Minionize Yourself at Universal Studios Hollywood!

          After you put up with me for that long Hong Kong post (you win 50 awesome points if you read it to the end which earns you a hug from Captain Z), I decided to give you a break with a much shorter post about our most recent California adventure.  That's right, D and I are back in California for three months this time with our first ever apartment together having a 91101 zip code.  I definitely didn't see that coming!

Can you spot our minion hanging out with this guy?

           My mom would be very proud of the DZ duo for successfully navigating our way through Universal Studios with efficiency and so much fun!  My family has always been big on amusement parks and my mom was usually the event planner who scheduled out the activities for the day to make sure we got to do everything in a timely manner and still have time for food and enough sleep to get up and do it again tomorrow.  We've been to Wisconsin Dells, Mackinaw City, Disney World, Universal Studios Orlando, and even done a 2-day Twicket for 6 Flags Great America, so when I say my mom is good at planning multiple day vacations, I have a lot of evidence I could give.

          D and I are still new at adventure planning and we're still learning how to efficiently use our time on big adventure days such as at amusement parks.  Sometimes we end up doing a lot more walking than needed to get to all the rides and attractions and my mom would see that as wasted time.  That was not the case on Thursday when we went to Universal.

          We arrived at the Curious George parking garage with our prepaid parking and park entrance tickets so we were able to quickly get into the park and enjoy the scenery of the Studio CityWalk on our way.  A new ride: Dispicable Me Minion Mayhem just opened this year so we headed there first.  At 6 Flags if you don't head to the newest ride first thing as soon as the park opens you will have a good hour's wait in line.  We were worried because we arrived about 30 minutes after the park opened, but as we headed into Gru's neighborhood we were surprised to see very few people.

          I need a disclaimer now.  Yes, I am 27.  Yes, I have 4 nephews from the ages of 2.5 weeks to 9 years.  Yes, I used to teach middle school math and have since also completed a degree in chemistry.  But that doesn't mean that I can't internally squeal with delight at the sight of two people in amazing minion costumes standing outside the ride entrance taking pictures with kids.  I might have given the excuse of having a nephew who is obsessed with minions as the reason for wanting my picture with them, but honestly, I wanted to cry with excitement at how adorable they were and I totally just wanted a picture with them for myself.

          To summarize: Yes, I am a girl with incredibly girly impulses at times and I am not ashamed to admit it!

          The same impulse hit me later when I saw Doc Brown and Lucy standing in the Universal Plaza.  I was also giddy at the sight of Scooby Doo and Shaggy because Shaggy really looked like my oldest brother.

          We got right into the Minion Mayhem ride and we had a blast getting turned into minions and trying to pass minion training with hundreds of minions, Gru, and his three little girls on screen.  At that moment, D and I officially became kids for the day and we let our excitement after all the rides show.  I'd say this adventure made it onto our top 10 days together list.

          The ride exits into Super Silly Fun Land which feels just like the amusement park in the movie with the very same carnival game that Gru blows up.  Their are fluffy unicorns and minions everywhere.  After riding our 4-eyed bug in circles and taking pictures of all the minions, we finally head to the lower lot.

This vendor saw me taking a picture and swatted the beetle away as soon as he saw it.

          Down here we get right into line for Revenge of the Mummy where we're grateful for misting fans keeping us cool.  A giant beetle is flying around (could it have picked a more perfect ride to hang around?) and I feel the impulse to catch it, but it never comes near enough.  D says that I am not strange for wanting to play with beetles.  I'm not sure others would agree.  The ride is a blast.  It's an indoor roller coaster with the most thrilling part in the dark before the ride starts going backwards and returning us to the exit, grinning ear to ear.  We are both impressed by that ride.

          Next we pass people visiting with Optimus Prime as we enter Trans Formers.  Like the minion ride, we get 3-D glasses again and we're taking on a wild adventure with Evac to save the AllSpark.  The way Evac moves us through the Nest and the city is seamless and exciting.  Again, we are both incredibly impressed.  I haven't had this much fun on rides since I was a kid.  If you let yourself believe what's going on around you you really can get caught up in the excitement.

          Bumblebee was getting his pictures taken when we left and I realized that there's actually a person inside of him.  How costumes have changed!

          We explore NBC Universal where they have props from Psych, Warehouse 13, Jurassic Park, The Office, The Box Trolls, and Back to the Future (among props from things I haven't watched).  They even have the original DeLorean freshly fixed up and looking just as it did when Doc Brown made his first test run.  I think the baby triceratops was one of the coolest props here.

          Next, Dora is unaware of an impending raptor attack as she greets guests, and we get in line for a cruise through Jurassic Park.  The ride gets diverged off course and we end up surrounded by raptors, acid spitters, and we're just about to be eaten by a giant tyrannosaurus just as the floor drops out and we plummet down a steep waterfall to safety...whew!  We were soaked, but alive.  They provide paper towels to pat yourself down with and we dry our dripping hair a bit but let the occasional breeze and strong sun work on the rest.

          Lunch is up next, but as we walk by the animal show we see that they are seating now, so we head in to give us more time to dry off, and what's better than not having to wait in line for a show?  The animal actors cause a lot of havoc as they run through their act, and even their selective obedience makes the show more adorable than if they'd done everything right the first time.  I think Dusty is still learning his moves.

          Now we make it to lunch and split a 'gourmet' sub sandwich and giant 'gourmet' raspberry doughnut, yum!  Not only did we eat in the French area of the park, but we actually had French people sit next to us.  Very authentic!  We went to check show times and saw that the Special Effects Stage was now seating so we headed right on in.  They showed us how practical and visual effects are done with only minor glitches.  I thought it was interesting, D thought it was a bit hokey.  Ok, the secret is out, shows like that are usually pretty lame; they can't seem to help it.

          We head across the plaza to check out Shrek but never make it because that's when I get distracted by the Mystery Machine, Shaggy, Scooby, Lucy, Doc Brown, Frankenstein, Dracula, Curious George, Sponge Bob, and Woody Woodpecker.  We stop for pictures, and just in time, too! Shortly after we leave we see everyone parade back to the lands from whence they came.

          Donkey is visiting with a little girl and her family at his shack and we find out that the stunt show is about to start.  We head over and take a seat in the soak zone.  We are now in a Water World atoll and some of the citizens are taunting us with water, spraying people and then looking up at the sky like they don't know where that water came from.  The three section leaders start to get us cheering and we don't cheer well enough-SPLASH!  We are soaked.  D and I are cracking up as water drips down our noses.  Our section cheers much louder next time so we don't get the bucket treatment again.

          The show is amazing.  I have seen on land stunt shows, car stunt shows, but this is the first water stunt show with jet skis, diving, and so much fire.  They even launch a giant water plane right out over the whole set so it splashes into the water, no wires, they seriously launched it!  We speak briefly with the cast member who lit himself on fire, then we decide to come back for 9 o'clock showing as a plan for the perfect end of the night.

Shooting a scene for CSI.

          We make it to Shrek 4-D and try to evade Lord Farquad's ghost.  The three pigs and Pinocchio did try to warn us!  I love this ride because it is a fun 3-D short that shows a little of what happened between the first and second movie, and where Shrek and Fiona went to honeymoon, which is cute.  The studio tour tram ride is the next must do on my list.  I don't know if every day works like this one, but there is a minor glitch again as we have some mechanical difficulties and get stranded near the filming location of CSI in a pretend city.  We wait in silence because the tram guide can't speak when filming is going on nearby.  Finally we're able to move again and she apologizes profusely for making us sit for so long with just silent Jimmy Fallon to entertain us with his juggling, card tricks, spinning, and staring contests on the screens.

          We go through Skull Island and get a really awesome full 360 degree 3-D King Kong vs dinosaurs experience as our tram is badly beaten up in the battle and you look left, right, and everywhere trying to see it all happening.  Normally my mind likes working out the mechanics of how all the visual effects and ride effects are done, but today I am really able to let go and immerse myself in the stories presented to us, and that makes today so much better.

          We drive through the wild west, little Europe, Whoville, and Amity.  Whoville is much smaller than you'd think but it looks really cool.  I almost got eaten by Jaws, but fear not, I escaped unscathed.

The Bates Motel, nothing psycho going on here.

One of my new favorite shows is filming season 2! About a Boy

War of the Worlds

          After we return, we hit up the Simpsons ride which is another unbelievable simulator taking us on a wild roller coaster ride as Sideshow Bob tries to kill us.  Who knew radiation would save the day?  We have just enough time for one more ride before the stunt show and we decide to ride the Mummy again.  It feels like we go even faster, but that is likely due to our exhaustion.  It's such a blast.  We make it to the stunt show and get a seat in the middle section out of the splash zone and enjoy the show for a second time from a different perspective.  This time we watch to see when the bad guy trades places with his stunt double that catches on fire.

Heading back through the CityWalk.

          We had such a great time and we're so glad to have season passes so we can go again next weekend with D's brother and again in September when hopefully there will be less crowds.  A post-script: I slept better after this park than I've slept in a while.  Nothing like a long, exciting day to wear me completely out.