Brooke's Spring Break

While my spring break had a bit of a boring start, my roommate was nice enough to invite me to go with her to Orlando, Florida on Tuesday. Of course I said yes, and we made plans to drive down, stay in a condo in Kissimmee, Florida, and go to Universal Orlando Resort. I had never been to Universal because Disney World is near and dear to my heart, and I would feel as if I was cheating on Mickey himself if I stepped foot in this new territory so close to the “Happiest Place on Earth.” However, we decided that to avoid hoards of young children, we would venture to Universal instead of my beloved Disney World while in Orlando.

Universal Studios

We decided to go to Universal Studios first to ease into the theme park going. We walked around and looked at shops. We ate lunch at the Classic Monsters Cafe, and it was a really neat restaurant that had an evil scientist theme and old, scary movies playing.  
Soon after lunch we had to discover all that the Harry Potter attraction had to offer. As an avid reader, I am ashamed to admit that after learning a very big spoiler in the series, I refused to read any more books. I still can appreciate the fandom though. Overall, it was a really fun day, and I got a churro. Here are some pictures:


 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Islands of Adventure

I was excited for Islands of Adventure because it has some cooler rides and other things to offer, and it was a lot of fun exploring all there was to offer. I will be honest and admit that I liked the Dr. Seuss memorabilia more than I care to admit. We also went to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter here as well, and it was really cool to see a work of fiction come to life in front of my eyes. As I was standing in line at one of the rides, I decided to take the quiz to see what house I would be sorted into. (If you create a Pottermore account, you can too!) I was surprised to learn I am a Hufflepuff. Here are some pictures from Islands of Adventure:


 
 
 
 
 
 
 
CityWalk
If you have never been to Universal, CityWalk is a part of the park you do not need a ticket to get into. This was our last destination while on our excursions to Universal, and I have to say that The Toothsome Chocolate Emporium will blow your mind. They had different sweets everywhere you turned. I was so engrossed in looking at everything I did not realize one of the characters, a robot, native to Toothsome snuck up behind me to startle me. The other character of the store had to explain to him what person space was. My roommate, Lizzi, thought this was hilarious and even asked him for a picture while I tried to keep a safe distance. I also splurged on some macaroons at Toothsome, and I do not regret my purchase one bit. 
All in all, I had a wonderful spring break. Universal was a lot of fun, but I don’t think that it has replaced Disney World. Disney just sparks a sense of magic that I did not feel at Universal, and it seems to have more attractions and other things that I enjoy more so than Universal. However, I am so glad that I went, and I did have a lot of fun experiencing all that Universal had to offer!