It was Spring Break of fourth grade in Naper School, and I was heading to Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida. At 5 am my family decided to leave the house and go to the airport. The lines in OHare Airport were long and winding, but once I boarded the plane, the flight was a short 2 hours. Walking to grab my bags, I saw my dad call for a cab, and we were soon on our way to Cabana Bay, a resort of Universal Studio. It was a beautiful, sunny day and I remember checking into the resort and seeing my mom buy the tickets, the Express Pass. After I threw my bags into my resort room, I grabbed my sun hat and sunglasses, ready to board the Universal bus.
As I anxiously waited in the long winding line, I could not believe I would finally get into the castle of Harry Potter. This is the castle that materialized the imagination that I created in my own mind as I read every Harry Potter book in the series. I visited Universal studio once before, but 2 years prior I did not match the minimum height requirement to get into the ride. As we got closer to the line that twisted and turned like the body of a snake, I could see the entry point, a welcoming eagle, the symbol of Ravenclaw. Walking into the dark structure, I felt I was in the books myself, a student at Hogwarts. From the talking images on the wall in the paintings to the chemical lab with test tubes full of magical potions to the eerie music in the background, I felt that every part of the castle was reminiscent of different aspects of the Harry Potter series. Next, it was time for a rollercoaster ride hidden in 3D graphics. I flew into many other scenes from several books, including the spider scene, meeting the characters like Dumbledor and Hagrid, and helping Harry Potter fly in the sky and grab the ball in the game of Quidditch. I felt like I was flying like a wizard, a student of Hogwarts.
My family enjoyed this ride, and we looked forward to exploring more of the Harry Potter lands at Universal. After the ride, I drank butter beer and bought a wand, the wand of Voldemort. After eating in a dining hall right out of the book, I sat on a dragon roller coaster, visualizing the entire park as the rollercoaster was at its peak before racing down into a spiral. Next, I headed to the Hogwart Express, the train connecting the 2 regions of Harry Potter regions in Universal.
I saw a fire-breathing dragon in this new area and entered another ride, the rollercoaster for the Flight of Hippogriff. Here I walked into Hogswart’s Bank and then went past a corridor where I waited until I could get into the line, going up a long winding staircase past characters of the newer books of Harry Potter. When I was strapped on this rollercoaster, the ride began with rotating the rollercoaster and using 3D technology to make it seem that everyone was going to fall out. This ride was very different as I was in a cave and witnessed scenes from Harry Potter movies through the stops on the ride. Even though I enjoyed the first ride in the castle of Harry Potter’s Forbidden Journey better, this ride was also exciting.
As we continued throughout the park, I enjoyed so many other worlds. The world of Aladdin with delicious food and an entire section decorated with the movies. I walked past Cat and Hat Land where I did enjoy the train ride and the candy factory. Going to the Despicable Me section, I had fun in the 3D minion ride. The Marvel section had an exciting Spiderman ride. Moreover, the Transformer section had a 3D transformer ride. The section on Shrek had a 4D movie, connecting characters from the Shrek movies. Overall, I enjoyed Universal Studios because the passages and the layout of the buildings were reminiscent of the movies and I felt I was in them. Most of the rides used 3D technology, as my family wore special glasses and took advantage of computer animation to make everything seem real.
After spending 2 days in the parks, I enjoyed some relaxation playing mini gold and even went bowling in the resort. After 3 days, it was time to head home, and as I departed back to Chicago, I hoped I would go back and enjoy more rides one day.
Hi Adam!
I loved hearing your story about going to Universal studios! I’ve always wanted to go but never got the chance before I outgrew my interests. I didn’t know you had a sun hat! You should wear it the next time we tutor together (like right now). I’ve been rereading Harry Potter (inspired by one Ms. Hitzman). I’ve been having a blast reading it! I forgot so many details: like the very first chapter isn’t about Harry Potter, it’s about the events leading up to it with a lot of foreshadowing. I can’t believe you made Harry Potter fly.
What does butterbeer taste like? I always imagined it was like cream soda – I’m definitely wrong! Something I never understood while rereading Harry Potter is how the owls can literally find anyone. Like (in the 4th book) when Sirius Black is in hiding yet Harry wants to send him an owl, all he has to do is kindly ask any random Hogwarts owl, and the owl will 100% find Sirius Black (even though he’s like a wanted fugitive). I never understood how owls can instantly find people on the run but the Ministry can’t find them.
Great blog overall!
-Max
Butter beer tastes like butterscotch! I only had a taste–it was too sweet. I tried it at the Harry Potter experience over break. So cool you are rereading the books!
Hi Adam, I really liked your post this week. I am definitely a fan of your semimonthly retellings of past vacations.
I remember when I went to Universal Studios to see Hogwarts for the first time. I had always been a fan of the books and the movies, so I (like you) was amazed by how real the scenery was. By far, my favorite ride was the Forbidden Journey, but when I told my cousin about how much I liked it, he launched into a story of his own. Apparently, when the ride was first being opened, it often broke down midway through. If you were riding when the ride broke down, they let you go again from the beginning. And so, since the Universal people were still working out the kinks, he ended up riding Forbidden Journey five times in a row. He wasn’t going to say no to a free ride (especially if he got to ride without having to wait in line for two hours). However, when he got back to the hotel, he threw up, clearly shaken by the ride.
After we left the Harry Potter area, I remember riding the Despicable Me ride like you did. I don’t remember there being an Aladdin world when I went, but maybe they made one in the interim. I enjoyed reading about your trip!
It’s nice to read about your blog, Adam!
Hi Adam, I love your post! I also remember getting up at 5 am to go to Florida. My favorite ride was the Harry Potter ride in the castle. It was very immersive. To this day, I still regret not drinking Butterbeer there. It sounds pretty delicious, to be honest. I wanted to drink it early in the morning, when there was no line, but when I finally convinced my parents to buy me one, the line was too long (every food place in the park had such long lines!). The pizza there was pretty good. Weirdly, I do not remember there being an Aladdin or Cat in the Hat section, even though I went there last year. I really liked the Transformers ride, the tomb ride (forgot what it was called, but it gave me whiplash), and the Simpsons ride. I remember posting Gru’s house on my Story, but I was sadly underwhelmed by the ride, especially because there was such a long line. I remember it being really cold there, so I wanted to buy a sweatshirt, but the only one there was a Thing 1 and Thing 2 sweatshirt. I really liked seeing the Harry Potter castle at night. I had fun reading your blog.
Hi Adam!
I was so excited to read your blog! I am a big Harry Potter lover. I have read all but the last book in the series which I intended to finish soon and maybe try watching one Harry Potter movie. Your trip to Universal Studio sounded so fun! I would love to be able to see Dumbledore and Hagrid from a roller coaster ride! I love all the characters in the book, and love Dumbledore really much! Even though you have only gone to universal studio in your fourth grade year, the fact that you remember this much is so impressive! It must mean that this was a great experience! I wanted to go to either the shooting place for the movie which I believe is in London where they have the whole set up for the movie, OR I would love to go to Universal Studio sometime in the near future. Being able to experience stuff and see scenes from the Harry Potter series is always my dream, but being too young now according to my mom and needing to focus on schoolwork I can never expand and explore my interest for Harry Potter. Now finding out about Universal Studio I am definitely going to go there one day with my family. Thank you for sharing such a cool story and giving me a family adventure idea!
Hi Adam, I really enjoyed reading about your trip to Universal Studios. I have never been to Universal Studios but I was a huge Harry Potter fan when I was younger. Reading your post, it seems like Universal did a great job recreating the experience of reading the books in real life. The attention to detail with the 3D rollercoaster ride, the Hogwarts Express train ride the butter beer drink seems like a really authentic experience (side note: what does “butter beer” taste like? I imagine it isn’t really alcoholic). It was also cool to hear about how you explored the other attractions at Universal Studios after you were done with the Harry Potter exhibit and I can definitely see why your trip was such a fond memory for you. Even though I have never been to Universal Studios, I also have fond memories of trips with my family, whether it was to Six Flags, museums, or just to different states. I think spending time with those closest to you is the best part of traveling because you are able to share your interests with them and learn more about them on trips like these. Overall, your post was really interesting and engaging to read.
I absolutely adore your trip because it was similar to my first time traveling to Orlando. Universal studios is my favorite amusement park over Disney for sure everything feels so much more interactive. My first ride was also the harry potter section so I understand the thrill of what it felt like. I didn’t know anything about harry potter the first time going which I find so funny because by the time I was done waiting in the long lines, going through the interactive rides, and seeing the magical holographic books, I felt as if I understood the entire plot. I haven’t been in a while but I remember going to this one candy store after and it also had butter beer so I got to taste that for the first time and me just being a kid it felt like actual magic. I can’t seem to remember what theme this ride was but there was one where the character said MY name. I suppose they do shoutouts for every cycle but I still to this day am unsure of how they knew everybody’s name as I don’t remember telling them or writing it down anywhere. Regardless, I’m glad you got to experience that it’s definitely something to remember.
Great post, Adam!