Check In and Traditions

Check-In happened Thursday. I arrived rather early but check in went pretty smooth. Check-In was at the Casting building near Downtown Disney. They send you from line to line to line - through background check authorization, I-9 documentation, fingerprinting, and giving you your training schedule. Around every corner was another line to wait in. The entire process only took about an hour though. For some reason I thought I would get my ID here, but then I was told I would get my ID at Traditions on Saturday. I was surprised at the age range of all of the professional internships. Many that I have met have already completed their Masters degrees. I am very grateful for the timing of this internship.

There was a manager meet and greet Thursday afternoon at the Coronado Springs Resort Conference Center. All of the Management Interns were invited to meet their area managers. I had spoken with my manager shortly on the phone on my drive to Florida, but this was my first time meeting her.  They provided everyone with a list of interns, title and area they will be working in. 

Old Key West and Saratoga Springs have four interns this time around covering each area (Culinary, Food and Beverage, Housekeeping and Front Desk). I actually counted up the Food and Beverage interns and was surprised to find that there are only 22 of us. I knew the internship was competitive, as in thousands apply for these positions, but I did not realize only 22 were selected for my area. My manager mentioned that I am one of the few MIs that have two properties to work at and my training lasts until the beginning of September. Whew.

Traditions on Saturday went very well. I loved Traditions the first time around during my College Program, but I wasn’t so enthused about it this time. It was interesting a few things that have changed since 2010. They started the class off with a short course on Working with Integrity. That just goes to show how relevant a business ethics course is to your degree plan. We also went on a short tour of the Magic Kingdom to look for Safety, Courtesy, Efficiency, and Show throughout the park. I love this exercise, but MK will always be my home park since that was my CP location, so I felt like our guide was not telling us enough details about everything in MK.

At the end of Traditions, Mickey Mouse stopped by to give everyone their name tags. That’s magical. I love the magic of working at Walt Disney World. However, I had to wait around to get a corrected name tag because mine said “Guymon, PR.” I did not realize that Guymon was in Puerto Rico, but that was a good laugh. And again, I thought I would get my ID at traditions, but since MIs are salary, I have to go to access control today to get my ID with a photo.

Other than work, Joe and I have been exploring the area (except for the parks… need an ID to get into those things!) We’ve been to the Florida Mall, the Premium Outlets, Disney’s Boardwalk, Downtown Disney, Cocoa Beach (Joe’s first time to see the ocean), I-Drive, etc. I am also house hunting to make an investment out here so we’ve looked at a few houses in the Kissimmee area. We had lunch at Olivia’s (the main restaurant I’ll be working at) just to scope the area out. I’m very excited to finally start some work tomorrow.

Welcome Home!

Well, I’ve made it to Orlando. I started my trek on Monday and stretched the trip out across four days. It was a very relaxed trip too. Monday consisted of many last minute details before Joe and I could hit the road.

Leading up to Monday, we had a small close family get together the week before at the duplex. Then, I still had a lot to box up and move out. I like to keep everything so it was difficult to decide what goes in storage and what gets to go in the car. I actually ended up shipping four boxes that met me here on Thursday. 

I finally departed Guymon about 3PM with a goal of reaching Arkansas before stopping for the night. 450 miles later, Fort Smith, AR was the place to rest for the night. On the drive, I received a call from my manager at Old Key West and she’s the inspiration for the blog title “Welcome Home!” That’s exactly what she said to me on the phone. I’m very excited for my internship to start. She also told me I’d be receiving my training schedule soon and that I’ll have classes every Thursday at Disney University for food and beverage. She mentioned a wine class too; that sounds so neat. I just know this internship will be filled with many twists, turns, and opportunities for growth.

We also discussed the fact that Disney will pay for tuition if it is related to your role with the company. As long as I’m offered full time in management after my internship, an MBA will fall right into that category. While, I’m still interested in Management Information Systems, I would have to take on an IT role for Disney to cover those costs. We’ll see in January where that road takes me.

The second day of traveling took us the rest of the way through Arkansas, a tiny corner of Tennessee,  down through Mississippi, and half way through Alabama. We stopped for the evening just east of Birmingham in a small interstate community. Alabama and Georgia have some thick accents compared to other places I’ve visited. We actually picked a decent hotel and went swimming and ordered pizza. It was a good time. 

I also realized that this internship is going to completely change my view of the food service industry. I know my college program working in attractions changed my view on theme parks in general. But this internship will be in the resorts and I will have the opportunity for more guest interaction than in attractions.

Joe and I have also been taking random video of the states we traveled through so maybe a compilation will come later on. Wednesday and Thursday were both shorter drives. We stopped in Georgia to hang out with Sunny, one of my Miss Teen Directors. She took us to her dad’s house for the evening in Georgia. It was very neat to see some back roads country scene of this state. 

I may have sent Joe into culture shock by taking him to the Florida Mall upon our arrival. He’s not quite used to all of the people around, but after a few trips to Disney World he’ll get used to it! 

Since arriving at my cousin Jeff’s house, we’ve unpacked the car and the boxes that were shipped and pretty much settled in. I took Joe to Downtown Disney today to see the sights. It will be a few weeks before he gets to see actual Disney World. 

That’s my update so far. I hope to do a weekly blog just to show what I’m up to and details of my internship.

I am returning to Florida!

Can you believe that it has been two years since my last post? It is hard to believe that two years ago I was returning from an amazing semester in Florida on the Walt Disney World College Program.

In the past two years, I have done plenty of traveling and I am preparing to graduate on Saturday with two Bachelor's Degrees.

I am excited to announce that I will be returning to WDW this June for a Food and Beverage Management Internship. I hope to keep a weekly blog updated throughout my internship with my experiences in Florida. Stay Tuned!

Home Sweet Home

I have been in my hometown for one full week. It has definitely been an interesting adjustment and of course I really miss Florida! But it’s time to move on with what’s happening in the Panhandle. I start summer classes in two days and I’m back to running my snocone stand.

I will be traveling some more during the summer. I’m going to Pennsylvania to go to Hershey Park with Kris, MiCole, Ben and hopefully Tiffany in the middle of June. In July, I will go back to Florida for a week to pick up a few shifts so that my six month time period lands in December. After Florida, I will fly back up to Pennsylvania to staff the Miss Teen of PA pageant with Carlene and Sunny. Then my summer will pretty much be over as it will be time for Renee’s Wedding and school to start back up.

I’m also moving into a new place during June/July and Leslie will be my housemate :) Some exciting changes will be happening over the summer. I figure this is not my last post. I know there will be a few more posts with papers I’ve done for school projects this semester and possibly some memory posts of what I miss most about Disney.

Until then, thanks for following along as much as you did; it's been fun!

The Trip Home...

Saturday

We started out with Starbucks, filled up with fuel and a $6 pizza with a free liter of Orange Soda, then we hit the road for Cocoa beach. Again, I wore my sunscreen and did not get sun burnt. This was Leslie’s first time to a beach. It was exciting, plus I just love the beach. We spent about 3 hours at the beach and then headed on down the road to St. Augustine’s historical downtown. We ate at a really neat Taco Shop, pretty authentic. We explored the stores more and then hit the road again for Savannah, Georgia.

It was really sad to leave Orlando and know that I wasn’t coming back to Patterson Court after the day at the beach and all the roomies had parted different ways as well. But Leslie and I managed and she put up with me.

Sunday

We decided to be adventurous and go outside of our comfort zone to attend a local church in Savannah – Overcoming faith church. Their pastor, Ricky Temple, recently published a book –Why Smart People Make Dumb Choices. At the end of the service, he asked where his visitors were again and gave it to the visitors (Leslie and I). After church, we hit the mall for some shopping time, then we headed over to Juliette Gordon Low’s Birthplace House for a tour. That night we had dinner in Atlanta with Sunny Hylton, one of my Miss Teen Directors. It was great to see her and catch up.

Juliette Low just had an amazing story. Besides the fact that she founded Girl Scouts in America, she was also extremely creative and artsy too. Her house carries so much history within it. I’m really glad I had to opportunity to stop and visit. I’d love to take a Girl Scout Troop back sometime in the future.

Monday

We slept in and then at some brunch at Ihop, but they were out of hashbrowns! Thirty minutes later, I was taking an exit on the edge of Birmingham, AL when Jetta died on us. I had her in fifth gear and as I slowed down for traffic, I did not put her into neutral so the next time I accelerated, I killed it. No big deal right? Usually, I switch the key off and start her right back up. Well, this time she decided not to start for me. The battery was completely dead; I did not even have enough juice to run my flashers.

One lady tried to stop and help us, but she didn’t quite know what she was doing with the jumper cables so we told her “Thank you” and let her go on her way. Fortunately the state of Alabama has something called ASAP (Alabama Service and Assistance Patrol). A man came out in his big yellow truck and helped us to roll start Jetta and we drove her to an Exxon to have the battery replaced.

After this incident, Leslie and I decided we were ready to be home. We had fulfilled our adventure for the week. We ended up driving all night and reached Guymon at 6AM on Tuesday morning.

Leslie Arrives

Unfortunately, Leslie had to wait at the airport for me from 7pm to 10pm. I worked a long shift from 9:45AM – 9:30PM. I put in for an Early Release (ER) but that did not happen. I was really excited to see her and for her to be in Florida! She loved the palm trees everywhere. That seemed to be the only thing she could talk about on the way back to the apartment.

I had my last day of work the day after Leslie got to Florida. It was sad, but I am a seasonal cast member now so as long as I work once every six months, I will keep my proficiencies of being trained on the Barnstormer.

The rest of the week consisted of fun and packing. I took Leslie to Magic Kingdom(MK), my favorite park. We played all day and it wore us out. She was able to watch Wishes too. While Teresa and I cried a little, it was a good time at MK. Tinkerbell did not even fly for us (insert sad face here), but we got over that and went home to pack some more. Thursday night was just full of sadness as everyone in the apartment packed up their final things and we went through kitchen stuff.

Friday was check out day and Leslie and I ended up shipping a few boxes through UPS so that everything else would fit in the car. Jetta was plum full of stuff and that made for an interesting trip home. Friday night, Leslie and I stayed in a local motel and went to Fantasmic at Hollywood Studios.

My phrase for the trip home would be, “If this is the worst thing that happens to me today... then I will be alright.”

Miscellaneous

With my program coming to an end, everything in May kind of runs together in my mind. And May was more of a social month than all of the others especially with classes being over!

Teresa and I took advantage one last time of our annual pass to SeaWorld. Kris, Carla, Nydia and her brother joined us for the adventure. We hit a couple shows and rode the rides multiple times.

Plus, two different nights, Kris, MiCole, and I did some resort hopping. We spent an evening at the All Star Sports, Music, and Movies and another night exploring at the Port Orleans. A different night, we ended up at a supposedly haunted house. I only became scared when they mentioned the possibility of alligators lurking in the water as we went out on the dock. I even went on a legit date with Kris to Winter Summerland Mini Golf Course.

Another day, Teresa, Ben, Adam, Kris, and I went to Typhoon Lagoon and Blizzard Beach, which are both water parks on Disney property. I wore my sunscreen and had a blast. There are wave pools, slides, and lazy rivers at both places. Blizzard Beach is known for the Summit Plummet which is a straight down water slide that gives you the biggest wedgie ever!

Originally, the roomies had planned a goodbye dinner for the apartment, but when the time came, I was unable to get off work to join them in the Hoop-de-doo Review. They had a really good time and really good food, from what I heard. My actual roommate, Kaitlyn left a week early; I had the room to myself for a week. It was nice, but sad because it meant it was really time to pack up and leave.