this morning i woke up before the sun once again so i could catch the earliest bus possible to get me to disney university. when i got outside the apartment i was in absolute shock - it was so freezing. i could even see my breath! (now, when i came up here when i was 6 or 7, i was so fascinated by this... that hasn't changed one bit! i still found/find it so cool - pun intended.) when we got to the university, we had to wait a little bit in the lobby. even though it was before 7 in the morning, it was quite a nice place to just sit. they had disney music playing in the background (and i don't mean like hannah montana and selena gomez and the suchlike, i mean like mary poppins and beauty and the beast and all the classics soundtracks.) it was lovely. then they had tvs on where they played little snippets from all the movies and channels like abc, espn, lifetime (which, if you didn't know, those are all of disney's channels and networks.) and on some screens they have different posters and information of upcoming events and times going on at disney. after waiting for not very long, we clocked in for the very first time using our disney i.d. which means we get paid for our training today! (woohoo!) also, you should know, that disney people say 'woohoo,' 'yay,' 'awesome,' etc after every single sentence. after every single person signed in, the guy showing us what to do told each and every single person 'awesome job, that was great!' it's so nice to be only surrounded by positive energy and people. (by the way, all of the new interns that were with me today are those who were chosen to work at magic kingdom, so today was a magic kingdom learning experience.) after clocking in, we all sat at tables, and then after all our 'teachers' introduced themselves, we were divided into two groups. i was in the first group. and we made our way to the bus station to get our bus to magic kingdom.
where the bus pulls up is at the mouth of the utilidor. that's the correct word for the 'tunnel' that everyone assumes is underground. in fact, i learned today that the utilidor is infact on ground level and magic kingdom is actually above ground, on top of it. so where everyone assumed that cast members were underground, they're not... just for your info. anyways, we went through there and got a little tour (again.) thereafter, we got a tour of magic kingdom - the entire thing. once again, it felt so magical and it had not even officially opened yet. we learned so much information, from celebrations, how to point directions, where first aid and babycare is, the right answer to give if a guest asks a question that doubts the magic, little fun facts about the buildings on main street usa (which is where i'll be working!,) that magic kingdom is "never changing yet ever changing" and so many other things that i can't possibly list all. it was their way of packing information into our brains, but they made it interactive and fun, instead of just sitting down in a classroom taking notes. we even all got different buttons since disney's theme this year is about celebrating something. those who have birthdays recently got buttons that said happy birthday, and every single cast member we past told them happy birthday; people got buttons that said it was their first time at disney; some people who didn't really have a specific reason to celebrate got a button that just said that they were celebrating. these buttons are given away so that guests feel special when cast members compliment them or start a conversation that's in connection with it.
today, as part of our class, we HAD to go on two rides. what a bummer eh? at the beginning of the tour, our tour guide said "no, none of the rides we're going on has the word 'mountain' in it!" it was so funny, but i was glad. the two rides we went on were the buzz lightyear ride (one of the few things i remember from my trip to disney when i was little... we went on it for ben's 4th birthday - i was so jealous that day because we only did what he wanted to do and i didn't understand!) and then we went in the haunted mansion. i was so freakin scared to go in that thing i was like going to cry - but unfortunately, it was mandatory. in the end i was glad i went in... it was more whimsical than scary. one part was actually kinda cool. i sat with this girl called andrea from guatemala, and we were faced to a mirror at one point, and this ghost switched our heads. i still don't understand how that happened. it is in fact the only attraction in the whole of disney that the cast members are not supposed to smile at. our guide told us that cast members liked working there because they didn't have to keep a permanent smile on their face. i, on the other hand, am glad i have to keep smiling.
it seems like we didn't do much today, but we walked. and walked. and walkedandwalkedandwalkedandwalked. and walked. it was insane. i have terrible blisters on the back of my heels - they're actually purple. it's gross.
anyways, we went and had a quick break in the mousketeria. now that is an insane cafeteria. it is basically opened all the time. it has food from all over the world and things like subway, and starbucks coffee, and tons of snacks and fruit, and vending machine upon vending machine. it's huge. after our break, we went upstairs and watched a video by the vice president of walt disney world (who started out in the company before walt disney world was even created.) it was great. another motivational thing... most of the bajans slept through it as usual. but alike everything else, i was in awe at everything. after that video we met our trainer who will train us starting sunday. i got a picture of what my costume looks like. in fact, i have two costumes. one, which is for regular merchandise is a huge, long skirt, that looks like it is made out of a picnik blanket, with shades of red, blue and green. then i have a long sleeve, puffy white shirt. it really is absolutely attractive. my other role while in merchandise is confectionery (which means selling candy.) that costume is just as flattering. it's a pastel yellow long dress, with a white apron on top of it, and a similarly shaded yellow floppy pancake hat. before i got here, i said i knew my costume was going to look retarded. but now that i'm so close to wearing it, i'm actually very excited. i don't care how silly it looks, because i'm supposed to look like i'm from a story book or movie. and it is a costume anyway, and i don't go to work, i go on stage. i've had my fair share of bad costumes from being in pantomimes, so i'm really not bothered. plus, my costume looks amazing next to some peoples, and i'm sure they wish they would be able to wear a costume like mine. seriously, sometimes when people in costume walk by, i have to laugh (after they pass of course,) because they look so funny. but that's all part of the great show that's performed every day.
the day ended earlier than planned, and we went back to the bus station. behind the bus station is costuming. that's the place where everyone gets their costumes from. i don't get mine til sunday, but i got my shoes. i had a choice from between 3 shoes, and i did go for the most comfortable. they are disgusting looking but i'm gunna be on my feet for the whole time i'm working so i decided comfort first was the most important this time around.
i decided to go to walmart this evening just to get a couple things, like a few sweaters, another pair of jeans, plasters and all the necessary things (including a flat iron because this is perfect hair-stays-put-all-day-and-night weather.) the bus actually takes us directly to walmart and it works out great. a bus runs that route every half hour when it's actually running. (because some days it ends early, or starts late, etc.) leaving walmart there was another intern who just went to the supermarket. he had four bags. one bag was filled with microwavable mac n cheese, one was filled with microwavable pizza, one was filled with gatorade and one was filled with the necesseties, such as milk and bananas and chips. it was quite funny. another girl, who was a bit (a lot) on the heavy side had a carry-on full of groceries and a huge jug of hawaiin tropical punch that looked as heavy as the suitcase.
tonight i need another quiet night. i'm so tired once again. this non-stop full day thing is getting to me. i keep saying that i'm going to go to bed early but i never end up doing that. i'd like to go out and socialize, but i'll leave that til tomorrow i think - possibly at magic kingdom! (finally?!)
i hope tomorrow brings another wonderful day in my new adventure. i'm really loving it so far. besides my horribly blistered feet and my exhaustion, it's becoming a dream come true. i'm so happy. after all, i am in the one place where dreams do come true. i hope that all the people i love are good - i continue to miss everyone every day! keep being safe and smile often! xoxo
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