HO-HO-HO..We`ll put the RUM in Pa-Rum-Pum-Pum-Pum! 16 holiday nights at SF & RPR. A Nov/Dec 2023 Trip Report

[disneyseniors]

Carole, I went to a show with ladies like this, and they were fantastic. I'm surprised it played in our small town, but it was well received and well done. Before the show, some of the ladies were seated in the last row. I have to say that they were the most gorgeous women I've seen. They were really something special and made me feel like a slug compared to them.
It sounds like you and Tom had a wonderful time too

 

[schumigirl]

Carole, I went to a show with ladies like this, and they were fantastic. I'm surprised it played in our small town, but it was well received and well done. Before the show, some of the ladies were seated in the last row. I have to say that they were the most gorgeous women I've seen. They were really something special and made me feel like a slug compared to them.
It sounds like you and Tom had a wonderful time too

Oh they are brilliant shows aren`t they!!! Yes, they are stunning and I did laugh at the slug comment.....lol....yes, they do make one feel quite inadequate, but in a fun way of course!!!

The first time I saw a show like that was in Paris, my goodness....extraordinary, I had never seen anything quite like it. And on our honeymoon, the hotel had shows every night and one night the compere asked the audience, out of 15 or so women dancers how many were real women or born men, everyone decided only 3 were born male, but they were all born male....absolutely unebelievable how beautiful they were and so talented.

Yes, we did have a wonderful time thanks Ruth

 

[SCDizFan]

Thank you so much for going to Gideon's so I don't have to. We were at Disney Springs last Wednesday and at 10AM when they opened there was a HUGE line.

Spend your money instead on the Dole Whip stand with a shot of Captain Morgans Rum instead. So delicious!

We love Paddleboat and Boathouse but my absolute favorite has always been Morimoto Asia. Had brunch there last Sunday. Raglan Road is always a good time and they do a great fish and chips. Edison, George Wine Bar, and Jock"s Hangar Bar are also great fun.

That was until one of my girlfriends made me go to Jaleo for their pre fixe lunch. Spanish tapas and OMG was it insanely delicious. It was a four course lunch and it was $35 per person.

I really like Hamburger Marys. Being in South Florida, we have many, many choices for Drag Brunch. If you guys ever get down here, R House and The Palace blow Hamburger Marys out of the water.

Loving your trip report and we have SeaWorld on our radar for this Halloween!

 

[schumigirl]

Thank you so much for going to Gideon's so I don't have to. We were at Disney Springs last Wednesday and at 10AM when they opened there was a HUGE line.

Spend your money instead on the Dole Whip stand with a shot of Captain Morgans Rum instead. So delicious!

We love Paddleboat and Boathouse but my absolute favorite has always been Morimoto Asia. Had brunch there last Sunday. Raglan Road is always a good time and they do a great fish and chips. Edison, George Wine Bar, and Jock"s Hangar Bar are also great fun.

That was until one of my girlfriends made me go to Jaleo for their pre fixe lunch. Spanish tapas and OMG was it insanely delicious. It was a four course lunch and it was $35 per person.

I really like Hamburger Marys. Being in South Florida, we have many, many choices for Drag Brunch. If you guys ever get down here, R House and The Palace blow Hamburger Marys out of the water.

Loving your trip report and we have SeaWorld on our radar for this Halloween!

Yes, I think with the drag shows, there are more refined ones for sure, but for the basic cost this one was very, very good. I doubt we`ll ever go to South Florida to be honest but it`s nice you have places to go to see shows that are amazing.

I`ve heard of Jaleo but never looked at their menu, we do like Tapas style menu`s, one of the many reasons we love Strong Water so much. WBG and Jock`s bar are certainly on our radar. I showed Tom the Morimoto menu and he said he didn`t fancy it, but the other places mentioned he did like the look of.

Yes, I`m glad you didn`t wait for GB. Oh I do like the sound of a Dole Whip with rum, that`s my kind of dessert!!!

I think you`ll love Seaworld for Halloween, we were honestly so impressed with their Howl O Scream, we definitely plan to go back this year if it fits with our dates, no intention of going to HHN at Universal, I think we`ve definitely outgrown that event, but HoS was tremendous.

And thank you, I`m glad you`re enjoying reading along, always good to hear

 

[schumigirl]

We did head to the suite, and we did more or less get packed up, some things we`d leave till the morning but it doesn`t take us long to pack, it`s almost down to a fine art now. We had bought a lot of things so far so we did struggle a little as we hadn`t bought the third suitcase yet, but we got everything hopefully wrapped up enough we wouldn`t have anything broken in moving over.

We had been asked if we wanted them to move our cases over for us, but we just planned to drive over and do it ourself as we would be taking the car over there anyway.

It was raining now and getting heavier, so we knew we weren`t going to the parks tonight, so we got changed and headed down to Amatista for a cocktail at their little bar, something we hadn`t done for a while.

It was almost deserted, but it was the middle of the afternoon, however there was no one seated at the bar, so we plonked ourselves down and Justin came over to serve us, he was a barman we had never seen before, well then we found out he had only been there a couple of months, that would be why then, and a very nice young man.

I asked him how his spicy margaritas were and he gave a great big grin and said margaritas were his speciality and how spicy did I like it.....I smiled and said....very, very spicy, he said no problem and headed to the kitchen and came back with 2 very large green jalapenos and proceeded to slice and shake and poured with a content look on his face, he knew I`d like it.

Tom meanwhile got a Tropical Sangria which we never took a picture of, but it was very nice.

My spicy margarita was both spicy and strong!!! Perfect.

We passed an hour or so here today, chatted with another couple who came to sit at the bar too and they were very nice, came from Montreal and had been to the F1 Grand Prix, like us they didn`t like lewis Hamilton (F1 driver) and wanted to visit Scotland.....this was the perfect couple for us to chat to.....lol......we had a nice time chatting and they were looking for a recommendation for dinner so we of course sent them to Strong Water Bar knowing they`d love it. I hope they did anyway.

Walking over to RP is always nice, and it`s so quiet again today with most of the day staff off as it`s Sunday, we barely pass anyone some days, other days it is busier with both staff and guests.

The lounge was very busy tonight due to the weather, it always is when it rains heavily and doesn`t show any signs of going off.

We did find a seat and I had a cup of tea as I`d had three cocktails already and two of them from HM`s were rather large, so I didn`t want a headache later. Tom went straight for the wine as he knew he wasn`t driving tonight, we had thought if we were hungry, we`d pop over to Kobe on Kirkman for dinner, but looking at the rain, maybe not.

Tonight`s dish was Mojo Pork Fajitas, there was a rice dish to go with it and the usual salad with dressings, crudites, sour cream, salsa, chips and cheese, something for most people there.

Again, they are so good with allergies and intolerances here, if there are any issues with you or your family, let them know and they`ll make sure they have options for you.

I was surprised how oily this dish looked tonight, it`s never usually like that at all, but I think when it`s all mixed together, it would have been nicer, it certainly is a very popular dish, it`s always been lovely when we have tried it.

I think we had some chips, sour cream and salsa....I adore sour cream and by the time I added the tabasco to the salsa in my dish, Tom couldn`t eat it so went to get his own little dish.....he likes spice, just not as hot as I do at times.

We enjoyed the lounge tonight, we had some wine and the chips and salsa made us not want to go and eat dinner anywhere, so we made ourselves comfy and it was just so nice.

We sat beside the family we had gotten to know this trip, we had been hearing about them from the staff for a long time and they said we`d like them, and we certainly did. Very easy to chat to and just the nicest family. We had such lovely chats with them and we laughed a lot getting to know them and sharing stories of family and life in general, so we always enjoyed seeing them in the lounge throughout our trip.

Over the years as I have said we missed one another on so many trips sometimes by a day, and it was so funny they had heard about us and us them and finally, we got to meet this lovely family.

We didn`t get a picture of all of them, one little grandson is missing and their other daughter with her daughter weren`t in this one, but we were glad to get this one and I did check it was ok to post their picture with us.

I chose this one as we are all laughing, and I forget what made us all laugh like that......I do know Tom wanted Mr P`s shirt.....he did have some of the coolest shirts for his trip ever!!!

Tonight again, we were having so much fun chatting, we were still there for dessert hour. Usually we maybe make it once in a blue moon, I think this was our third time this visit alone, but time passes so quickly when you`re chatting and we had nowhere to rush to tonight thanks to the weather.

It might sound as though I don`t like their desserts on offer, there`s nothing wrong with them at all, I`m just not the best person to judge desserts, but Tom thought they were lovely whenever he has sampled them. They do a very nice key lime pie and an apple one too. I can`t remember if he sampled them tonight at all but, Tom does have a sweet tooth.

The staff again are part of what makes this lounge what it is, they are so wonderful with the guests in every way and make time for everyone. the size of the lounge makes it feel very personal, one of the things I didn`t like about PBH lounge is because it is so huge and staff will say they miss that cosy feeling there due to the size and how it`s all laid out, it`s still a good lounge, I`m not knocking it, but seems size does matter after all

It was around 9pm by now and we decided we fancied something to eat but not a huge meal each, so decided to go down to Jakes and share something, but we didn`t know what exactly.

We said goodnight to everyone and headed downstairs, it seemed there was quite a wait for Jake`s tonight, so we gave our name and she said she`d have a table for us in no time at all, I was glad as I was a little peckish by now, but still hadn`t decided what I wanted. Tom said anything would do for him.. food wise he is so easy to please.

The Kevin McCallister in me is always drawn to Christmas Trees!!!

We did only wait a few moments and Jay the manager came to say hello when we went in, he is a really nice guy and he does care about Jake`s a lot, he knew we`d had a couple of issues in the past, but this is such a good place so we always go back and tonight although it was busy I did think we`d enjoy it.

I asked for a spicy margarita and it was ok, slightly lacking in flavour compared to the one earlier in Amatista and certainly not as strong, but nice enough. Tom just had a lemonade tonight, he does like the one they do in here.

We knew our waiter well tonight, there had been so many changes over the years it was nice to still see some familiar faces again. Around 2017/18 the same staff were there for such a long time, but since covid there were only a few staff who had stayed for any length of time, but these guys were still really nice and it was lovely seeing them again.

We opted to share crawfish chowder and a Pimento Burger with no cheese and had some salad with honey mustard dressing tonight, maybe too much with the chowder but we wanted to see how it was as last few times it had just been ok.

We had asked for two spoons, but he very kindly split it for us into two bowls and it was just ok, nice, but something was missing from the way it used to be several years ago.

Jay knew we`d had some burgers in the past that weren`t quite as good as they should be, so he checked on ours tonight and it was cooked as we asked and warm, we got our extra jalapenos that we asked for which were a lovely addition to the burger and salad.

Jay chatted for a bit after we had finished, he is very nice and was glad we had enjoyed our meal tonight.

We didn`t sit for long afterwards as I was yawning my head off again, I was surprised I was so tired as we hadn`t been doing that much and I always sleep really well and the walk over to Sapphire did wake me up a little, so we ordered some tea when we got into our room and finished off some little bits of packing we had to do. Last minute things would be packed in the morning.

I think it was another hour before we got to bed, but the tea had been nice. We never use the machines in the room for various reasons, so ordering tea from room service is a nicer way to enjoy a cup or two.

We would be sad to leave Sapphire, we absolutely love this suite, it is so very spacious and having two bathrooms is fabulous, but at the same time we were so looking forward getting back to RP and the lovely King Suite.

We still struggle to decide when someone asks us which hotel we prefer to stay in.....and many people do ask every trip!!

​

So, tomorrow we are back over to RP for the rest of our trip and hopefully some park time again.

 

[Pumpkin1172]

Finally caught up!!!

So far - a great trip report!

 

[schumigirl]

Finally caught up!!!

So far - a great trip report!

Good to see you Pumpkin, nice you got caught up and very glad you`re enjoying it so far!

 

[schumigirl]

MONDAY NOVEMBER 27TH

We woke early this morning ready for our move over to Royal, we knew we didn`t have to be out of this suite till much later, but leaving early meant they could get it ready for the next guests and we weren`t going to be using it as soon as we were packed up.

I had a dozen emails this morning from various people, but one laughingly irritated me slightly, it was from VA asking if we would like to choose our meal for our return flight!!! Well of course we did, but who the heck wants to think about their return flight when it`s so far away....then Tom smirkingly reminded me the longest part of our trip had already passed us by......

​

Did I really need to be reminded of that!!!!

However, we do like the option of pre-ordering our meals when flying Premium, we ordered a different meal each, usually because if I don`t like the one I choose, we`ll swap. Tom is always very kind like that, but in a sarcastic way lol.....he has known to comment loudly.....yeah I didn`t want that nice meal I ordered anyway as I ask to swap dishes in some places!!

I read him the choices and we opted for teriyaki chicken and pulled pork, the other was some kind of vegetarian dish which neither of us would order, we like both dishes so whatever one we wanted at the time we`d have.

Food on the plane is really just a way to pass time, and weirdly the homeward flight from America has the poorest food, we`d expect it to be the other way around, but it`s not usually something we expect high standards with generally, but it passes some time before sleeping on the way home.

I reply to a couple of other emails then jump in the shower, we get dressed and finish up packing. We have a check around the room then head out with the cases to the desk. We always stop off to check everything is sorted properly which it always is of course then get to the car and drive the few minutes over to RP.

We just park in the lot and walk up to check in with our cases. We love that walk in over the bridge, even though we`ve already been here for a time, it`s still nice to be walking in as guests checking in.

We drop our luggage off at Bell Services and one young man tells us to go and check if our room is ready before he`ll take our luggage, he is a little sharp which is unusual there, I tell him I`ve already been told our room isn`t ready, and he again insists we go check. One of the other guys who has known us for years comes out from the back and tells him it`s fine, it`s us and he takes our luggage. I did explain to Shawn I`d had a txt from M saying our room wouldn`t be ready till this afternoon and I`d replied saying it was fine we`d be out till mid afternoon.

Tom thanked Shawn and we did head over to the desk but only to chat to Samuel who had been away and we did manage a catch up with him, happy to hear he`d had a lovely trip, he then went through the back and the lovely Raphael came out to chat.....we adore both of them so much!!!

Raphael then very kindly checked us in which was nice as he doesn`t usually do that now as he is in a different job, but they can do it which was nice, and then we got a safety deposit box, there are a good selection of them behind the front desk in various sizes and we like to put things like passports in there. We do use the room safe for day to day stuff, but a safety deposit box is ideal for anything else and with us knowing our room wouldn`t be ready it was ideal to drop all our items like that in there then we could head to the parks without carrying anything valuable like our passports, we can get anything else replaced quickly if we lost cash or cards, but passports....no end of trouble getting those replaced while we were in America.

So, with our luggage and other stuff all being taken care of, we had our new EP`s in hand as our room keys we thanked Raphael and wandered over to the elevator to go up for breakfast....I was starving by now.

Got to the elevator and discovered I had lost the keys.....lol.....we only walked a few feet!!! Went back to the desk and Raphael was still there, he saw the look on my face and came out and I said I`ve lost the keys!!! We searched the desk and he said no worries, we`ll cancel those and re issue new ones.....then I had a "doh" moment!!! I was carrying my hoodie in case it got cool today, I had popped them in my pocket and hadn`t fully checked them.....I was suitably teased by both men at that point!!! Deservedly I think.

With new keys in hand for RP we headed up to the lounge for breakfast which we were really ready for by now, even Tom said he was ready for something and that man is one of those who can go all day without eating.....not me I am one of those for whom "hangry" is a real thing!!

​

Friends and I often joke there was no such thing as hangry when we were teens in the 1980`s....we were just called moody cows and not much sympathy was offered when we were known to groan we were starving!!

But, today I think I grabbed a doughnut, made some tea and then had some meat and fruit, Tom had his usual croissant, he is always so happy to have those, they are tiny but he likes them.

We are never in the lounge this late, by this time we`re either in the parks or off out somewhere not wanting to waste the day, we`ve never been folks who would sleep all day, especially when we`re here in Orlando and it was fairly quiet at this time of the morning, most folks had headed off by now.

Once we finished eating, we didn`t wait around to chat today, it was the latest we had gone into the parks and decided to go to the Studios today so we headed down for the boat. When we stepped outside it did feel cooler than normal, but not for long thankfully.

There was a small line for the boats and as we wait one lovely young boy suddenly shouted look daddy a floating boat!!!! lol.....he was so cute and completely mesmerised by this boat apparently rising as if by magic in front of him. Of course everyone turned to see the area of the dock where the boats go for repair and maintenance and did see the "floating" boat. Bless him.

I don`t think we waited long for a boat this morning, they run regularly especially in the really peak times you never wait too long although sometimes it might seem longer, but it was a nice little way to start the day if you didn`t feel like walking and some folks positively love these boats!!!

It is only a few moments and we`re in the centre of Citywalk, if you`ve never been before the boats dock closer to the Studios than IOA so it can feel like you`re double backing to go to Islands from here, which is why we tend to walk if we`re starting with IOA, but it`s really not far to go there too.

And it did warm up!!! I wish I hadn`t brought my hoodie now, but, we weren`t sure how it was going to turn out and that sun was bright!! My sunglasses were safely in my handbag of course!!!

It was so quiet today in this area anyway, we turned right as we planned to go and do ET today first, an absolute classic and the final ride still open from when the park opened back in 1990, so it`s always a must do ride for us at least once.

This building always reminds me of, well the yellow and white reminds me of the old perfume from the 1980`s Giorgio Beverly Hills!!! My goodness, Giorgio, Poison and Opium were so heavy, but must haves for that era!!! Showing my age now!! Anyone remember Ysatis too, I loved all of them, maybe we were all responsible for the damage to the ozone layer with all those perfume fumes!

The parks are beautiful all year round in our eyes, but during the holidays they are gorgeous, moreso at night of course, but seeing all the decorations certainly does put one in a holiday mood, not that I need much encouragement as Christmas is my favourite time of the year.

They were certainly pushing Trolls in the parks!! Not something I know the first thing about of course, but it`s certainly a popular movie by all accounts.

One of the things we love is how Universal Studios has evolved over the years and included so many street performers that are a lot of fun to watch.

Many years ago there used to be a band played out here, The Vinyls, last time I remember seeing them was maybe 2011, but of course they may have played longer than that, but they were very good. Back then there weren`t the same amount of street shows we have now.

But, today there were a bunch of very energetic dancers and performers and they were very good and we passed a good 15 minutes or so watching them.

It was getting very hot now, I was glad to feel that heat we were so used to at other times of the year. We had put sunscreen on this morning just in case, we never bring it with us usually as we`re never in the parks all day so no need to top it up for us.

Cafe La Bamba is somewhere we have never utilised in it`s form right now, it`s used as the VIP meeting point for HHN and the daily tours too, I have always thought it was a wasted area and should be an upscale restaurant, and apparently I am in the complete minority in my views...

However.......

​

There are several things I`m not a huge fan of at Universal and that darn squirrel is one of them, it just doesn`t appeal to me, I do however have the mug of his they brought out in 2022 and it`s a nice mug, but as a character, zero interest.

He does do photo ops in this area but he wasn`t around today.

We headed round to ET and spotted the changes being made replacing KidZone into the Dreamworks themed area of the park to include Shrek`s swamp area, Trolls and Kung Fu Panda and looks to be quite good, certainly somewhere we`ll have a good wander through when it`s done.

One thing about Universal, when they decide to do something, they don`t hang around for too long and it gets done in record time.

The line for ET has been rerouted during the works going on and it is a little convulted, but you get there.

After we collected our intergalactic passport, you head left and the line splits into two, EP veers to the left slightly and regular line folks walk to the right. Today when we went through everyone was in the EP side which is unusual, but as we moved forward we realised every single person in front of us were all being moved to the regular line.....whether they were just mistaken or trying to get through without EP, who knows, it`s not a huge line today anyway, so I assume the were just mistaken.

We do love this ride, it is innocent, simple but a whole lot of fun and full of nostalgia.

You really don`t get the best pictures on this ride, you move about so much, but you can get the odd one or two and it is one highly coloured area for sure and a little bit disturbing when you think about it too much!!

But ET is cute as a button and sometimes he says your name at the end of the ride....sometimes he doesn`t.

I think he called me Harald today.....

It is a cute must do ride and they have a nice phot op on the way out in the gift store, so many folks miss it as they keep on walking, but it`s there and it is a nice picture.

They have their tree but I`m not sure if it was part of the Tree Scavenger Hunt this year, I just didn`t notice.

It was about now we heard a woman say ET was the scariest thing she had ever seen and her kids were terrified as they came off.....kids looked fine to be honest, one wanted to buy a mini ET for heavens sake, but she bellyached all the way out how this wasn`t Disney and her kids were scared

Of ET????

I had to applaud the TM who kept a straight face and sympathised with the woman who was moaning at her while her kids were relishing looking at the ET merchandise...lol.....



More to come

 

[DisGhost]

My niece HATES ET because she lost her favorite sunglasses on that ride but I have trained my family that it is the one ride that is required each trip and no complaining allowed.

When that movie came out, I went and saw it with my grandma and it was only the second movie I ever saw in the theater, the first one being the rerelease of Song of the South in 1980 with my mom. I remember the excitement of seeing it (I absolutely adored my grandma and clearly my parents never took me to movies anyway so it was such a big deal!) and I remember crying so much at the end - I had no idea that movies could make you cry like that so it was such a turning point of my life.

 

[margareton27]

Caught up! Looks like a great trip so far and already booked your next flights - how fun is that! We won’t be back to Universal/Disney til 2025 and we will be bringing the whole family, including our grandson who will be 3.5 by then. Such a fun age for his first visit. Before that we head to Japan for three weeks with our son. He has always wanted to go and we planned it for his 30th - but we’ll Covid!
We got caught up in some of that wet weather in late October, early November in Scotland. We had to take a non-direct train up to the Highlands due to flooding. So glad we still made it though. Can see why you liked being in the sun as opposed to that weather lol

Drag shows can be a hoot. I’ve been to many as a sidebar to volunteer work I did for years. Amazing artists - and their makeup is phenomenal. Usually a fun time!

Margaret

 

[schumigirl]

My niece HATES ET because she lost her favorite sunglasses on that ride but I have trained my family that it is the one ride that is required each trip and no complaining allowed.

When that movie came out, I went and saw it with my grandma and it was only the second movie I ever saw in the theater, the first one being the rerelease of Song of the South in 1980 with my mom. I remember the excitement of seeing it (I absolutely adored my grandma and clearly my parents never took me to movies anyway so it was such a big deal!) and I remember crying so much at the end - I had no idea that movies could make you cry like that so it was such a turning point of my life.

lol.....yep, that is one ride not to be missed, I do love the instruction of no complaining to them....quite right too!

That`s a nice memory of your grandma and the movies, we didn`t do a lot of movies as a kid either. I think the first cinema movie I saw was either Mary Poppins or weirdly, lady and the tramp but my brothers took me and I`m not exactly sure why unless mum paid them to do it during the summer holidays.....lol.....

ET is a very sad movie!!! I rarely watch it for that reason alone, I`m a blubbing mess at certain scenes in that movie.......this one particularly





Every time.....

 

[schumigirl]

Caught up! Looks like a great trip so far and already booked your next flights - how fun is that! We won’t be back to Universal/Disney til 2025 and we will be bringing the whole family, including our grandson who will be 3.5 by then. Such a fun age for his first visit. Before that we head to Japan for three weeks with our son. He has always wanted to go and we planned it for his 30th - but we’ll Covid!
We got caught up in some of that wet weather in late October, early November in Scotland. We had to take a non-direct train up to the Highlands due to flooding. So glad we still made it though. Can see why you liked being in the sun as opposed to that weather lol

Drag shows can be a hoot. I’ve been to many as a sidebar to volunteer work I did for years. Amazing artists - and their makeup is phenomenal. Usually a fun time!

Margaret

Oh my goodness, Scotland did get it bad then, some areas were truly awful for flooding, glad you managed to navigate it safely, but hope the trip was a success otherwise.

Heck yeah, the weather makes such a difference on any trip and one of the reasons we do love to come to Orlando....the heat!! I love Scotland and everything it has to offer, but as a tourist, you want beautiful weather.

Japan!!! Wow, that`ll be an amazing trip for your son, never been there but anyone who has gone said it was an amazing experience and one they`ll never forget. And yes, by then your grandson will be an adorable age for Orlando and a whole family trip will be wonderful!!

They do put on an amazing show, and yes, their make up!!!! Incredible. Sounds like a nice perk of volunteering and a fun one too!!!!

 

[saskdw]

Hangry is 100% real!!

 

[schumigirl]

It was hot now, very hot which sounds like we`re complaining but we were loving this, ideal temperature for walking around and just enjoying being here and at the risk of sounding like a broken record, we had to keep reminding ourselves this was late November and it was bitterly cold back home!!!

I am not the biggest BTTF fan, but I do enjoy seeing the train and the DeLorean of course is a classic. No Doc Brown today, but he`s usually wandering around and checking the train for any issues and of course for pics too. Not my favourite character to meet, but he is very good and popular too with most folks.

Not somewhere we ever really have a drink in, Tom wasn`t fond of the beer and both times I have ordered a cocktail here they asked if I wanted a double measure and I said yes.

But......

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If I`m going to have alcohol, I want to taste it, I don`t want to be intoxicated in any way, but I do like to know I`m getting what I pay for, sadly this bar lacks anything we would enjoy again. Their cocktails have been a disappointment which is a shame as it`s a nice position to sit at the back and overlook the lagoon.

We went on MiB, a ride I`m not a fan of as I get bored with those type of shooting games so many love, maybe they`re just more competitive than I am but I get bored with them and maybe go one once or twice a trip as I know Tom enjoys it, it`s ideal when Kyle was with us as he enjoyed it too and they could go on and I`d wander around enjoying the sunshine while they re-rode it over and over. It`s not awful, but not my thing.

Back into Potter we ran into our friends Anna and Harry who we hadn`t managed to hook up with yet, this was getting crazy, but we don`t really plan any time together....we always joke we see enough of each other at home anyway, but we wander round together for a little time and catch up on each others stories so far.

Tom and Harry catch up too while we babble away, they were only going to be in the parks another half hour or so, so we made the most of chatting briefly.

Tom captured Kreacher perfectly today, sometimes the curtain doesn`t pull as far back or he doesn`t always lean forward enough, but today was ideal.

There are always folks who think you have to knock on the door to make him appear, and they won`t be told otherwise.....somewhat dull and dreary fact, but it is simply on a timer as I think most folks know, but some still insist you have to knock for him to appear.

A & H head off for their trip to somewhere or other and we headed into DA and it was busy in here which isn`t unusual, but you can still capture a quiet corner here and there.

This is the shot most folks want and you do get the opportunity several times an hour, usually. There have been a few times over the years that it hasn`t breathed fire, but they have been few and far between. Folks will stand and wait, that seems to annoy some folks but it`s a nice picture to take as a memory of your time in the theme park, so while we don`t usually wait to capture the fire breathing now, I appreciate many do and might not get back to do it again, so we never get annoyed if folks just stop quickly to get a picture of the fire breathing dragon.

There have been people who have commented you can see all these images on the internet, but I don`t get that way of thinking, these are our personal memories of our time there, not some random person on the internet`s pictures, but, each to their own.

My only grumble here has only ever been the guys with the huge backpacks that look as though they`re here camping for a week and then turn round in what is quite a small space and hit folks with them, much more annoying!!

But, as we wandered up to do Gringotts we heard that slow rumble and Tom did capture it as we were there, it is impressive to see.

We did go on Gringotts, I wish we`d taken some pictures today, it`s been a while since we did, but the EP line was moving so quickly we just ambled on and followed the herd, last week we moved much slower in the Express line but we left the camera in our locker, we really need to take it on the ride more as there are some lovely picture ops in the line.

We like this ride, I actually prefer the back row for the drop that isn`t really a drop....but today we ended up in the second row, I do have to say I admire how the TM very quickly fill those vehicles up and do it in rows too, I`d have forgotten who I sent where, but they do it so well. And they deal with the folks that complain they want another row so well too!!!

This was fun today, you do get swooshed around a lot in certain parts, but it`s not rough nor too spinny and we do like this ride, we prefer FJ as it`s more ride like, but this shouldn`t be missed, although the locker experience is one of the most ridiculous of them all!!! As always, head to the rear of the lockers, they`re never as busy (usually) and it`s easier than fighting through a family of 8 trying to get stuff out of one locker, again the poor TM`s deal with it with aplomb.

Holy moly, it is bright when we come out today, we weren`t going to be much longer till we left either but we did want to watch Celestina Warbeck and hoped to catch the snow!!

I love the steaming kettle up there, very British!!!

There are so many details when you look up and see the amount of colour and specifics of everything that has been added to the Potter areas, I swear every time we visit we always find something we missed before and sometimes wonder how we managed to miss it. It is an incredible place and JK Rowling is someone I admire more and more every time we visit here, between her imagination and what Universal came up with to bring it all to life is absolutely incredible and beyond anything else out there in theme park worlds.

The Fountain of Fair Fortune sells Butterbeer inside and it`s never been overly busy whenever we`ve gone in, but that was a while ago, none of us like Butterbeer (I know I know) so we never go in as we won`t be purchasing, but it`s a lovely little place worth popping into.

We have tried frozen and non frozen, ice cream, potted and fudge and the only thing we like is the fudge, and just a little as it is so sweet. We`ve never tried hot butterbeer, but no reason to think we`d like it given our dislike of it generally.

We arrived towards the end of the show today, but did catch the snow which makes everyone smile.....

We did go to Celebration one year to see their Christmas night time snow, it was ok, not something we`d ever do again, a one and done for us. It was lacking something, there was no build up to the snow, no announcements getting everyone excited and generally lacked atmosphere, so we wouldn`t go back, but glad we did it once.

This was a first for us seeing this on the wall inside Weasley`s Wizard Wheezes store, we`d never noticed it before and of course it doesn`t translate onto a picture very well, but cool detail.

The store has a plethora of items for purchase and one of the most colourful of stores within WW.

The detailing in the ceiling is quite something to see, but again, with the camera, it`s not as clear what you can see, but you do have to look up all the time in case you miss something.

We very rarely buy anything in this store, except a few years back I think we got a couple of those Pygmy Puffs for gifts once, but it`s just a nice store to wander around, when it`s not too busy.

Back out to the heat and sunshine now and we headed towards the front of the park but via Delancey Street.

There are a few remnants around from when this was all Amity and the Jaws ride, we were always glad we got to experience Jaws many times before it finally closed. It wasn`t the most advanced of rides, but it was so much fun and your boat guide made all the difference to each tour.

We got booed once back in 2007 going on this ride well going into the line, we had gone on with EP, went on again and as we were going round again, a group noticed us and another family going on for the third time and they hadn`t moved an awful lot forward.....to be honest it was in a little bit of fun on their part, but we just laughed....not much you can say really.

But, there are a few Amity details still around.

I love Spider-Man ride, but TF does not agree with me at all despite being a similar concept, so I haven`t gone on it for a long time, but today I did as I know Tom likes it, so we had a quick bimble on. The screen has a different type of pixellation to SM and it just isn`t for me. I don`t mind it`s a little rougher, but not too bad, it`s the screen....so I tried, but not for me, however I didn`t come off feeling too bad today as I had the last time I tried.

I was glad to see the decorations had been put up in this area now they had completed the work, they had been doing updating some of the buildings, it is so lovely with all the lights and decor up, it looked almost dull without them.

The Blues Brothers show was beginning, it is worth watching but today we were heading out to go for lunch, so we slowly headed to the exit and enjoyed the heat that was now hotter than they forecast, but lovely.

Lunch and our room is ready, up next!!

 

[schumigirl]

Hangry is 100% real!!

It really is and it would be a very brave person to try and tell someone who is hangry that it`s not a thing!!!!

 

[keishashadow]

Janet, I drank it and felt nothing, their faces were like mine when I saw the one room in GB....gobsmacked...

Lol

I wish they would ban those darn wagons though, they take up more room than people and usually just filled with stuff!!! And some are double deckers, there`s just not enough room in some areas.....imagine we all started bringing one of those!!

They doubles? Noo

he was a bit of a characature and I think Janet and I know someone who is trying to schmooz us, nah, didn`t work on us at all

believe he was trained by Rizzo the rat…”they’re tourists, what do they know?”

I am absolutely the plain Jane of this wonderful group of ladies for sure

Great pic Of you and the girls. IMO those makeup & hair transformations are noting but art. I’m loving that they weren’t lip syncing, talent out the door.

Spend your money instead on the Dole Whip stand with a shot of Captain Morgans Rum instead. So delicious!

Or both but, a solid suggestion

Walking over to RP is always nice, and it`s so quiet again today with most of the day staff off as it`s Sunday

there’s something about how still it is there that makes me hasten my step when walking thru…too many stays during HHN i guess

no end of trouble getting those replaced while we were in America.

Then you’d just have to stay here

moody cows and not much sympathy was offered when we were known to groan we were starving!!

Lol That phrase just kills me

I had to applaud the TM who kept a straight face and sympathised with the woman who was moaning at her while her kids were relishing looking at the ET merchandise...lol.

the cynic in me thinks it may have been a repeat of the scam that may have worked in WDW. One wherein the scarred children were doused with pixie dust and gifted something or other For their trouble After the mom made waves

so we never get annoyed if folks just stop quickly to get a picture of the fire breathing dragon.

So true. One thing i noticed the last few trips when wall2wall in that area, were people lounging against the shop windows…to point they were often obstructing the wand spots and the general view.

 

[margareton27]

We have tried frozen and non frozen, ice cream, potted and fudge and the only thing we like is the fudge, and just a little as it is so sweet. We`ve never tried hot butterbeer, but no reason to think we`d like it given our dislike of it generally.

The hot butterbeer is the only one I like. I find the others way too sweet. We used to have a hot butter caramel drink (mostly steamed milk and flavour) from Tim Horton’s here in Canada that it reminds me of. Still sweet but not as cloying as the cold drink.

Margaret

 

[DisGhost]

Christopher Lloyd, who played Doc Brown in the movies, is my husband's fourth cousin! They have a shared ancestor who was a major figure in the Underground Railroad on Long Island, and was a New York State Senator (Nathan Lapham.) Christopher is descended though Nathan's son Jesse, and my husband is descended through his son Arden. So I have a bit of a soft spot for Doc Brown, even though the actor has no idea lol. Whenever we see that character in the park I smile.

 

[schumigirl]

Lol

They doubles? Noo

believe he was trained by Rizzo the rat…”they’re tourists, what do they know?”
View attachment 830924

Great pic Of you and the girls. IMO those makeup & hair transformations are noting but art. I’m loving that they weren’t lip syncing, talent out the door.

Or both but, a solid suggestion

there’s something about how still it is there that makes me hasten my step when walking thru…too many stays during HHN i guess

Then you’d just have to stay here

Lol That phrase just kills me

the cynic in me thinks it may have been a repeat of the scam that may have worked in WDW. One wherein the scarred children were doused with pixie dust and gifted something or other For their trouble After the mom made waves

So true. One thing i noticed the last few trips when wall2wall in that area, were people lounging against the shop windows…to point they were often obstructing the wand spots and the general view.

Yes!! He did have that kind of attitude didn`t he!!

I spooked myself walking through the ballroom areas one night, I said to Tom...."Redrum....Redrum" while wagging my finger.....yes, I spooked myself hearing a tiny noise!! It is so vast, especially when the huge ballroom has all the walls down and it`s one vast room....definitely a little imagination going into overdrive there.

Moody cow?? One of my favourite insults to hand out......

Tom is not shy in asking people to move so we could see in the windows, so I know what you mean, I`m assuming most don`t realise they`re blocking things folks want to see.

It`s a shame we won`t be meeting up this year, we could all have gone to the adult version of HM`s show.....that would have been a lot of fun!!!!

Now I wonder if she was on the mooch for something as the kids were absolutely fine, didn`t enter into my head, thought she was just a Disney juice drinker, but now you mention it

 

[schumigirl]

The hot butterbeer is the only one I like. I find the others way too sweet. We used to have a hot butter caramel drink (mostly steamed milk and flavour) from Tim Horton’s here in Canada that it reminds me of. Still sweet but not as cloying as the cold drink.

Margaret

Oh I like the sound of Tim Horton`s!!! They are starting to appear in the UK, I don`t think we have one near us yet, I`m sure it`ll happen one day.

We have a chain here for coffee called Costa and they do a lovely salted caramel latte, sounds similar to what you describe, it`s gorgeous!!! You can buy the sachets or tub from grocery stores and it is identical. I buy it as we very rarely visit chain coffee shops and I make it with milk not water so it is very sweet, but now and again it`s nice.

The frozen and normal butterbeer I did struggle to drink even half of it, I might give the hot one a try again in the future though.