Everyone has a First Time

Through the last few days of training, we have been meeting up with other trainees in the entertainment part of the parks. Today we actually got to train together and all went into the parks with some of our favorite furry friends. In the morning I got to dance around with King Louie and it was an absolute blast! Being in the park as a working cast member knowing what was going on was such a different experience than anything I could have possibly imagined. The trainers had been throwing information at us for days and this was our first chance to put all the tools into action.

The adrenaline was pumping and my nervous butterflies were fluttering quicker than usual, but once I stepped into the park and the first child ran up to King Louie with wide arms and an even wider smile, my stomach settled and I felt totally in control of my role. King Louie had to do a little work gathering friends because no one expected him to be in Epcot! He and our other furry friends decided to make a surprise appearance right by the American pavilion today to help us newbies get some experience.

After lunch, Pluto hoped over from the character spot for a few minutes to hang out with me. He is such a funny puppy to hang out with! He's very easily distracted so it was a little bit of a challenge keeping him away from the bushes and squirrels. He also loves to chase his tail which was adorable! All the guests love him! Who wouldn't?! He's a big puppy that loves good boy treats and birthday cake!

 After Pluto, Eeyore came over to Epcot to find someone to help him rebuild his house. But since he's so popular, he stays for a while to sign autographs because so many fans came out to see him. He was so cute and cuddly. Christopher Robbin definitely has awesome stuffed animal friends!

 

 And I finished my day by playing around with Chip and Dale. Those two love to cause trouble! They would get everyone together for a picture and then Dale would decide he wanted to switch places with Chip or vice versa. They were very cute. At one point, Dale even took some acorns from Chip to see if he would notice. Those two brothers are crazy, but so much fun to hang out with!

Tomorrow is my last day of training and I am so excited! I hope I get to hang out with some VIP's in the company tomorrow. I'll sign off now since I know tomorrow is an early day.

Hope you all are having a magical day, I know I am!


Photo credits:
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5066/5554273507_0458e7d664.jpg
http://kennythepirate.files.wordpress.com/2012/08/eeyore-ep-2013.jpg
http://land.allears.net/blogs/lindamac/Epcot02Pluto.jpg
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIsbpiSbKnPH_B0FUcKLPogWtQ3Q_zA-wcGKUJ0_Lzniu7iQHcpdlpkjeA-eWu3yBg4mBzidw3_QwYfUOtbe0y7hF3hs0kWzdSA2MJIKREZo8_5R1kOelYMrLuIKGDtnEFdH4glCIHkh-G/s200/Chip+and+Dale+5.25.10.jpg

Magical Moments Backstage

The last three days have been filled with backstage information, company secrets, and rules for my specific role. Most of the information must be kept a secret and is only known by people within the company. However, I can tell you that it is the best training I have ever been through. I have had so much fun and learned so much just in the last three days. I have three days left before I can start working and the anticipation is killing me. The early mornings have all been worth it. My costume is comfortable and makes me feel like I am definitely where I belong. I am so excited to actually get into the parks and start learning the rules of the road for my specific role. Everything guests see is part of our show and being that I am in entertainment, I get to help make the magic happen.

I can already tell this is going to be a fantastic semester and I can't wait! After my first day of training, I and a few friends headed straight for the parks. One of them had never been a guest in WDW so we needed to change that. The lines were super short and made it very easy for us to show him as much of Hollywood Studios and Magic Kingdom as possible. Our night ended with Wishes, the fireworks spectacular over Cinderella's castle. The tears welled up and reminded me why I've always wanted to work for this wonderful company.

For now, I'm going to go back to training so I can start creating magical moments for so many guests here at Walt Disney World.

I hope you all are having a magical day, I know I am!

Back to Freshman Year

Starting off in the College Program feels very similar to starting college over. Yesterday was our first full day as WDW (Walt Disney World) cast members so we had some logistical things to do. The three components of the program are what they call, "living, learning, and earning." Yesterday we went to our Housing Welcome Session. I say it felt like freshman year because it reminded me of the first floor meeting I had with my RA during my first night on campus freshman year., except this time it was 200 of my closest strangers sitting around me learning about the rules for living on Disney property. Our apartments are not in WDW, they are about a 10-15 minute drive outside those gates, however, they are still considered to be property and with that comes some very strict rules.

Learning about the safety policies and no tolerance policies was boring, but they made it as fun as they could (it wasn't too long either which was nice). Then it was off to Target for another grocery and housewares run (I always forget how much stuff is needed when moving into a new place). After taking a longer detour than planned we finally got back to the apartment and got ready to go to dinner.

My roommate and I made our first trip to a Disney hotspot! We arrived at Downtown Disney and walked around to get the lay of the land. Once we settled on Planet Hollywood we waited about an hour for a table. The wait didn't seem that long because there was so much to look at! Memorabilia from music legends, classic movies and TV shows, it was awesome! Music videos playing constantly, and the portions were huge once we finally got our food! It was delicious and definitely worth the wait! Our waiter, Ryan, was awesome and a pro at his job.

Overall the day was great and it was so nice to get out and explore a little more of Disney property. Today's agenda: Get a Universal Studios annual pass and head straight to Harry Potter World!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Let me be a geek for a day :)

Have a magical day, I know I am :)

Check-In and Casting: Day One of My Adventure!

               The Disney Way is not just for the guests. From the person in charge of luggage at Vista Way to the guy that just came to help us with our internet, every single person has been nice, friendly and accommodating. The check-in process was as simple and smooth as could be. The long line of excited college kids wound through the black ropes in anticipation for the rest of the day. We were greeted by cast members making sure we all had the right documentation and a name tag (worn over our hearts…it’s the little details that I love).

                The first stop was housing. Chatham Square, one bedroom, was on the top of my list when I had to list my options on the housing website a few days ago and that is exactly what I got! After getting my housing ID I walked back outside to get my official placement and role. I already knew that I would be a character attendant, but I was dying to know where. No one could tell me! Everyone kept assuming I would just be floating around from park to park, which I was totally fine with. After going over guidelines for the next few days, we filled out employment paperwork and were told to be at the casting buses at a certain time, which gave me a few hours off.

                I headed back to the luggage room to collect my things and figure out how to get to my apartment. The guy was super sweet and gave me awesome directions! Everyone else at the bus stop was waiting for the casting bus so I looked a little strange standing there with all my luggage…until another girl came up with all her stuff as well. Yay a friend! Once the bus got there we started talking and realized that we are roommates. Yay rommie! And being that it is a one bedroom, we are the only ones in our apartment! Super easy! We got along right away and I was happy to have an instant friend!

                At noon I finally got to casting! Casting is where they take care of all the employment paperwork and make sure you are ready to begin Traditions (which is training). The building felt magical. It was the first time I was actually on Disney property as a cast member. Some of the building is open to guests so we too were allowed to take pictures (which I didn’t because I was just enjoying the view for myself), the rest of the building was strictly for cast members only. I-9 forms were filled out and filed and finger prints were taken and I was done. It was not until I got to the I-9 form person that he finally told me that the letter combination in front of my role meant Animal Kingdom. Yay Animal Kingdom character attendant!

                Once I braved the afternoon rain storm, I was free for the rest of the day. My roommate and I headed to Walmart to get the essentials. After our adventure we met up with some other friends we had met earlier in the day and had a relaxing evening. This week’s schedule: Housing meeting, Traditions, and role training….and exploring a little more of Orlando.

                Having a great time so far and I can’t wait to get into my role and into the parks! More updates to come! Cheers to the beginning of an awesome semester. Best wishes to all those back on campus at McDaniel with their first week of classes! Strong start Green Terror!

Chatham Apartment

Outside the casting building!

Perfect additions to the apartment!

Only days till it all Begins

The last few weeks has been filled with butterflies in my stomach, goodbye hugs from friends and family, and loads of paperwork. Reading through the multiple rules and regulations made the whole thing truly feel real. Now that all the paperwork is complete, I just have to print everything out for check-in on Monday. I'll be leaving campus on Sunday to catch my flight and the excitement is starting to build quickly! Here we go! The fun and hard work are about to begin!

This Could be the Start, of Something New...........Ew, HSM, really? Why?!

College kids always have that wonderful moment of "It's pay day! I have money!" I had that moment today, except mine went a little more like this, "It's pay day! I can buy my ticket to Disney!" And onto the computer I went. 

I've been researching flights, hotels and all the other travel options out there to make sure I'm getting the best deal. I finally landed (no pun intended) on Southwest Airlines. I've flown with the a few times before and I love their service! Since it will be my first time flying solo (pun intended, Dude Crush would be proud) I decided to go with comfort. Also, they have cheap nonstop flights from Baltimore to Orlando AND 2 free checked bags! You really can't get any better than that! I think I starred at the checkout page for about 10 minutes making sure every piece of information was correct. I even sprang for the Early Bird check-in so I don't have to worry about it at the airport. *I highly suggest you do the same for any flight* 

Then it was on to hotels.com. I've been searching through DCP vlogs and blogs to find tips and tricks and many people have said the Holiday Inn across from Vista Way is the way to go. Lucky me, they were running a special and I got the room with breakfast included for very cheap. Score! Again, I starred at the checkout page for a while making sure everything was perfect. 

 Next up was the challenge of getting from the airport to the hotel. I looked into renting a car, but it was cheaper to take a shuttle service. Hello Mears Transportation! I've used them before and they were pretty good, not Disney, but not terrifying either. 

And after all the confirmations flooded my e-mail, it's official! As of the evening of August 25th I will be in Orlando, FL until January! The beginning of a journey is exciting and terrifying all at once and I am loving every minute of it! Let the countdown continue...78 days to go!

And in honor of all my McDaniel friends, and their lovely nick-name of "Darla" for me, here is how I am showing my excitement today..................

I hope you all are have a magical day, I know I am! <3

Wishing the Days Would Move Faster

          Today was one of those days that I found myself saying, "I wish I was in Florida." While the majority of it was the fact that it was no warmer than 50 degrees at any point today walking around campus, and the other part was that I'm just so excited to work for Disney. Each time I say on tour that I am going to be interning at WDW in the fall, the parents mouths drop open and everyone is impressed. I hope I can live up to everyone's expectations. Not only has the stress of the semester gotten the better of me at this moment, but I am also at the point where I'm looking at the Seniors as disposable objects. For the most part, my "keep" pile is very large. There is always that small pile that you just want to get rid of as soon as possible. They are usually the people that suck a smile right off your face.

          This is why I try to surround myself with people that only make me smile. When I am with them, life seems to be standing still but still perfect. Those are the people I want to take to Florida with me.

          Tonight is Relay for Life and I will be in the gym with all my friends for twelve hours raising money for the American Cancer Society. It will be an exhausting day, but I am ready for it. I have lots of coffee ready to be made and lots of sugar ready to be eaten. I'll just think of it as a twelve hour work shift (which is what I have heard is common on the college program.)

          It's the start to a very fun weekend and I am very excited to be able to share it with all of my friends. I'm going to live it up like I'm a Senior and just have fun. I can sleep when the semester is over. This weekend is going to be worth all the time and effort put into it. I'll most likely sleep the day away on Sunday and watch Disney movies to become me again instead of an overtired zombie...do zombies even get tired?

         Life as a college student is fun, but I think about life as a CP every day. The countdown continues...

121 Days till Check-In