Mark the date…. 03/19/2013 was the day I officially played hooky from work and spent the day at Universal Studios. Though this was technically a vacation day I chose to spend it at one of my favorite places , Universal Studios, in Orlando, Fl. The forecast called for 40% chance of rain, but there wasn’t a cloud in the sky and the temperature was perfect. The day started around 7:30 am when the wife’s mom and aunt arrived at the house. They had no clue what was in store for them but we hopped in the car and stopped at our first destination which was Starbucks. After we all had our drinks we hopped in the car and headed towards the interstate, it was at that time they found out that we were going to spend the day at Universal. The wife and I hadn’t been there in a long time, but my mother-in-law’s sister hadn’t been there and was a Harry Potter fan so it was sure to be a fun time. Once we arrived we made our way to the front gates of Islands of Adventure, knowing she was a Harry Potter fan we went there first. To get there we went in reverse and started at Seuss Landing and worked our way back to Harry Potter. Once we left Harry Potter we went thru all the other areas and stopped at Blondies for a quick lunch. We then proceeded to walk thru the other parts of Islands of Adventure making our way to the front of the park to head towards Universal Studios.

Once we made it thru the gates of Universal we proceeded to the broadcast area to make a quick stop in to see a friend and then we were off to E.T. The wife love E.T. so we rode that and then continued to walk the park, but couldn’t help but notice all the changes and construction that was happening in the background. Making our way back to Men In Black, we passed more construction, but the place was still full of life and families enjoying the day as far as one could see. Making our way past Men in Black we passed what appeared to be the home of an upcoming attraction Transformers 3D which I can’t wait until it’s done and I can go back. We rode Twister and then passed Shrek 4D and the Blue Man Group which I have yet to see, but everyone keeps telling me I need to and headed towards the front gate.

Once back in the car and heading home we decided to go to The Original Hooters in Clearwater for dinner and I was perfectly fine with that. What’s on the menu for dinner after a long day at the theme parks you ask? Well I had boneless chicken wings (classic BBQ), medium buffalo shrimp and fries, and of course I had to wash it down with ice cold Bud Light (as always it was a pitcher… or maybe 2). Oh, and who could forget that I always have to have a piece of peanut butter cup pie to take home with me. The place was pretty busy and service was awesome as usual, but I wouldn’t expect anything less from them and that’s why the wife and I choose to go there out of all the other locations. All in all it was a great day of hooky we played and everyone seemed to have fun. I’m sad it’s over and I’m back at work today but I feel another day coming on soon.

Where’s your favorite place to play hooky? How often do you get play or take time off?