Universal Studios in 2 1/2 weeks

Rex, who is my brother, and I will be heading down to Universal Studios to enjoy our annual week long excursion to the single greatest vacation destination in the world. Let me give a quick rundown on our Orlando/Universal Studios history.

I have no idea what year it was when we first made our trip to Orlando. I think it was like 1997. Yeah, it was. Anyway, we went to tackle the Disney parks. (By the way, for those of you who are Disney rookies, Walt Disney World is actually 4 main parks: Magic Kingdom, Epcot, MGM and Animal Kingdom. There are also water parks, such as Blizzard Beach, and other entertainment, such as Downtown Disney that all make up Walt Disney World.) We took our first trip and had a blast, it is still probably my fav trip of all time that we have taken. We were on a shoestring budget and things were just brand new.

After our Disney adventure, we realized that Universal may be more up to our speed. (another sidenote, Magic Kingdom could very well be my favorite park, even against the Universal Parks. But, when Rex and I are together, that park doesn't quite fit our needs as a team. We need something else). So, we decided to head over and see what Universal was up to. Now, similar to Disney, the Universal Studios Resort is made up of two parks, Universal Studios and Islands of Adventure. That is even more confusing than Disney, because one of the main parks is actually called Universal Studios, whereas there is no park called Walt Disney World. A few years ago, they were calling the entire package Universal Escape, but then changed it back to studios. I don't know why.

Islands of Adventure, one of the two Universal parks, is more of a themed thrill park than just a theme park. In other words, it has thrill rides, like roller coasters, but still kicks serious tail in the themeing department. As soon as we stepped foot inside IOA, we knew that we had found something special. Rides such as Spiderman are among the greatest in the world and you really have to experience it to fully appreciate how incredible the rides are.

Universal Studios, sensing that their sister park was much cooler now, decided to pick up the pace, and began unleashing cool rides of their own, such as the recent Mummy dark ride/coaster. As of the last couple of years, Rex and I spend about equal time at both IOA and US. What is amazing, even to me, is how often we can go to the parks and still never get tired of being there. We even have season passes and live halfway across the country!

So, I am already getting excited about crossing the line of IOA and hearing that wonderful music welcome me into the park. I can hear the roar of The Hulk and can sense the taste of the greatest combo meal in the world, Captain America's Diner!