I am a huge Harry Potter fan, I was there the day the Wizarding World of Harry Potter opened at Universal Studios Islands of Adventure and I have made many other friends who are just as big of fans as I am. I've met a lot of these people while writing what we call 'fan fiction'; these are stories we've written about characters from the book. One such friend, Peter, came down this fall to visit. He came to see the shuttle launch but, of course being this close to Orlando, we had to go to the Wizarding World.
When we walked through the gates his first comment was how authentic everything looked. We also took a picture by the famous red Steam Engine, Hogwarts Express which is right there too.
Next we went to the Owlery, Dervish and Banges and the Owl Post which are together right there. While in Dervish and Bangs we looked over the robes, house t-shirts and brooms for sale. I bought a Gryffindor t-shirt and we both laughed at the Monsters Book of Monsters that they had in a cage there. Next we went to Ollivanders which I've yet to visit because there's always an hour wait to get in but hey you get to have a wand choose you so I can understand the attraction. We then rode the Flight of the Hippogriff which is a roller coaster set up around Hagrid's hut where he introduces you to Buckbeak and teaches you how to approach a hippogriff respectfully; it's a great ride for the whole family.Then we stopped to watch the Frog Choir and the kids of the Triwizard Spirit rally. The choir sang songs from the movies and the girls of Beauxbatons and the men of Durmstrang showed off their respective talents, you can get a picture with them after they are done if you'd like.
Next we went to the big ride, the main event: Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey. Once you get into the castle you pass by the house points counters, the sorting hat and the Hall of Portraits. You go through Dumbledore's office and the History of Magic classroom. Dumbledore welcomes you to the castle and tells you to beware of a loose dragon. Then you meet up with Harry, Ron and Hermione who invite you to 'skive' off class with them and here's where the journey begins.
After all this excitement we were hungry so we went to the Three Broomsticks to grab a bite. We, of course, got some butterbeer now I had tried it before and I had described it to my friend so I was interested to hear what he thought, he liked it, as I knew he would. The décor in the Three Broomsticks is great. They have antlers on the wall and a huge fireplace, the tables are all wood and everything is so authentic we half expected to see a student on a 'Hogsmeade weekend' to come strolling in or Madame Rosmerta to come by ask for our drink order. In short, we loved it.
The sun was starting to set and our day was coming to an end so, reluctantly we decided to go but on our way out we stopped by the Marvel Super Hero Island, also a part of the Islands of Adventure Park, for an ice cream cone. I had chocolate, Peter had vanilla I felt like such a kid, it was quite a day!
