What are the odds that when I was in Georgia for the art event, and then spending some time at the Guncles, that my sis, Terry would just so happen to be in Orlando visiting from Utah with her hubby?
Well, actually pretty good, They are season pass holders at Disney and spend a lot of time there. And what are the odds of me turning a business trip to teach at Jekyll Island into an Orlando visit?
If you know me, you know that I cannot resist a trip to the happiest place on Earth!
Terry and Dale invited me to join them at the condo they rented while there, so I added a couple of days onto my trip and took them up on their generous offer. I had my own room, and balcony, and we were just down the road from Disney and Universal.
While I am a Disney Girl, through and through, I do luvs me some Harry Potter too.
By the way, since i was a teen, before even developing my obsession with going to the parks, I adored this song: Disney Girls
Every inch of the two HP themed areas are awe-worthy. I just wish the displays were what they were offering for sale….
Such cool, old stuff. Witchiness and wonder everywhere.
The rest of the park was interesting and I enjoyed walking through and checking it out. While well done, and fun to see, the rides are a little rougher and MUCH MORE SPINNIER than at Disney World. And outside of Hogwarts and Daigon Alley, there isn't the same magic as there is at Magic Kingdom. (well, it is in the name there, after all, right?)
There aren't as many shows, but we saw the animal training show and the Hollywood horror make up show. And at that one, they pointed out that there were differences in the two parks. As the actor heckled a small child and threatened to send a monster after him, he said, "This isn't Disney, we don't have to be nice to kids here"
It was pretty funny, and spot on.
Magic always wins with me. I could have just sat on a bench and absorbed HP Land for days on end without tiring of it. So I know I will go back again sometime.
But I will avoid the rides.
They are not for me there. I should have known that when you are required to put all belongings in a locker before getting on, that they plan on spinning you around so much that they are afraid you will lose all of your stuff.
By the way, the locker rooms are horrid, over crowded, free for alls that are dangerous to try to maneuver through.
I was spun a little bit, no a LOT, too much while visiting Hogwarts. I loved the lines going in and the castle itself, and should have stepped aside then. But no, I wasn't that smart. I have no idea what the ride even was about, I had to squeeze my eyes closed as tight as I could, because if I had a glimpse of that 3-D screen while being gyroscoped in every direction, I was afraid that I would vomit on my own head while upside down.
When I got off, it wasn't much better, I was discombobulated, and had to be escorted and propped up by my dear brother-in-law to a bench. My theory about motion sickness it to ignore it as much as I can/get fresh air/walk around/ think of something else/ do not let it ruin my day.
But as a senior citizen, which I apparently now am, and a vertigo survivor, my theory isn't as helpful as it used to be, and I took a nose dive into that hideously crowded, overheated locker room and face planted into a locker.
Here I am a week later, after I'd found out that the reason I couldn't just walk off the headache and motion sickness was that I'd given myself another concussion. My Dr. said I should get a helmet or bubble wrap if I was going to be landing on my head a lot, I had just gotten over a concussion a few weeks earlier.
So, I made myself an Easter bonnet with bubble wrap. (side note, Easter was a couple of weeks ago, how long is it acceptable to still be sweeping up Easter grass around the house??? That stuff is more insidious than glitter.)
