Harry Potter
Mouseketeer
- Joined
- Feb 2, 2011
Wednesday, April 19th - Later That Morning
Universal Studios OR Where the heck is everybody?
We enter U.S. and it's like a ghost town. It's eerily empty and I almost feel that we have stepped into a "Twilight Zone" episode. Where is everybody? Oh, I know exactly where they are! I'm exaggerating, of course, but the crowds are much, much lighter here. A few people here. A few people there. You can run down the street and not have to worry about eventually colliding with people (My son tried this). We finally stop for coffee, orange juice and muffins and take it outside the shop. It also feels that it's easily ten degrees cooler here than it was in IOA.
Perhaps I'm just giddy with the caffeine and low crowds. It's almost as if we have U.S. to ourselves and I love it!
We walk for awhile ... Just walking with no real plan. Even though I've never set foot in U.S. before, things are looking familiar. I'm getting a New England beach town vibe and I know that wherever we are, the Jaws ride isn't too far away.
Now, "Jaws" is a movie that gets a lot of play in our house, as it's one of my husband's top ten favorite movies. In fact, the only reason he agrees to go to Martha's Vineyard is because "Jaws" was filmed there. It was out of character for him, but my husband once happily climbed aboard a coach bus for a two hour plus tour of the Vineyard and places that had anything to do with the filming of "Jaws". But of course he laughs at me anytime I suggest heading up to Maine for a similar tour involving Stephen King movies.
The line has a 5 minute wait (A.K.A. It's practically walk-on). And ... The ride is hokey. It's cheesy and campy ... Not that cheesy and campy is always bad. I suppose for the younger set or those with a genuine fear of water and sharks, the ride can be intimidating. I was expecting high thrills and chills. It's good fun, though, and we all have some laughs. In my opinion, I wouldn't wait for this ride if it's 30 minutes or more. It's just not worth it (My opinion, again).
Now, the sequence of the following rides are in no particular order. Because of the light crowds, we were running nilly-willy from one attraction to the other:
Men In Black: I loved this. Think Toy Story Mania, but better (IMO). I received a horrible final score, but only because I was having so much fun spinning and looking at everything.
Beetlejuice Music Revue: More hokey, cheesy fun, this time with Charlie Sheen and Lindsay Lohan jokes thrown in. Definitely a PG-13 kind of show. My daughter rolled her eyes more than once during the show. I thought my husband would be giving me The Look during this show (You know, that "Are You Serious?" look), but he loved it. And I'm sure the Zombie Girls and their skimpy costumes helped, too.
Terminator 2: Ugh. Whose idea was this? Too loud and I really wasn't paying attention. My husband and son loved it, though. Not too far away was a gift shop where you can snap pictures of various movie props, including "Alien" and "Terminator".
E.T.: Cute. Very cute, though I was expecting a tad more (specifically more "scenes" from the movie). Fittingly, you board a bicycle ... And that's where the plot line left me. Are we saving E.T.? His planet? No matter. I loved the music, though, as I always do when it's composed by John Williams. You give your name to a Team Member as you board the ride and at the end, E.T. welcomes you home by name.
The Simpsons Ride ... Another ride makes my all-time favorite list
I had a feeling I was going to like this ride, but I didn't expect to love it as much as I did. I'm coming to find out I'm a Simulator Ride kind of gal and this is one simulator ride that doesn't disappoint. It also has one of the funniest pre-shows I have ever seen. You also laugh all during the ride, thanks to Homer Simpson. I sort of previewed this ride on YouTube. I couldn't see much, but the comments were full of high praise. Because this ride has a rollercoaster scene, my son thought it was an actual rollercoaster. He freaked out just before the ride began and my husband and he were escorted out. My daughter and I rode, loved it, laughed ourselves silly and told my son he would have nothing to worry about. We hopped in line again and my son and husband loved it. Definitely our favorite ride after FJ.
Our stomachs are rumbling, so we head to the Beverly Hills Boulangerie for lunch. Delicious sandwiches (We all ordered tuna salad with lettuce and tomato on croissants). They also come with potato salad, strawberries and a slice of cantaloupe. Delicious desserts, too. My husband bought a black an white cookie (More "Seinfeld" memories) and it was on the money. Guests seated around us had a slice of cheesecake and a luscious-looking kiwi tart. Great view, too, as we sat outside to eat. A parade passed by and we could see the Betty Boop shop/I Love Lucy tribute museum (!) across the street!
The I Love Lucy tribute museum is a must for any Lucy fan ... Or any fan of vintage television in general. My daughter fell in love with Lucille Ball on this trip and we have been happily watching I Love Lucy episodes together ever since.
More rides/attractions in no particular order:
Shrek 4D: Very cute. The seats move up and down, water sprays (I believe smells, too) and there were lots of laughs from the audience.
Jimmy Neutron: Another fun, simulator ride. The kids loved it, given their love of anything Nickelodeon. Sorry to hear that this ride is leavning.
At one point during the day, we were stopped and asked if we would like to step inside a wonderfully air-conditioned builing, watch and rate a TV show intended for the fall line-up and make $10. We were a bit hesitant, but achy feet and sweaty bodies finally won out. We watched a show (Whitney ... Quite, quite funny, though a bit raunchy at times) and then answered questions (All via a computer). Voila! $10 each ... That we of course blew on souvenirs later that day. While we did this, the kids were seated with other kids and were watching some Potter film. "Half-Blood Prince" maybe?
Souvenir Time!
I first buy my MIL a mug. It's black, depicts Hogwarts, and the gold worlds "The Wizarding World of Harry Potter" appear when liquid is added. Cool! I buy myself one, too, as well as a plain-looking black mug that just says "The Wizarding World of Harry Potter" in gold letters. You know by now how much I like my coffee!
And so another day ends. One more day left.
I am surprised you liked The Simpsons as much as you did. I personally found the queue area better than the ride itself. I think it is old skool simulation and when you compare it to a Spidey or a FJ it doesn't come off very well.
I wish I had bought enough souvenirs to create a movie room of HP stuff. All I bought this year was a Gryffindor scarf and a few keychains. I did plan to buy various shot glasses, but I couldn't see any.
And MIB I think spins too violently. I get scared when it spins because I think I'm gonna fall out. I stop shooting until it stops spinning, as I just have to hold on!
And I'm a thrillride fan! I have never got more than 300,000 on that ride, although pressing the red button before any of the others in your ride vehicle will earn you a bonus 100,000 to your total score.Loving the trip report, really well-written. Seems like you had a good time, and especially good to hear you loved FJ! Best theme park attraction in the world!
Again, I apologize for the delays. This is the first Trip Report I have ever written and I had a great time doing it. As I've said in the past, there is a different vibe on the Universal boards. Not that the Disney People aren't great (They are), but I find that the Universal threads tend to be a bit more patient and a bit more relaxed and down-to-earth. As more than one Universal poster once wrote to me: Come to the Dark Side ... We have cookies. If this is what the Dark Side is all about, I'm in. And your cookies are delcious. 
