Part deux of our California adventure began by taking an hour long Uber from Anaheim to Hollywood. We crammed the cousin crew and the luggage into a couple of cars and set forth to the legendary Tinseltown.
We stayed at the Safari Inn for its retro glamour look, famed neon sign and outdoor deck overlooking the pool. The rooms were dated but adequate. It’s located in Burbank which is close to the major attractions. Lots of films and tv series have been filmed at this hotel with the most notable being True Romance and Apollo 13.
Our first full day was spent at the incredible theme park Universal Studios. This place rivals Disney in my opinion with its crazy cool lands like the Simpsons and Super Nintendo World. We lucked out and ran into Beetlejuice right through the gate. He made fun of the kids and cuz Jen and I fan girled.
The Wizarding World of Harry Potter was the highlight for the kids. Olivander’s shop is a money grab but necessary for the experience. Buying a wand lets you perform tricks throughout the land. When your group walks in the first room a scholarly professor picks a special young wizard to try out various wands until one magically picks them. I had actually found a used wand on Marketplace before we left and bought it for half the price. My children had instructions they were to share it. Then the damn Olivander wiz picks Jett out of the line up. The supernatural experience was actually freaking adorable and when the $60USD wand picked him there was interactive magic and smiles ear to ear. How do you say no after the wand picks the kid?! Well played, Universal.
We headed to Springfield, USA for a bite. Krusty Burger had some decent chow. Alice got a doughnut as big as her head from Lard Land. Who doesn’t need a Duff beer from Moe’s Tavern? The restaurant concepts at Universal are brilliant.
We did all sorts of amazing rides, shows and shopping. The Waterworld performance was a demented stunt show with lunatic jet skiing tricks, explosions and fire fights. Don’t miss it. The Revenge of the Mummy ride had you digging your nails into the restraints, and then you did it again backwards. The Studio Tour was really cool and still had Jaws attack the bus, but they had also added a few 3D motion stops that some found nauseating. After a few of these rides Katie vomited on Danielle. I found this funny but I doubt either of them did. I never buy photos, but the Jurassic World pic was too good to pass up, so we split it. We’re in the first two rows. Poor little Katie and Jett lmfao. Dom thinks he’s going in the water. Danielle, Mark, Matt and I all screaming in terror. Seriously the best day ever.
The next day we headed down to Hollywood. We explored the stars on the Walk of Fame. Saw the prominent Grauman’s Chinese Theatre. Hung out with some fellow weirdos at Ripley’s Believe It or Not! I wish I could remember the name of the Mexican joint the hotel shuttled us to because it was delish. The divey Donut Prince next to the Safari Inn was terrifically tasty too.
This theme park trip was the most kid orientated vacation to date. Having all the cousins with us made memories the little devils will have forever. I’m glad we shelled out the extra $80 at Universal to get the Express pass and skip all the lines. So worth it if you only have one day. I loved hanging out on the hotel deck in the evenings with the girls, sipping cocktails, while the kiddos played in the pool. Can we do it again??
SEPTEMBER 2023
KIDS AGES: 7 and 8 years old
paRty of 4 