Exploring Disney Heritage Day 1

Wednesday, June 18 

My first day of Exploring Disney Heritage was today. It took place in one of the classrooms in my apartment complex, Chatham Square. The class is from 1:30pm to 3:30pm every Wednesday. I was notified prior to class about the attire, which is business casual or you can wear your costume. You also need to make sure to wear your name tag.

The classrooms are just a short walk down the street from my apartment, which is really nice! I left about twenty minutes early to give myself time to sign-in and get a seat. I sat next to two really nice girls, Eve and Emily. Eve works at Kilimangaro Safari and Emily works Food & Beverage at Port Orleans Riverside Resort.

Class started promptly at 1:30pm. That is when I met my instructor, Jeff. Jeff started his Disney career by doing the College Program and working at the Haunted Mansion. From there he worked Guest Relations and then started facilitating Traditions which transitioned into being an instructor for the Disney Internships and Programs. He is very enthusiastic about the company and shared his understanding of the highs and lows we all will experience on our program.

After Jeffs introduction, we had an ice breaker with the people we were sitting with. Emily, Eve, and myself shared our favorite/first Disney memory and why we wanted to take this course. I have so many favorite Disney memories, so it was hard to pick just one!

Jeff then explained the expectations for this course, such as arriving on time and the no cell phone policy. He also shared an overview of what we will be learning for the next eight weeks. This course will cover the early years of the company to the opening of Epcot.

The weekly breakdown looks like this:
June 18 - Introduction to Disney Exploration Series 
June 25 - Walt and Roy: The Original Dream Team 
July 2 - No Class: Labor Exception Period (Independence Day) 
July 9 - The Very Beginnings of the Walt Disney Company (Guest Speaker Michael Lyons) 
July 16 - Early Milestones in Disney Theme Park History 
July 23 - The Man, The Mouse, The Dream - Magic Kingdom 
July 30 - The Florida Project (Guest Speaker Christopher Stewart) 
August 6 - Heritage Competition - Disney's Hollywood Studios 
August 13 - Disney Exploration Series Closing Session 

I am so excited for all of these sessions!

To close the class we got into groups of eight and played a "Who wants to be a Millionaire" trivia style game on Disney history.

Training Day 2 & 3

Thursday, June 5 

Today was my second day of training. My shift started at 9:00 am and ended at 5:30. I wore my Beaches and Cream costume for the first time today! It is surprisingly very comfortable, including the shoes. I was trained on the in-house section. This section is responsible for making all of the ice cream dishes for the tables. I really enjoyed it! I got to make a bunch of sundaes and learned how to make the famous kitchen sink!

First Day in my Beaches & Cream Costume!

After work, I made myself dinner and then decided to go to the pool with my roommate Kat. This was my first time at the pool and it is beautiful. It is also a short walk from our apartment. We spent about two hours in the pool before we started to get cold and went home.

The pool at Chatham Square

Friday, June 6

Today I had my second day of training. I worked 1:30-11:00. My trainer today was Nickie. She first trained me on working the register for the to-go line. It is going to take some time to get use to this position, but I really enjoyed the guest interaction. I had a 45 minute break. When I came back Nickie trained me on the potium. This is a position I will never do, I am just being trained to gain a general understanding of the position. Towards the end of my shift I could see the Symphony in the Stars fireworks! After work I headed straight home and went to sleep.

Housing Meeting and Moving In

Wednesday, May 28

Today I woke up early to get ready for my scheduled Housing Meeting at 8 am in the Commons Clubhouse. Two of my roommates Marysa and Merecia were scheduled for this meeting time also. We walked over to the Commons Clubhouse, which is about a 10 minute walk from our apartment in Chatham. When we got there it was about 7:50 and the line was wrapped around the building. They didn't let us into the building until about 8:20.

When we walked in they had loud music playing and gave out Disney Internship luggage tags. The meeting was about an hour and thirty minutes long. They started out with some trivia and then went over housing rules and precautions. The woman who were running the meeting tried to make it as fun and interesting as possible.

After the housing meeting I headed home to go run errand with my Dad. He picked me up in the rental car and we headed to Wal-Mart. I got a bakers rack for extra storage for my room and a couple other essentials I needed. We went back to the apartment and he put it together for me. We also cleaned the baseboards really good and vacuumed. The room did not smell good at all. I bought heavy duty febreeze and a plug in. It made the room smell SO much better. We worked on setting up my room for a couple of hours until it was finally complete minus my cork board.

We then went to pick my car up from the AAA Care Center in front of the Magic Kingdom. I was so relived and happy to have my car back. I was so scared that it wouldn't be able to be fixed. We then headed back to the apartment to get my parking permit. There was a delay because my insurance card did not have my name on it only my parents. We called the company and they were able to fax a declaration to them saying I am on the policy.

Then we headed over to the Yacht and Beach Club to check out where I am working for the next seven months. I immediately fell in love with this resort. Beaches and Cream is directly in front of there beautiful pool. We had about a ten minute wait to be seated at the counter for dinner. When I walked in I loved the decor but noticed that it is a lot smaller than I thought it would be. I ordered the turkey meatloaf sandwich and my Dad ordered the cuban sandwich. We decided to split them so we could both try them. They were so delicious. The turkey meatloaf sandwich was so different in a good way! We both were way too full to try the ice cream.

We then decided to walk around the resort and the boardwalk. The great thing about my location is that Epcot is literally a walk away. The boardwalk is also so close! After we walked all the way around we decided to go home and get some rest. 

My Dad dropped my off at my apartment, but before I went to bed I wanted to get my bulletin board done. Once I completed that I was officially set! I was so relieved! I felt so uneasy not having my room how I wanted it. I am so happy with how it turned out.

Roommates!

I am happy to announce that I have found my roommates! We all met through the Facebook group. There are six of us total. We are hoping to live in a three bedroom apartment in Chatham Square. Ten days before check-in we will be able to choose our living preferences through DORMS.

One exciting thing we all have in common is that we are all graduating!

I will be sharing a bedroom with Kat. She is an education major graduating from Central Connecticut State University. Her role for the DCP is Custodial. We both love country music, especially Luke Bryan and Dierks Bentley. We also both love the beach and cannot wait to go when we get settled in Florida.

Merecia and Cati are sharing the second bedroom. Merecia is majoring in Spanish Linguistics and is graduating from the University of Texas. She loves dance and works as a coach at Jump! Gymnastics. Merecia has previously done the DCP working in QSFB, which is her role this time also. So, we could potentially be working together!
Cati is majoring in Business Economics and Political Science and minoring in Financial Accounting. She is graduating from Edgewood College in Wisconsin. Right now she is working as a personal banker. Her DCP role is Main Gate Operations.

Marysa and Melissa are sharing the third bedroom. Marysa is studying English at Saint Joseph's University in Pennsylvania. She loves the Jonas Brothers.
Melissa is majoring in Business Administration with a concentration in Entrepreneurship. She is graduating from High Point University in North Carolina. She is a founder of a chapter in Alpha Chi Omega. Her role is QSFB, so we also might be working together!

I am so excited to meet them all!