Butterbeer and Chocolate frogs

Orlando, FL is far from the type of place that you’d think they could pull off a believable Harry Potter realm recreation. It’s humid, frazzled tourists are running into you trying to fit everything into their 3 days, the food costs its weight in gold, and it’s just plain crowded. Most of all, there is this creepy feeling in the air in the theme parks of Orlando, sort of like what I imagine it to feel like when Aladdin walked into the Cave of Wonder, like someone is watching you and wants something from you in return for your momentary happiness (in this case, heaps of cash). And yet, the moment you walk past the surreal Dr. Seuss world (and wonder if they actually inject those “Thing 1″ actors with narcotics before they send them out to the pubic) and walk into Hogsmeade, it is a feeling I have never before felt in my life. You could say Cave of Wonder minus the creepiness.

Like most people I know, I have religiously read and reread all 7 Harry Potter novels, watched all the movies thus far, spent countless hours on sites like MuggleNet, and the thought has crossed my mind whether there really is a Platform 9 3/4 or the Ministry of Magic. For someone like me, walking into Hogsmeade, I was instantly transplanted (or portkeyed?) into the magical world of Harry Potter. The recreations of the store fronts, the cobblestone pathways and alleys, and the instantly recognizable Hogwarts castle all seem so real and are so well thought out that it is easy to forget you are in Florida (it happened to be 45 degrees the day I went, so yes, it was quite easy to forget you were in Florida, minus the fact that we were in simple sweaters being from the Northeast and everyone else was wearing a ski jacket). Huge barrels of butterbeer are sold on the street from wizards and witches dressed in robes. Dervish and Banges sells all types of wizarding and quidditch gear. Ollivander takes you through a wand choosing ceremony with one Hogwarts hopeful out of about 15, including a fancy display of wand waving magic that truly comes to life (note: so apparently this is a branch of Ollivanders that just opened in Hogsmeade because we all know that the wand shop is actually in Diagon Alley). Although the halo of light from above and angelic music upon finding the right wand is sort of cheesy in real life (in the movie it worked), the whole experience was amazing. Not even blinking twice, I proceeded to spend more than I spent on my vacation package on wizarding world artifacts to take back to my muggle friends at home.

As impressive as the shops and exterior experience is at Hogsmeade, nothing I have experienced in my life has paralleled what I saw inside the recreation of Hogwarts castle. Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey is the ride that resides in the heart of the castle, but the most impressive part (or I should say more, because the ride was quite amazing as well), was the line leading up to it. The path takes you through Professor Sprout’s greenhouse, Dumbledore’s office, the Potions classroom, the Gryffindor common room, among other things from the books and movies that any HP fan can instantly recognize. The wait time for this ride always read 60 minutes when I was there, but I have a feeling this is because it takes 60 minutes to really experience everything the Hogwarts path has to offer. Dumbledore gives his welcome in his office, and how the designers and engineers made that projection/hologram, (apparently called a Musion Eyeliner), look so real is beyond me. Same with Harry, Ron, and Hermione in the Potions classroom. The ride itself was stunning and really included many of the elements of danger and fear from the movies (dragons, spiders, dementors, the whomping willow). It was a simulated screen tour through the Hogwarts grounds, following Harry behind a broomstick, interjected with pockets of a live set that merged seamlessly with the video footage. It is hard to explain but it was quite a unique ride and experience.

Of course, it is a must to dine at least once at the Three Broomsticks. The food options are limited for those who are not carnivorously inclined, but the experience is what you go for. It is a very rustic setting, and the food is simple and hearty. Roasted chicken, corn. Ribs, macaroni and cheese. Fish and chips. The butterbeer was the best part of it all. I was pleasantly surprised how accurate it was to what taste I had imagined while reading the book. The sweetness of the butterscotch and fizzle of the creme soda, accented by I am sure the slightest touch of butter, is delighting to the palate. I wasn’t a fan of the frozen version, as that just tasted like a butterscotch smoothie with nothing magical about it. While I am on the subject of food, the best part of it all was the candy shop next door, Honeydukes. Sure to satisfy the sweetest of wizarding tooths. (Btw, I’m pretty sure they had a girl employed whose job was only to restock chocolate frogs, which were hopping off shelves very quickly, pun intended).

Overall the worst part of the experience was having to leave. At night, the entire place is dimly lit, accenting the old, wizard-world medieval architecture, and introducing an air of peace with an edge of mystery. I still feel this feeling inside that somehow, someway, I connected with that place, and it has allowed me to become closer with the characters and wizarding realm that I love. The Wizarding World of Harry Potter is an excellent manifestation of thousands of hours of engineering, design, and spot on creative direction, all inspired by the imagination of one amazing author, J.K. Rowling.

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