Now that the last night of Halloween Events for 2015 is over it's time to start turning our attention back on the attractions coming for 2016, and that of course means Wizarding World. It's been almost 2 months since our last full update for Hogsmeade, Hogwarts and all things Potter, so let's get right to it today. Written by Gregg Condon We'll start off where we've been starting off for awhile and that's with the entry to Wizarding World, which looks a bit different than it did just a couple of months ago. As you can see in the background, Hogwarts has had a LOT of detail added to it. Moving back a bit you can start to see much more detail on the buildings of Hogsmeade. The clock in the middle and of course the Hogwarts Express on the far right. Moving around near the Studio Tour Apologies for the sun glare in some of these pictures, it was very bright The amount of detail there is amazing They're still working on the Greenhouse A look at Flight of the Hippogriff which has been testing Moving around to the other side, the trees that will be between Wizarding World and Shrek are filling in nicely I want to go now!!! Hippogriff. Looking forward to this since it will be different than the others. We obviously have no idea when Wizarding World is going to open but they are working feverishly to get it done. But Wizarding World isn't the only thing going on at the park ... New banner up in Springfield ... The other side ... This has been there for awhile, but again it's been awhile since our last update. =) On the lower lot, work is being done on what was the Universal Experience. I want to say they announced that this was going to be a food location now but it's early, it's Monday and Coffee hasn't kicked in yet. =) Back up top, considering Halloween Horror Nights ended about 7 hours prior to the park opening on Sunday there are still a lot of props up, but they did put up a few walls already. They finally caught Michael Myers ... The new Retail/Dining megaplex is coming along nicely. No idea when it will be finished but it will be nice when it is. Grinchmas Stuff has started showing up in the stores ... #TooSoon =) And Minion stuff too ... Real quick, a couple of CityWalk notes ... they are getting ready for Santa's Arrival Smashburger is now open Jody Maroni's (that I think we ate at once in 20 years of going to CityWalk) is closing and will be replaced by Ludo Bird (good call). Just hope the prices are more reasonable than the Ludo Bird at Staples Center. The new (much needed) parking structure is looking close to being done. Let's hope they have more booths open when it opens too because the lines to get in when I left at about 10:30 were crazy. And lastly we'll leave you with a picture of a couple of the great characters at Universal Studios Hollywood. They really are the heartbeat of the park. I could listen to these two argue all day. =) Thanks for reading, we hope you enjoyed the update. We are fast approaching the time where there won't be much to update on as far as Wizarding World is concerned but we should be able to get another update together in the next few weeks. We also have no idea when the parks Season Pass prices will be announced and what their grand scheme is going to be, we've only heard rumors at this point. So stay tuned. And as always, as soon as opening dates, pass prices or anything is announced we will be bringing it to you. Have a great week!!! Pictures and Words by Gregg Condon This past weekend after a lot of "media" stuff over the last few weeks I took a well deserved break to have just a "family" day at Universal Studios Hollywood. The rest of the family had yet to see Springfield and hadn't seen Harry Potter construction in person since Halloween Horror Nights, so we were LONG overdue. That said, I did take the Point and Shoot and got some pics, but they won't be "fancy" like the rest of our updates. =) The biggest addition since our last update is the new Wizarding World store at the front of the park. While this isn't EVERYTHING that will be offered in Wizarding World, it features a LOT more than we thought it would. They've done a great job converting this store from Minions to Harry Potter. Hedwig ... =( Platform 9 3/4 What, the poster on the shirt doesn't move? =) Hedwig, Fang, Fawkes, Buckbeak, Frog, Rat (Scabbers?) House Robes, scarves and more. We're waiting to get these when WWHP opens. =) House Flags Lots of cool notebooks and journals for each house Overall the store is great. They also have the wands, but again, we're waiting until we can go into the wand store and have our wands choose us. =) I was sorted into Gryffindor on Pottermore (yes, I'm that much of a Harry Potter dork) but I loved all of the house hats so I may end up getting them all at some point. Ok, let's go check out what's going on with Wizarding World construction. That's new At this point most of the stuff going on towards the park side is cosmetic. Most of the major construction is going on at Forbidden Journey and the other side of Hogsmeade. Lots of cranes over here An overview, looking great. A look into where Flying Hippogriff is going. A look at the amazing detail Just a few things going on around the rest of the park. It's time for Universal to ban selfie sticks on their rides. While in this particular section it's not a big deal, you start using them going down drops or on Mummy or Transformers, you've got a problem. Hopefully we won't get the metal detectors though. =) Great thing about having a waterproof camera ... Jurassic Park splash!!! LOL The Springfield version of The Kitchen Sink. Framework going up for the even bigger Potter store (we've heard). New signs for Hand Stamp requirements Out in CityWalk they are of course promoting Jurassic World, which arrives in just a few weeks. I'd like one please. =) Alright, that's enough for this update. Just as an FYI, they are currently doing some night tours on the weekends prior to their official opening around July 4th. Not all elements may be working during this soft open period however. We'll try and get out there on a weekend night soon to get some pics and video. After a month or so of soft openings and adding a few tweaks here and there, Springfield at Universal Studios Hollywood officially opened yesterday. To kick off the grand opening the park held a great "Taste of Springfield" event on Tuesday night. Below we'll show you some highlights of the event and some of the new touches they've added to Springfield. Written by Gregg Condon Before the event, signs were up indicating there was a special event. By 5:00pm all of Springfield and The Simpsons were closed in preparation. Yay, it's finally open!!! Universal doesn't mess around with their special events. After spending some time in the park it was time to head out and check in for the event. The Yellow Carpet New movie coming to The Aztec!! Larry Kurzweil and Al Jean did some great speeches opening Springfield. Unfortunately we apparently had the GoPro on "Picture" mode instead of "Video" mode. We are apparently still learning how to do this whole website thing. We'll figure it out one of these days. =) And here come all of the residents of Springfield!! And the great staff of Springfield. Fireworks make everything more awesome!! Flaming Moe!!! Be sure to check out the making of the Flaming Moe below. Springfield looks so great at night. Sideshow Bob is escaping!!! The Springfield sign has been changed out to promote Simpsons Tapped Out. A little cross promotion is a good thing, as I'm totally addicted to Tapped Out. =) We had a great night at Universal Studios Hollywood enjoying the food, hanging with friends, playing the games and generally just enjoying a relaxing night. Low key events like this are fantastic and allows the Universal Staff to just celebrate the great area they've created. Great job by Universal Creative and everybody else who had a hand in creating Springfield. It's amazing!!! We'll have a regular Universal Studios update in a few days. 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