bag check.
Doesn't she look just a
little too chipper for eight
o'clock on a vacation morning?
Elle asked what time it opened.
"Nine o'clock." I replied.
"Why are we so early?" She asked,
clearly shocked and puzzled.
"That's rope drop, baby!" I exclaimed.
Never pass up a chance to mock
your children.
It builds character and a looming
sense of resentment.
We zoomed by Mythos restaurant
where the main feature seems to be
a bearded hipster eternally vomiting.
Not exactly a glowing recommendation
for eating there, is it?
We wisely chose to change our
decision to dine there and eat elsewhere.
With elbows flying, feet
kicking and teeth gnashing,
we fought our way through
the rabid crowds to our...
um...
destination...
And those three guys?
Vicious. Blood-thirsty.
Touring is a cut-throat
business, folks.
We quickly dumped our
belongings in the provided
lockers and headed into
the standby line.
You have to leave everything
you ever owned or wanted
to own in those lockers or
you can't ride.
Ah! Looks like Gryffindor
is leading in the points,
with Slytherin close behind.
Dumbledore: "Those who have
failed to leave their belongings
in a locker, have had tragedy
befall them.
Most notably that they were sent
to the back of the line to
deposit their belongings
before once more
recommencing the arduous
trudge to the ride."
Ron: "I once lost a set of car keys.
That's how Mad-Eye Moody
lost his eye."
Hermione: "Ron! That was you?"
Ron: <Hangs head in shame.>
Doesn't the Sorting Hat look
particularly peeved?
Perhaps you would too if your
entire existence was to sit on
the smelly, sweaty, pimple-laden
heads of pre-pubescent children?
It's a cute but short little
coaster reminiscent of
Barnstormer.
"Everyone, hands in the air!!"
Oh, right... they're too busy
holding in their intestines.
"You're a sick park"
(The J is pronounced "Y", you know.
It's German.)
I liked that ride.
I liked how the action swung
from one side of the car
to the other.
Another area that Universal
is a bit more... creative
is their use of warning signs.
In Disney you pretty much
only have the "No Dancing"
signs.
In Universal... they up the game.
(I may have taken some licence
with the accompanying texts.)
While Transformers was hectic
and unenjoyable, this one seemed
to follow a more coherent story-line
and was a great ride!
You know what?
I'm hungry.
Are you hungry?
We were hungry.
It's definitely not for the
faint of heart!
And... word of warning.
We rode it once while
seated at or near the
very front.
We loved it!
So we rode it again
and were seated at the back.
It was much rougher and
we came off the ride feeling
not overly great.
Elle had to sit down for
a while in air conditioning
before she felt better.
And wonders of wonders...
When you get off the ride...
No gift shop!!!
The show was entertaining enough
with a mix of live action, projections,
water features and fire.
As we made our way to the train,
a father with wife and two girls
in tow asked.
"Do you need a ticket?"
Dude... this may be the most
expensive ride ticket you ever buy.
See that box wayyyy at the top
of that pile?
That's mine.
I told them we'd come back later.
And that was it for
Universal theme parks!
While we waited, I noted
the clever cheese grater
lighting fixtures in use.
Did you see it in this chapter?
See them both?