Back in February, we made arrangements to visit Orlando again. We haven't been there in years, and we thought it would be fun to participate in one of the Disney races. We found The Tower of Terror Ten Miler, scheduled for October 5, and we made plans.
We didn't think about it much at the time, but our first full day in Orlando was Glo's 14th birthday. As things turned out, it couldn't have BEEN more fun, and I'm thinking that we might need to do it again.
We told Glo to pick the park for the day. Any park in Orlando. There wasn't much debate once she found out about Universal Studios' The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. I mean, come on--who doesn't want to become a student at Hogwarts for a day?
I knew that there was a birthday pin that Glo could get at guest services, but we were so excited to get in the park that we completely forgot about it. Turns out that it didn't matter--the birthday gods had taken care of everything ;-)
We headed straight to the back of the park as soon as we got there. It was tempting not to stop and ride other rides, especially considering there were no lines. However, we had our goal, and I know all of our hearts quickened when we heard the Harry Potter music in the air.
The Harry Potter world could not have been more real. It was so beautiful. Hogwarts, set on a hill. Ollivander's. Honeydukes Candy store. The different shops were covered in snow, and Fleur Delacour looked identical (and walked identically) to the actress in the movie. It was truly magical.
Obviously, everyone else thought so too (and this is why there were no lines at any other rides). Everyone was there, and I believe we all just wanted it to be real.
The dragon rides were fantastic. My favorite kind. Hanging, smooth roller coasters. We rode the blue one first (some kind of Hornback dragon), hopped off, and ran through the turnstiles again to ride the red one (some kind of Chinese something). John wasn't feeling too well afterwards (turns out he was coming down with a stomach virus), so we decided to wander around.
There was a long line in front of Ollivander's Wand shop, and we didn't figure it would get any shorter throughout the day. My guess was that the park was trying to give an "experience" to people who wanted to buy a wand, but we really didn't know.
After about 15 minutes in line, we were admitted into the shop. It was just so perfect. Wand boxes stacked two stories high with a small counter for sales. Turns out, Mr. Ollivander was there too, cloak and English accent and all. And here's where it gets even better.
The door had hardly closed when he asked Glo to step up to the front. In fact, he asked for her hand and brought her to the counter. She actually became a Hogwarts student, searching for the perfect wand. She tried two different ones all with disastrous results (sparks flying and drawers opening). For the third wand, Mr. Ollivander pulled out a 10" vine wand with a phoenix feather. Glo waved it and the store came alive. She knew then that the wand had chosen her.
We were then invited into the open store where anyone could shop, and believe me, everyone WAS shopping there. Of course, Glo wasn't letting go of her wand, it being the one thing she wanted for her birthday.
We also got chocolate frogs and other assorted candies, as well as a Hogwarts patch (for Glo's violin case) before we left. We didn't really want to leave the world at all, but the rest of the park called.
Another main stop was shopping in Dr. Seuss land. Glo has always loved Dr. Seuss, and her bedroom is actually covered in Dr. Seuss stuff. A life-size Cat in the Hat on the wall, a Thing 2 pillow, and Squeakie (Thing 2, given to Glo when she was very little). How perfect for Glo that there is an entire store dedicated to her beloved friend. We grabbed some pajamas and a t-shirt and a pin, and then we rode some rides there. We love the stories of Dr. Seuss.
On our way out of the park at the end of the day, we remembered the birthday pin! We went by guest services, picked it up, and Glo put it on. We weren't 10 minutes out of the park when a security guard pulled us aside. He was mid-50's and had a strong New Jersey accent. We wondered if we had done something wrong. He pulled Glo close and .... began singing "Happy Birthday" to her! It was the cutest thing!
Next, Glo wanted to have dinner at Medieval Times. As corny as that place can be, we love it. Glo was too little to ever remember us going there, so we were off. Turns out, it's free admission on your birthday, so it was a bargain for us to take Glo ;-) I don't think we could have ordered better food for her on her birthday--it's all the stuff she loves to eat--and we couldn't have asked for better attention either. Her name was read over the loud speaker as "Princess Gloria Kennedy" and at the end of dinner, our server brought her a piece of cake with a lit candle. Perfect.
To end the day, we headed down to the pool to cool off. We swam, jumped in the hot tub and headed back to the room to relax in our new pajamas. All in all, a perfect birthday day!
We didn't think about it much at the time, but our first full day in Orlando was Glo's 14th birthday. As things turned out, it couldn't have BEEN more fun, and I'm thinking that we might need to do it again.
We told Glo to pick the park for the day. Any park in Orlando. There wasn't much debate once she found out about Universal Studios' The Wizarding World of Harry Potter. I mean, come on--who doesn't want to become a student at Hogwarts for a day?I knew that there was a birthday pin that Glo could get at guest services, but we were so excited to get in the park that we completely forgot about it. Turns out that it didn't matter--the birthday gods had taken care of everything ;-)
We headed straight to the back of the park as soon as we got there. It was tempting not to stop and ride other rides, especially considering there were no lines. However, we had our goal, and I know all of our hearts quickened when we heard the Harry Potter music in the air.
The Harry Potter world could not have been more real. It was so beautiful. Hogwarts, set on a hill. Ollivander's. Honeydukes Candy store. The different shops were covered in snow, and Fleur Delacour looked identical (and walked identically) to the actress in the movie. It was truly magical.
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| We spent a bit of time looking at the map. We didn't want to miss a THING! |
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Obviously, everyone else thought so too (and this is why there were no lines at any other rides). Everyone was there, and I believe we all just wanted it to be real.
The dragon rides were fantastic. My favorite kind. Hanging, smooth roller coasters. We rode the blue one first (some kind of Hornback dragon), hopped off, and ran through the turnstiles again to ride the red one (some kind of Chinese something). John wasn't feeling too well afterwards (turns out he was coming down with a stomach virus), so we decided to wander around.
There was a long line in front of Ollivander's Wand shop, and we didn't figure it would get any shorter throughout the day. My guess was that the park was trying to give an "experience" to people who wanted to buy a wand, but we really didn't know.
After about 15 minutes in line, we were admitted into the shop. It was just so perfect. Wand boxes stacked two stories high with a small counter for sales. Turns out, Mr. Ollivander was there too, cloak and English accent and all. And here's where it gets even better.
The door had hardly closed when he asked Glo to step up to the front. In fact, he asked for her hand and brought her to the counter. She actually became a Hogwarts student, searching for the perfect wand. She tried two different ones all with disastrous results (sparks flying and drawers opening). For the third wand, Mr. Ollivander pulled out a 10" vine wand with a phoenix feather. Glo waved it and the store came alive. She knew then that the wand had chosen her.We were then invited into the open store where anyone could shop, and believe me, everyone WAS shopping there. Of course, Glo wasn't letting go of her wand, it being the one thing she wanted for her birthday.
We also got chocolate frogs and other assorted candies, as well as a Hogwarts patch (for Glo's violin case) before we left. We didn't really want to leave the world at all, but the rest of the park called.
Another main stop was shopping in Dr. Seuss land. Glo has always loved Dr. Seuss, and her bedroom is actually covered in Dr. Seuss stuff. A life-size Cat in the Hat on the wall, a Thing 2 pillow, and Squeakie (Thing 2, given to Glo when she was very little). How perfect for Glo that there is an entire store dedicated to her beloved friend. We grabbed some pajamas and a t-shirt and a pin, and then we rode some rides there. We love the stories of Dr. Seuss.On our way out of the park at the end of the day, we remembered the birthday pin! We went by guest services, picked it up, and Glo put it on. We weren't 10 minutes out of the park when a security guard pulled us aside. He was mid-50's and had a strong New Jersey accent. We wondered if we had done something wrong. He pulled Glo close and .... began singing "Happy Birthday" to her! It was the cutest thing!
Next, Glo wanted to have dinner at Medieval Times. As corny as that place can be, we love it. Glo was too little to ever remember us going there, so we were off. Turns out, it's free admission on your birthday, so it was a bargain for us to take Glo ;-) I don't think we could have ordered better food for her on her birthday--it's all the stuff she loves to eat--and we couldn't have asked for better attention either. Her name was read over the loud speaker as "Princess Gloria Kennedy" and at the end of dinner, our server brought her a piece of cake with a lit candle. Perfect.
To end the day, we headed down to the pool to cool off. We swam, jumped in the hot tub and headed back to the room to relax in our new pajamas. All in all, a perfect birthday day!
Wow, the birthday gods really were smiling on Glo! Happy birthday Glo, we love you!
ReplyDeleteSounds like a perfect, perfect day! :)
ReplyDelete