My most recent cross off was my trip to......well, you can see by the title where I went! LOL
Go to The Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal studiesDrink butter beer at The Wizarding World of Harry Potter
One of the things that I was really jazzed about was the fact that this trip was free because I chaperoned a school field trip. Yea for a free ticket. The down side was this school function was Grad Bash and I would need to stay awake until 4:30 am!! I am not a up all nighter. I am more of an in bed and going to sleep between 9:30 to 10 pm!! But the draw of Harry Potter superseded my need for sleep because I HAD TO GO. I was like my pilgrimage to Potterhead Mecca!!
Can you see the utter excitement in my eyes?
I was so thrilled to be hanging with and be shown around by the fellow nerd, Amy! Only a true fan can appreciate the excitement with a first timer like me. We were basically joined at the hip the entire night in Hogsmeade or Diagon Alley.
We rode the new Hogwarts Express together which was pretty cool. We didn't know there was an additional show on the train going to Diagon Alley. Oh, well. Next time I'll see it!
Hogsmeade village was absolutely breath taking in both the day light and at night! I really wish I could have brought my DSLR to capture better photos, but I didn't want to lug it around all night (literally).
Amy and I were not huge ride people, but we did do the ride in the castle. It was a little intense with the jerking about and twisting. I am glad we didn't ride it on a fuller stomach!
As chaperones, we got to skip the student lines and go through the fast pass lanes! How awesome is that? I felt very important and I really liked the fact the Universal didn't seem "packed" like it would be on a normal visiting day. Another bonus.
I bought a swanky new shirt and a chocolate frog! Side note, the frog was $12! Very pricey for a block of chocolate. I kind of wish it would have been hollow and a little cheaper, but it was all about enjoying the experience.
In the battle of regular or frozen butter beer, I have to say I am on the side of frozen! It was delicious! If I go back to WWOHP, I won't even get the regular stuff.
Perhaps, my experience was a little tainted by the fact the regular butter beer was flat. Boo.
The newest part of the WWOHP is Diagon Alley. I think one of the coolest part of this area was the Gringotts Dragon. It looked amazing! The dragon breathed fire every 10 minutes and even though you are perfectly safe in regards to distance, you can definitely feel the heat from this bad boy! It's looked magically terrifying at night. It was also funny to see people's reaction who got caught off guard by the fire breathing.
One of things I wish I would have known about was the wand features! I will be taking part in this next time. You see, when you buy a wand at the park, they give you a map and instructions on where you can go to "make magic happen" with your wand. My nerdy senses were tingling on that one Granted, wands are a little pricey ranging from $25 to $35 so you have to willing to pay!
As the night went on to the wee hours of the morning, so did our energy level. I mean, we worked all day and then left from school to head to Orlando. A couple other chaperones, some random students, and us just chilled on this stoop, 12 Grimmauld Place, the last little bit of the night until the gates were opened to load up the buses.
If you waited around long enough looking at the window, you would see Kreacher, the house elf, peaking out the window. It was a little creepy!
All in all it was a great experience besides the sleep deprivation! I am so happy to have been asked to go. I really felt like my 30 Before 30 list was a strong motivator to say yes to experiences like this one rather than my usual ho-hum nights.
I will conclude this blog post with a most fitting quote:
I was so thrilled to be hanging with and be shown around by the fellow nerd, Amy! Only a true fan can appreciate the excitement with a first timer like me. We were basically joined at the hip the entire night in Hogsmeade or Diagon Alley.
We rode the new Hogwarts Express together which was pretty cool. We didn't know there was an additional show on the train going to Diagon Alley. Oh, well. Next time I'll see it!
I bought a swanky new shirt and a chocolate frog! Side note, the frog was $12! Very pricey for a block of chocolate. I kind of wish it would have been hollow and a little cheaper, but it was all about enjoying the experience.
The newest part of the WWOHP is Diagon Alley. I think one of the coolest part of this area was the Gringotts Dragon. It looked amazing! The dragon breathed fire every 10 minutes and even though you are perfectly safe in regards to distance, you can definitely feel the heat from this bad boy! It's looked magically terrifying at night. It was also funny to see people's reaction who got caught off guard by the fire breathing.
As the night went on to the wee hours of the morning, so did our energy level. I mean, we worked all day and then left from school to head to Orlando. A couple other chaperones, some random students, and us just chilled on this stoop, 12 Grimmauld Place, the last little bit of the night until the gates were opened to load up the buses.
All in all it was a great experience besides the sleep deprivation! I am so happy to have been asked to go. I really felt like my 30 Before 30 list was a strong motivator to say yes to experiences like this one rather than my usual ho-hum nights.
I will conclude this blog post with a most fitting quote:
What's next off my 30 before 30 bucket list? Family vacation.....stay tuned.
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