Sunday, May 3rd: part 1
The good thing about being early risers by nature is that we never had trouble getting up and going in time for rope drop. Again Sunday morning, we were wide awake as the sun rose, and knowing that Diagon Alley was beckoning, we wasted no time in getting up, showered, fed and dressed.
Breakfast was a quick one in the villa....we had made a speedy pit stop on arrival day at Publix and picked up cream, sugar, cereal, milk, juice, yogurt, bananas, and some bottled water....and we had had the foresight when we were packing to bring along travel mugs for our coffee, so we took that to-go and enjoyed our Timmies en route to the park.
Travel time from resort to the parking garage was fast and easy: we pulled out of the Vistana at 8:04 am, and were at the front gates of Universal at 8:26 am. Zero backlogs on the I4. Our Premier AP’s entitled us to free preferred parking.....a value of $25 each day (note we could have also chosen free valet with our passes), which was a nice perk. They opened the park a full half hour before the scheduled 9 am opening time (which we had anticipated, thanks to the great info gleaned here on the Dis) and we made our way straight to Diagon Alley.
The first order of business for the morning, as you might suspect, was Escape from Gringotts. Not a fan of drops....ANY drops, big or small....I am not ashamed to admit I was terrified to ride this ride. My fears, though, were greatly outweighed by my desire to fully experience this new section of the park, and I suspected I would regret a decision to pass the opportunity by. So with my heart pounding so hard I could hear it in my ears, we stowed our stuff in a locker and we entered the queue. And there was no turning back.
Every little detail was incredible, and I was blown away by how well done the inside of the bank was. It was truly amazing, and executed so perfectly that if Harry Potter had walked around the corner and appeared with wand in hand, I wouldn’t have been at all surprised. Oddly enough, though, there was no line for this attraction at all, and once we entered the bank, we never stopped moving......the ride itself was a walk-on. I guess it pays to get up early (and travel in the off season) after all!
And the ride? Well, my pre-vacation research had prepared me for what to expect as far as the initial drop went, and it helped to know that once that was over, there were no further “big thrills” to concern myself with, which allowed me to relax after that little part of terror was over. I think Steve might still have my finger nail marks in his arm to this day (sorry, Steve-o). No, it wasn’t a huge drop and yes, it was over quickly but all the same, this was a major accomplishment for me and definitely outside of my normal comfort zone. The rest of the ride?......So. Very. Amazing. I was in awe. And Steve (a huge thrill seeker) was also duly impressed. I was sorry when it was over. No kidding.
And so...........we rode it again!
By the time we rode, exited, and entered the line a second time, the posted wait had gone from 5 minutes to 15 minutes, but still an excellent wait time nonetheless. We were a little closer to the front on the second ride (3rd row versus 6th row) and it was just as awesome as the first.
Collecting our loose items from the locker, we toured around Diagon Alley for a little while longer, visiting Knockturn Alley:
....poking around the shops, and just soaking in the atmosphere and all the little details that make this area so freakishly amazing.
Eventually, we made our way out to the London waterfront to check out the Knight Bus:
There was virtually no line to meet the Knight Bus Conductor....perhaps maybe two families in front of us. The conductor was awesome, and spent quite a bit of time chatting us up. He was very in character which was simply fabulous too!
The Shrunken Head was equally as awesome, and carried on a very animated conversation in his wonderful Jamaican accent. The people behind those voices have some very sharp wit....he didn’t miss a beat with his come-backs and smart remarks:
We had already seen so much, and the morning had just begun
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As always, our plan was not to plan (aside from hitting Gringotts and DA first, so as to avoid the crowds), so we had no itinerary or schedule to follow. We would tour as the spirit moved us....and the spirit moved us next to Men in Black. Happily, it was another walk-on.
This was a ride I passed on during our first trip to Universal in 2012, but I was pretty sure (after much more recent research) that I was quite capable of not only riding, but enjoying. And despite having never seen Men in Black (its Steve’s kind of movie, but definitely not mine) the ride was well themed and very fun. You can see from our ride picture that we were obviously taking the whole experience very seriously....there were aliens to destroy, after all!
Strangely enough, Steve will ride Hulk and not bat an eyelash, but spinnie rides can really get him feeling rather unwell. The spins at the end of MIB, not surprisingly, had a bit of a negative effect on him, and he exited the ride feeling a tad icky. As we strolled toward the Simpsons area, we decided to grab a bottle of water....and maybe a snack....to help settle his stomach.
I see a Big Pink Donut in our future!
More to come! 
... at Cici's, I might just ask for them to make a hat for me, too 
. At The Knife, not so much!!
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lol, I think it does! 
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and just because I like this guy but have absolutely no use for him--> 
. Clearwater beach gets a lot of love on the Orlando Hotels & Attractions board, so it was already on my short-list to research. Great minds think alike 
