HARRY POTTER WORLD! AGAIN!

We went to Harry Potter world when it opened four years ago, but since then they have added a new section - Diagon Alley! Since I was already in Orlando with my friends for LeakyCon, today we went to Universal Studios so we could frolic through Hogsmeade and Diagon Alley - I didn't think it was possible, but it was even more magical than the first time!

From the main walkway through the park, you can't even see Diagon Alley. They have some of the London scenes from the book instead:

We just apparated at 12 Grimmauld Place.

Hanging out with the conductor of the Knight Bus.

But then, tucked behind a brick wall, you enter into Diagon Alley! It's crazy cool how it appears out of nowhere when you come around the corner.

Drinking butterbeer at the entrance to Diagon Alley.

Just as the highlight of Hogsmeade is the Hogwarts castle, the highlight of Diagon Alley is Gringotts.

THAT DRAGON BREATHES FIRE!!

The day had a bit of a rough start in that we waited in the Gringotts line for two hours, then the ride broke and we waited another hour before giving up and abandoning ship. So three hours into our day we had done nothing but wait in line, and that was a bummer. But then we spent some time wandering through the alley itself, and all the connected smaller alleys, and we were happy again. As in Hogsmeade, the attention to detail is just crazy throughout the park.

This seems like my sort of place.

Inside Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes

About to get our butterbeer on.

Swooning over Gilderoy Lockhart

Outside Gringotts

My favorite newspaper!

Hagrid's motorcycle!

They also have Knockturn Alley, which is SO CREEEPY. As we were walking through it, a person in a crazy witch costume walked up behind me and started stroking my ponytail and staring at me. I saw that she had a Universal name tag on so I knew she was an actress, but my friend Ashley didn't see the name tag and freaked out. She grabbed my hand and pulled me away while telling the lady to get away from me - I was touched by her protective instinct. None of the photos we took in the Alley turned out because it was so dark, but I did get a shot of me about to enter a vanishing cabinet in Borgin and Burkes.

It had bird noises coming from inside it :/

Diagon Alley is in a different Universal Park than Hogsmeade, which is obnoxious in that it is a blatant money grab (since you have to pay more to go to multiple parks) - BUT the one good thing is that you get to ride the Hogwarts Express between the two locations!.

With our tickets!

ON THE MOTHER FLIPPIN' HOGWARTS EXPRESS!!

The ride is really neat - the "windows" are screens that show you the scenery going by with fun little things happening (like Buckbeak flying by, Fred and George setting off fireworks, and Hagrid swooping by on his motorcycle). I knew that even though I didn't get my Hogwarts letter when I was 12 I would still get to ride that train one day!

We spent some time revisiting all the Hogsmeade attractions in the afternoon, before heading back to Diagon Alley and trying our luck at Gringotts again. Happily the ride was fixed, and they had given us a special pass to skip to the front of the line because of our morning tragedy, so we got to go on it! You get to walk through the Gringotts lobby and it is amazing - but I have to get those pictures from Ashley. I did take this picture of the dial over the elevator you take down to the vaults, though:

The ride itself was pretty short and sweet - you are in a Gringotts cart and careen around through the vaults while dodging Voldemort and Bellatrix, who are trying to keep you from stealing the horcrux from the Lestrange vault.

The last thing we did before heading home was go to Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour for BUTTERBEER ICE CREAM (which is new from last time). They had lots of wizardly flavors in addition to butterbeer:

Strawberry and peanut butter.

Now we are back in the hotel, watching the last HP movie and dreaming of butterbeer. Pure happiness.