The Beginning of an Obsession | May 2014 | Day 8 | Universal, IOA & Hard Rock Cafe

[axxxl]

Index

We were up bright and early today as we were off to Universal Studios and wanted to be there for opening. We called up the taxi driver who brought us back from Walmart as he said he'd do a return trip for $60, and we arrived at around 9AM.

Before changing our vouchers for actual tickets we stopped by Starbucks on Citywalk to grab some breakfast. I had an oatmeal and raisin cookie and Lewis probably had something a bit more sensible. I didn't take any food photos so I can't remember what he had!




Once our tickets were changed and we were in, we headed towards Despicable Me. I'd read that it was best to do this as soon as the park opened because the queues get pretty long, but when we got their they were having technical difficulties. We never got the chance to ride it, but we did see a remote control minion.



Opposite, Shrek had a 10 minute wait so we joined the queue for that instead. I don't know what people's general opinions are of this but I thought it was really fun!




Lewis rode Rip Ride Rockit and The Mummy as a single rider afterwards. He was definitely in his element at Universal with all the rollercoasters.



Springfield was next on the list, and we had a sneek peak of the Harry Potter expansion. I was gutted it wasn't going to be open for our trip, but there's always next time



The Simpsons Ride had a 10 minute wait so Lewis once again joined the single rider queue. I don't mind simulators but with The Simpsons being based on a rollercoaster I decided not to ride. I had a wander around Springfield while I waited ages and when he returned he mentioned they rode twice because the simulation part wasn't working first time around.





I've just remembered something - while I was waiting for Lewis I popped into the toilets and I'm not sure if anyone else has noticed this but do they pipe themed scents in there or what? I wasn't expecting to nip in and smell donuts, that's for sure!

We had a bit of a photoshoot around Springfield and rode the Twirl n Hurl. Nothing too special, but we did get some better views of the London side of Diagon Alley.







Wow. Bit of a photo spam there. I never realised how much photos I took in the Simpsons area

We went to see the Animal Actors show afterwards, and it was so cute. I am one of those people who sees a dog and is like "omg everyone look at how CUTE THAT DOG IS! " so yeah. I loved it

Lewis had a fanboy moment afterwards when he spotted the DeLorean.



And so we headed back to Springfield to stop by Moe's Tavern for a drink. While it genuinely looked like Moe's inside, it came to $18 (not including tip) for a Duff Beer and a Flaming Moe. Which is a total rip off to me. The Flaming Moe was pretty much just orange juice and I had a sip of Lewis' beer and it was face scrunchable. He drank it though.



I'd seen one of the big pink donuts on a trip report on here a few months prior and it just kept occupying my mind, so naturally we bought one. That thing is huge! We managed about half of it before we put it back in the box for later.



What I'd do for one of those right now...

We rode E.T. afterwards. It's a fun ride but the bit with his home planet is a bit odd I bought a keyring for my mam in the gift shop because she loves the film.




We went to see the Horror Makeup Show next which was hilarious, would totally recommend it.

Lewis got his photo with Doc from Back to the Future and we stopped by the Ben and Jerry's shop for an ice cream.




We headed out of Universal and towards IOA afterwards.

[axxxl]

First up on Lewis' list was The Hulk. He said this was brilliant and was the most intense rollercoaster he'd been on. He wouldn't recommend it after a meal though

Then we were stupid enough to go on Bluto's Bilge Rat Barges without a poncho, and this was the result.



Consider yourselves warned.

We started towards WWOHP, slowly as to try and dry ourselves off. I stopped to take a photo of this adorable squirrel on the way.



We finally got there (still wet) and took a few photos in front of Hogsmeade.




It really is like stepping into the films. The detail is unbelievable. Although it's like the entire of Universal congregates here.



We stopped by The Hogs' Head for a Butterbeer. This is so much nicer than the one in the Studio Tour in London but the frozen one is even better.





We strolled around having a nose in all of the shops before park closing was approaching so we made our way towards the exit. It was still quite early at this point (6PM I think) so we decided to pay the cinema a trip on Citywalk. We opted to see Rio 2 and there was only 2 other people in the screen with us.

We still had time for a meal before our taxi was due to pick us up so we opted for the Hard Rock Cafe.

We both had a cocktail to drink, but I wasn't overly keen on either. I ended up leaving more than half of mine because it was just too bitter tasting. I can't remember the name of it though, but it sounded nice at the time.



I had the BBQ pulled chicken burger for my main, and I can only guess that Lewis had the Texan?




It was an ok meal overall, but nothing spectacular and I wouldn't particularly rush back because I thought it was a bit expensive. Either way it was a good end to the day.

Universal again tomorrow, only the opposite way around - IOA then Universal

[summersun]

great report

[axxxl]

Originally Posted by summersun

great report

See more...

Thank you!

[Guest]

Fantastic pics ! , gotta love the water rides at Universal , they dont just get you wet...drenched is the word , but they are incredible fun.

Away to catch up on the beginning of your trip report , where I should have started...doh


Thanks for posting

[axxxl]

Originally Posted by tinysam

Fantastic pics ! , gotta love the water rides at Universal , they dont just get you wet...drenched is the word , but they are incredible fun.

Away to catch up on the beginning of your trip report , where I should have started...doh


Thanks for posting

See more...

Haha thank you! On our next day we actually bought ponchos before going on, but the second we handed over the money the heavens opened and the ride closed At least it still got used though haha.

Thanks for reading

[KittyBlackDog]

Another great day. You can tell the difference between a Disney park and a universal park by the vibe that people project when they write about them.

That donut looks huge and very enjoyable

[Guest]

I've just come across your reports tonight and I've loved reading them! Can't wait till you upload the rest

Charlotte x

[Guest]

Great day! I loved the little inflatable minions, they're so cute!

Hard Rock Cafe looks amazing, deffo one for us next time!

[axxxl]

Originally Posted by KittyBlackDog

Another great day. You can tell the difference between a Disney park and a universal park by the vibe that people project when they write about them.

That donut looks huge and very enjoyable

See more...

Don't get me wrong I enjoy Universal but I really don't think it has the same sort of magic that Disney has!

The donut was seriously amazing, I've just found a photo with the receipt next to it and it was only $5.32, so around £3.30 - for the size it was a bargain!

Originally Posted by Charamore

I've just come across your reports tonight and I've loved reading them! Can't wait till you upload the rest

Charlotte x

See more...

Thanks Charlotte! x

Originally Posted by Mermaids

Great day! I loved the little inflatable minions, they're so cute!

Hard Rock Cafe looks amazing, deffo one for us next time!

See more...

It's so huge inside as well, I think I would have enjoyed it more if I'd picked a better cocktail haha!