Exhausted as we were from our holiday fun, the Ramblin’ Bauers were back on the road the morning of December 26th…with three Vances along for some fun in Florida sun! The drive down involved long waits in heavy traffic as everyone escaped their northern winters, making our drive 4 hours longer than normal. We arrived late at night and the excitement of the fun awaiting us the next day could not trump our need for sleep…
The next morning, we awoke to a view of our destination, Universal Studios, right outside of our hotel window! That pepped the troops right up and we headed across the street for an awesome day of movie magic!
The main event on the docket was the long anticipated, ever dreamed of, and awe inspiring Wizarding World of Harry Potter! I would be lying if I said my eyes didn’t tear up at the sight.
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After the initial overwhelming moment of joy, we stopped for some pictures in front of Hogsmeade’s snow-topped roofs…
Then headed into the enchantment!
We strolled past Ollivander’s, the Owl Post, and Dervish and Banges.
Inside the shops we saw quaffles, cauldrons, and the Monster Book of Monsters—just to name a few magical items.
Next we went inside Honey Dukes where the Shripmeister made some new friends and we found Every Flavor Beans, Chocolate Frogs (ours had a Dumbledore inside), Puking Pasties, and Ton Tongue Toffee.
From the street vendors we purchased a pumpkin juice and then enjoyed a butterbeer outside of the Three Broomsticks.
If you’re interested in knowing what butterbeer tastes like, try this recipe that I found for our Harry Potter Halloween party. It was just as good at the Universal Studios version! Butterbeer recipe! The website is full of all sort of Potter fun!
Our day in the Wizarding World of Harry Potter held a surprise that none of us were prepared for…a walk INSIDE of the Hogwarts Castle! The castle houses the ride “Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey”, and the line for the ride meanders through the green house, the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, Dumbledore’s office, and more! Just as in the streets of Hogsmeade, we felt like we had stepped into one of our favorite fairy lands.
The rest of the day was spent roaming through the remainder of Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure.
We saw some Who’s at Seuss Landing…
Met the amazing Spiderman…
Killed some aliens at MIB headquarters…
Saw Jaws for the last time (they closed the timeless ride this January) and watched him inexplicably cause explosions on the water.
Though Jaws was exciting, our second day in Florida sent us on he hunt for a different big toothed aquatic legend…the FL Gator! In pursuit of the legendary swamp dweller, we drove to the Everglades National Park (another World Heritage Site).
We were impressed by the neon pink visitors center, a definite stand out among the National Parks if you ask me.
We made a quick stop at a pond nearby…
Then started the hike out to Christian Point. This was the Shrimpmeister’s first time hiking and he was pretty excited!
Shortly into the trail, we noticed the intricate net of spider webs that hung above our heads like a canopy. Yes, they were complete with creepy crawly spiders!
But soon the terrain opened up and we were in a grassy meadow, then back in the woods (with more spiders), then in a muddy area, then…Well, it changed frequently.
We saw a variety of unique and eye-catching plants along the way. There’s Spanish Moss, Palmetto, what the Cake Queen called “Hell Sprouts” and a few more things.
As the sun was going down we drove to a more popular area with a paved/boardwalk trail over a swampy area.
If you look very closely, you can see the gator that we ran into there.
With the beast spotted our day at the Everglades was complete, so we drove to downtown Miami for some dinner Cuban Style!
Here we are enjoying our quail eggs, Cuban sausages, and Cuban stew at La Moon! If you were wondering, we are eating outside in December, comfortably.
Our last day in the Sunshine State was spent driving through the Florida Keys.
Naturally, we began in Key Largo where we saw beautiful tropical trees and interesting tropical art.
“I am Mega Shrimp!”
We spent the morning on a glass bottom boat tour of America’s only coral reef. As we waiting we took in life around the little fishing harbor. Birds sunbathed, fishermen cleaned their catch, boats rocked gently in the water, and everyone was at ease.
Then we boarded the boat and left the shore behind us. We had nothing but blue water ahead and birds above (ut-oh).
Here we are relaxing on deck and enjoying the view.
And here is the main event: our arrival at the reef! We saw colorful fish, not-so-colorful fish, reef and sand as we learned about this fragile ecosystem. It was very neat!
When we arrived back on shore we headed further out along Highway 1 to Bahia Honda State Park, one of the only places to find a white sand beach in the Keys.
Everyone was taken by the clarity of the water and tranquility of the shore as we strolled along the tide line.
This lade spotted a sting ray. Can you see it?
The good news is, there were no crabs! Look how happy we all are about it in these pictures.
Unadulterated, the beach offered a spectacular farewell as the sun slipped further…
and further…
and further away.
After the sun set, we finished up our tour of Florida and the Keys in Key West, where Highway 1 ends and the ocean begins.
Next time, we will begin the tale of our journey from Florida to California. We saw and experienced a lot along the way, so I’m sure you will enjoy it!
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