ADVENTURES!!!!

So, I've had a lot of adventures this week...and it's only Tuesday! 

Obviously I had to start by getting a button :)

(Rom really ran with the creative liberty I granted him)

Then I rode Astroorbiter for the first time!  

(this is Marisa, a fellow UNCG student!)

Then went to Caseys (YES, it IS back open) and got a BBQ slaw dog! SO good...but very messy. (Girls, I wouldn't recommend eating it with a guy if you're trying to impress)

Then we went on a Treasure hunt!!!!!! 

First you get the map

Then you find all the different clue stations

Then you...win? Which actually means that a scary skeleton pirate dude pops out of the water and yells at you

Also...

PRINCESS FAIRY TALE HALL HAPPENED!!!!!!!! 

I've been waiting to meet Rapunzel for a long time

Casually talked about the dwarves with Snow

Took pictures with Cinderella

And explained what a selfie was

 Not sure why Aurora snarled for us...

AND WE WENT TO ARIEL'S GROTTO!!!!
She was fabulous and we discussed Pirates, shiny things, Eric, and Shells...it was a great time

And of course we took SHELLfies ;)

After the princesses we went over to the contemporary to get the most fabulous cupcake on the planet! It has caramel inside and it's frozen themed...how could it get any better?!

OH! By including fabulous jewelry ;)

This morning we went to Epcot to meet up with Anna and Elsa!

Too bad it was a four hour wait....so we did everything else instead!

Goooooooofy! (he wanted everyone to know that he's taller) 

Then we went to Animal Kingdom!

And ran into Chip and Dale

Shared a moment with both

 

Also, we ran across The Vine? Never even heard of her, but she is a living, walking, swinging vine...pretty cool!

FINALLY FOUND THE PEPPER JACK CHEESE STUFFED PRETZEL!!! (A guest had recommended it and I've been searching ever since...pretty dang good!)

AND THEN WE MET POCAHANTAS!! MY CHILDHOOD OBSESSION!!!

And Rafiki too!! 





























Well, this post is a lot longer than I meant for it to be...my bad! (also pretty sporadic) Oh well, two parks down for the day and I still have two to go! Wish me luck ;)

Work- the real story!

Working at Disney...it was always one of those things that sounded completely amazing, but also something that would never actually happen. Now that I'm here though, I figure I should share the story of how being a "Disney cast member" actually is. 

The ride to work is so easy! It is about 8 minutes from my apartment and, from start to finish, I only have to turn on three roads (which is great news for a person who is very prone to getting lost...). Also, who can complain about getting this view on their everyday commute?

Once you've made it to the resort, you walk up to this breezeway, to the right is the main lobby and to the left is my store! 

My home at Conch Flats

There is also another entrance if you'd rather not go through the breezeway

The store sells a lot of the Disney vacation club items (since club members are our main visitors) 

But also the normal souvenirs sold at the other Disney stores....we have food too!

I either work "front of house" or "stock". As you know, I like to talk a LOT, so you would think working out front would be the job for me...false!!! Nah, it's really not THAT bad-- it's just very similar to working retail anywhere else (which is what I've been doing for five years already) and it gets kind of boring. Also, I am getting the same old comments:

"Do you play basketball?"

"Please tell me you play sports!?"

"Are you standing on a platform?"

"Ma'am, could you help me get this item, you're just so tall!!"

*guy awkwardly looking around the counter* "uhh, can I help you?" "Oh sorry, I was just seeing if you had heels on" -_-

Heh, but let's face it, I doubt most people will ever have to deal with that particular issue. So, moving on, working out front is pretty boring...but at least I work with very nice people! Here are a just a couple of my fabulous coworkers

Another fun part of working in the front is pin trading! We get a lanyard with twelve pins and we get to trade with guests all day! 

It's interesting to see how different my pins are before and after work 

Another thing that makes it kind of interesting is if you leave your name tag at home and you're someone else for the day!

I made a lot of friends when I was Kate...touched a lot of lives...I may just stay Kate forever.

But anyway, stocking is what I prefer. Though I don't get as much of the customer interaction, I am able to stay busy the entire time and it makes my day go by twenty billion times faster! (No, I'm not exaggerating at all)

One part that is kind of lame is that the majority of my shifts are closing shifts, meaning I work til 11:45 at night. But honestly, the more I work these shifts the more I don't mind. It means I have most of my days free! It's not a problem at all for me to go to typhoon lagoon and chill by the wave pool for a few hours and then go work afterwards. (And at least I don't have to deal with extra magic hours...no 3:30AM drives home).

Overall, I like being down here a lot! I have met a lot of great people and done a lot of fun things....but most of my memories have come from times outside of work. Don't get me wrong, I think that working at Disney is a great experience, and I would definitely recommend it, I just think that you have to remember-- it's still a job. 

-Kate

Food, blood, and friends

The other night, several people walked by with MASSIVE cinnamon rolls, and I said to myself-- I want to eat that. So, I went to Gaston's Tavern and made it happen. In retrospect, I probably should have passed on this snack (considering I don't actually love cinnamon rolls that much) but oversized food items always get me excited...I am drawn to them!! 

In other news, did you know that blood buses exist?? Well they do, and evidently they visit the Disney apartments frequently. Seemed a little sketch, but since I knew that there was a free movie pass, juice, and food involved I decided to go for it (I know, I am so noble in my motivation)

I'm so glad I did it!! The people working were SUPER nice and it was so fast! I would definitely recommend doing it if you're in the program :) 

Also, Anna (my fabulous Australian friend) hung out with me at Universal yesterday! I rode transformers for the first time 

Then we went to islands of adventure...and walked straight to Harry Potter World :)

And got some butterbeer :)

ALERT: wasps are a danger EVERYWHERE! As soon as you think you are safe (200 feet in the air on a roller coaster) THEY STING YOU.  

Just thought everyone should be aware that wasps are violent creatures that ruin lives.

Then I met up with some friends for a little magic at MK 

I am now more than a month into my program and I still love it :) (especially since my mother took care of me by sending a care package with more Nutella, hehe)