Silly Emily....and the magical world of Harry Potter

I was so excited to download all my pictures today. I haven't had a chance to upload all the photos on my camera, including the photos from the Harry Potter theme park at Universal Studios. There weren't a ton, but I was excited to share them with all of you. Because I know that a lot of my friends are also fans of Harry Potter and wanted to hear all about it. After I download photos I delete them right away. It's cleansing, no clutter. That's all well and good, as long as you download the flippin' pictures first. That's right our day from Universal Studios, our adventures in Harry Potterville are lost. For-ev-er. Patrick did a good job of consoling me, promising me that one day we can go back again. I'm still bummed. But I'm going to write about it anyway, and include the minimal photos that I took on my iPhone.

Patrick and I got up early to head to the park. We wanted to get there when the park opened, and head directly to the Harry Potter portion of the park. And that's just what we did, along with a couple thousand other people. I guess we weren't the only ones with that idea, on that hot and humid July morning. The Harry Potter park is at the very back of Universal Studios - Adventure Island. As we walked through the park we passed through the Marvel comic rides and Patrick was in heaven. He couldn't wait to go on all the other rides, but we had our priorities.

We got into a very long line before we even got to the Harry Potter park, we were handed a ticket and instructed to turn them in at the entrance to the park. Which meant that no one would be able to cut (and that made Patrick very happy). As we passed over one of the bridges on our way we saw Hogwarts looming in the background. The castle looked stunning. It was perched on a cliff, recognizable from across the park. As soon as I saw it I started skipping with excitement towards the entrance.

After what felt like hours we made it to Hogsmead. As soon as we entered through the gates we passed by a steaming Hogwarts Express train into the village. On our right was a roller coaster, the Dragon Challenge, to the left was Honeydukes and Zonkos, ahead of us laid the streets of Hogsmead ending up at Hogwarts. Heading into the village you can buy a wand at Olivanders (for the low, low price of $30), or send a post card from the Owl Post, at Dervish and Bangs and Filch's emporium you can buy your souvenirs.

We headed straight past all the stores to the main ride: Harry Potter and the Forbidden Forest. After I stashed my camera bag (with all the awesome photos I took and have now deleted) in a locker that I opened with my finger print (big brother?). We continued in line where we passed through the greenhouse, back into Hogwarts castle, through a passageway with talking portraits, into Dumbledore's office, passed the Gryffindor common room where the fat lady guards the entrance, to the ride entrance. We were then strapped into seats four across on an individual suspension arm, and off we went. With a little help from Hermione we started soaring through the air. The ride itself didn't move very far, however, the thrill came from the large movie-like screen in front of us. Harry Potter himself took us on a ride around Hogwarts, we went around the school, through the Quiditch field, which led us out to battle a dragon, dementors, spiders, and the whomping willow. We saved the day (from what, I'm not sure), and the ride was done.

We headed back to reclaim our belongings and we quickly realized that we could skip the line outside and through Hogwarts if we went through the single riders line. We shaved off an hour of wait time and got to the ride five short minutes later. So, that's what we did. We went again and had a blast. The ride was enjoyable, and I would be happy to do it again (and again).

The next two rides were the Flight of the Hippogriff (a small, kids roller coaster), and the Dragon Challenge (a larger, adult roller coaster). They were a lot of fun, but not worth going into detail here. Patrick and I sampled Pumpkin Juice and Butterbeer, both of which were delicious and very sweet. As much as I would have loved going through every single store I wasn't willing to spend over an hour in line. I wish that I was more patience when it comes to lines, but I don't. Being that it was July (summer break), and the park had opened not even a month before there were a lot of rabid Harry Potter fans, and for that I definitely do not have the patience.

Hogsmead itself was a bit magical. I could almost believe that I was there, aside from the ridiculous crowd and 95* heat. There were snow drifts on top of the buildings lining the street, which was a little hard to believe. But it's magical, right? Near the castle is a little performance area where there are different acts throughout the day, like beautiful girls from Beauxbatons Academy of Magic dancing, or students from each house singing songs and interacting with the crowds.

All in all it was a really great day spent with my wonderful husband. I had missed him so dearly while he was deployed and I was soaking up every single moment we had together. This was our first trip away after he had gotten back two days before. We were becoming reacquainted with one another, and I realized something: I have a wonderful husband. He supports my love of all things Twilight, Disney, and Harry Potter. In fact (don't tell him I told you this) I think he finds it endearing, and is one of the many reasons he loves me.