jambo

Oh my goodness the days feel so long! But I can honestly say that I absolutely LOVE living and working for Disney. I can't believe this is my life.

Wednesday was my four hour 'Traditions' class. In it we learned a lot about the history of Disney, the mission statement, and all kinds of odds and ends. We received our Disney nametags (which only have our first names and schools, because Disney works on a first name basis). So now - EVERYWHERE I go, if I'm wearing my nametag, people who work for Disney are like, 'hey ashley.' ha! Sadly, Disney spelled Meredith - 'Merdith' on my nametag. I'll have that changed asap because MERDITH sounds really hick-ish! At the end of this session, we (finally) got our Disney ids - which allows us free access and parking to any Disney theme park! As soon as we got back to apartments we (my whole apartment and a friend of mine's whole apartment) changed clothes (because we had to be dressed in only professional attire - we even had a 'disney look' check) and headed to Epcot. We rode Mission Space (i seriously almost threw up - if you ride it, opt for the easier ride. It's the only ride at Disney with barf bags), Test Track, and Soarin' (my new FAVORITE ride at Disney. It was seriously AMAZING - so peaceful and REAL!). We stuck around for the light show at the World Showcase at 9pm. We couldn't believe we were walking around for free!

I had yesterday off so a friend from Mass and I went to Animal Kingdom so I could ride the safari ride and re-familiarize myself. We rode it twice and the new Everest rollercoaster once - I'm still amazed that the safari is my JOB. Last night all of us roommates had dinner at the apartment and then a few of us rode to Wal-Mart (again). We met a new neighbor last night that has done the college program before, so we had lots of questions for him!

Today was a really fun day - but SUPER tiring! My DAKlimation (cute, huh? Disney's Animal Kingdom Orientation) began at 8:30 in AK, but I decided to ride the bus just to get used to where I'd be heading. I had to be on it at 7:07 this morning! It just seems like so much wasted time when it really only takes 10-15 minutes to drive there! During today's orientation we learned a lot about specifically the Animal Kingdom, and then took a 2 hour tour of the park. We walked 'backstage' a lot - we would just pop out of the woodwork back 'onstage.' Seeing the characters backstage without their heads on was a real shocker! At the end of our tour, surprise surprise - we all rode the safari ride together! Our guide this time was AMAZING. I hope i'm as good as him! We all ate lunch in the cast cafeteria - who would've thought they'd have food places JUST for the cast!? After lunch we went to wardrobe and tried on our COSTUMES! Once we found our sizes we walked away with five of each, a jacket, cold weather gear - and for my ride - an AWESOME belt with a killer buckle and the hottest hat ever. There were two guys in our group today who were also doing the safari ride - we were the only three! They both seemed really fun - I'm excited! The costume is definitely not flattering - as with almost all outfits at Disney - but I definitely love the hat. When I (finally) got back home - the bus ride back was long as well - one of my roommates and I (Melinda) checked out our apartment's pool and then headed over to Mickey's Retreat (walking distance from our complex) because we hadn't been. Cast members can bring friends and family to the retreat - there are two pools, sand volleyball courts, tennis courts, grills, picnic table, and an amazing man-made beach with chair to to tan in. There's a lake with paddle boats and canoes. Oh man it was so pretty! Melinda and I each laid in a hammock on the beach and watched the sun set through the palm trees. Is this my life!?

If you can't tell, I'm loving Florida. The weather is perfect right now, a LITTLE chilly at night and in the mornings, but very warm during the day. Mom says my accent sounds northern - so I'll definitely have to work on that! Everyone's rubbing off on me. I met a lot of new people today that will be working in Animal Kingdom and that live in my complex. I'm really excited to be at AK because it closes so early - it's the earliest theme park to close. AND - my safari ride closes as soon as the sun goes down, meaning I'll always have my nights free! I have tomorrow off and I'm really looking forward to having lunch with Anna Echols from Meredith. It will be great to see a familiar face!
Sunday starts my OJT (on the job training) and hopefully I'll drive a truck right away! ha!