DAY 2
December 5th, 2015 - Saturday
Universal Orlando, Ohana, and Art of Animation!
***Sadly there's pretty much no photos of our time at Universal, which is unfortunate because I made a special shirt that I wore to the parks, but there's no pictures of me there wearing it! But here's photos of the shirt the night that my mom and I finished it:
Front:
Back:
So! I woke up earlier that morning than Mark and Debby and headed down to Landscape of Flavors, and got me some breakfast, then headed back down to the room just as they were ready to go. We made our way to the car, broke down my
scooter, loaded it into the back of the Journey, and then we were off to Universal for the day!
I had warned Mark that I'd been told by my friend who is a Team Member at Universal to be careful with GPS directions because they usually try to take you to the employee parking garage, and that once we were in the area, just follow the signs instead. Well. He listened to the GPS directions. And guess where we ended up?
So once we got ourselves turned around (all the while calling the GPS lady a filthy liar and all kinds of other colorful names), we found our way to the Preferred parking, unloaded my ECV, and away we went!
After we walked through CityWalk and was approaching the entrance to Universal Studios Florida, I asked Debby if we should get a photo in front of the big Universal globe. She gave me a look like I was insane, so I dropped it. Shame, though, it's usually a cool photo!
Got to the Will Call electronic kiosks outside the parks, and typed in all the information my TM friend had emailed me, and out popped three complimentary 1-Day Park-to-Park tickets for us. SCORE!!!
We made our way into the park, and the long trek to the back where Diagon Alley is. It was already pretty dang crowded, and I knew there was one very specific thing that Debby and Mark wanted to do here, so I lead them over to Ollivanders. We wound our way through the long corridors, and finally into a tiny room with a counter of sorts, the door sliding shut behind us and maybe a dozen other guests. The "Wand Keeper," an associate of Mr. Ollivander's, entered the room and begins addressing the crowd.
Now those of you who have done this attraction knows what goes on in here. But for those who haven't, here's a short video:
So long-story-short... The Wand Keeper picked MEEEEEEE!!!
(I give credit to the big bright pink flower I was wearing in my hair to match my shirt.) Sadly, there are no photos or video, because we had one camera between us all, MINE, and there just wasn't time for me to dig out it of my bag, pass it to Mark, and show him how to use it. Not that I even thought of doing so, I was so very much in shock. But it was SUPER COOL to get picked by the actor... I had so much fun with it!
And of course, the wand that "chose me" was purchased and brought home. I mean... IT CHOSE ME!:
The wand my birthday gift from Uncle Mark and Aunt Debby, as was the stand!
After the show, we made our into the retail wand shop, where Mark and Debby each picked out an interactive wand for themselves. Sadly, no photos of their wands, but on the walls, they had these plaques that told you about each wand type. I did get some snaps of those:
BILLIE:
MARK:
DEBBY:
And those, folks, are the only photos taken ALL DAY at Universal.
From there we walked around a bit, browsed through the shops, and drank Butterbeer. (Mmmm...
) We debated lunch a little bit, but decided to wait. Debby and I offered to have a seat and wait if Mark wanted to ride the Gringotts ride (I'm too fat for Universal rides), but he declined. I kept trying to hang around a bit, staring up at the sky... I reeeeeally wanted the dragon to breath fire while we were watching! He never did, though.
Finally I gave up on him, and we made our way over to Islands of Adventure via Platform 9 and 3/4. We had the entire cabin on the Hogwarts Express to ourselves, which was nice! Then we headed for lunch at the Three Broomsticks. I had a turkey leg since I didn't have plans for one on any of our Disney days. (Smart, right?) Mark and Debby each got chicken, I think. They were both very pleased with their meals, I remember that much.
We walked around and shopped a bit more, and Mark and Debby went and did the walk-through of Hogwarts. (It has stairs and isn't ECV accessible, and I saw it last year, so I decided to sit this one out.) After that they were about ready to move on, so we headed into the Jurassic Park part of the park because Debby wanted a t-shirt from there. Then we dipped back into Hogsmeade, rode the train back to Diagon Alley. However, this time we were with a family that talked loudly the whole time and had zero interest in hearing the stuff that goes on in the hallway or outside the window, plus they had teenager who kept playing the same 10 seconds of some song on their phone...
We disembarked in London and made our way out into the whole of Universal Studios. It was about 2pm, and we were discussing what to do next, I know my uncle had mentioned wanting to have a beer at Moe's, when Debby said she was ready to go. She wasn't feeling well and her feet were hurting. So we called it a day. We made the very long walk back through the park, then CityWalk, then the parking structure, to our car. Mark broke down my ECV and loaded it into the car, and we made the relatively quick and easy drive back to AoA for some rest.
I can't remember, but I think I may have napped a little bit. I did clean up and change into a fresh shirt for dinner. I was getting restless just sitting in the room but it wasn't time to leave for dinner yet, so I decided to go resort exploring! Picture time!
First, some exterior shots of our section, The Little Mermaid buildings:
I wandered into the Lion King section, but the light was too dim to get any good shots. So I resolved to come back on another day to continue my photo touring during the day!
Letting my meandering continue, I found myself in the lobby, where mad shutter-bugging happened (I think I felt compelled to make up for the photo-less day):
Oh, hi!
I noticed it was about time to head out, so I called Mark and they were ready. I scooted on back down to our rooms, and plugged in my wheels for the night. We jumped back in the car, and headed out for our dinner ADR.
We got to the Polynesian, and the gate guard advised us that the guest parking lot was completely FULL. Say whaaaat! So went ended up having to do valet (oh poor us!) because I wasn't about to be walking from the TTC. Mark & Debby had never done valet before, plus us driving my grandparent's vehicle, they were a little nervous, but I assured them everything would be fine. (I love doing valet, but I'm spoiled and lazy!)
We actually arrived much earlier than I anticipated, so we did a little shopping in Boutiki. There, I found this adorable silk hair flower that matched the pink stripes on my shirt...
Had I been thinking, I would have headed down to Trader Sam's for a drink before dinner, but it completely slipped my mind. DOH!
Instead, we just checked-in early for dinner, and found some comfy lobby chairs to chill out in. While relaxing, I snapped these Christmas decorations...
Finally our pager buzzed, and it was time to introduce Mark & Debby to the oh-so-delicious world of Disney dining!
We lucked out and got a great table by the windows, and got to see the Electrical Water Pageant go by! And then of course, some of the noms...
For a more detailed review of our eats and more pics, be sure to check out my Dining Report
HERE!
Oh, and our server was lovely! We even got lei'd, see?
On the way out of the restaurant, I stopped and said "Whaddup?" to my old pal...
Then we headed out and had the valet attendant retrieve our car... Which was perfectly fine, of course!
When we got back to the resort, I noticed a few details around the Little Mermaid section that I'd missed during my earlier photo-snapping, so I decided to correct that situation!
My photo mission accomplished, I made my way the short distance back to my room, and called it a night!
Up Next... Epcot & Hollywood Studios!
Yeah, I was pretty pleased with my facepaint, too!
These pages are such a help in bridging Disney happiness and depression!
I remember when you started your PTR it seemed like so far away. Time flies! 
