Happy Back to Hogwarts day!

So it's September 1st and that means two things: 1). That summer is officially over, and 2). It's Back to Hogwarts day. 

This year it's 20 years since the first movie released and I can't believe it. I still remember going online and reading up on all the rumours of who was getting cast as which character and where they were going to film etc. It was insanely big already back then. Before the movies. Like imagine how big it got after the movies and then imagine that it was already huge before that. It's crazy. 

Unfortunately I don't remember when and where I watched the first movie. If it was at the cinema or on VHS at home. I think I saw it at the cinema and later I bought the dubbed version of the movie so my sister could watch it with me (back when the VHS tapes usually only had one version on each tape). Except she didn't care much xD 

I still remember the pre-movies Harry Potter merch we had and I kind of wish we didn't have to lose that in favour of WB merch. The original merch was quirky and magical and extremely book-literal. Or I may just be a Ravenclaw being salty over the fact that all my merch has the wrong animal on it.

But I've done so much in the past 20+ years of being a Potterhead, and while I'm not obsessing (as much) anymore it's still deeply and intricately a part of me ♥ I've even read the first book in Japanese ^^;

• I've been to Platform 9 3/4 in London twice. (Post and post)
• I've been to the Studio Tour. (Post and picture post)
• I've been to The Exhibition. (Post)
• I've gone to two conventions. (Post and post)
• I've been to the Harry Potter part of the Guiness World Records museum in Copenhagen. (Post)
• I saw the last movie at the cinema twice. (Post and post)
• I've played the Harry Potter games (Post and post)
• I loved the Cursed Child. (Post)
• Fantastic Beasts is just an excuse to dress up and obsess (Post)
• I own the Wizards Collection. (Post)
• I have a lot of stuff (more now). (Post)
• Picture bomb.

Apart from all of that I also distinctly remember two other Harry Potter related events in my life. One was in 2002 when I celebrated my 12th birthday by inviting a few friends and then my parents took us all to see Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets at the cinema. A movie I subsequently watched so much that my VHS tape became all scratchy and jumpy. And I remember queueing for the midnight release of the Deathly Hallows in 2007. It was the first time I had been able to do that and it was absolutely amazing.

Over 20 years of Harry Potter in my life and here's to 20 more!