Sassagoula Billy
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Jun 30, 2010
With wands in hand, we exited through the Owl Post. Its the only covered respite in the Wizarding World, but keeping with the ridiculous theming, even a simple rest area is more than meets the eye. Yep, you will find owls up in the rafters, flapping their wings ever so slightly and hooting from time to time. And be sure to look before you sit, you may find a surprise!
Before embarking on any more shopping, we stopped off at the Flight of the Hippogriff. For the walk-on that it was, its a brisk (20 second?) little rollercoaster. And dont underestimate the power of a supposed kiddie coaster. Lengthen the track out, and Id put it on par with the intensity of Space Mountain. Milder than most adult coasters, but kids watch out! So, its surprisingly entertaining for an adult. However, if the queue were any longer than a walk on, Id skip it. It was nice to see Hagrids Hut up on the hill, and Buckbeak makes a brief appearance before the lift. I wish I could have posed for pictures with him! Oh, and one other thing: you are allowed to bring bags and such with you on this ride, so had we done a little more shopping prior, it wouldnt have been a problem.
We could hear the Hogwarts quartet (sextet including two of the most grotesquely adorable frogs) singing just outside the castle, so I stopped to listen while the SO took more pictures of the surroundings. I caught the tail end of Something Wicked This Way Comes and a new song. The performers were soaked in their heavy robes (I dont care what I read in regards to their lightweight design, these kids looked like they had swum the English channel), but blended beautifully; another unexpected gift from the Universal wizards.
Our next stop was Zonkos and Honeydukes, and another long line for both (they share a common space). Bah.
But the cast member waiting outside the door had a delicious sense of humor and even sported a British accent. Come to think of it, I heard a lot of that around. Most sounded bonafide to these Yankee ears, but maybe some were just getting in the spirit. A lot of us were trying to enter through the exit, and he said, Thats the exit. You wanna leave so soon? Maybe you had to be there, I thought it was a riot. Even on our way out, I asked if it was the right door to which he replied, Ill let you through just this once. Here he is, standing in front of the Owl Post across the way:
On the Honeydukes side, I was tickled by the design details the circular staircase in the corner of the shop (from the books) and sickened by the utter lack of space. Somehow, Universal managed to make the smallest, narrowest aisles known to humankind. There was more bumping, pardon me, and embarrassing hand placement than Ive ever known anywhere. But oh what colorful candies! And a wall of fill-your-own-boxes of Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans. Chocolate frogs with wizard cards, chocolate-and-mint frogs in a jar, cauldron cakes at the bakery counter, the list goes on and on.
Over in Zonkos, one could buy all sorts of joke items that were either mostly original to the store or directly lifted from the books/movies. I bought a Sneakoscope, a chocolate frog, and some Every Flavor beans. I was this close to trying a cauldron cake, but couldnt think of getting once more into another long line. I wonder if I could have ordered one of the Honeydukes bakery items from the Zonkos counter on the other side. Oh well. But my mind was putty. Not so much due to that particular morning, but you have to understand that wed been going 7 am or earlier every morning the entire week.
Following a stop at the Public Conveniences...
...where I heard Moaning Myrtle clear as a bell from within the walls, it was back to Filchs Emporium of Confiscated Goods for some additional shopping. Despite the crowds, we were able to get in with more ease than any of the other shops. Again, it was the World of Disney of Hogsmeade at a whopping, I dont know, 300 square feet? I kid. Not really. Ollivanders on the other hand, was a wash. I knew we should have done it first, all the planning and reading had prepared me for that. But the kid within me got the best of my planning and kicked it aside after whooping at the castle, the Butterbeer and the shops.
As soon as we wrapped up our final purchases, which included a Golden Snitch (could have bought a quaffle and bludger to go with it!), an amazing Marauders Map Mug (all relief and amazing), a Wizarding World T-shirt (see photo of the SO) and a slew of Grand Opening pins and other such things, we struggled down Hogmseade toward the exit. Or in this case, the entrance. Wish we could have entered the land that way, as it was intentionally designed to be entered. But I guess that will have to wait for a less-crowded visit.
Random shot of yours truly in front of Orlando's new castle (I think Cinderella has a timeshare here now. I tell you, DVC cannot be tamed):
Random shot of Hogwarts express:
There was one other thing that we both purchased before leaving, however, and that was the ubiquitous pumpkin juice. Have you guys seen the bottle/packaging for this? Its like Trader Joes, except with uh, magic. The bottle has a little plastic pumpkin twist-off cap at the top, and if it werent 101 degrees right now as I type this, Id go into further detail. But Im swimming. I went for a walk during the first part of my lunch break. Three blocks in I thought did I just vaporize? Its all kinds of hot in New York right now. Like, Houston Ill wrestle you for the win. Anyway, Pumpkin Juice tasted like ice-cold apple cider mixed with nutmeg and bits of pumpkin pulp. Absolutely refreshing and so counter to the usual summer snack-cart libation; it was kinda like Christmas in July. Since the bottle is a similar color to the drink, I had no idea the SO had secretly decided against this one, too. At least hes consistent right? I wish hed told me though, because by the time Id found hed barely touched it, the contents were boiling. So, two butterbeers for me, one pumpkin juice. And one boiling pumpkin potion for Snape, who, by the way, was nowhere to be found in all of the Wizarding World. Nor Minerva McGonagall for that matter. Licensing schmeisensing, I say. A Harry Potter land without Miss Jean Brodie and Alan Rickman is in dire need of expansion. And Im sure itll bleed into whatever that next land is to the WWofHP's right at some point. No picture of pumpkin juice, but I kept the bottle so I'll include a photo in my next installment.
All in all, it was hard to pull ourselves away from Hogsmeade. But the sun at this point was stronger than in Fantasias Rite of Spring sequence where the dinosaurs collapse into extinction. I watched blissfully from afar as more and more lemmings marched joyously into the castle. I wondered if they were well-equipped for the greenhouse that lay ahead. Remember when FastPass was first introduced and not everyone got the memo that it was included with admission? Hordes of irate people stood in the standby lines, foaming at the mouth as countless people swooshed past. Some of whom laughed and gloated, saying fastpass fastpass! in that sing-song manner, like theyd won the lottery and were banishing standby to their own personal limbo. Yeah, I was one of those twits. I cant abide it in others, but Ill admit, it was highly uncharacteristic for me but I did it a few times. Someone once answered my fastpass with pass gas? Ah, the good old days life was so simple then. Scattered pictures.
Anyway, the suckers in the greenhouse? Ha ha! Well hey, once you put your time in, Forbidden Journey is kind of a secular barmitzvah of sorts. Make it through that greenhouse (or the Jungle Cruise queue) and youve graduated to adulthood. Im sure that once the lines outside the Wizarding World start dwindling, the outdoor portion of the queue for the attraction itself wont feel quite so draining. June doesnt help. Or opening week. So, choose your battles.
Poor.
Devils.
Before embarking on any more shopping, we stopped off at the Flight of the Hippogriff. For the walk-on that it was, its a brisk (20 second?) little rollercoaster. And dont underestimate the power of a supposed kiddie coaster. Lengthen the track out, and Id put it on par with the intensity of Space Mountain. Milder than most adult coasters, but kids watch out! So, its surprisingly entertaining for an adult. However, if the queue were any longer than a walk on, Id skip it. It was nice to see Hagrids Hut up on the hill, and Buckbeak makes a brief appearance before the lift. I wish I could have posed for pictures with him! Oh, and one other thing: you are allowed to bring bags and such with you on this ride, so had we done a little more shopping prior, it wouldnt have been a problem.
We could hear the Hogwarts quartet (sextet including two of the most grotesquely adorable frogs) singing just outside the castle, so I stopped to listen while the SO took more pictures of the surroundings. I caught the tail end of Something Wicked This Way Comes and a new song. The performers were soaked in their heavy robes (I dont care what I read in regards to their lightweight design, these kids looked like they had swum the English channel), but blended beautifully; another unexpected gift from the Universal wizards.
Our next stop was Zonkos and Honeydukes, and another long line for both (they share a common space). Bah.
But the cast member waiting outside the door had a delicious sense of humor and even sported a British accent. Come to think of it, I heard a lot of that around. Most sounded bonafide to these Yankee ears, but maybe some were just getting in the spirit. A lot of us were trying to enter through the exit, and he said, Thats the exit. You wanna leave so soon? Maybe you had to be there, I thought it was a riot. Even on our way out, I asked if it was the right door to which he replied, Ill let you through just this once. Here he is, standing in front of the Owl Post across the way:
On the Honeydukes side, I was tickled by the design details the circular staircase in the corner of the shop (from the books) and sickened by the utter lack of space. Somehow, Universal managed to make the smallest, narrowest aisles known to humankind. There was more bumping, pardon me, and embarrassing hand placement than Ive ever known anywhere. But oh what colorful candies! And a wall of fill-your-own-boxes of Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans. Chocolate frogs with wizard cards, chocolate-and-mint frogs in a jar, cauldron cakes at the bakery counter, the list goes on and on.
Over in Zonkos, one could buy all sorts of joke items that were either mostly original to the store or directly lifted from the books/movies. I bought a Sneakoscope, a chocolate frog, and some Every Flavor beans. I was this close to trying a cauldron cake, but couldnt think of getting once more into another long line. I wonder if I could have ordered one of the Honeydukes bakery items from the Zonkos counter on the other side. Oh well. But my mind was putty. Not so much due to that particular morning, but you have to understand that wed been going 7 am or earlier every morning the entire week.
Following a stop at the Public Conveniences...
...where I heard Moaning Myrtle clear as a bell from within the walls, it was back to Filchs Emporium of Confiscated Goods for some additional shopping. Despite the crowds, we were able to get in with more ease than any of the other shops. Again, it was the World of Disney of Hogsmeade at a whopping, I dont know, 300 square feet? I kid. Not really. Ollivanders on the other hand, was a wash. I knew we should have done it first, all the planning and reading had prepared me for that. But the kid within me got the best of my planning and kicked it aside after whooping at the castle, the Butterbeer and the shops.
As soon as we wrapped up our final purchases, which included a Golden Snitch (could have bought a quaffle and bludger to go with it!), an amazing Marauders Map Mug (all relief and amazing), a Wizarding World T-shirt (see photo of the SO) and a slew of Grand Opening pins and other such things, we struggled down Hogmseade toward the exit. Or in this case, the entrance. Wish we could have entered the land that way, as it was intentionally designed to be entered. But I guess that will have to wait for a less-crowded visit.
Random shot of yours truly in front of Orlando's new castle (I think Cinderella has a timeshare here now. I tell you, DVC cannot be tamed):
Random shot of Hogwarts express:
There was one other thing that we both purchased before leaving, however, and that was the ubiquitous pumpkin juice. Have you guys seen the bottle/packaging for this? Its like Trader Joes, except with uh, magic. The bottle has a little plastic pumpkin twist-off cap at the top, and if it werent 101 degrees right now as I type this, Id go into further detail. But Im swimming. I went for a walk during the first part of my lunch break. Three blocks in I thought did I just vaporize? Its all kinds of hot in New York right now. Like, Houston Ill wrestle you for the win. Anyway, Pumpkin Juice tasted like ice-cold apple cider mixed with nutmeg and bits of pumpkin pulp. Absolutely refreshing and so counter to the usual summer snack-cart libation; it was kinda like Christmas in July. Since the bottle is a similar color to the drink, I had no idea the SO had secretly decided against this one, too. At least hes consistent right? I wish hed told me though, because by the time Id found hed barely touched it, the contents were boiling. So, two butterbeers for me, one pumpkin juice. And one boiling pumpkin potion for Snape, who, by the way, was nowhere to be found in all of the Wizarding World. Nor Minerva McGonagall for that matter. Licensing schmeisensing, I say. A Harry Potter land without Miss Jean Brodie and Alan Rickman is in dire need of expansion. And Im sure itll bleed into whatever that next land is to the WWofHP's right at some point. No picture of pumpkin juice, but I kept the bottle so I'll include a photo in my next installment.
All in all, it was hard to pull ourselves away from Hogsmeade. But the sun at this point was stronger than in Fantasias Rite of Spring sequence where the dinosaurs collapse into extinction. I watched blissfully from afar as more and more lemmings marched joyously into the castle. I wondered if they were well-equipped for the greenhouse that lay ahead. Remember when FastPass was first introduced and not everyone got the memo that it was included with admission? Hordes of irate people stood in the standby lines, foaming at the mouth as countless people swooshed past. Some of whom laughed and gloated, saying fastpass fastpass! in that sing-song manner, like theyd won the lottery and were banishing standby to their own personal limbo. Yeah, I was one of those twits. I cant abide it in others, but Ill admit, it was highly uncharacteristic for me but I did it a few times. Someone once answered my fastpass with pass gas? Ah, the good old days life was so simple then. Scattered pictures.
Anyway, the suckers in the greenhouse? Ha ha! Well hey, once you put your time in, Forbidden Journey is kind of a secular barmitzvah of sorts. Make it through that greenhouse (or the Jungle Cruise queue) and youve graduated to adulthood. Im sure that once the lines outside the Wizarding World start dwindling, the outdoor portion of the queue for the attraction itself wont feel quite so draining. June doesnt help. Or opening week. So, choose your battles.
Poor.
Devils.
And I'm with you 100% on the butterbeer... Because of my widely publicized dislike of Universal, I think that may have been the clincher in getting me interested in the Wizarding World when it was first announced. I'm sure I would have gone at some point... but the butterbeer? Totally worth it! 
I will definitely need a pumpkin juice bottle and a butterbeer stein!
Thanks for spending the time to read the report!
Too funny, and I can relate, we live in an area with high summer temps combined with ferocious humidity.
& I am loving it. 
I have to read you and Caitlin's trip's report as soon as I'm done with this. 
That was for March, wasn't it? Oh no, I'll never finish!
