Disney Stories

I have finished two days of training and it's going really well! I have to be honest...I was really nervous going into training. I had no idea what to expect and all of the stories I had been hearing last week made me a little scared. Fainting in the Florida sun! Not what I want to have happen. But, it is so cool what I get to do everyday and I don't think I'll be fainting any time soon. After all, water will be my best friend and I will never be alone. One of the things that they made sure to tell us is that we are making an impact on all of the guests that we meet, even if we don't know it at that moment. The smallest things can make a world of a difference to the children and adults; we help make their favorite memories.

I get to learn a lot of fun facts in my job. Did you know that Disney has about 3,000 animated and live-action characters? That's a lot! Minnie Mouse has about 200 outfits in her closet. I wish it was my closet! But I don't know if I would be able to pull off all of her outfits. Only someone that awesome can pair bright yellow shoes with a red and white polka dot dress. I'm sure that when Minnie and I become best friends, she can give me some fashion advice.


The fun part of the job is getting to hear all the fun Disney stories that all the cast members have. Yesterday, I got to eat lunch at a table with three managers of parades and shows at Animal Kingdom. It was a blast listening to all the funny things that happen to guests and other cast members. There was one day when Snow White was standing by her wishing well and she went to wave. When she put her hand up, a bird landing right on her finger! Now that is Disney magic! The really touching stories are about children who are less fortunate or sick with a terrible disease who are meeting the characters for the first and only time. I always get choked up. Then again, I get choked up when we watch videos about Disney World. I guess it's because I hold Disney World so near and dear to my heart; most of my best memories come from here. Now, I have the best job in the world in my favorite place in the world!

Disney Traditions

For those of you who don't know, I am working in Disney World! With the Disney College Program, I will be living here in Florida and going to work in the most magical place on Earth. I auditioned for Character Performance in late March, and, after feedback from the casting directors that day and a phone call asking if I was available for Fall Advantage, I was pretty confident I had gotten the job. I then received my audition results, and sure enough, I got it! It was the most exciting news I had gotten, especially during the most difficult year at Penn State.

I arrived here in Florida on June 14th. I live on Disney property in a two bedroom apartment with three other girls. Two are working Kilimanjaro Safaris at Animal Kingdom and the other is working World of Disney in Downtown Disney. As for me, I am working in the Magic Kingdom!! I still don't know exactly what I will be doing, but I know I will be friends with one of the characters. I will find out more on Monday when I have my first day of training.

My first official work day at Disney was Traditions, a class every cast member must attend in order to work for the company. This class went over basic Disney Codes of Conduct, rules, and regulations. We also discussed Disney's past, present, and future. Yep, we found out what new things are coming up in Disney's future! Fantasyland in the Magic Kingdom is going to be expanded, a lot. Each princess will have their own area with rides, restaurants, and meet and greets. Dumbo will get a new ride too. I'm really excited to see the final product, but it will take a couple of years. If you are interested in the Disney Cruise Line, they recently added two new ships to their fleet. In our class, we were taken backstage of the Magic Kingdom and toured some of the Utilidor- the famous tunnel beneath the park. This tunnel was Walt's idea, after seeing a knight in Frontierland where there would normally be cowboys. He wanted to ensure that the magic was not lost by cast members trying to get to their location, so the tunnels enable us to get where we need to be without walking all over the park. It was really cool seeing where I would be working for the next six months! Mickey brought us our new Disney name tags and we got our Disney cast member ID's. It gets us into the parks for free!! and gives us a whole bunch of other neat discounts. Of course, after Traditions, we went to Magic Kingdom to have some fun.



I've uploaded pictures of Disney's Main Street Electrical Parade on Facebook. This MK parade is the original electircal parade and is only here for the summer, so if you would like to see it in person come down before mid-August! Also, as part of Summer Nightastic, there are new fireworks at the castle which are really awesome. Tower of Terror also has some cool effects. You can also visit me!

So now I have a few days to relax, go to the parks, and stock my kitchen before I start. My training schedule is rigorous; everyday for nine hours. I anticipate being exhausted when I come home from work, but I'm really excited to start and can't wait to find out what's in store.