Friday, June 8
Universal Studios/
Islands of Adventure
Day 2
Jordan seemed to be back up to full snuff, so all four of us returned to Universal. This time we entered through the Islands of Adventure side. We headed for Hogsmeade to ride Flight of the Hippogriff, which was the only Harry Potter ride none of us had ridden yet. The wait was over 30 minutes, but it was before 11am, and the sun hadn't reached critical mass yet. I was very impressed by the animatronic Buckbeak that lies near the track. Although it is intended as sort of a kid coaster, it is a pretty fun ride. I enjoyed it more than Goofy's Barnstormers. Next, we rode Hogwarts Express. This was Jordan and Julie's first time riding it at all and mine and Jacqueline's first time riding it from IOA to the Studios. I had been told the experience is different both ways, and it is. The "window" scenes include Fred and George Weasley shooting fireworks while riding their brooms, and the shadow effects on the inner wall showed a dementor attack in the corridor. Pretty cool.
When we finished the flight, it was lunch time. Everyone but me wanted to eat at the Leaky Cauldron. It had substantially the same menu as the Three Broomsticks, and besides, I really wanted a Krusty Burger and a big pink donut! Remembering that this trip was part of my upcoming 50th birthday, the wife gave me her blessing to go eat in Simpsons Land.
After taking in a bit of the theming of the Simpsons area, I enter through the Moe's Tavern entrance and into the Fast Food Avenue food court. My choices were, Flaming Moe's, Krusty Burger, Cletus' Chicken Shack, The Frying Dutchman, Luigi's Pizza, and Lisa's Teahouse of Horror (just a grab & go section with salads and such.) I chose Krusty Burger. I almost ordered Sideshow Bob's Footlong hot dog until I noticed it came with onions and cole slaw. So I went for the Krusty Burger. I also got a Buzz Cola, which is basically Diet Cherry Coke. At the register, I noticed they had a few dessert items such as cupcakes and - there it was in all its unhealthy glory - the giant pink sprinkly donut! I knew there was a Lard Lad donut cart outside, but I didn't want to have to stand in another line, so I just grabbed it here. The place was full, but not so packed that I couldn't find a table. The Krusty Burger was actually good. Better than any McDonald's burger I've had, anyway. My lunch finished, I nibbled on my donut while looking around some more outside. In addition to many Springfield icons brought to life, I also saw two remnants of the ride that had occupied this area before Simpsons world was erected here - Back to the Future. There was Doc Brown's train and the ever-popular DeLorean, complete with Mr. Fusion. I found myself wishing I could hop in and ride it back to when the BTTF ride was still open. Oh if only things really worked like that.
When I had downed my donut, I texted Julie to check in. She said they were still hanging around Diagon Alley (remember Julie and Jordan hadn't got to see Harry Potter land on this side yet.) I met them in front of Grimmauld Place, and we decided to ride Men in Black Alien Attack, which was nearby. We had to do the locker thing again since all of us were riding. The queue was a fun way to revisit one of my favorite movies of the 90's. I got to see the big, oval viewscreen being monitored by the twins, (unpronounceable) and Bob. There was also, of course, a glimpse of the breakroom and the worm guys. I thought this ride would have a lot of video screen targets, but all of the targets are actual props, most of them animated. This made it a little more satisfying to zap those miserable bugs. But I really started to worry for Julie when the car started to spin. I hadn't seen that coming. But she survived. As soon as we got off, Jacqueline wanted to ride again. The wait was short, so I went on with her. Julie held the bag so I wouldn't have to use the locker again. Jordan waited with mom.
Next, both kids decided to ride the Simpsons ride with me. I knew ahead of time that this ride was not friendly to the equilibrium, so Julie (who never quite "got" the Simpsons anyway) did some exploring elsewhere. The queue was themed as the fictional Krustyland theme park, complete with video screen carnival booths manned by well-known Simpsons characters. When we finally got on the ride itself, it was pretty wild. It started as a roller coaster gone wrong and just went crazy from there (picture a giant Maggie terrorizing Springfield.) While we were riding, Julie sent me a text saying she had found the Hollywood Horror Makeup Show and was loving it. I was so glad she found an experience she could genuinely enjoy. After our ride through Springfield, the kids decided they wanted to ride Kang and Kodos Twirl & Hurl Saucers. While riding this, yet another Dumbo "round & round & up & down" clone, we got to hear some funny dialogue from these aliens that regularly terrorize the Simpsons Halloween specials.
The Noisy Cricket
When we met back up with mom, we pretty much decided we were done for the day. On our way to the exit, we passed by Hello Kitty, a longtime favorite of Jacqueline. So we got a shot of Jacqueline's only non-Disney character experience (not including the Marvel heroes. They were really for me, and besides, Disney owns Marvel now. And Emmet and Wyldstyle were only statues, so they don't count.)
It was just as well we were leaving; when we were a little more than half-way to the parking garage, it started to pour.
By the time we had gotten back to the Kissimmee area, the rain had let up. Julie had wanted to get some souvenirs to take back to friends and co-workers, so she stopped at one of the gift shops near our condo. I looked through their t-shirts. I was puzzled by a few of the designs I saw that seemed to present Orlando as a coastal beach town. They were probably not designed by Orlando residents. Sun, sand, sea, surf...Well, one of out four ain't bad. But it's possible that a lot of people who have never been to Florida may have this image of the entire state, not unlike the way some people think Texas is all one big desert. We got a few hats and keychains and went back to the condo.
When discussing dinner options, I mention that I saw a Red Lobster out near Target. The kids like to go there and look at the live lobsters in the tank. So that's where we ate that night. For dessert, we went back to Cold Stone Creamery. They were a bit busier this time, but still yummy.
We had still heard nothing from Legoland about the photo. I had considered going back out there if we got done with Universal early enough, but the rain sort of killed that idea. As the kids were getting ready for bed, I started assessing all the goodies we had bought and worried that our luggage might not hold it all. So I returned to Target to find a duffel bag or something. Southwest would allow us up to three more checked bags, but one would be enough. I thought I had found one for $30, but it scanned $50 at the checkout. The lady voided it, and I went back to see what I did wrong. The bag was hanging on the wrong hook, and they were out of the $30 one. So I found a $40 one and bought it. After another fill-up of Chachi gas, I went back to Windsor Hills and hit the hay.
