Day Six: Kennedy Space Center

This is the Kennedy Space Center. I debated whether we should do this trip because it is about a hour away from Orlando. But considering that Hiro and Rio are space buffs and Reina is doing an unit on Space, I thought it would be worth it. Taking a bus tour from International Drive would be expensive and a pain. The bus stops at 8 hotels there and then back... We would get back at around 8pm and then get a taxi to the airport before 4 am since we were leaving the next day.

Tour bus for 4 to Space Center is $160 plus $50 for taxi to the airport. So I decided to be brave and rent a car for $85. We checked out in the morning, drove to the Space Center, return it at the airport, check-in our flight and stay at an airport hotel. We would just take the free shuttle in the morning. 

Since any airport hotel with a free shuttle bus would do the trick, I decided to go through Hotwire. Because I don't have an American or Canadian credit card, I can't bid on a Priceline hotel, this was the next best thing. I ended up getting the Wyndam Wingate Airport Hotel for $68. It was about $12 less than the Expedia published price. Had I waited, I could have gotten another 3-star hotel for $8 less... Still, it was a good deal because we liked the hotel and under the same circumstances, I would do it again. If you look around the Internet, it's pretty easy to figure out what hotels you'd be getting.

The room was large, the beds were queen (unlike the budget motel), it had a microwave and fridge. Honestly, I would have been happy staying here longer. The shuttle bus was rickety but the driver was wonderful and efficient. I requested some early morning breakfast and we got to have bagels and cream cheese, juice, coffee tea and cereal with milk at 4 am. It was great because there was a delay and we didn't get to eat until 11 am during our transit in Houston.

But back to the Kennedy Center. The drive to the Space Coast was actually very beautiful and driving back during sunset was also breathtaking. We saw the heads of a few alligators poke up but nothing that would be considered a real siting.

The real thing. The Space Shuttle retired. The Kennedy Space Center is really ... well done. It is American style edu-tainment at its best. I really recommend people to head out here even if you are not real space buffs. Kids should be at least 8 though, unless they are space buffs, as some boys are at an early age. I went a little nutty here buying souvenirs as I did at Harry Potter. When a place leaves a huge impression on you, you tend to let the pursestrings loose.

The highligh for me was undoubtedly the lecture by a former astronaut. Bob Springer. Unfortunately, Hiro couldn't understand most of the talk and it was beyond Reina's comprehension level as well. Rio listened attentively and asked the first question. I asked the last. In this photo session, he commended us on our questions.

The last photo is for Yuki. You have to get this on YOUR trip to Orlando!!!

Day Five: International Drive and The Outta Control Magic Show

After four amusement parks, this was our "slow" day. We had a leisurely breakfast buffet with pompom potatoes, Mickey Mouse waffles, bacon, fruit, sausage and biscuits and gravy... all that healthy American food. We moved from the fancy Royal Pacific to a complete dump on International Drive called the Rosen Inn at Pointe Orlando. I really struggled with finding a hotel here because there were so many to choose from. In the end, we chose this place because it had the best location and great Trip Advisor reviews. We knew we would be going to Wonderworks and I wanted to be within walking distance so we did not have to wait around for the trolley bus or try to find a taxi afterwards. This hotel was across the street. In addition, it had a I-Drive trolley bus stop right in front. There was a Walgreen (which was tiny though) across the street and a Dave and Busters two doors down. The car rental place was also close by. Location wise, it was perfect. But once there, I realized that other hotels were also within walking distance. The Hilton Homesuite was about a 5 minute walk away, on the map, it was two trolley stops so I thought it would have been too far. Next time, we will DEFINITELY be staying there instead.

For a cheap place, it was clean and the interior was renovated but the building was ancient and old, the staff cranky and generally very meh... If you are on a really tight budget, then it is a decent choice. But I wouldn't stay here again.

We headed out to the Premium Outlet after breakfast. You never know what you'll find at outlet malls. Some times there are nothing at one shop and then tons of stuff at another. I've never completely struck out and it was a highlight for me. There are two Premium Outlets in Orlando and I had trouble deciding on which one. One had Aerosoles... my favorite shoe store and I needed shoes... The other had Children's Place... The other shops were all at both.... What to do??? As usual, I choose the kids over myself. But I was not disappointed. Only wish I had bought MORE... especially souvenirs at the Disney shop and the Bath and Body Shop.

The kids and Hiro then went to Dave and Busters for lunch and games. I went to do a few errands and went back to the hotel hoping to catch a bit of the Steelers and Broncos playoff game. They LOVED Dave and Busters. The food, big cheese and bacon burgers. And the games, Hiro and Rio hit the jackpot a few times so they ended up with a huge loot of candies, a mug cup for me!, inflatable toys, etc. It was a highlight for them. It was far better than the Chuck E Cheese down the road.

Here is Wonderworks, a sort of science museum... It has mixed reviews. But the dinner show here
is suppose to be great. 

At first, I was disappointed because the regular guy was on vacation but Brian Staron did not disappoint us. The show was brilliant and it catered to non-native English speakers as the audience were from Finland and Nigeria and Venezuela and of course Japan. Hiroshi laughed uncontrollably throughout. The all you can drink beer helped his English...

Rio, again, was chosen to be the main assistant which he did well at. It was comedy/magic show with all you do eat pizza, salad and Costco sheet cake... and drinks.

See how toasted Hiro is? Yes, he walked into a telephone pole outside... We laughed so hard. It was yet another highlight of the trip!

We did the laundry that night and some clothes shrunk in the dryer. Rio went to bed in his street clothes and when I asked him to wear his pyjamas, he replied, "This has been one of my luckiest days and I don't want to ruin it by finding out that my pyjamas got small." Fair enough.

Day Four: Island of Adventure

Rio pointed out that the wonderful thing about the Island of Adventure is that it is really two theme parks in one. Wizarding World has Forbidden Journey, the Dueling Dragon roller coasters, a wand show and nifty stores... Then there is the rest of the park. The Mediterranean parts were boring and really needs to be upgraded... The water rides are great and we would have done them repeatedly.... if it was not a cold, cloudy afternoon. But we did enjoy the Marvel Comic section and enjoyed hanging around Mayberry Street and Dr. Seuss characters.

Sorry, I don't know how to turn around the photo but it's a great scene from Marmaduke! The kids and Hiro had a fun time with it.

Rio really got into posing under these captions. In fact, he really hammed it up and it was a riot. I liked how we did things other than coaster galore...

I got into the act too..

Hiro's favorite Marvel character is Wolverine and he actually lined up for a character photo. In fact, he stuck two pens between his fingers, and rolled up a park pamphlet for his third "claw." Wolverine was impressed. LOL Quite the hunk this guy was...

 The kids were enamored with baby Hulk.

The famed Hulk roller coaster. Surprised they only did it twice. We got free passes, do it again... But even that it was the fourth day of coasters, they had enough.

 Remember how the kids were SO not into the Disney character lunch? Well, they LOVED the Dr. Seuss character special. The line-up for The Cat in the Hat was a little too long even for us but the Grinch and Thing One and Thing Two made us a little giddy. Hiro was like "So our kids actually know these guys?" He was clueless. I am glad I introduced my kids to a childhood of Dr. Seuss. We read Mikey's copy of "Mayberry Street."

Green Eggs and Ham. And we caught (no pun intended) Spiderman as we were leaving the park...
Another great Hiroshi pose idea!

Rio pointed out that the wonderful thing about the Island of Adventure is that it is two theme parks in one. Wizarding World has Forbidden Journey, Dueling Dragon roller coasters, a wand show and nifty stores... Then there is the rest of the park. The Mediterranean parts were boring and really needs to be upgraded... The water rides are great and we would have done them repeatedly.... if it was not a cold, cloudy afternoon. But we did enjoy the Marvel Comic section and enjoyed hanging around Mayberry Street and Dr. Seuss characters.

Day Four: Harry Potter's Wizarding World

Okay, we were finally here. The reason for this Orlando trip. I remember how both my kids loves Harry Potter last year, how Rio knew all the spells, how Rio and Reina picked out branches from the mountains and carved their own magic wands. And this year, he seems to have outgrown everything magical... I knew if we didn't go now, we would forever miss that window where a child lives "the fantasy." We missed it with Thomas the Tank Engine, captured it with LEGO and barely caught it with Harry Potter. Even if you are not a big Harry Potter fan,  just think of the Wizarding World as a special recreation of a magical old English town.

This is Hogsmeade, the town outside the boarding school where Harry and his friends go.

This is Hogwarts castle, the school and the setting for most of the stories. It is also where the park has Forbidden Journey, the most amazing amusement park ride ever. Hiro, who doesn't know any of the back story, was so blown away by the ride, he RAN to do it again. It is virtual ride interpersed with real sets and the alternation between the two takes your breathe away. The average wait for this ride is still 90-minutes to two hours. If you stay at an Universal Partner hotel, you get early entry which means you get into the park at 8 am, an hour before the regular crowd. This allows people to do FJ and line up for the Ollivander Wand Shop before the masses. Some people have pointed out that if you are there right at 9 am, the crowds aren't too bad either. After 10 am though, it all becomes a mess... The experts then recommend coming back at 5pm after everyone else has done Wizarding World.

This is the infamous Butter Beer. Though it makes small appearances in the films and mentioned in the books, the park made it really famous! Reina is sipping the carbonated version and Rio is holding the frozen type. They both taste distinctively different and both are worth trying. The foam is creamy, like dairy creamy, like the foam from ice cream sodas... I don't like root beer or cream soda but Butter Beer is tasty stuff.

If you know the Harry Potter films, you may recognize this as Hermione's gown for the Triwizard Cup Ball. It is absolutely Reina's favorite fancy dress, her prom dress if she would ever go to one...

Doesn't this sales clerk look like a wax doll? He was great in explaining about the Every Flavor JellyBean. They are made famous by Harry offering Professor Dumbledore one and he says, "Hmm, earwax." They have flavors from vomit to diaper wipes here... the bad flavors just taste a little sweet and bitter and the good ones are typical Jelly Bellys.

This is a special moment. Remember the purpose of this trip was to make Rio's childhood magic last a little longer... So he gets picked by Ollivander, the wand maker, to choose a magic wand in the show.
My Internet research suggested that he usually picks a child around the same age as when kids first enter Hogwarts which is 11... Rio is 12, so I knew he had a good chance. Because there were only five kids, and most smaller than Reina, as soon as Rio walked in, Ollivander asked for his name and which was his wand-holding hand  without wasting a breathe. The wand-holding question, I think, was to actually determine whether he understood English as a large percentage of of visitors here do not.

Rio got to say several spells which made the bookshelves shake and lights flash and stuff until Ollivander finds "his" wand. The "show" is about 5-minutes but it is a popular attraction with at least a hour wait. By 11 am, the wait must have been close to 2 hours. And if you don't have kids... I wouldn't hang around that long. Of course, you end up buying the wand which for about $20 is not overpriced. Reina opted for a Griffindor journal and quill pen. "I will not tell lies..."

You can't see it well but they are standing in front of the Puking Pastilles figure in front of the Zonk's toy store.

Everyone has one of this shots of Hogwarts. Just so beautiful....

They didn't have platform 9 3/4 but did have the Hogwarts Express.

This is the Three Broomsticks which is one of the better amusement park restaurants. We had ribs, chicken, corn on the cob, mash potatoes, fish and chips. I've had better everything elsewhere BUT it was the best park food at Universal.

The Butter Beer barrel and me with my Harry Potter Quidditch t-shirt. Go seeker!