On The Job

So today was my first day all decked out and in my costume.

I work at the Liberty Inn at the American Pavillion in Epcot. This is my costume and yes, I do look great in a bonnet. My first day of training was busser training! It's cool I get to set up the Magical Moments table and talk to every guest that is willing to talk to me. I had Maria as my super awesome trainer, she was super nice but some of the old ladies can be mean. Like one of them like yelled at me when I walked in because I didn't have my hair all the way in my bonnet. It was my first day how was I suppost to know that just walking in the door? Anyway I learned how to clean tables, push in chairs, take out the trash, sweep... you know all those things you do at home? ya. Always remember to wash your hands. No one likes dirty hands.

Seriously though, the best part about being a busser is that I get to hang out with all the guests. I was princess bowing with this one little girl; and I accidentally made a little girl cry but I guess she's just really shy and scared of meeting new people, at least thats what the mom said; an older kid was having a bad time during his school field trip and I may not have made up for his overall bad time but I atleast got to put a smile on his face; this nice old couple tried to tip me; someone tipped me (totally sad I can't keep tips); helped a little girl stop crying; and played checkers with a little boy (felt bad because his brother played him next and was so mean to him that he was crying).

Overall though very good day. I will say that the shoes hurt so whoever has to wear those shoes...... I'm warning you. It's not fun at the end of the day when your walking to the bus stop. Ah, ya... thats a blister.

Ride vs Ride: Space Mountain, Teacups, Haunted Mansion, etc.

Space Mountain:
The line to this ride is really steep so be prepared for that but on a brighter note it has video games to play in line while you wait. The one here in Florida is cool because it has 2 tracks and at the beginning you can wave to each other. It is single rider so kind of like this (o(o(o)-(o(o(o) compared to DL which is double rider (8(8(8)-(8(8(8). They have kind of the same beginning with the lights and stuff to make it look like your going through hyper drive but when you get moving down the track it is a lot bumper and fast and zippy and actually like a real coaster compared to DL were its smooth, fast, has slick turns, and isn't to bad. Like I really had to hold on to my bar and one girl lost her hat. Also, DL has better music because WDW didn't have any.
+: more like a coaster, maybe a little longer, waiting in line can be fun
-: no awesome music, bumpy, seats are kind of cramp

Teacups:

This ride is almost exactly the same except that your under a tent and theres a giant tea pot in the center.

+: under a tent

-: under a tent, ugly teacups

Haunted Mansion:
You have 2 line options here, one goes straight to the ride one takes you through the graveyard and is pretty neat. I recommend it for photos. At some point they meet up and you get into the Mansion. It has the same opening but the difference is you get on the ride almost as soon as you get out of the room with no doors or windows. Theres little tweaks like the moving busts are in the ride instead of in line and so are the transforming photos, and theres some blinking eyes watching you. Other than that, same thing just in a bigger looking mansion.
+: graveyard, less standing once your inside, longer ride, few more details
-: location of the actual ride (you might miss it coming out of fantasyland)

Snow Whites Scary Adventures:

Pretty sure this is the exact same ride but don't take my word for it because I never go on it that much. The part in the forest might scare you if your on drugs or a small child though so be careful there.

+: they are scary adventures

-: Not very memorable

Making Kingdom! a little bit of Epcot

So I was lucky enough to have my first experience at the Magic Kingdom! It was cut short but trust me, still fun. I even get a pin to mark this momentous day!

My first day roaming the parks was kind of like meh because we had time for like 3 rides and a character greeting before we had to leave because of the stupid Night of Joy thing. Let me just tell you I am not a fan of going through the Space Mountain line having to listen to kids scream about how jesus loves me. I just wanna ride the ride! Then when we got kicked out at about 7 we hurried over to Epcot and hung out there and I even got to see Illuminations! It was cool but then we got lost getting out of the park and ended up having to ask 4 different cast members for directions.

Day 2 was with the girls and it was actually a quiet bundle of fun. We like hanging out together but its always kind of quiet when we do..... Anyway we hit up some more rides that I didn't get to go on before and I kind of got seperated but I took that time to buy my very first stitch pin from WDW and decided I need to familiarize myself with all the parks here. I'm going to regretably start with Epcot since I work there but then the Magic Kingdom will be next! Anyway in my time apart I enjoyed the haunted mansion, hunted for pickles, took some fun photos, and became one with the crowd during the show before the fireworks and during the fireworks. It just felt so amazing watching all the pictures come alive on the castle and knowing I'm apart of that now. Like I just couldn't hold it anymore when they showed the people that were proposed to that day and started crying. It really is amazing. However another goal came out of the fireworks: find the best place to watch the fireworks because where I was started to hurt my neck.

I came back later that night to enjoy something you will only get as a cast member: a cast preview! It was to show off and act as a dress rehersal for the Boo to You parade for Mickeys Not So Scary Halloween Party. It was really cute and really fun to watch. There was all the characters you love, some I don't know, they had the villains, they even had the shadow man! There was even Christopher Robin! And the rumor is going around that Johnny Depp actually came by to play the Jack Sparrow on top of the Pirates of the Caribbean float. Don't think it's true, but it was a great look a like. Omg the cowboys and the grave diggers were the best! If you see it.... you'll understand XD

Discovery Day and F&B Core Cafe

Lets go over my last 2 Training Days:

Yesterday was my Theme Park Orientation, or Discovery Day, at EPCOT. What happens is you arrive at EPCOT cast services and are waiting outside of a gate, then your "teachers," "leaders," whatever you want to refer to them as, they come out and tell you how to get past the security gate using your ID or if on a bad day how to get in without your ID. Ours ran late so a security gaurd was the one who gave us this mini presentation. From there you have your very first experience in Signing In to work, very important to get into this habit because your pay check is based off of it. You go to a special room and are given your intro to EPCOT. I love all the videos because they're full of Walt Disney talking about the parks and his plans and its like wow, I am working for this man.

Anyway.....Then you get a cast tour of how to get around backstage and on stage, where basic things are, ect..... and even some things that I have literally taken an oath to not expose. Then you go back to class and you get a free lanyard to keep your ID and even the infamous little Earning my Ears ribbon that you will need to attach to your name tag unless you happen to know everything there is to know about the park. Then you meet with a trainer and you get assigned the rest of your training schedule for the next 3 weeks. Now because I'm in QSR, I have a full schedule. Other jobs may only have the first week set up for training so don't be concerned if not all the days are filled in on your 3 week sheet. Go to the days you have scheduled and your trainer will help you out. This is also the fun part where you find out what your costume looks like. The bus ride home is the best part and you'll see why when you go through this.


Today! I had F&B Core Cafe, it's where the cast members working with food go to take a food safety and procedures class. Nothing to hard just your going to want to fall asleep, text, and talk to your friends. DO NOT DO THIS! They have no problem calling you out in front of everyone and they have the right to take away your cell phones and then you have to deal with management and you could be terminated. You MUST pay attention to the food safety procedures. They are important. Next you will go to the computer lab and register for the HUB, Disney's Intraweb. Then you will take some online training and only if you are in Food Service will you be taking a trip down to Casting and supplied with a free pair of shoes for your work location. No other jobs besides those in Food and Beverage get free shoes and it is recommended that you not try to buy your shoes before they tell you what kind you'll need because every location is different. Then your free to leave and go home, and nap, because trust me. These 2 days and the awesomeness of free park access will leave you drained. Lucky me, I get the next 2 days off to run around and go crazy!

Traditions!

So bum bum buuuum! Traditions! At casting they give you a list of what you can and cannot wear to Traditions so I won't go into detail, just so long as it looks professional and your piercings and tattoos are taken care of your fine. About half way through I realized when I sit down my pant leg goes up so I was flashing my tattoo! Luckily I was in the back so I didn't get in trouble for it.

For those that don't already know, Traditions is like your first day of Orientation for your job. You go over the ethics and get a tour and a brief history of the company and even a little sneak peak about where they will be going. For me I knew every sneak peak they showed us but it was still neat. I'm a big baby and teared up a couple of times... but I must have had the lame Disney group or something because the people were so quiet and not excited! Still our leaders Jon and Jill were great.

Anyway heres the run down:

You get on a bus at your designated pick up spot (based on your apartment complex) that will take you to Disney University!

It's this not so fabulous building that everyone has Traditions in. Don't let the outside appearance fool you though, its full of awesome inside! It's like a testiment to all things Disney. They have stuff coming out of the ceiling and anything you remember from your childhood, its on the wall. I actually was sooooo excited to see my beloved Zorro on the wall!

I won't spoil all the surprises for you because at a certain point we became cast members and were not allowed to take photos of anything. But I will say I saw a peak at the Fantasy land expansion construction, Secret tunnels, back stage areas, and some of the STITCH RIDE! Seriously be ready to walk because its a lot more than you want to be doing in nice shoes. I tried to come prepared by putting bandaids on and I sweat them off in the heat and got little blisters on my feet :(

Still in the end it was worth it because I got my lovely entrance card and my name tag!

What a bummer that it says RCC on it but despite that its still all super pretty and fantastic! And now I can start working and getting into the Parks for FREE!!! mwahahaha :)

Day 2

Today was a laid back kind of day. I got to sleep in and relax while one of my roommates tried out for face character auditions. I took a nice shower, I coughed up some phlegm. It was great. Anyway, then I had to get ready cuz we had a housing meeting and we were suppost to be on a bus at 2:15 to arrive to our meetings at 3. Well the bus didn't even arrive til 3 and then he didn't know where he was suppost to take us. Obviously we need to get some transportation kinks fixed but its cool because when the whole group gave up and we stayed we took their seats on the bench while we waited. Don't worry they came back after the guy scolded them about leaving.

We finally get there and we are given a quick run down of all the rules and such and even a few little skits put on my the Price Management (PM) and Security team. We even learned how to win yummy chocolate: have an awesomely clean room. We also learned that there is some things in our apartment that we need to report so that we don't get in trouble come inspection time becuase it was like that when we moved in (lots of thumb tack holes in the wall, etc).

After the meeting I learned how to read the new bus schedule and went on the correct bus to get home (multiple buses, multiple stops, read the schedule). I had time to stop off and eat a lean pocket before guiding my roommates to the correct bus to return to the commons and enter into a game of GROCERY BINGO!

Now tragedy upon tragedy, no one tells you this is the most nail bitingly stressful game of bingo you have ever played in your life but it is. I mean you're all there for good fun and they try to keep it loose and happy with dance-offs and mini challenges (tonights being Mummy and involving toilet paper) but seriously everyone is so focused on winning and you can't help but get into it. Now because so many people line up to play this game I guess there are 2 sessions. We left the first one and ran right back in line for the second one since we didn't win. No rule against it so its fine.

Another thing they don't tell you about grocery bingo is that they throw stuff AT YOU! Like I was to scared to grab anything cuz I kept coming close to being hit in the face. I managed to nab a pen that hit me so I didn't come back with nothing. Not to mention I got to see an awesomely fun dance off for the last bag of groceries. I think the one guy was a go-go dancer back home and obviously he won.

Then we rode the bus and I was thankful for being a girl because I could rest my boobs on the pole to avoid hitting myself to hard against it at stops and turns because I was too short to reach the bar at the top that people use to steady themselves on the bus. So I guess ladies you have 2 options there depending on your height and guys.... I don't know what to tell you.

Day 1 Part 2

Ok where was I.... Ya! So when you get back home your most likely going to have been divided up and what ever group you left with you didn't come back with so you may hafta find your way back to the apartment by yourself. I still had one of my roommates with me because I saw her get off the bus and I ran over to her. We decided to head to the clubhouse and try to find out what places deliver around here and get a transportation schedule. We got a little lost and ended up in the pool area but eventually we found the clubhouse entrance.

We got seperated again because she had to find something out about her classes and I went to the room and relaxed a bit with the other 2 and we peaked into the 3rd bedroom trying to find our new roommates but sadly they were not home. When my other roommate got back we all piled into the car and headed to Walmart. We broke off and had 30 minutes to find what we all needed. We almost forgot essential things like toilet paper but we managed to gather all our food items and firgure out how to stack them in the car. I spent about $73 but I grabbed things I figured I'd need so we'll see what happens >.<

We were starving at this point because Disney doesn't feed you all day. You just get a couple snacks here and there assuming they don't run out. So we used the GPS in the car and found China Pearl, obviously this is chinese food.

We got home and unpacked and met one of our new roommates! She still wasn't our mystery roommate that was rumored that she was from Australia but she had just arrived today like us. She didn't stay long and went out by herself so I gathered everyone together because I didn't want to be rude and eat without them and we sat down to dinner and light chit chat. I'll probably never eat from this place again because once I ate enough rice to quiet the gapping hole in my stomach I realized it wasn't that good. The meat was just horrible and I could do a better job, but the veggies were yummy (we had brocoli beef, rice, fried rice, and cashew chicken).

After dinner we tried to figure out what to do about cleaning the dishes and decided we would use the dishwasher and get dishsoap tomorrow. Then we got to do the most fun thing ever. COLORING! We got paper and markers and we made name cards for our doors so we could try to learn everyones name.

The other girl that left came back and started on one too and we learned a little about her, like that she's allergic to peanuts and in the process of talking to her we heard someone at the door so we all froze up and were like, "omg its her! what do we do?" and after starring at the door a while we realised she needed help getting in. So Liby got up and opened the door for her and we were all like, "HI!" I guess she had been at the mall all day. We got to learn alittle about her and her roommates before us: some Turkish girls, a French girl, a British girl, and an American. By now it was late so people started hurrying off to bed and I was up writing my Day 1 blog.

BTW:

I must say sleeping wasn't too bad. I may consider buying another mattress top foamy thing because they didn't lie, the beds are kind of hard. The biggest issue is probably that the beds squeak when you move, even a little, so when your trying to be quiet it makes it impossible.

Day 1 Part 1

Well I arrived with a group of 3 other CPs from the airport and we shuffled into line together happy that it was not crazy long because all the early people got there at 6am and were done already. We had to hand off our luggage and come back for it taking only like our purse or backpack with us. We entered the line and were greeted with welcoming Disney signs everywhere:

We picked up 2 papers and a booklet (very important do NOT lose your booklet and keep it with you ALL DAY), we waited in one continuious line that went in this order: get assigned a casting session/housing meeting, sign 2 papers, pick your housing (speak up about what youd prefer, some will not ask you and you need to tell them), pick up your key, sign housing paper, take housing ID picture, get housing ID (KEEP THIS WITH YOU AT ALL TIMES UNTIL YOU LEAVE THE PROGRAM), a lady will tell you what you need to do for the next hour. Me and My newly assigned roommate got to take our stuff to the apartment since we were at Vista already. (the area where they take your luggage is horrible because you have to find where they hid your luggage in a room full of suitcases!)



We had to make 2 trips for our luggage and on the second trip we accidentally went to the wrong apartment and spent about 10 minutes trying to unlock their door before we realized it was 38 not 39.... opps.....

After we were settled in and a little relaxed we had to trudge our way down stairs to the bus to casting, but this time we had friends! Our 2 other roommates! (Do NOT forget your eligibility documents or your onboarding paperwork)

Casting is a fun 2 hours where you get off the fun informational bus ride and are lined up in a building and receieve your specific job location which will be an additional sticker on the back of your booklet. Then you go through a little class meeting so that you know about the programs they offer and such related to the Disney University, then you go down a hall and have your on boarding paperwork gone through and such. MY favorite part of the day had to be fingerprinting because I loved the guy I was with, he just made it so fun even when his computer killed itself and we had to re-do my information manually. Really look at your paperwork because I missed answering about 2 questions even though I thought I had it all looked over and taken care of. Also! A very important side note is that for Direct Deposit you need a VOIDED check OR a Direct Desposit form from the bank, like actually typed out and given to you by a bank employee or else you have to wait in line every thursday to get your check. Finally you get your traditions and job specific first few training days assigned to you and a picture for fun then you can hop back on the bus and they give you a brief over view of what your future discounts can get you and how it pays to be a girl because of all the ladys nights.

Now it's 11:22pm and I need to get some sleep so I will give you part 2 in the morning :)

Transportation to Vista

The flight was by far the worst part of the day! Nevermind the airport because it was under construction and I totally understand that, we get on the flight and during take off the plane just sounds wrong. I haven't been on many planes but it was a concerning sound to me. So we get in the air and I don't know how the 2 people next to me are sleeping, they slept for almost 5 hours on this uncomfortable plane. The only time the lady woke up was when she there was a sudden shock of turbulence that made the whole cabin freak out and lights started flashing.  We exchanged glances and she fell back asleep while I was left awake determined that if I have to die tonight I'm dying awake. Then when I was finally tired enough to consider/attempt sleep, I was sitting next to the one jerk on the whole plane that decided to read a damn book so his light was on and I kept getting screen glare from his nook in my face. I got about an hour of sleep at the most and the stupid flight attendant got all rude because I asked for water when she forgot to ask my row if we'd like any refreshments. I PAID $210, I BETTER GET MY REFRESHMENTS!

After 4 and a half hours we start the slowest decent ever. We took so long going down that when I finally got off the plane and walked to the next terminal for my second flight I didn't even get to enjoy my 50 minute lay over because I had to board the next plane. Now this one wasn't as bad and I got a little more sleep, this one just had screaming children. I HATE: when people take 20 minutes in the bathroom when there is only 2 bathrooms and like 300 people. Seriously? why are people such jerks? Anyway it was a shorter trip in the air but the one on the ground was literally forever. We spent about 15 minutes just driving along the track going to the terminal. It felt so weird landing in Orlando remembering what happened last time I was here. >.<

Highlights of the flight:
-a nice marine shared his twizzlers with me and helped me with my luggage
-free drinks
-I learned I don't know what state Philly is in
-Sky Mall

Mears:
I'm very satisfied with Mears Transportation, we had our own little bus so we had our own mini group when we arrived and then that group absorbed another and thats how I got my roommate. Also the lady was very informative and welcomed us to the disney family. :)

Airport

So I'm almost at the point of no return because I am at the airport looking up at the big number 33 sign. I feel its also appropriate with a nod to Disneyland's Club 33 but that's me over thinking things. It feels so unreal to be here... like seriously, is this happening? The good byes and see ya laters feel real but just damn... It hasn't fully hit me yet and I'm 10 minutes away from being Orlando bound.

18 Days And I need to start planning my good byes

While 2 days ago I went to Disneyland and I am ready to try out a new home. I finally got to see World of Color, which was AMAZING! The only down side was I had to sacrifice Fireworks for a water show. I also saw the Aladdin show and play around in the Animation Studio for a while. I've been to Disneyland so many times through out my life but I think by the end of my program I will have been to Disney World as many times as I've been to Disneyland. That says a lot huh?

While at Disneyland my friends suggested I do something on my blog, take pictures of their weirdest people I can find that are roaming the parks. Kind of like a Lilo photoshoot, remember her wall of fat people that she finds all over the island? So I'll probably try to do that atleast once a week once I get down there.

After leaving the park I realized I don't have much time now before I go. I have a little more than 2 weeks and I need to start figuring out how to say good bye to everyone that requires a good bye. It'll be fun trying to figure out how to squeeze people in the next 2 weeks considering I have yet to pack or even go shopping for the things I still need, I need to take care of the stupid financial aid issue at my school, and get to a doctors appointment. It feels like my days are going by at normal speed because I don't want to leave yet but I can't wait for my program to start.

-Infamous Princess

27 days and I can finally start looking forward to my email

Everyday I check my email and everyday its always a bunch of notifications from Facebook. Which sucks cuz then I hafta to go through and delete like 50 messages every morning. But as the days draw nearer I can start expecting more than just spam! I seem to be getting a lot more messages from the Program. Today I got one going over Housing information, Transportation (to check-in), and Medical Insurance.

It doesn't really seem like much of it is exclusively for the people attending, it's more like they are updating their website. One cool thing is I noticed they added a list of provided amenities for housing, which is a big deal because if they have a spatula there, then thats one less thing that I have to pack.

-Infamous Princess

28 and my soul has officially been signed away

So before we even get to Florida they recommend filling out the On-Boarding Paperwork. This can be found logging into the WDWCP site (only people who have recieved an invitation to join will have access to this) and clicking on Arrival Information. From there click on the purple link on the right side entitled On-Boarding Paperwork and when the page comes up the link to download the 14 page contract will be on the very bottom. Don't worry though, you don't need to fill out every single page, you don't need to sign about 3 pages and one page you don't need to sign until you get there and have recieved everything. Either way if you read it, you definitly feel like your signing your life away. Which can be a bit intense, but what do I care about signing away my soul to my favorite corporation?

Now its not necessary to fill out everything almost a month before you get there, hell you could do it on the plane, but they're going to update the site before my arrival group gets there so they recommended everyone have it printed or atleast downloaded. Just incase some crazy stuff happens and it can't be located.

If for some reason you don't bring this to Florida, they say they have copies and you can fill it out there but it will make your check in process that much longer (I've been hearing crazy things like check-in takes 5 hours).

Oh an exciting thing happened yesterday! I got an email saying I'm officially enrolled in the Disney Heritage class! The message was really messed up though so no one could understand their email. They sent out a second email that was a little less confusing but... it still didn't have all the information on it. So hopefully they fix everything because it would be nice to know when my class starts and ends....

-updated 3pm- they have just sent the correct information for my class. Wednesday from 4-6 at Chatman Square from 10/12-12/7. Of course now this means I must consider Chatman as a potential dwelling because I'm pretty lazy and would prefer walking down stairs than taking a bus to class.


-Infamous Princess

29 Days and I'm not so Great

We're less than a month away and obviously going into this I have some worries. This will be my first time "on my own" and I'm a bit scared of going all the way across the country and trying to figure out how to live. Not survive, but live. I want to make friends and go out, not be a starving college student, learn as much as I can about Disney, Party... definitly want to do some partying..., all that jazz. But like I said, I am worried. I'll hafta find my own way to the check in area, I have to share a room and a whole apartment with people I've never met before..... I so hope its not drama filled....., I have to learn how to grocery shop within my budget and get enough to last me a certain amount of time, I'm going to have to have a consistent job for like 5 months... CRAZY!

I'm also scared. Scared of leaving my family and my friends. And I'm just horrified that I have to leave my boyfriend, Chris. But a lot of people are going into it with long distance relationships so I'm happy that I won't be the only one. The distance is another reason I'll be hoping to stay at Vista. I hear they have loud nights and tons of partys, so hopefully my roommates won't be upset at me for staying up late on the phone. We also have skype now so I can bug him on there and I can harrass my other friends too!

I may be worried and scared but I'm still excited and maybe I'll get lucky and everyone can visit me. I'll continue to hope for the best and look at the positive side off all this.

-Infamous Princess

T-minus 30 days

So to sum up the past 115 days:

• April 14th- I jokingly decided to apply for the Walt Disney World (WDW) and the Disneyland Resort (DLR) college program. Jokingly because I thought it was so late into the sign up date that I wouldn't even have a chance of getting accepted.
• April 17th (estimated date)- did the phone interview, I thought WDW went very well but I knew I messed up the DLR one because I did not pick up the first time they called.
• April 25th, 2:01pm- recieve an email titled "Disney College Program: Your invitation" I got ACCEPTED! I was in utter shock and closed it and opened it again later just to double check. And yes, I was one of those people that started crying because I got in. Now it was time to actually think, should I do it?
• April 28th- With some encouragement from the best people on Earth, I decided to go. And I paid my $304.50 to reserve my spot on the Disney team.
• May 10th- Booked my first ever red-eye trip on Expedia, which I must say I will never do again beause Expedia is a horrible travel service. Next time I'm just going to go straight through the original airline, not to mention wait til I later date to buy my ticket.
• Then til Now- Tell everyone I possibly can that "I'M GOING TO DISNEY WORLD! ....FOR 5 MONTHS!"

Now with 30 days to go I have decided to keep a blog (yet another Disney blog) to keep details of my journey to share with everyone and for my own personal enjoyment. I'm going to do my best to try to update it as much as necessary and if I'm lucky, work on getting photos and videos up.

-Infamous Princess