Anniversary #3 (Part 3 - Universal Studios)

Universal Studios
Alright, it's not Disney, but as a Harry Potter fan I felt a sense of duty to see if Universal could measure up to the amazing world I've imagined. We got up early and took a Mears bus from Disney to Universal. (Planning tip: you can get a great deal on transportation if you purchase a bus/theme park ticket here). 

Forbidden Journey
Forbidden Journey was first on our list. It reminded me of doing Toy Story Mania in the morning. I'm always torn between the excitement of finally getting to ride the attraction and enjoying the queue. The queue for Forbidden Journey feels like it's a mile long, there are many large different rooms to walk through. There was a huge greenhouse room to represent the botany classes.  Indoor rooms included castle scenes with moving portraits, huge statues of the 4 houses, and rooms where hologram characters passed along messages to guests in the queue. There was even a pensieve.


Luckily, it wasn't nearly as crowded as it could have been and there was hardly a line. On the other hand, we ran right through queue so excited that I'm sure we missed some other great details.


The ride itself was nothing short of amazing. If I had to describe it (and that's difficult to do), I would say it's similar to the motion/flying effects of Soarin' with huge screens before you. We flew in and out of the castle, over the quidditch field, through dragon nests! However, it was not peaceful, like Soarin'. There were parts that were jerky and terrifying, reminding me of Dinosaur from Animal Kingdom. Spiders and dementors thrust themselves at the riders and chased them. I can't explain the thrill. Suffice to say, as soon as we exited the ride, we ran right back through the queue to ride it immediately again!

Hogsmead

After all the excitement of surviving the Forbidden Journey (twice!), we cooled off with some butterbeer. It was very sweet (not a problem for me, I've got a big sweet tooth), and tasted a bit like cream soda and butterscotch with a foamy marshmallow topping. (Last summer my girlfriend and I attempted to recreate an adult version here.). 

I was a little disappointed in the size of the village. It was not designed with large crowds, or even medium crowd levels, in mind. Despite the cute storefronts, many were just that: a front. There were only a few stores patrons could actually enter. And once inside there was very limited space to move around. Honeyduke's was visually pleasing and Zonko's joke shop was cute. We didn't dare attempt Ollivander's wand shop as the line was out the door and then some.

My brother and I rode each of the former "Dueling Dragons" while my mom and husband (not being rollercoaster fans) hung out at the Owlery. We had lunch at the 3 Broomsticks and the theming and food were good. I was a bit baffled that there was a well-decorated 2nd floor, but it was not available to guests. The restaurant sure could have used more seating up there. 

Overall, it was a good time. We don't go to Universal every year, but try to go every couple of Disney trips. 

Other Universal Notes

• Spiderman and the Hulk attractions did not disappoint!
• My mom, being a big "I Love Lucy" fan, was tickled pink to run into their "characters" at the park. One of my favorite moments is when Desi planted a big kiss on her. Unfortunately, we zoomed in too much on that photo and cut out Lucy looking shocked (think Home Alone).

Anniversary #3 (Part 1)

This is the trip where I felt like my Disney obsession went up a few notches. I had finally discovered Touring Plans, spent months creating the perfect spreadsheet of our vacation, and started branching out beyond the typical Disney must-do's.

I distributed copies of the agenda to everyone. We were able to split up and meet back for dinner reservations.

This trip we went with my mom and brother. Once again the free dining plan was offered, but you had to stay in a moderate resort to get the Table Service plan. So, to really get in touch with our inner child, we picked the Caribbean Beach Resort for the pirate bedrooms! 

The grounds were beautiful, the pirate pool was fun, and I loved the theme. However, when the Magical Express dropped us off at the Customs House to check in, I did not realize how spread out the resort was. When the CM who checked us in informed us we could take a resort bus to our room, I naively ignored her suggestion, thinking a brisk walk would let us explore and see the resort. Big mistake. Although it was a relaxing vibe, the walk around the lake to get to our building was nearly a mile.


Despite listening to a shockingly negative review (via DISunplugged podcast) about the resort's only sit-down restaurant, Shutters, (read about it here), we wanted to give it a try our first evening. Sad to say, we had nearly the same experience as the reviewers. Despite an Advance Dining Reservation, we waited about 30 minutes after our ADR time for a magical slip of paper to print out of the infamous little box at the podium before we were seated. The service was okay at best, the food wasn't terrible, but it wasn't great. I'm glad we tried this resort once, but we'll likely never return. 


What was NEW

• To humor my mom, we tried the Sci-Fi Diner so she could relive her drive-in days. Although this restaurant sometimes gets poor reviews, the atmosphere was so much fun, it doesn't matter that I don't remember what I ate. They played clips of old, corny sci-fi movies and commercials for the refreshment stand. It was a hoot to eat in the cars. The photo below is one of my favorite memories. My brother was supposed to take a picture of just Bill and I, so my mom lied down in the back of our "car" to get out of the picture. However he didn't zoom in enough and we got this hilarious photo of my mom peeking out instead. Classic Disney memories!

• We went to the boardwalk for dinner at Kouzzina. Although the service was really slow, the food was delicious. I am the total opposite of a vegetarian and have always said I could eat a steak every day. Well, with the Disney Dining Plan, I can and do! I had a delicious steak and despite the slow service I would definitely go back. It was also fun to walk along the boardwalk, get some fudge and watch families ride around in bike carriages. Oddly, the funniest moment of the night was when I hailed a cab from the Swan/Dolphin resort. My mom looked at me incredulously and asked "Where did you learn to hail a cab?" and without missing a beat I replied "Sex In the City". Naturally. Oh, the things you learn when you take family vacations as adults.

Tasting plate at Cat Cora's

• I was thrilled that Via Napoli opened about a month before our visit. The first morning Via Napoli was available for reservations, I got up early and locked us in! We love the 3 ovens and the pizza was great. I didn't even miss my steak that night! 

• Another first was the Spirit of Aloha luau dinner. Bill and I hadn't explored the Polynesian resort before. They put on a decent show. We were lucky to be seated towards the front. It seemed they looked to give everyone an opportunity to get up on stage and dance with the Polynesians. "All the kids!", "Anyone with a birthday!", "Couples!", "Just because!". Once again, I was enthralled by the fire twirler (is it possibly the same guy from Festival of the Lion King?).