Today was a lazy day. I watched more than one classic Disney movie. I played WoW. I played Minecraft. I ate poptarts. I skyped my momma and facetimed Tanya.
And honestly, that's pretty much it. I sat in bed all day, knowing that I would be going out tonight with Emily after she got home form work. Going out would be my Disney for the day, and I really needed a recharge day of movies and video games and chats from home.
When Emily got home I was raring to go. I was looking forward to going out on the town - even the Downtown Disney Town. We got prettied up (my hair looked fabulous!) and set out on our way.
Except, in a moment of idiocy on my part, I didn't bring my driver's license. Or any ID with a birthdate on it of any kind. I had it in my head that because it was Disney property, my Disney ID would work... just like it does for everything else.
But, no. Downtown Disney is actually a public space. So, instead of dancing and having a good time, I spent an hour and a half on a bus. And an hour waiting for one. Sigh. I do have to be up relatively early tomorrow for a long day. So I guess it all works out.
Just... dangnabbit. I'm an idiot.
June 30, 2013
June 29, 2013
I'm sick of coming up with post titles.
Today was a very laid back day - very rainy and very tiring. But very laid back. I woke up around 11:30am and headed out to the pool right away. I was only out for about 10 minutes though when the rain started. So, back home I went, drenched even though I'd never actually gone in the pool.
When I got home I was able to skype with my family for a bit :) I chatted with Dad and made Disney plans with Mom :) I can't believe it's only 9 days away :)
When we stopped skyping, I promptly fell asleep. An unexpected two hour nap later, I headed out to Magic Kingdom for Wishes. I got to MK by 8pm And just... wandered.
I wandered in and out of Tomorrowland, Fantasyland and Liberty Square and found myself on the bridge between the castle plaza and Liberty Square as the Electrical parade was about to begin. I squeezed myself a spot and took a lot of pictures! After the parade, I found a front seat for the Celebrate the Magic show on the castle - I sat on the pavement right in front :)
After the show, while people tried to crowd even closer to the castle for Wishes, I went to Fantasyland, because I've heard that watching Wishes form behind the castle is really cool. What I didn't realize was how far away most of the pyrotechnics are. I watched Wishes with a front row view as it happened behind Beast's Castle!!! I got in line for Enchanted Tales with Belle and was able to watch fireworks from her cottage. So cool!
The Enchanted Tales with Belle attraction is quite clever - although not what I was expecting. The first part of the queue is her cottage - my favorite Disney prop yet sat on the table. A book, with a photo of a couple, with the corner ripped off as though it was eaten by a sheep! I just about had a freak out right there in the line. The next area was Maurice's workshop, where the magic mirror on the wall opens up into Beast's castle. There, Madam Wardrobe greets us and invites us to take part in the story-telling. Each participant gets a prop and it's really cute and interactive for little kids. We then enter Belle's library; which is really cute even if not as large as it should be ;)
Lumiere is there and he's wonderful and the animatronics are so advanced he looks almost real. It was so cool! :) Belle comes in and we tell her story, and all the participants get their pictures with her. It was quite cute - but honestly, I'm glad I did it tonight and not tomorrow morning like I was planning. It would have been a disappointment for getting up at the crack of dawn to catch a bus for park opening.
When I left the attraction, the park was emptying, but not yet closed. So, I went to Gaston's Tavern and had myself one of the giant cinnamon rolls they have there. I sat and enjoyed it while sitting in front of Gaston's chair and fire and listening to the Gaston soundtrack. Outside, the village song was playing and I walked through the shop for a few minutes. When 11pm approached and I knew they wanted to close down the shop, I made one last detour to the Tangled area to take pictures of the lanterns that are there in the dark. It was so beautiful! As I walked towards the entrance though, I was able to walk through the castle and get a magnificent view of Main Street! :)
I walked to the Contemporary bus stop and... my bus didn't show up. I was waiting there for 45 extra minutes before the next bus arrived. I was not impressed, and neither were the people that didn't fit at the next stop. Sigh. This bus system needs some help. I didn't think I'd ever miss Halifax Metro, but here I am. We did see a guy walk right into a pole as he got off the bus though. It was hilarious.
Ah well, I made it home eventually. I'm now swapping Disney movies with Sam and Emily... Sam has 3 I don't have, Emily has 6. I had 19. So it's less of a swap and more of a "take Stephanie's movies", but it's okay because I got some good ones out of the deal! :) I love technology! :)
Another day off tomorrow! And then back to the grindstone for the week. I think I'll do some Property Control shopping and some MK wandering and maybe some relaxing by the pool! Goodnight!
When I got home I was able to skype with my family for a bit :) I chatted with Dad and made Disney plans with Mom :) I can't believe it's only 9 days away :)
When we stopped skyping, I promptly fell asleep. An unexpected two hour nap later, I headed out to Magic Kingdom for Wishes. I got to MK by 8pm And just... wandered.
I wandered in and out of Tomorrowland, Fantasyland and Liberty Square and found myself on the bridge between the castle plaza and Liberty Square as the Electrical parade was about to begin. I squeezed myself a spot and took a lot of pictures! After the parade, I found a front seat for the Celebrate the Magic show on the castle - I sat on the pavement right in front :)
After the show, while people tried to crowd even closer to the castle for Wishes, I went to Fantasyland, because I've heard that watching Wishes form behind the castle is really cool. What I didn't realize was how far away most of the pyrotechnics are. I watched Wishes with a front row view as it happened behind Beast's Castle!!! I got in line for Enchanted Tales with Belle and was able to watch fireworks from her cottage. So cool!
The Enchanted Tales with Belle attraction is quite clever - although not what I was expecting. The first part of the queue is her cottage - my favorite Disney prop yet sat on the table. A book, with a photo of a couple, with the corner ripped off as though it was eaten by a sheep! I just about had a freak out right there in the line. The next area was Maurice's workshop, where the magic mirror on the wall opens up into Beast's castle. There, Madam Wardrobe greets us and invites us to take part in the story-telling. Each participant gets a prop and it's really cute and interactive for little kids. We then enter Belle's library; which is really cute even if not as large as it should be ;)
Lumiere is there and he's wonderful and the animatronics are so advanced he looks almost real. It was so cool! :) Belle comes in and we tell her story, and all the participants get their pictures with her. It was quite cute - but honestly, I'm glad I did it tonight and not tomorrow morning like I was planning. It would have been a disappointment for getting up at the crack of dawn to catch a bus for park opening.
When I left the attraction, the park was emptying, but not yet closed. So, I went to Gaston's Tavern and had myself one of the giant cinnamon rolls they have there. I sat and enjoyed it while sitting in front of Gaston's chair and fire and listening to the Gaston soundtrack. Outside, the village song was playing and I walked through the shop for a few minutes. When 11pm approached and I knew they wanted to close down the shop, I made one last detour to the Tangled area to take pictures of the lanterns that are there in the dark. It was so beautiful! As I walked towards the entrance though, I was able to walk through the castle and get a magnificent view of Main Street! :)
I walked to the Contemporary bus stop and... my bus didn't show up. I was waiting there for 45 extra minutes before the next bus arrived. I was not impressed, and neither were the people that didn't fit at the next stop. Sigh. This bus system needs some help. I didn't think I'd ever miss Halifax Metro, but here I am. We did see a guy walk right into a pole as he got off the bus though. It was hilarious.
Ah well, I made it home eventually. I'm now swapping Disney movies with Sam and Emily... Sam has 3 I don't have, Emily has 6. I had 19. So it's less of a swap and more of a "take Stephanie's movies", but it's okay because I got some good ones out of the deal! :) I love technology! :)
Another day off tomorrow! And then back to the grindstone for the week. I think I'll do some Property Control shopping and some MK wandering and maybe some relaxing by the pool! Goodnight!
June 28, 2013
Rain makes the best days.
I've decided that rain, which would normally be a downer on a day, makes it even better here at Disney. First, the temperature decreases several degrees. Second, the streets empty out. Third, it's just water and I love rain.
Today, I left the house with Emily. She was headed to work, and I was headed... somewhere. We'd both slept in until noon and then headed to the bus stop. I was planning on going to Downtown Disney but, after looking at my bank account, decided that an area of only Disney stores was not a good option for me ;) It was raining pretty steadily when we left, so I chose Hollywood Studios. Most of its attractions are indoors, and there was a chance to meet up with some folks as well.
My bus was late, but it was worth it - when I got to HS, I bought a coke and sipped it as I meandered through some shops I hadn't been in yet. I found myself at the Beauty and the Beast theater just as the show was about to start!
I found a seat off to the side as the first actors were taking the stage and sat and enjoyed what was an excellent show. Making it even more than perfect was a flash of Disney Magic; a huge clap of thunder outside just as the scene switched from the village to Beast's castle. And the rain started to pour and the lightning started to flash just as the mob scene began. We got a few more big thunder cracks while Gaston is convincing the villagers to attack the castle. The sound of the rain and thunder made the scene so awesome, and so much more intense! The rain kept up all through the fight scene, with thunder cracks every one in a while. The rain sounds through the transformation were perfect!
The whole thing was so good that, once it was over, I went right form the exit back to the entrance for the next show. I got a seat front and center and sheltered from the rain outside, and settled in to wait for the next show. I got talking to my Tanya who wanted to see where I was! We facetimed for a few minutes until my internet gave out - it was so good to see her pretty face! :)
I watched and videotaped all of the next show, loving every minute! Times five ans six were just as good as 1 through 4! Once it was over, the rain had slightly let up, but was still raining enough that the streets were mostly clear! I listened in for a minute on the Monster's University Homecoming Party that was happening in front of the hat, and bought popcorn on Pixar Place and enjoyed the quiet and sound of the rain. I walked though the backlot tour museum and saw original set pieces from Titanic, Superman, Sound of Music, and others. Figuring it was about time to head home, I slowly made my way towards the entrance of the park, stopping where I felt like it and skipping over what I felt like. Being by yourself grants all sorts of freedoms! I never did meet up with the friends who were there.
I caught the bus home and was able to skype with my brother and dad for a bit :) since then I've been watching classic Disney movies! Another day off tomorrow!
Today, I left the house with Emily. She was headed to work, and I was headed... somewhere. We'd both slept in until noon and then headed to the bus stop. I was planning on going to Downtown Disney but, after looking at my bank account, decided that an area of only Disney stores was not a good option for me ;) It was raining pretty steadily when we left, so I chose Hollywood Studios. Most of its attractions are indoors, and there was a chance to meet up with some folks as well.
My bus was late, but it was worth it - when I got to HS, I bought a coke and sipped it as I meandered through some shops I hadn't been in yet. I found myself at the Beauty and the Beast theater just as the show was about to start!
I found a seat off to the side as the first actors were taking the stage and sat and enjoyed what was an excellent show. Making it even more than perfect was a flash of Disney Magic; a huge clap of thunder outside just as the scene switched from the village to Beast's castle. And the rain started to pour and the lightning started to flash just as the mob scene began. We got a few more big thunder cracks while Gaston is convincing the villagers to attack the castle. The sound of the rain and thunder made the scene so awesome, and so much more intense! The rain kept up all through the fight scene, with thunder cracks every one in a while. The rain sounds through the transformation were perfect!
The whole thing was so good that, once it was over, I went right form the exit back to the entrance for the next show. I got a seat front and center and sheltered from the rain outside, and settled in to wait for the next show. I got talking to my Tanya who wanted to see where I was! We facetimed for a few minutes until my internet gave out - it was so good to see her pretty face! :)
I watched and videotaped all of the next show, loving every minute! Times five ans six were just as good as 1 through 4! Once it was over, the rain had slightly let up, but was still raining enough that the streets were mostly clear! I listened in for a minute on the Monster's University Homecoming Party that was happening in front of the hat, and bought popcorn on Pixar Place and enjoyed the quiet and sound of the rain. I walked though the backlot tour museum and saw original set pieces from Titanic, Superman, Sound of Music, and others. Figuring it was about time to head home, I slowly made my way towards the entrance of the park, stopping where I felt like it and skipping over what I felt like. Being by yourself grants all sorts of freedoms! I never did meet up with the friends who were there.
I caught the bus home and was able to skype with my brother and dad for a bit :) since then I've been watching classic Disney movies! Another day off tomorrow!
June 27, 2013
From bad to worse to excellent.
That's how my day went.
It started off with getting to work around 10:30 and getting stuff ready to work at the Cool Wash cart all day. This cart is at the fake car wash just outside the Test track; which you think would be fantastic! The mist form the car wash sprinklers made everything 4 thousand times more humid and everything was so loud I couldn't think! Then, my POS system crashed, and I was adding totals and making change in my head for over an hour. And then the rain started. Just thing after thing after thing seemed to go wrong.
Finally, I was done work. I brought my cart back to base to count the inventory from the day, and the ICC guy came out to verify. Usually he's very quiet, does his job, seems to hate it, and leaves. Today though, he looks at me and asks me if I like anime (a cartoon style that is very popular). I told him that it depends on the anime, but generally not really. "Comics and video games then?" Well, yes actually. I do love comics and video games. Not as much as some people I know, but yes. "I knew it!" He says to me, "We picked you out, you've been discovered. We just knew you were one of us." I laughed a lot, and we started talking Avengers and X-men and the weird twists the Incredible Hulk story has taken of late and I realized how much I miss nerd-talk! I used to have so much of it at home, and haven't found a single comic book or video game nerd since I've been here! (Don't get me wrong, I talk to Disney nerds all the time, and I love it. But I miss this!) I counted my money and said goodbye, and had folks looking at me funny because this guy is normally very quiet, and we were being loud and animated about a mutual love of all things geek. It was wonderful!
I got home and started facebook stalking folks from work. (If any of those folks are reading this, no worries. I didn't find anything bad.) But I just realized that these people are actually real people. I don't know them in any other context and so I forget that they have lives outside of work. Some of them have bible references that I wasn't expecting, some of them think they're a gangster, some of them are dating others of them. The life behind each face that I thought I knew is completely different. And I think, for the first time, I really understood 'don't judge a book by it's cover'. They all have lives outside of Epcot, as they should.
I then got to skype my family. All of it. Becca in Nova Scotia, and Mom, Dad, Daniel, and Grandma in NH. We told stories, laughed until we cried, shared pictures, took pictures, made faces, waved to the left or right, and loved each other. I haven't laughed so hard since I've been here - it felt so good to laugh until my belly hurt! I miss them so terribly and I cannot wait for them to get here!!!!
After that, I watched snippets of Aladdin and Princess and the Frog, and now I think I'll fall asleep to Minecraft and Tangled. A wonderful ending to a day that may have started not-so-great, but ended up perfectly!
It started off with getting to work around 10:30 and getting stuff ready to work at the Cool Wash cart all day. This cart is at the fake car wash just outside the Test track; which you think would be fantastic! The mist form the car wash sprinklers made everything 4 thousand times more humid and everything was so loud I couldn't think! Then, my POS system crashed, and I was adding totals and making change in my head for over an hour. And then the rain started. Just thing after thing after thing seemed to go wrong.
Finally, I was done work. I brought my cart back to base to count the inventory from the day, and the ICC guy came out to verify. Usually he's very quiet, does his job, seems to hate it, and leaves. Today though, he looks at me and asks me if I like anime (a cartoon style that is very popular). I told him that it depends on the anime, but generally not really. "Comics and video games then?" Well, yes actually. I do love comics and video games. Not as much as some people I know, but yes. "I knew it!" He says to me, "We picked you out, you've been discovered. We just knew you were one of us." I laughed a lot, and we started talking Avengers and X-men and the weird twists the Incredible Hulk story has taken of late and I realized how much I miss nerd-talk! I used to have so much of it at home, and haven't found a single comic book or video game nerd since I've been here! (Don't get me wrong, I talk to Disney nerds all the time, and I love it. But I miss this!) I counted my money and said goodbye, and had folks looking at me funny because this guy is normally very quiet, and we were being loud and animated about a mutual love of all things geek. It was wonderful!
I got home and started facebook stalking folks from work. (If any of those folks are reading this, no worries. I didn't find anything bad.) But I just realized that these people are actually real people. I don't know them in any other context and so I forget that they have lives outside of work. Some of them have bible references that I wasn't expecting, some of them think they're a gangster, some of them are dating others of them. The life behind each face that I thought I knew is completely different. And I think, for the first time, I really understood 'don't judge a book by it's cover'. They all have lives outside of Epcot, as they should.
I then got to skype my family. All of it. Becca in Nova Scotia, and Mom, Dad, Daniel, and Grandma in NH. We told stories, laughed until we cried, shared pictures, took pictures, made faces, waved to the left or right, and loved each other. I haven't laughed so hard since I've been here - it felt so good to laugh until my belly hurt! I miss them so terribly and I cannot wait for them to get here!!!!
After that, I watched snippets of Aladdin and Princess and the Frog, and now I think I'll fall asleep to Minecraft and Tangled. A wonderful ending to a day that may have started not-so-great, but ended up perfectly!
June 26, 2013
Around the world in a day.
Today was a long day... A good day, but I am tired and ready for sleep!
The day started early as Emily and I got up to go to Hollywood Studios for the morning. Emily hadn't been yet since we arrived and it was time to fix that! We arrived about an hour after the park opened, and headed right to the Toy Story Mania ride, a 3D target shooting ride. It's easily the most popular ride in Hollywood studios with the fast passes often sold out before noon. When we arrived at 10, the fast pass come back time was already after 3pm. The wait was 70 minutes, so we didn't stay (although I did grab a fast pass for my collection!)
Emily wanted to see Beauty and the Beast (which I was completely okay with!) and I thought that there was a showing at 10:30. Turns out I was wrong, so when we got there and so that the show was not for another hour+, we stopped to get delicious cinnamon rolls at a cafe called 'Starring Rolls'. We walked to One Man's Dream and went through it (the museum-ish of Walt's life) and both teared up during the video. What a guy, Walt Disney, what a guy.
By the time our bellies were full of cinnamon-y goodness and our eyes had no tears left, it was actually time for Beauty and the Beast! We walked over, got nice seats on the left close to the front and settled in. The show was excellent, as per usual. The Belle was finally a different girl, fourth time's the charm? She was excellent. Her singing sounded much more like I imagined Belle to sound :) Gaston was excellent as well.. and had real biceps to spare... he wore no muscle suit and I'm pretty sure the girls fainting wasn't faked ;)
After Beauty and the Beast we got lunch at Pizza Planet and then It was time to make our way out of the park because Emily had to work for the afternoon. We got our photopass picture taken in front of the hat and I can't wait to see how they turned out when I look at them tomorrow!
We split up at the entrance around 1:15pm - Emily took the cast bus back to housing, and I got on the boat to Epcot! I hadn't done the World Showcase at all yet (Except for mine and Sam's whirlwind adventure) and I decided that it was high time I enjoy my park. Canada, UK, France, Morocco, Japan, America, Italy, Germany, China, Norway and Mexico!
I started with Canada - there isn't a whole lot to do there unless you have dinner reservations at Le Cellier... which I did not ;) I looked in the small store for a few minutes, laughed at all the stereotypes and made my way to the UK. The stores were full of "Keep Calm and Carry On" and The Beatles and Doctor Who. It was lovely to look around! I happened upon a short line for Winnie the Pooh and Tigger, and so I jumped in to meet them! I got a hug from them both and started my afternoon off feeling great :)
On the way to France I saw both Alice and Mary Poppins, but didn't stop to say hello, because I had picked up a time's guide for the day... and I knew that Belle would be in France shortly. I waited for her buy looking through the shops (I can't feel justified buying anything! I've never been to France!) and by meeting Aurora! She was wonderful, and told me she'd come visit me in Canada sometime :)
After I met Aurora, I went to stand in line for Belle. She's one of the more popular characters, and so her line gets quite long even before she shows up. I had a beautiful view of the lagoon while I was waiting though! And it was totally worth it to meet her! When it was finally my turn, she told me that we could be twins! I was wearing my new green dress and she pointed to both our hair and eyes saying we looked so alike! She wondered if my family would notice if we switched dresses and took each other's place for the afternoon! I told her I'd just met Beast recently and she wanted to make sure he'd behaved like a gentleman, I assured her that he had. I told her she's been my favorite since I was a little girl and we took several pictures including one where we made a heart with our hands (I hope they turned out good)! I was just so thrilled that the conversation was more than 'how are you', 'what kingdom are you traveling from', and the normal princess conversation. I think Belle has more free rein with that sort of thing anyway because she's got more personality than anyone else (at least in my opinion! ;) I'm a little biased though!).
I was on cloud nine as I walked through the shops in Morocco! I could have waited to meet Aladdin and Jasmine, but I can see them another time :) Morocco is full of bright colors and beautiful decor, but didn't hold my interest for too long. I soon moved on to Japan, where I watched them crack open oysters for the pearls as guests chose the oysters they wanted. I saw one girl get a rare silver pearl from her oyster... so rare apparently, that all the Japanese cast members even crowded around to see! The Japan shop consists mostly of cartoon merchandise, tea, and cool swords!
The American Adventure is next around the showcase. From teh direction I was coming, the first stand is a funnel cake stand... because what says 'America' better than deep fried batter topped with sugar and sold alongside beer? ...I think that pretty much covers it. As I was taking a photo of the funnel cakes sign, one of the guys inside called out, "Why don't you take my picture while you're at it!" So, I did! They laughed, I wished them a good afternoon and I moved on. The best part of park hopping by yourself is that you can move on or stay at your leisure... you don't have to worry about anyone else!
This came in especially handy when I ended up the next pavilion; Italy. I wandered through the shops and checked on the reservation I'd made there (July 11th is my parents 26th anniversary, and we're eating in Italy)! It is very authentic and true to many pieces of the country that I saw before I came to Florida! The merchandise shops have Venetian Masks and glass, the buildings have the right architecture and the restaurant serves authentic Italian pizza. The 'gelato' is not real gelato... it's ice cream instead. However, my strawberry concoction was still fabulous. I enjoyed it while sitting outside in the Italian Piazza and listening to the Italian soundtrack they had playing. It was wonderful! It made me miss my family something fierce though!
After Italy comes Germany, where I didn't spend much time; enough to see the shops and then meet Snow White! She was lovely as well, but I preferred the Snow I met at breakfast the other day! Ah well. A photo and then I was done. I waited hardly anytime at all in the line, so it was still worth it! After Germany is the outpost. Where Africa used to be until it was moved to Animal Kingdom, it's become sort of empty. There is a stand there called Cool Post where I work sometimes, and rumors are flying that Australia/NZ might be going in, but right now it's just mostly empty.
China is beautiful. The architecture is especially brilliant in the Chinese pavilion, and if you're there at the right time of day, you can meet Mulan :) I was not, but I had fun looking through the large shop that is there; much like Japan, cartoons, tea and cool swords were prominent... as were pandas and anything sparkly. I spendt a while looking at all the jewelry and wishing I had somewhere to wear it!
Norway felt very small in comparison... I think this is partially because it is, and partially because I know that a lot of the Norway space is taken up by the character dining I attended a few days ago, and a ride that I didn't get on. So, the shop is quite tiny. It also didn't have much interesting merchandise, and so I was done with Norway very quickly.
Mexico was the last stop on my list; the first stand is a margarita stand... don't worry, I didn't get anything, but I thought it was funny ;) What looks like a restaurant on the left and a temple on the right that make up the entire pavilion is very deceiving. Inside the temple, they've created a 'nighttime' Mexican market place which is a lot of fun to look around in. Another restaurant and a small attraction are also inside, but I didn't stay. The clouds were darkening before I'd gone inside and I wanted to get home before the rain.
I got back home around 7pm... what I'd thought would be a short, sweet, afternoon trip around the world had taken five hours... and I hadn't even noticed! :)
I was able to facetime Loo for a while when I got home! It was so good to talk to her!!! I think it was the longest we've talked since I've been down here (that's pathetic Becca, we should fix that). I then skyped with my parents, grandparents and brother! I miss you guys!
When Emily got home, we went to the grocery store to restock our food... I didn't need much except for milk and I still managed to come home with a full backpack and another bag. Its so easy to see what you don't have when you are already there and hungry!
Finally home, I made cookies, took a bath and am fighting my eyelids to finish this post. Back to work again tomorrow! Night!
The day started early as Emily and I got up to go to Hollywood Studios for the morning. Emily hadn't been yet since we arrived and it was time to fix that! We arrived about an hour after the park opened, and headed right to the Toy Story Mania ride, a 3D target shooting ride. It's easily the most popular ride in Hollywood studios with the fast passes often sold out before noon. When we arrived at 10, the fast pass come back time was already after 3pm. The wait was 70 minutes, so we didn't stay (although I did grab a fast pass for my collection!)
Emily wanted to see Beauty and the Beast (which I was completely okay with!) and I thought that there was a showing at 10:30. Turns out I was wrong, so when we got there and so that the show was not for another hour+, we stopped to get delicious cinnamon rolls at a cafe called 'Starring Rolls'. We walked to One Man's Dream and went through it (the museum-ish of Walt's life) and both teared up during the video. What a guy, Walt Disney, what a guy.
By the time our bellies were full of cinnamon-y goodness and our eyes had no tears left, it was actually time for Beauty and the Beast! We walked over, got nice seats on the left close to the front and settled in. The show was excellent, as per usual. The Belle was finally a different girl, fourth time's the charm? She was excellent. Her singing sounded much more like I imagined Belle to sound :) Gaston was excellent as well.. and had real biceps to spare... he wore no muscle suit and I'm pretty sure the girls fainting wasn't faked ;)
After Beauty and the Beast we got lunch at Pizza Planet and then It was time to make our way out of the park because Emily had to work for the afternoon. We got our photopass picture taken in front of the hat and I can't wait to see how they turned out when I look at them tomorrow!
We split up at the entrance around 1:15pm - Emily took the cast bus back to housing, and I got on the boat to Epcot! I hadn't done the World Showcase at all yet (Except for mine and Sam's whirlwind adventure) and I decided that it was high time I enjoy my park. Canada, UK, France, Morocco, Japan, America, Italy, Germany, China, Norway and Mexico!
I started with Canada - there isn't a whole lot to do there unless you have dinner reservations at Le Cellier... which I did not ;) I looked in the small store for a few minutes, laughed at all the stereotypes and made my way to the UK. The stores were full of "Keep Calm and Carry On" and The Beatles and Doctor Who. It was lovely to look around! I happened upon a short line for Winnie the Pooh and Tigger, and so I jumped in to meet them! I got a hug from them both and started my afternoon off feeling great :)
On the way to France I saw both Alice and Mary Poppins, but didn't stop to say hello, because I had picked up a time's guide for the day... and I knew that Belle would be in France shortly. I waited for her buy looking through the shops (I can't feel justified buying anything! I've never been to France!) and by meeting Aurora! She was wonderful, and told me she'd come visit me in Canada sometime :)
After I met Aurora, I went to stand in line for Belle. She's one of the more popular characters, and so her line gets quite long even before she shows up. I had a beautiful view of the lagoon while I was waiting though! And it was totally worth it to meet her! When it was finally my turn, she told me that we could be twins! I was wearing my new green dress and she pointed to both our hair and eyes saying we looked so alike! She wondered if my family would notice if we switched dresses and took each other's place for the afternoon! I told her I'd just met Beast recently and she wanted to make sure he'd behaved like a gentleman, I assured her that he had. I told her she's been my favorite since I was a little girl and we took several pictures including one where we made a heart with our hands (I hope they turned out good)! I was just so thrilled that the conversation was more than 'how are you', 'what kingdom are you traveling from', and the normal princess conversation. I think Belle has more free rein with that sort of thing anyway because she's got more personality than anyone else (at least in my opinion! ;) I'm a little biased though!).
I was on cloud nine as I walked through the shops in Morocco! I could have waited to meet Aladdin and Jasmine, but I can see them another time :) Morocco is full of bright colors and beautiful decor, but didn't hold my interest for too long. I soon moved on to Japan, where I watched them crack open oysters for the pearls as guests chose the oysters they wanted. I saw one girl get a rare silver pearl from her oyster... so rare apparently, that all the Japanese cast members even crowded around to see! The Japan shop consists mostly of cartoon merchandise, tea, and cool swords!
The American Adventure is next around the showcase. From teh direction I was coming, the first stand is a funnel cake stand... because what says 'America' better than deep fried batter topped with sugar and sold alongside beer? ...I think that pretty much covers it. As I was taking a photo of the funnel cakes sign, one of the guys inside called out, "Why don't you take my picture while you're at it!" So, I did! They laughed, I wished them a good afternoon and I moved on. The best part of park hopping by yourself is that you can move on or stay at your leisure... you don't have to worry about anyone else!
This came in especially handy when I ended up the next pavilion; Italy. I wandered through the shops and checked on the reservation I'd made there (July 11th is my parents 26th anniversary, and we're eating in Italy)! It is very authentic and true to many pieces of the country that I saw before I came to Florida! The merchandise shops have Venetian Masks and glass, the buildings have the right architecture and the restaurant serves authentic Italian pizza. The 'gelato' is not real gelato... it's ice cream instead. However, my strawberry concoction was still fabulous. I enjoyed it while sitting outside in the Italian Piazza and listening to the Italian soundtrack they had playing. It was wonderful! It made me miss my family something fierce though!
After Italy comes Germany, where I didn't spend much time; enough to see the shops and then meet Snow White! She was lovely as well, but I preferred the Snow I met at breakfast the other day! Ah well. A photo and then I was done. I waited hardly anytime at all in the line, so it was still worth it! After Germany is the outpost. Where Africa used to be until it was moved to Animal Kingdom, it's become sort of empty. There is a stand there called Cool Post where I work sometimes, and rumors are flying that Australia/NZ might be going in, but right now it's just mostly empty.
China is beautiful. The architecture is especially brilliant in the Chinese pavilion, and if you're there at the right time of day, you can meet Mulan :) I was not, but I had fun looking through the large shop that is there; much like Japan, cartoons, tea and cool swords were prominent... as were pandas and anything sparkly. I spendt a while looking at all the jewelry and wishing I had somewhere to wear it!
Norway felt very small in comparison... I think this is partially because it is, and partially because I know that a lot of the Norway space is taken up by the character dining I attended a few days ago, and a ride that I didn't get on. So, the shop is quite tiny. It also didn't have much interesting merchandise, and so I was done with Norway very quickly.
Mexico was the last stop on my list; the first stand is a margarita stand... don't worry, I didn't get anything, but I thought it was funny ;) What looks like a restaurant on the left and a temple on the right that make up the entire pavilion is very deceiving. Inside the temple, they've created a 'nighttime' Mexican market place which is a lot of fun to look around in. Another restaurant and a small attraction are also inside, but I didn't stay. The clouds were darkening before I'd gone inside and I wanted to get home before the rain.
I got back home around 7pm... what I'd thought would be a short, sweet, afternoon trip around the world had taken five hours... and I hadn't even noticed! :)
I was able to facetime Loo for a while when I got home! It was so good to talk to her!!! I think it was the longest we've talked since I've been down here (that's pathetic Becca, we should fix that). I then skyped with my parents, grandparents and brother! I miss you guys!
When Emily got home, we went to the grocery store to restock our food... I didn't need much except for milk and I still managed to come home with a full backpack and another bag. Its so easy to see what you don't have when you are already there and hungry!
Finally home, I made cookies, took a bath and am fighting my eyelids to finish this post. Back to work again tomorrow! Night!
June 25, 2013
Halfway done.
Today marks 5 weeks since I've been here! Well, technically, it was yesterday, but the first Monday we were here was only a half day... so does it really count? Today was a much calmer wake up call then yesterday; no alarm, no rush, snooze until I feel like it. Wonderful :)
I finally woke up around 11:30am, and Emily and I went out to the pool for an hour before I had to get ready for work... I think I'm finally getting a tan! I've been in Florida for five weeks... its about time ;) We came back, I got ready for work, and I headed to Epcot. I was kind of dreading my shift... Tuesday night is Extra Magic Hours at Epcot (some of the cast members call them Extra Tragic Hours!) which means the park is open later (or earlier) than normal. I was supposed to be working at Ice Cream 2 today, that ice cream cart that everyone walks by while entering or leaving the park. It closes at 11pm tonight, and so I was scheduled until 12am.
When I got there, however, I found out I had been switched to Mission Space! Which was fine with me... I would get off a half hour earlier and be working with shade and fans all day! :) I was working with Eduardo, an ICPer from Mexico. He's very fun and easy to work with! I was trying to convince him to switch shifts with me for the 4th of July... I want to watch the Epcot fireworks, but I have this short, stupid Port shift scheduled from 4:30-10:30... aka, right when fireworks are happening. Eduardo says he doesn't even care about the fireworks that much, he just doesn't want to work my shift. Jerk. Ah well.
The day went by quickly. Nothing spectacular happened, which is probably a good thing. I met two new trainees at lunch; Katy and Marie. Katy is from Orlando and Marie is from Washington state. They are excited to be here :) A guest turned in a phone that they'd found, and I wasn't allowed to answer it when it started ringing. It was heartbreaking because I just knew how frantic I'd be to lose my brand new iPhone at Epcot! But my manager came and picked it up and was able to get it returned to the owner, so it all worked out :)
It was a pretty boring day, all in all. Sleep, play, work, home. Pretty low key and not as hot as I thought it would be! Even the rain stayed away :) Lots to do tomorrow; I gave away my long, hot shift at ibev tomorrow and so Emily and I are headed to Hollywood Studios, since she hasn't been yet, and then I'll do Epcot since I haven't done World Showcase yet! :) I'm excited. Good night!!
I finally woke up around 11:30am, and Emily and I went out to the pool for an hour before I had to get ready for work... I think I'm finally getting a tan! I've been in Florida for five weeks... its about time ;) We came back, I got ready for work, and I headed to Epcot. I was kind of dreading my shift... Tuesday night is Extra Magic Hours at Epcot (some of the cast members call them Extra Tragic Hours!) which means the park is open later (or earlier) than normal. I was supposed to be working at Ice Cream 2 today, that ice cream cart that everyone walks by while entering or leaving the park. It closes at 11pm tonight, and so I was scheduled until 12am.
When I got there, however, I found out I had been switched to Mission Space! Which was fine with me... I would get off a half hour earlier and be working with shade and fans all day! :) I was working with Eduardo, an ICPer from Mexico. He's very fun and easy to work with! I was trying to convince him to switch shifts with me for the 4th of July... I want to watch the Epcot fireworks, but I have this short, stupid Port shift scheduled from 4:30-10:30... aka, right when fireworks are happening. Eduardo says he doesn't even care about the fireworks that much, he just doesn't want to work my shift. Jerk. Ah well.
The day went by quickly. Nothing spectacular happened, which is probably a good thing. I met two new trainees at lunch; Katy and Marie. Katy is from Orlando and Marie is from Washington state. They are excited to be here :) A guest turned in a phone that they'd found, and I wasn't allowed to answer it when it started ringing. It was heartbreaking because I just knew how frantic I'd be to lose my brand new iPhone at Epcot! But my manager came and picked it up and was able to get it returned to the owner, so it all worked out :)
It was a pretty boring day, all in all. Sleep, play, work, home. Pretty low key and not as hot as I thought it would be! Even the rain stayed away :) Lots to do tomorrow; I gave away my long, hot shift at ibev tomorrow and so Emily and I are headed to Hollywood Studios, since she hasn't been yet, and then I'll do Epcot since I haven't done World Showcase yet! :) I'm excited. Good night!!
June 24, 2013
Oh, $#!%.
My first thought this morning was a very rude word. Today was my first experience with oversleeping-when-I-really-can't-afford-to at Walt Disney World.
I was planning on catching the bus that gets me to Epcot for 8:15am, since I started at 9am and the next bus wouldn't get me there until 8:50. I was planning on being on that bus when it left Chatham bus stop at 7:42am. I was planning on leaving my house at 7:25am for the 10 minute walk to that bus stop. and I was planning on getting up at 6:30am so that I could do so.
When I did wake up, it was 8:03am. (Insert rude thoughts and words here.) The bus that would get me to Epcot for 8:50 leaves Chatham at 8:13 every morning. I was up, into workout shorts and a tank top, throwing rain gear, my iPod, keys, my name tag, a granola bar and a Gatorade in my bag, and out the door in 2 minutes. The 10 minute walk became a 7 minute run and I arrived just as the bus pulled up. I sat on the bus, waiting for it to leave the stop, and praying that I had a costume in my locker at work. And praying that I'd be able to make it to Epcot in time to change and make it to PDF base by 9am.
God bless my bus driver, because she had me to Epcot by 8:45. I was changed, at base, and clocked in by 8:56. (I ran into the Norwegian guy from upstairs again! He was doing his Epcot Discover Day training... and rolling his eyes... he'd done it before on his last program. I only had time to say hello and that I was running late!) Ladies and gents, I was ready to go at work less than an hour after I woke up. When I usually arrive at Epcot 45 minutes before I have to start, that's pretty darn impressive.
The biggest issue today, was not that I was running late, but that because I was running late, I didn't pack myself a lunch. Or a supper. Or a substantial snack... for my 11 and a half hour shift. I was scheduled from 9am until 8:30pm... I didn't actually leave until 9:30. I survived my day off a granola bar, a bottle of Gatorade and free fountain drinks from the stand at work. I would have been in a lot more trouble had I been at a cart with no free water supply, that's for sure.
Nothing particularly interesting happened today at work; I was by myself in the cart we call the Land. It has no air conditioning, but does have a roof and two large fans. I've decided I quite like working there! I'm by myself, it's kept out of the sun all day, and there's nothing too messy to clean up at the end of the night. The long shift goes by quite quickly and there's some ownership involved in both opening and closing the same cart in one day. I work there again next week, and I'm actually looking forward to it! I much prefer long days to short ones... if I'm making the trek to Epcot anyway, might as well be there all day making money!
I got home at around 10pm, and was able to facetime mom and dad and grandma and grandpa for a few minutes! Their connection wasn't all that great, so we hung up after a few (very short) minutes, but then I got to facetime with Tanya! I told her all about my best day ever and she told me... hardly anything actually. I kind of monopolized the conversation (sorry, babe!).
Now it is time for bed! Trying to make plans this week is going haywire because everyone's days off are different! I want to do Epcot World Showcase, because I haven't done it yet :) Until tomorrow!
I was planning on catching the bus that gets me to Epcot for 8:15am, since I started at 9am and the next bus wouldn't get me there until 8:50. I was planning on being on that bus when it left Chatham bus stop at 7:42am. I was planning on leaving my house at 7:25am for the 10 minute walk to that bus stop. and I was planning on getting up at 6:30am so that I could do so.
When I did wake up, it was 8:03am. (Insert rude thoughts and words here.) The bus that would get me to Epcot for 8:50 leaves Chatham at 8:13 every morning. I was up, into workout shorts and a tank top, throwing rain gear, my iPod, keys, my name tag, a granola bar and a Gatorade in my bag, and out the door in 2 minutes. The 10 minute walk became a 7 minute run and I arrived just as the bus pulled up. I sat on the bus, waiting for it to leave the stop, and praying that I had a costume in my locker at work. And praying that I'd be able to make it to Epcot in time to change and make it to PDF base by 9am.
God bless my bus driver, because she had me to Epcot by 8:45. I was changed, at base, and clocked in by 8:56. (I ran into the Norwegian guy from upstairs again! He was doing his Epcot Discover Day training... and rolling his eyes... he'd done it before on his last program. I only had time to say hello and that I was running late!) Ladies and gents, I was ready to go at work less than an hour after I woke up. When I usually arrive at Epcot 45 minutes before I have to start, that's pretty darn impressive.
The biggest issue today, was not that I was running late, but that because I was running late, I didn't pack myself a lunch. Or a supper. Or a substantial snack... for my 11 and a half hour shift. I was scheduled from 9am until 8:30pm... I didn't actually leave until 9:30. I survived my day off a granola bar, a bottle of Gatorade and free fountain drinks from the stand at work. I would have been in a lot more trouble had I been at a cart with no free water supply, that's for sure.
Nothing particularly interesting happened today at work; I was by myself in the cart we call the Land. It has no air conditioning, but does have a roof and two large fans. I've decided I quite like working there! I'm by myself, it's kept out of the sun all day, and there's nothing too messy to clean up at the end of the night. The long shift goes by quite quickly and there's some ownership involved in both opening and closing the same cart in one day. I work there again next week, and I'm actually looking forward to it! I much prefer long days to short ones... if I'm making the trek to Epcot anyway, might as well be there all day making money!
I got home at around 10pm, and was able to facetime mom and dad and grandma and grandpa for a few minutes! Their connection wasn't all that great, so we hung up after a few (very short) minutes, but then I got to facetime with Tanya! I told her all about my best day ever and she told me... hardly anything actually. I kind of monopolized the conversation (sorry, babe!).
Now it is time for bed! Trying to make plans this week is going haywire because everyone's days off are different! I want to do Epcot World Showcase, because I haven't done it yet :) Until tomorrow!
June 23, 2013
Short and sweet.
Today I was up again to work at the Promenade Refreshment stand (we just call it Prom!). I haven't worked there since training, and today I got to wear this beauty for the first time... and for the first time, I finally felt like I looked the part of a Disney cast member!
Prom is wonderfully air conditioned, and wonderfully large and wonderfully empty for the first while. The big issue this morning was that I didn't know how to put together the ice cream machine. I had to call my coordinator for help, and she was not at all impressed that I couldn't do it myself. Really, it's not my fault. The day I trained in the morning at Prom, it was already done. And the day I trained at night (when normally you'd focus on taking it apart and seeing where everything goes) was the night of the leaky ceiling when we shut down early and someone else was doing it. The laminated info sheets that are supposed to help me ("All the other cast members seem to get along using the sheets just fine. Use them." said my coordinator in her best 'you're clearly an idiot' voice) are for a different machine and don't even mention all the pieces. It was going fine until I was finished and had two extra pieces. Clearly I didn't do something right! She huffed and puffed the whole way through putting it together. It would have taken her half the time if she'd just shown me where there two parts go instead of complaining the whole time she took apart what I'd already done and did it herself.
She was already mad at me for having to show me how to put it together when I needed her to override a refund for me. At Eclipse, I could do my own refunds. At Staples, I could do my own under 20$. Over that, a manager would input their numbers and then allow me to continue. At Epcot, the override inputs their numbers, and then processes the return themselves. So, she was already mad when I swiped the card after she put her numbers in. I swear I could see the steam coming out of her ears. I got a talking to after the guest left about how that was her job, and I felt like rolling my eyes and telling her to cool it. I also felt like telling her that maybe if I had been trained correctly I would have known better. Or that it was my first ever refund, so take a chill pill. Also, it was a 3.50$ popcorn. Which I'm allowed to just give to a guest if they drop their first one. So calm down, lady.
But, I didn't. I smiled, nodded, and took a page from Sam's book... she has perfected the art of being the naive Canadian with a "Thanks! I'll know for next time!" The coordinator left and I only saw her once more, when she came in to check how things were going. She was all set to get mad at me for something... she wanted to know how long the hotdogs had been sitting (7 minutes), how long the popcorn had been sitting (2 minutes), and why there was an empty keg in the fridge (our stocker had already said he'd be back for it). Everything was in perfect working order and the other cast member and I had everything under control. And I think it made the coordinator even more mad. But, this time, there was actually nothing wrong. I really hope she cools down before I have to work with her again.
Other than that, the cast member I was working with was the chattiest person I have ever met. I ignored most of what she said because I would just find myself to have zoned out, or she wouldn't stop while I was interacting with guests, so my attention was not on her. I was able to leave soon after she arrived though.
Blair was at Port today and was my escort back to base. She's so funny, and I'm so glad I got to see her again! We get along fabulously, and is my first friend from work that I feel like I would like to hang out with outside of work.
My day was only a 6 hour shift; short and sweet. I got home around 5pm and cleaned my room! I got all my laundry into the wash, organized my drawers (even in Disney, I somehow managed to make myself a junk drawer!) and enjoyed the quiet of my apartment.
As I left to go switch my laundry to the dryer, I hear my name called from the top of the stairs to the 2nd floor... who else but the Norwegian guy from above me, sitting on the stairs on his phone. He actually hung up his conversation to ask me how my day was going. We had a great chat about golf, hockey, Canadian stereotypes, cold weather and the Disney programs. Turns out this is his second year-long program. He and his roommate met last year during the program and both decided to come back and do it again because they couldn't stay away. Turns out he hasn't even started work yet, so the Norwegian guy I saw serving the table next to us on Friday morning was not the same guy (but they do have the same name!)... now I'm really glad Sam and I didn't say hi. That would have been awkward. He asked for my number, which I don't have, but I helped him spell my name correctly so he could add me on facebook. The roommates and I have been officially invited to their next party, and even though I told him I don't drink I think Emily and I might go anyway. They are right upstairs after all, which makes deciding to go home whenever I want very easy.
Other than that, my evening has consisted of being able to talk to mom and dad for a few minutes, trying to find dining reservations for when my family is here (no luck yet on the dessert terrace, guys! I'll keep trying though!) and general I-don't-want-to-go-to-bed-but-I-need-sleep internet procrastination tactics. I think I am finally succumbing to my drooping eyelids though... goodnight!
Prom is wonderfully air conditioned, and wonderfully large and wonderfully empty for the first while. The big issue this morning was that I didn't know how to put together the ice cream machine. I had to call my coordinator for help, and she was not at all impressed that I couldn't do it myself. Really, it's not my fault. The day I trained in the morning at Prom, it was already done. And the day I trained at night (when normally you'd focus on taking it apart and seeing where everything goes) was the night of the leaky ceiling when we shut down early and someone else was doing it. The laminated info sheets that are supposed to help me ("All the other cast members seem to get along using the sheets just fine. Use them." said my coordinator in her best 'you're clearly an idiot' voice) are for a different machine and don't even mention all the pieces. It was going fine until I was finished and had two extra pieces. Clearly I didn't do something right! She huffed and puffed the whole way through putting it together. It would have taken her half the time if she'd just shown me where there two parts go instead of complaining the whole time she took apart what I'd already done and did it herself.
She was already mad at me for having to show me how to put it together when I needed her to override a refund for me. At Eclipse, I could do my own refunds. At Staples, I could do my own under 20$. Over that, a manager would input their numbers and then allow me to continue. At Epcot, the override inputs their numbers, and then processes the return themselves. So, she was already mad when I swiped the card after she put her numbers in. I swear I could see the steam coming out of her ears. I got a talking to after the guest left about how that was her job, and I felt like rolling my eyes and telling her to cool it. I also felt like telling her that maybe if I had been trained correctly I would have known better. Or that it was my first ever refund, so take a chill pill. Also, it was a 3.50$ popcorn. Which I'm allowed to just give to a guest if they drop their first one. So calm down, lady.
But, I didn't. I smiled, nodded, and took a page from Sam's book... she has perfected the art of being the naive Canadian with a "Thanks! I'll know for next time!" The coordinator left and I only saw her once more, when she came in to check how things were going. She was all set to get mad at me for something... she wanted to know how long the hotdogs had been sitting (7 minutes), how long the popcorn had been sitting (2 minutes), and why there was an empty keg in the fridge (our stocker had already said he'd be back for it). Everything was in perfect working order and the other cast member and I had everything under control. And I think it made the coordinator even more mad. But, this time, there was actually nothing wrong. I really hope she cools down before I have to work with her again.
Other than that, the cast member I was working with was the chattiest person I have ever met. I ignored most of what she said because I would just find myself to have zoned out, or she wouldn't stop while I was interacting with guests, so my attention was not on her. I was able to leave soon after she arrived though.
Blair was at Port today and was my escort back to base. She's so funny, and I'm so glad I got to see her again! We get along fabulously, and is my first friend from work that I feel like I would like to hang out with outside of work.
My day was only a 6 hour shift; short and sweet. I got home around 5pm and cleaned my room! I got all my laundry into the wash, organized my drawers (even in Disney, I somehow managed to make myself a junk drawer!) and enjoyed the quiet of my apartment.
As I left to go switch my laundry to the dryer, I hear my name called from the top of the stairs to the 2nd floor... who else but the Norwegian guy from above me, sitting on the stairs on his phone. He actually hung up his conversation to ask me how my day was going. We had a great chat about golf, hockey, Canadian stereotypes, cold weather and the Disney programs. Turns out this is his second year-long program. He and his roommate met last year during the program and both decided to come back and do it again because they couldn't stay away. Turns out he hasn't even started work yet, so the Norwegian guy I saw serving the table next to us on Friday morning was not the same guy (but they do have the same name!)... now I'm really glad Sam and I didn't say hi. That would have been awkward. He asked for my number, which I don't have, but I helped him spell my name correctly so he could add me on facebook. The roommates and I have been officially invited to their next party, and even though I told him I don't drink I think Emily and I might go anyway. They are right upstairs after all, which makes deciding to go home whenever I want very easy.
Other than that, my evening has consisted of being able to talk to mom and dad for a few minutes, trying to find dining reservations for when my family is here (no luck yet on the dessert terrace, guys! I'll keep trying though!) and general I-don't-want-to-go-to-bed-but-I-need-sleep internet procrastination tactics. I think I am finally succumbing to my drooping eyelids though... goodnight!
June 22, 2013
Don't be an idiot.
Today was back to the grindstone. (Well, as grindstone as you can get for working for Disney!) I stayed in bed to finish my blog post from last night, then I was up and going for another day. Another hot day, and when I went to costuming to get my outfit, they didn't have any white hats left! I was clearly not going to be able to not have one... both because I work Food & Beverage, and because I would be outside all day. So, I was stuck with a secondary costume all together... one where it was designed for an indoor, air conditioned location. The shirt and hat are much heavier, hotter, and uglier materials.
I had a Safety In Motion class before I actually started work, and God bless the guy who ran it, because he took a really boring subject and managed to entertain us. His name was Terry, and he really just wanted to impress upon us that an injury now could plague us for the next 70 years. And that's a long time to have pain that could have been avoided. Essentially, don't be stupid. Think about what you're doing and whether or not it could hurt you. If it could, don't do it. Duh.
I started work at the same ice cream cart that has been giving me sunburns and dehydration all week, but this time I had a partner. I got to know Blair, a part-timer for the summer who lives about 45 minutes from Orlando. She's headed to China in less than a month for three weeks and is over the moon about it! I also found out she's a christian, and it was so wonderful to talk to someone again who believes what I believe! We didn't talk much about it, but I could tell she was enjoying it as well. It's so hard to go into a work place (any work place!) and express your faith without getting weird looks.
I didn't get dehydrated today, as I kept up with the water and juice. After Blair left, it was mostly boredom that I had to deal with. My favorite moment was watching a young family of five trying to take a selfie photo with the mom's camera phone... when a teenager asked if they'd like her to take the photo. They accepted and she took two: one was lovely, I'm sure. The other had the teenager's best friend photo bombing in the background!! It was hilarious to watch the two teens walk away, trying not to laugh.
I was able to close up really quickly and heard and saw the fireworks going as I walked back to base form the cart. A bus ride home, and here I am. Same routine of pjs, check facebook, write a blog post. I was hoping to talk to my family or Tanya tonight, but no luck. Hopefully tomorrow. Tomorrow I get an air conditioned location (YAY!!!) so that should be lovely :)
Goodnight all, I hope your weekend and first days of summer have gone well so far :)
I had a Safety In Motion class before I actually started work, and God bless the guy who ran it, because he took a really boring subject and managed to entertain us. His name was Terry, and he really just wanted to impress upon us that an injury now could plague us for the next 70 years. And that's a long time to have pain that could have been avoided. Essentially, don't be stupid. Think about what you're doing and whether or not it could hurt you. If it could, don't do it. Duh.
I started work at the same ice cream cart that has been giving me sunburns and dehydration all week, but this time I had a partner. I got to know Blair, a part-timer for the summer who lives about 45 minutes from Orlando. She's headed to China in less than a month for three weeks and is over the moon about it! I also found out she's a christian, and it was so wonderful to talk to someone again who believes what I believe! We didn't talk much about it, but I could tell she was enjoying it as well. It's so hard to go into a work place (any work place!) and express your faith without getting weird looks.
I didn't get dehydrated today, as I kept up with the water and juice. After Blair left, it was mostly boredom that I had to deal with. My favorite moment was watching a young family of five trying to take a selfie photo with the mom's camera phone... when a teenager asked if they'd like her to take the photo. They accepted and she took two: one was lovely, I'm sure. The other had the teenager's best friend photo bombing in the background!! It was hilarious to watch the two teens walk away, trying not to laugh.
I was able to close up really quickly and heard and saw the fireworks going as I walked back to base form the cart. A bus ride home, and here I am. Same routine of pjs, check facebook, write a blog post. I was hoping to talk to my family or Tanya tonight, but no luck. Hopefully tomorrow. Tomorrow I get an air conditioned location (YAY!!!) so that should be lovely :)
Goodnight all, I hope your weekend and first days of summer have gone well so far :)
June 21, 2013
Best day of my entire life.
Forget Magical Moments. Try a Magical Day. Today was literally the best day of my entire life. And when I say literally, I'm not using it as a figure of speech. I mean actually, for sure, literally the best day ever.
My day started very early. Last night, Sam and I decided on a whim to book a breakfast at the Norway pavilion in Epcot for 8:20am this morning... it's a character breakfast with the princesses. And, while expensive, it is something that I wanted to do. And this is supposed to be a summer of no regrets! So, regretting nothing, I was up at 6am to be ready and pretty for 7am to catch the bus to Epcot. I wore a nice outfit, made sure my hair was down and packed a bag of park-hopping clothes for later.
At this particular restaurant, four princesses roam through the tables during your meal. And, unbeknownst to me, a fifth princess is there as you come in to have your photo taken with professionally. This photo is then printed and delivered to you before you finish eating. The first magical moment of the day: the fifth princess available for the photo was Belle herself. Not only is she my favorite by far, I had yet to meet her. I gave her a hug and got a beautiful picture of her and Sam and I for a souvenir. Day was off to a good start!!!
During the breakfast, we were told to help ourselves to the buffet, and they would bring us as much as we wanted of the eggs, sausage, bacon, and other hot things. I somehow managed to bring the vegetarian I know to a Norwegian breakfast consisting mainly of delicious meat products. Guess who got all of her meat portions? That would be this kid! ;) Cinderella, Aurora, Snow White and Ariel all came around to say hello and ask how we were doing! I was very much a 5 year old child, getting pictures and in total awe of each one. Snow White was absolutely brilliant; her voice sounded exactly like the cartoon. Clearly Belle was my favorite, but they were all fantastic! Sam started to cry as we neared the end; this is what she's been waiting for for months and I was so glad that she came with me :)
The kicker to the breakfast was that I overheard the server at the table next to us introduce himself to his table of guests. I recognized both the name and the voice, and when I looked over? Sure enough... the tall, blonde, Norwegian, soccer-playing upstairs neighbor. I didn't say hello or anything, because he was at work, but still hilarious to me!
I got changed into park hopping clothes when we were done, and met up with Natalie outside of the Mexico pavilion. I sent home my professional photo, cute outfit, and sandals with Sam; she was headed home before work and said she didn't mind taking my bag of stuff with her. Natalie and I grabbed fast passes for Test Track, but even the single rider line was a 40 minute wait and so instead of hanging around Epcot we caught a guest bus to Animal Kingdom. Upon arrival, we took our time. We knew we were in no rush and that we had no real plans for the day. We first went to Primeval Whirl; a ride in Dinoland. I hadn't been on it yet and Natalie loves it! Then, we went to Asia and got into the single rider line for Expedition Everest. In my first AK Magical Moment of the day, I somehow managed to get a seat at the very front. The dad of the family of five that I was joining had paid off his two daughters to let him have the front seat... and he was the member sitting alone. I got to join him! It was absolutely incredible and a measurable amount better than the rest of the train!
When we got off Everest, we went to a small shop in Asia. We'd both seen a certain style of dress around the Disney properties that we liked, but the patterns were always iffy and the price of 45$ was a little steep. At this little shop however, there were two green and one blue dress of this style in a much prettier fabric and pattern... on sale! A few minutes later, we both owned new dresses! I had the green and Natalie the blue... for 20$ instead of 45$. Mom, you would have been so proud!
We wandered over to Africa, got fast passes for the Kilimanjaro Safari and walked the African wildlife trail while we waited for our time to arrive. We saw okapis and gorillas quite close, but the highlight was the hippo! Usually viewed while lying still, the hippo today was swimming circles in its water area... which had an underwater viewing area for guests. It would come right up to the glass and drift by, and all I have to say is that hippos are huge! We watched it for a while and wished we got the big yawn on camera, and eventually moved on.
When our time came for the safari, the fast pass line was a dream. We passed hundreds of folks waiting in the stand-by line (a 70 minute wait) and basically walked right onto a truck. We even had a whole bench to ourselves, which meant a side of the truck for each of us!! The ride was similar to last time, but of course, live animals means every trip is different. We saw the giraffes and the elephant herd, but the best part was the white rhino that was so close to the truck I could have touched it.
After the safari we went to get food at the quick service barbeque restaurant. I grabbed a cookies-n-cream ice cream cone on the way and laughed as Natalie devoured a full plate of ribs. We sat with a perfect view of Everest and when it started to rain at about 3pm, we packed up and headed for the exit. We stopped inside one of the stores to discuss our options; the rain could send us home (neither of us had our ponchos with us) or we could put our valuables in the plastic bags from our purchases for the day and trek on to Magic Kingdom. Two Disney-loving, rain-loving, full-of-energy young women. Which option do you think we chose?!
The only option, of course! Onwards to MK!
We caught a guest bus from AK to the Contemporary resort and walked up to MK from there. The rain kept up, and so we spent a while in the shops, and almost a half an hour watching a guy create a blown glass bowl. He was wonderful and explained to us everything that he was doing and how it works, told corny jokes and even posed for one of my photos! The bowl he made was based off Minnie Mouse and only took him about 25 minutes. I've seen blown glass before, but never been told what each step does! It was very cool. Natalie expressed how awesome it was that we had been at MK for an hour already and not even made it past Main Street!
The new bakery on Main Street is finally open for business! It is now in cahoots with Starbucks and so when we went to check it out I was able to order a comfort of home, and since the rain had significantly cooled the air, I made it a hot beverage. Natalie got her own and when we looked back outside, the rain was falling even harder and faster and the entire length of Main Street up to the castle was practically empty! So we walked outside, wishing our cameras would stay dry for a picture, just taking it in. Everyone around us was scrambling to find shelter and dressed in ponchos and clinging to umbrellas... and why wouldn't you? If you're here on vacation, you don't want to get soaked on your day at Magic Kingdom.
But Natalie and I are not on vacation. And water won't hurt you! So I stood looking at Main Street and looking at the castle and just loving the sounds and sights and smells! But, it was chilly being soaking wet! There was a small breeze that actually made the chill very cold. But I knew that the pavement would be very warm from the beating sun all morning and afternoon.
So, I sat down. Right in the middle of the plaza that looks up at the castle and down Main Street. Natalie just laughed and without another word, joined me! I was right, the pavement was so lovely and warm that I was having trouble deciding to either lay down or drink my latte! So, I did both! The rain was pounding and people were looking at us funny and we both just started to giggle. We got some great comments, including "You'll get farther if you're vertical", "Victims of the lightning strike!", and even "Are you protesting something?" I'm pretty sure a couple people even took our picture. We laid there for a good 20 minutes to half an hour, laughing, enjoying the warmth, and making a memory that will last forever.
The best memories are made by doing something crazy with good people.
When the rain started to let up, people started walking around again and so we decided that getting trampled probably wasn't in our best interest. And so we headed into Tomorrowland to see what the wait for Space Mountain was like. Every one kept looking at us; we were beyond soaked. It was very clear that we had either stood out in the rain during the entire storm, or else we had just jumped in a pool of water with all our clothes on. We couldn't stop giggling... until we saw that the wait for Space was 70 minutes and the fastpass time was going to be in two and a half hours. We were standing there deciding what to do, when a man came up behind us and asked if we were going on Space Mountain. We said yes, and he gave us the two fast passes that were for the other two people in his party... the two people that had decided not to go after all. The fast passes were for right away. Magical Moment.
We hopped right in line and didn't have to wait at all! The fast pass lane was basically a walk on! We got on, all sorts of giggly and a little feeling bad about how wet the seats were going to be after we were done! When the ride started, we realized that we could see the track! The People-Mover, a slow moving tour of Tomorrowland, goes right through Space Mountain as part of it's track. When the PM gets stopped though, the lights for it's track go on; lighting up a good part of Space Mountain! It made it almost more intense, knowing how far you were dropping and how steep the curves were going to be! It was an awesome experience, and Natalie and I were yelling "This is so cool!" "This is so weird!" "This is awesome!" at each other basically the whole ride!
We got off, got more fastpasses for later, and headed up through Fantasyland. The wait for The Little Mermaid was too long, but we stopped in Gaston's Tavern for their cinnamon roll - soooo yummy! We even stopped to check if there was an opening at Be Our Guest, but no luck. We didn't really expect there to be, so it wasn't really a big deal. Passing Philhar Magic, we decided to do that since we both love it and since it was still raining and since it would hopefully be warmer in there than outside. We got a good laugh that we were looking for a warm indoor location... in Florida... in June... on the first day of summer. The show was brilliant as usual, and we talked about how we were basically soul mates. Not soul mates like Tanya and I are... Tanya and I are opposite and work well together and love each other and make it work wonderfully. Natalie and I are just the same person. We have the same soul. Everything we did, said or wanted to do was answered with an "I know, right!?!" from the other person. It was wonderful.
I don't know about your family, but my family usually does Adventureland extremely quickly. There isn't a whole lot there to hold the interest of all five of us, and so I really feel like Adventureland and I don't know each other very well. So, that's where we headed. We shopped a bit, caught a glimpse of Aladdin and Jasmine, and walked around... and I realized why we don't spend much time there. Because there just isn't much to do! We looked up wait times for both the Jungle Cruise and the Aladdin ride, both of which were longer than Thunder Mountain.
So we high-tailed it to Frontierland. I can understand that most folks don't want to do an outdoor roller coaster in the rain, but we were already soaked! The rain was still falling and most people were just shop-hopping, trying to stay out of it. The wait for Thunder was supposed to be 20, but took us more like 5. It was absolutely awesome. We were going to do Splash as well, but their "20 minute" wait line was stretched almost back to the entrance. So, we ducked out of line and instead walked back down towards Adventureland, knowing that our fast pass time for Space was coming up in a bout a half hour. We meandered though, I got a fast pass for Jungle Cruise for my collection, we walked through Casey's Corner (the sports-decor fast food place on Main Street), and I decided that I would get a burger at Cosmic Ray's in Tomorrowland after we did Space, because it smelled so good in there... and all I'd had since breakfast was an ice cream and half a cinnamon roll.
As we entered Tomorrowland, we decided to go into the Monster's Laugh Floor, since I have never been. It's a comedy show where they actually make real-time jokes and poke fun at random people in the audience. It was hilarious! (But, honestly, I think it was only funny because I was with Natalie. You need to be with other people who find it funny to have a good time at these things!) By the time we got out, our Space fast pass time had arrived! Only, when we arrived at Space, it was shut down :( They didn't know how long it would be, and it was still raining, so we didn't want to wait to find out. We talked about going home, but Natalie had yet to do the Little Mermaid ride, so we walked back up to Fantasyland to do that :) It was only a 20 minute wait, and I don't think it even took that long. It was very cute, as always!
When we were done we decided to go home, but also decided to check at Be Our Guest once more in a last ditch effort to get in. When we walked up to the guy at the gate and asked if there were any cancellations. He said, "Unfortunately not for tonight, but..." when all of a sudden he was cut off by a guy walking out of the restaurant. "Is it just the two of you?" We nodded. "We can fit you in." The guy at the gate was taken aback and started to argue, but the second guy must have been a pretty high-up fellow, because he just looked at him and said, "I said, we can fit them in." We were so excited, and so grateful, I almost gave the guy in charge a big 'ol hug. But I was soaking wet from the rain, so I refrained.
We got to the door and the lady checking us in told us that it would be about a 35 minute wait, if that was okay. When you get into Be Our Guest, you say yes to any wait time!!! I gave her my name, and Natalie gave her a phone number, and our 35 minutes began. I decided to go to the bathroom to try and do something with my hair... being in soaking wet clothes wasn't really how I wanted to spend my Be Our Guest dinner. Even being in casual clothes was bothering me... I had wanted to dress up! I'd wanted to feel fancy and sit down and enjoy my time. But, when you get in to a restaurant that has an 8 month wait-list, you deal with the other stuff.
Except that, as we were headed to the bathroom, Natalie's face suddenly lights up. "I'm going to put on my dress!" I had completely forgotten that I had bought a brand new dress that morning. I had a dress with me, in my bag, that had been protected from the rain in its plastic bag all day. I laughed out loud and we hurried to get changed. I even had a small belt to put with it form the shirt I had worn that morning to the princess breakfast!!!!! As I was combing my fingers through my hair, trying to make it somewhat presentable, Natalie hears my name being called from the waiting room! So I stuck my head out the door, and said I'd be just a second! I gathered up my things and ran out to the gentleman holding our menus. What was supposed to be a 35 minute was was a four minute wait. Our seating ticket had been printed one minute after we checked in at 8:15pm. ONE MINUTE.
He led us to our table, where the napkins were folded into roses and I had a gorgeous view of the ballroom and the snow falling outside the far window. We took a million pictures and were introduced to Joe, our server for the evening. He called us princesses and made sure we had everything we could want, he was amazing! I was also so glad to be there with Natalie! Not only because she understood my excitement but because of how excited she was too. And she laughed with me (and at me) when I was being ridiculous. And she wanted to be extravagant. And she wanted to take her time. And it was just perfect. Thank you, Natalie, for being the best dinner date I could have asked for! (even if you did make fun of my running shoes with my dress!)
I ordered the Chicken Breast Provençal (Pan-seared and simmered in a rustic blend of Heirloom Tomatoes, Olives, White Wine, and fresh Herbs with Seasonal Vegetables and Roasted Fingerling Potatoes) and Natalie had the Sautéed Shrimp and Scallops (with Seasonal Vegetables served in Puff Pastry with a Creamy Lobster Sauce). The chicken was phenomenal. It was absolutely delicious and I took my sweet time savoring every bite. As we were about finished, we started discussing which desserts we'd like to have. We'd see the menu earlier, and desserts are actually carted around for guests to see before they order. So we stole glances at other tables as they were shown the cupcakes and cream puffs. We knew we could share so that we could try some of each others, but in all honesty, I wanted to try each one. And I knew that this was probably my one shot at dinner at Be Our Guest. And I knew that I'd always wanted to say "I'll have one of everything!"
So, we did. We ordered one of each of the six dessert options by just saying "We'll have one of each, please!" Joe looked at us, asked if we were serious, and then smiled and walked away. We sat giggling, feeling very rich and spoiled and extravagant. When he brought them back and described them to us, we also asked to try the grey stuff, which he brought out later :)
We had the
- Strawberry-Cream Cheese Cupcake Vanilla Sponge Cake, Strawberry Mousse Filling, and Cream Cheese Icing
- Triple Chocolate Cupcake Chocolate Sponge Cake, Chocolate Mousse Filling, and Chocolate Ganache
- Lemon-Raspberry Cream Puff filled with Lemon Custard
They were all amazing. The best was the strawberry cupcake followed closely by the chocolate cupcake and the chocolate cream puff. All were fabulous.
Then, as the grand finale, I got to try the grey stuff. It is in fact delicious. And, Natalie even let me try it by dipping my finger into it, just like Belle. It was amazing.
And, finally, as the icing on the cake, as you leave you get to meet the Beast. I gave him a big hug and got his picture and was completely over whelmed by all the emotions.
My heart was beating so hard I thought it would beat right out of my chest was we walked back to Main Street to go catch a bus. The day was so perfect, that Wishes was happening as we left. So, not only did I get to have Wishes playing the background to end my perfect day, but I didn't have to fight through crowds to get out; because everyone was watching the show.
As we walked to the contemporary to catch our respective buses (Natalie had plans to see a movie at Downtown Disney), I saw my cast bus pull up beside us and stop at the Security gate for the resort. I knew it was another 3 or 4 minute walk and so I hugged Natalie, thanked her again, and was suddenly very grateful for the running shoes that looked so ridiculous with my dress. I ran as fast as I could, caught the bus just as he was about to pull away and waved to Natalie out the window as we drove by.
I even got home in time to Facetime my dad and brother. I had this Cinderella complex in my head... I had it figured somehow that as long as I got home before midnight Nova Scotia time, I'd be able to talk to them. And I did! I wish Mom and Becca had been there - not that I don't love talking ot the boys, but they are boys. They don't get as excited over the little details! ;)
All in all, I think it was the best day of my life. I started out by meeting Belle and ended with meeting Beast. If we hadn't bought dresses, if there had been no rain, if Space Mountain had been working properly... all of these things that seemed wrong at the time all worked out to make the best day ever! Everything was literally absolutely perfect.
Forget Magical Moments. I just had the most Magical Day Disney could ever offer.
My day started very early. Last night, Sam and I decided on a whim to book a breakfast at the Norway pavilion in Epcot for 8:20am this morning... it's a character breakfast with the princesses. And, while expensive, it is something that I wanted to do. And this is supposed to be a summer of no regrets! So, regretting nothing, I was up at 6am to be ready and pretty for 7am to catch the bus to Epcot. I wore a nice outfit, made sure my hair was down and packed a bag of park-hopping clothes for later.
At this particular restaurant, four princesses roam through the tables during your meal. And, unbeknownst to me, a fifth princess is there as you come in to have your photo taken with professionally. This photo is then printed and delivered to you before you finish eating. The first magical moment of the day: the fifth princess available for the photo was Belle herself. Not only is she my favorite by far, I had yet to meet her. I gave her a hug and got a beautiful picture of her and Sam and I for a souvenir. Day was off to a good start!!!
During the breakfast, we were told to help ourselves to the buffet, and they would bring us as much as we wanted of the eggs, sausage, bacon, and other hot things. I somehow managed to bring the vegetarian I know to a Norwegian breakfast consisting mainly of delicious meat products. Guess who got all of her meat portions? That would be this kid! ;) Cinderella, Aurora, Snow White and Ariel all came around to say hello and ask how we were doing! I was very much a 5 year old child, getting pictures and in total awe of each one. Snow White was absolutely brilliant; her voice sounded exactly like the cartoon. Clearly Belle was my favorite, but they were all fantastic! Sam started to cry as we neared the end; this is what she's been waiting for for months and I was so glad that she came with me :)
The kicker to the breakfast was that I overheard the server at the table next to us introduce himself to his table of guests. I recognized both the name and the voice, and when I looked over? Sure enough... the tall, blonde, Norwegian, soccer-playing upstairs neighbor. I didn't say hello or anything, because he was at work, but still hilarious to me!
I got changed into park hopping clothes when we were done, and met up with Natalie outside of the Mexico pavilion. I sent home my professional photo, cute outfit, and sandals with Sam; she was headed home before work and said she didn't mind taking my bag of stuff with her. Natalie and I grabbed fast passes for Test Track, but even the single rider line was a 40 minute wait and so instead of hanging around Epcot we caught a guest bus to Animal Kingdom. Upon arrival, we took our time. We knew we were in no rush and that we had no real plans for the day. We first went to Primeval Whirl; a ride in Dinoland. I hadn't been on it yet and Natalie loves it! Then, we went to Asia and got into the single rider line for Expedition Everest. In my first AK Magical Moment of the day, I somehow managed to get a seat at the very front. The dad of the family of five that I was joining had paid off his two daughters to let him have the front seat... and he was the member sitting alone. I got to join him! It was absolutely incredible and a measurable amount better than the rest of the train!
When we got off Everest, we went to a small shop in Asia. We'd both seen a certain style of dress around the Disney properties that we liked, but the patterns were always iffy and the price of 45$ was a little steep. At this little shop however, there were two green and one blue dress of this style in a much prettier fabric and pattern... on sale! A few minutes later, we both owned new dresses! I had the green and Natalie the blue... for 20$ instead of 45$. Mom, you would have been so proud!
We wandered over to Africa, got fast passes for the Kilimanjaro Safari and walked the African wildlife trail while we waited for our time to arrive. We saw okapis and gorillas quite close, but the highlight was the hippo! Usually viewed while lying still, the hippo today was swimming circles in its water area... which had an underwater viewing area for guests. It would come right up to the glass and drift by, and all I have to say is that hippos are huge! We watched it for a while and wished we got the big yawn on camera, and eventually moved on.
When our time came for the safari, the fast pass line was a dream. We passed hundreds of folks waiting in the stand-by line (a 70 minute wait) and basically walked right onto a truck. We even had a whole bench to ourselves, which meant a side of the truck for each of us!! The ride was similar to last time, but of course, live animals means every trip is different. We saw the giraffes and the elephant herd, but the best part was the white rhino that was so close to the truck I could have touched it.
After the safari we went to get food at the quick service barbeque restaurant. I grabbed a cookies-n-cream ice cream cone on the way and laughed as Natalie devoured a full plate of ribs. We sat with a perfect view of Everest and when it started to rain at about 3pm, we packed up and headed for the exit. We stopped inside one of the stores to discuss our options; the rain could send us home (neither of us had our ponchos with us) or we could put our valuables in the plastic bags from our purchases for the day and trek on to Magic Kingdom. Two Disney-loving, rain-loving, full-of-energy young women. Which option do you think we chose?!
The only option, of course! Onwards to MK!
We caught a guest bus from AK to the Contemporary resort and walked up to MK from there. The rain kept up, and so we spent a while in the shops, and almost a half an hour watching a guy create a blown glass bowl. He was wonderful and explained to us everything that he was doing and how it works, told corny jokes and even posed for one of my photos! The bowl he made was based off Minnie Mouse and only took him about 25 minutes. I've seen blown glass before, but never been told what each step does! It was very cool. Natalie expressed how awesome it was that we had been at MK for an hour already and not even made it past Main Street!
The new bakery on Main Street is finally open for business! It is now in cahoots with Starbucks and so when we went to check it out I was able to order a comfort of home, and since the rain had significantly cooled the air, I made it a hot beverage. Natalie got her own and when we looked back outside, the rain was falling even harder and faster and the entire length of Main Street up to the castle was practically empty! So we walked outside, wishing our cameras would stay dry for a picture, just taking it in. Everyone around us was scrambling to find shelter and dressed in ponchos and clinging to umbrellas... and why wouldn't you? If you're here on vacation, you don't want to get soaked on your day at Magic Kingdom.
But Natalie and I are not on vacation. And water won't hurt you! So I stood looking at Main Street and looking at the castle and just loving the sounds and sights and smells! But, it was chilly being soaking wet! There was a small breeze that actually made the chill very cold. But I knew that the pavement would be very warm from the beating sun all morning and afternoon.
So, I sat down. Right in the middle of the plaza that looks up at the castle and down Main Street. Natalie just laughed and without another word, joined me! I was right, the pavement was so lovely and warm that I was having trouble deciding to either lay down or drink my latte! So, I did both! The rain was pounding and people were looking at us funny and we both just started to giggle. We got some great comments, including "You'll get farther if you're vertical", "Victims of the lightning strike!", and even "Are you protesting something?" I'm pretty sure a couple people even took our picture. We laid there for a good 20 minutes to half an hour, laughing, enjoying the warmth, and making a memory that will last forever.
The best memories are made by doing something crazy with good people.
When the rain started to let up, people started walking around again and so we decided that getting trampled probably wasn't in our best interest. And so we headed into Tomorrowland to see what the wait for Space Mountain was like. Every one kept looking at us; we were beyond soaked. It was very clear that we had either stood out in the rain during the entire storm, or else we had just jumped in a pool of water with all our clothes on. We couldn't stop giggling... until we saw that the wait for Space was 70 minutes and the fastpass time was going to be in two and a half hours. We were standing there deciding what to do, when a man came up behind us and asked if we were going on Space Mountain. We said yes, and he gave us the two fast passes that were for the other two people in his party... the two people that had decided not to go after all. The fast passes were for right away. Magical Moment.
We hopped right in line and didn't have to wait at all! The fast pass lane was basically a walk on! We got on, all sorts of giggly and a little feeling bad about how wet the seats were going to be after we were done! When the ride started, we realized that we could see the track! The People-Mover, a slow moving tour of Tomorrowland, goes right through Space Mountain as part of it's track. When the PM gets stopped though, the lights for it's track go on; lighting up a good part of Space Mountain! It made it almost more intense, knowing how far you were dropping and how steep the curves were going to be! It was an awesome experience, and Natalie and I were yelling "This is so cool!" "This is so weird!" "This is awesome!" at each other basically the whole ride!
We got off, got more fastpasses for later, and headed up through Fantasyland. The wait for The Little Mermaid was too long, but we stopped in Gaston's Tavern for their cinnamon roll - soooo yummy! We even stopped to check if there was an opening at Be Our Guest, but no luck. We didn't really expect there to be, so it wasn't really a big deal. Passing Philhar Magic, we decided to do that since we both love it and since it was still raining and since it would hopefully be warmer in there than outside. We got a good laugh that we were looking for a warm indoor location... in Florida... in June... on the first day of summer. The show was brilliant as usual, and we talked about how we were basically soul mates. Not soul mates like Tanya and I are... Tanya and I are opposite and work well together and love each other and make it work wonderfully. Natalie and I are just the same person. We have the same soul. Everything we did, said or wanted to do was answered with an "I know, right!?!" from the other person. It was wonderful.
I don't know about your family, but my family usually does Adventureland extremely quickly. There isn't a whole lot there to hold the interest of all five of us, and so I really feel like Adventureland and I don't know each other very well. So, that's where we headed. We shopped a bit, caught a glimpse of Aladdin and Jasmine, and walked around... and I realized why we don't spend much time there. Because there just isn't much to do! We looked up wait times for both the Jungle Cruise and the Aladdin ride, both of which were longer than Thunder Mountain.
So we high-tailed it to Frontierland. I can understand that most folks don't want to do an outdoor roller coaster in the rain, but we were already soaked! The rain was still falling and most people were just shop-hopping, trying to stay out of it. The wait for Thunder was supposed to be 20, but took us more like 5. It was absolutely awesome. We were going to do Splash as well, but their "20 minute" wait line was stretched almost back to the entrance. So, we ducked out of line and instead walked back down towards Adventureland, knowing that our fast pass time for Space was coming up in a bout a half hour. We meandered though, I got a fast pass for Jungle Cruise for my collection, we walked through Casey's Corner (the sports-decor fast food place on Main Street), and I decided that I would get a burger at Cosmic Ray's in Tomorrowland after we did Space, because it smelled so good in there... and all I'd had since breakfast was an ice cream and half a cinnamon roll.
As we entered Tomorrowland, we decided to go into the Monster's Laugh Floor, since I have never been. It's a comedy show where they actually make real-time jokes and poke fun at random people in the audience. It was hilarious! (But, honestly, I think it was only funny because I was with Natalie. You need to be with other people who find it funny to have a good time at these things!) By the time we got out, our Space fast pass time had arrived! Only, when we arrived at Space, it was shut down :( They didn't know how long it would be, and it was still raining, so we didn't want to wait to find out. We talked about going home, but Natalie had yet to do the Little Mermaid ride, so we walked back up to Fantasyland to do that :) It was only a 20 minute wait, and I don't think it even took that long. It was very cute, as always!
When we were done we decided to go home, but also decided to check at Be Our Guest once more in a last ditch effort to get in. When we walked up to the guy at the gate and asked if there were any cancellations. He said, "Unfortunately not for tonight, but..." when all of a sudden he was cut off by a guy walking out of the restaurant. "Is it just the two of you?" We nodded. "We can fit you in." The guy at the gate was taken aback and started to argue, but the second guy must have been a pretty high-up fellow, because he just looked at him and said, "I said, we can fit them in." We were so excited, and so grateful, I almost gave the guy in charge a big 'ol hug. But I was soaking wet from the rain, so I refrained.
We got to the door and the lady checking us in told us that it would be about a 35 minute wait, if that was okay. When you get into Be Our Guest, you say yes to any wait time!!! I gave her my name, and Natalie gave her a phone number, and our 35 minutes began. I decided to go to the bathroom to try and do something with my hair... being in soaking wet clothes wasn't really how I wanted to spend my Be Our Guest dinner. Even being in casual clothes was bothering me... I had wanted to dress up! I'd wanted to feel fancy and sit down and enjoy my time. But, when you get in to a restaurant that has an 8 month wait-list, you deal with the other stuff.
Except that, as we were headed to the bathroom, Natalie's face suddenly lights up. "I'm going to put on my dress!" I had completely forgotten that I had bought a brand new dress that morning. I had a dress with me, in my bag, that had been protected from the rain in its plastic bag all day. I laughed out loud and we hurried to get changed. I even had a small belt to put with it form the shirt I had worn that morning to the princess breakfast!!!!! As I was combing my fingers through my hair, trying to make it somewhat presentable, Natalie hears my name being called from the waiting room! So I stuck my head out the door, and said I'd be just a second! I gathered up my things and ran out to the gentleman holding our menus. What was supposed to be a 35 minute was was a four minute wait. Our seating ticket had been printed one minute after we checked in at 8:15pm. ONE MINUTE.
He led us to our table, where the napkins were folded into roses and I had a gorgeous view of the ballroom and the snow falling outside the far window. We took a million pictures and were introduced to Joe, our server for the evening. He called us princesses and made sure we had everything we could want, he was amazing! I was also so glad to be there with Natalie! Not only because she understood my excitement but because of how excited she was too. And she laughed with me (and at me) when I was being ridiculous. And she wanted to be extravagant. And she wanted to take her time. And it was just perfect. Thank you, Natalie, for being the best dinner date I could have asked for! (even if you did make fun of my running shoes with my dress!)
I ordered the Chicken Breast Provençal (Pan-seared and simmered in a rustic blend of Heirloom Tomatoes, Olives, White Wine, and fresh Herbs with Seasonal Vegetables and Roasted Fingerling Potatoes) and Natalie had the Sautéed Shrimp and Scallops (with Seasonal Vegetables served in Puff Pastry with a Creamy Lobster Sauce). The chicken was phenomenal. It was absolutely delicious and I took my sweet time savoring every bite. As we were about finished, we started discussing which desserts we'd like to have. We'd see the menu earlier, and desserts are actually carted around for guests to see before they order. So we stole glances at other tables as they were shown the cupcakes and cream puffs. We knew we could share so that we could try some of each others, but in all honesty, I wanted to try each one. And I knew that this was probably my one shot at dinner at Be Our Guest. And I knew that I'd always wanted to say "I'll have one of everything!"
So, we did. We ordered one of each of the six dessert options by just saying "We'll have one of each, please!" Joe looked at us, asked if we were serious, and then smiled and walked away. We sat giggling, feeling very rich and spoiled and extravagant. When he brought them back and described them to us, we also asked to try the grey stuff, which he brought out later :)
We had the
- Strawberry-Cream Cheese Cupcake Vanilla Sponge Cake, Strawberry Mousse Filling, and Cream Cheese Icing
- Triple Chocolate Cupcake Chocolate Sponge Cake, Chocolate Mousse Filling, and Chocolate Ganache
- Lemon-Raspberry Cream Puff filled with Lemon Custard
They were all amazing. The best was the strawberry cupcake followed closely by the chocolate cupcake and the chocolate cream puff. All were fabulous.
Then, as the grand finale, I got to try the grey stuff. It is in fact delicious. And, Natalie even let me try it by dipping my finger into it, just like Belle. It was amazing.
And, finally, as the icing on the cake, as you leave you get to meet the Beast. I gave him a big hug and got his picture and was completely over whelmed by all the emotions.
My heart was beating so hard I thought it would beat right out of my chest was we walked back to Main Street to go catch a bus. The day was so perfect, that Wishes was happening as we left. So, not only did I get to have Wishes playing the background to end my perfect day, but I didn't have to fight through crowds to get out; because everyone was watching the show.
As we walked to the contemporary to catch our respective buses (Natalie had plans to see a movie at Downtown Disney), I saw my cast bus pull up beside us and stop at the Security gate for the resort. I knew it was another 3 or 4 minute walk and so I hugged Natalie, thanked her again, and was suddenly very grateful for the running shoes that looked so ridiculous with my dress. I ran as fast as I could, caught the bus just as he was about to pull away and waved to Natalie out the window as we drove by.
I even got home in time to Facetime my dad and brother. I had this Cinderella complex in my head... I had it figured somehow that as long as I got home before midnight Nova Scotia time, I'd be able to talk to them. And I did! I wish Mom and Becca had been there - not that I don't love talking ot the boys, but they are boys. They don't get as excited over the little details! ;)
All in all, I think it was the best day of my life. I started out by meeting Belle and ended with meeting Beast. If we hadn't bought dresses, if there had been no rain, if Space Mountain had been working properly... all of these things that seemed wrong at the time all worked out to make the best day ever! Everything was literally absolutely perfect.
Forget Magical Moments. I just had the most Magical Day Disney could ever offer.
June 20, 2013
Rain, rain, go away.
And definitely come again. Now that you've rained, save your mugginess-reducing powers and your rain-location-causing powers and your crowd-reducing powers for a day and time when I work!
It's odd, I never thought that I'd wish for rain while I have a job that is outside work. But in Florida, the rain is lovely and warm. And not a stupid drizzle that lasts for four days, it's a master storm that is there for a few hours. It's beautiful and almost always comes with thunder and lightning, a pair of my favorite things.
Today was a pretty boring day at work. I was at Ice Cream 2 which is the first cart folks see when they come into the park; so, for the first two hours, no one wants ice cream... they all want to know how to get to the big attractions that fill up quickly, and whose fast passes sell out in the blink of an eye! And as the sun gets hotter, I start pulling merchandise out of a freezer and bottles out of ice water. Certainly not the worst job ever!
The first two guests I talked to today have been spending this Disney trip doing all of the backstage tours - and they have loved every single one. I asked them if doing the tours had ruined any of the Disney magic, and they told me that it actually made it more special, knowing how much hard work went into making things perfect. I agreed!
The day wore on and soon I was being sent home. It was a short shift, only 6 hours, but I was so glad to get home. And I was very lucky today, because about ten minutes after I got home the heavens opened up. I was planning on going to the pool, but gave myself 15 minutes to relax in the air conditioning first, and I'm glad I did. Because there was no warning. One boom of thunder and then it started to pour.
This rain was more like the rain I'm used too at home... a lot of wind came with it! You couldn't stand in a doorway and stay dry today! The fork lightning was beautiful and bright and the thunder shook my room. It was wonderful to just sit and listen. No one else was home and I got some lovely recharge time :)
For the past week or so there has been veryyyyyy loud thumping coming from right above my room, and Emily and I just sort of laugh at how outrageous it really is. We had no idea what they could be doing, but it is loud! We even talked about going up and asking them to cut it out! This afternoon, I was alone in my apartment and it started again... shaking my whole room. I wasn't even trying to sleep, or do anything serious, and I still couldn't even think.
So, I plucked up my bravery and my best stern face. And I marched up stairs, planning to give whomever lived up there a telling off. I knocked on the door and it opens to reveal a very tall, very blonde, very blue-eyed gorgeous Norwegian boy. My stern face was no more. And I almost just said nevermind and went back down stairs... but he stuck his hand out and introduced himself. And his two equally as tall and good looking roommates. Anddddddddddd yep.
So, I very politely asked them to stop making as much noise. Turns out, they were playing football. Aka, soccer. In their bedroom. Above my room. We chatted for a bit about our programs and then they asked if there was a welcoming party going to be going on... to which I replied that probably, yes. And they asked if I'd be going... and I tried to say no, I really did. But I heard myself saying yes instead. And three gorgeous faces smiling at me made me happy that I did ;)
We joked a little more about their soccer playing, and they asked if I had roommates that I didn't like, that I'd rather they played over their room ;) And they told me that if they ever needed to talk to me again, they'd let me know by playing very thump-y soccer above my room. I said goodbye and got to my apartment and got a huge case of the giggles. I tried to immediately call my best friend, who DIDN'T PICK UP HER PHONE (this means you, Tanya. I know you were at your mom's though, so no worries.)
Once I calmed down for a bit, I played some video games and chatted with both my mom and dad for a while :) I got my flight booked for home and am now both very sad and very excited to be heading home. Even though it's still more than five weeks away, it feels more real now.
After that I watched a movie and am now trying to make plans for tomorrow! Emily still isn't home form Universal Studios, but Natalie and I are now talking about what we should do. Looks like character dining with the Princesses in the morning and then a day of park hopping :) Another early, long day!
It's odd, I never thought that I'd wish for rain while I have a job that is outside work. But in Florida, the rain is lovely and warm. And not a stupid drizzle that lasts for four days, it's a master storm that is there for a few hours. It's beautiful and almost always comes with thunder and lightning, a pair of my favorite things.
Today was a pretty boring day at work. I was at Ice Cream 2 which is the first cart folks see when they come into the park; so, for the first two hours, no one wants ice cream... they all want to know how to get to the big attractions that fill up quickly, and whose fast passes sell out in the blink of an eye! And as the sun gets hotter, I start pulling merchandise out of a freezer and bottles out of ice water. Certainly not the worst job ever!
The first two guests I talked to today have been spending this Disney trip doing all of the backstage tours - and they have loved every single one. I asked them if doing the tours had ruined any of the Disney magic, and they told me that it actually made it more special, knowing how much hard work went into making things perfect. I agreed!
The day wore on and soon I was being sent home. It was a short shift, only 6 hours, but I was so glad to get home. And I was very lucky today, because about ten minutes after I got home the heavens opened up. I was planning on going to the pool, but gave myself 15 minutes to relax in the air conditioning first, and I'm glad I did. Because there was no warning. One boom of thunder and then it started to pour.
This rain was more like the rain I'm used too at home... a lot of wind came with it! You couldn't stand in a doorway and stay dry today! The fork lightning was beautiful and bright and the thunder shook my room. It was wonderful to just sit and listen. No one else was home and I got some lovely recharge time :)
For the past week or so there has been veryyyyyy loud thumping coming from right above my room, and Emily and I just sort of laugh at how outrageous it really is. We had no idea what they could be doing, but it is loud! We even talked about going up and asking them to cut it out! This afternoon, I was alone in my apartment and it started again... shaking my whole room. I wasn't even trying to sleep, or do anything serious, and I still couldn't even think.
So, I plucked up my bravery and my best stern face. And I marched up stairs, planning to give whomever lived up there a telling off. I knocked on the door and it opens to reveal a very tall, very blonde, very blue-eyed gorgeous Norwegian boy. My stern face was no more. And I almost just said nevermind and went back down stairs... but he stuck his hand out and introduced himself. And his two equally as tall and good looking roommates. Anddddddddddd yep.
So, I very politely asked them to stop making as much noise. Turns out, they were playing football. Aka, soccer. In their bedroom. Above my room. We chatted for a bit about our programs and then they asked if there was a welcoming party going to be going on... to which I replied that probably, yes. And they asked if I'd be going... and I tried to say no, I really did. But I heard myself saying yes instead. And three gorgeous faces smiling at me made me happy that I did ;)
We joked a little more about their soccer playing, and they asked if I had roommates that I didn't like, that I'd rather they played over their room ;) And they told me that if they ever needed to talk to me again, they'd let me know by playing very thump-y soccer above my room. I said goodbye and got to my apartment and got a huge case of the giggles. I tried to immediately call my best friend, who DIDN'T PICK UP HER PHONE (this means you, Tanya. I know you were at your mom's though, so no worries.)
Once I calmed down for a bit, I played some video games and chatted with both my mom and dad for a while :) I got my flight booked for home and am now both very sad and very excited to be heading home. Even though it's still more than five weeks away, it feels more real now.
After that I watched a movie and am now trying to make plans for tomorrow! Emily still isn't home form Universal Studios, but Natalie and I are now talking about what we should do. Looks like character dining with the Princesses in the morning and then a day of park hopping :) Another early, long day!
June 19, 2013
Long day, little to say.
Today was a long, hot one. Just like all the rest.
Today I was at ibev - which is short for Imagination Beverage Stand. It's the food cart right outside the Imagination building. We sell pretty much everything there; pretzels, popcorn, ice cream bars, bottled drinks, fountain drinks. It's very popular, and it is a long day when you both open and close the place.
I did get to work with Brittany, who was wonderful. She's got this 'I'm better than Epcot ODF' attitude going on, but I don't really blame her. She just figures that if she wanted to serves fries and fast food, she could be doing it at home. And, I get her point, but there's no sense in complaining about it now. And, to her credit, she didn't let it affect her guest interactions; she was wonderful.
This is going to be a short post, because there's not much I can say about spending 13 hours in the sun handing people food and getting their money back. You do it a lot of times. You try to do it right. You sift through heavy accents and a lot of hand motions. And at the end of the day you take a long bath and hope your muscles will be okay with getting you up in the morning again.
All in all, a good day. A hot day, but my till balanced and I was home earlier than I thought I would be... even if it was a half hour later than I was scheduled. I was able to skype with my momma, skype with my sister, see my brother, and facetime with my daddy :) A very good evening, for sure! I'm also in the midst of making plans to visit my aunt and uncle when I'm finished my program; I'm so close to them while I'm here that it seems like such a shame to waste such a great opportunity! :)
Up early again tomorrow. Today I was falling asleep in the break room, but tomorrow's short shift and an early bedtime should help with that! Goodnight!
Today I was at ibev - which is short for Imagination Beverage Stand. It's the food cart right outside the Imagination building. We sell pretty much everything there; pretzels, popcorn, ice cream bars, bottled drinks, fountain drinks. It's very popular, and it is a long day when you both open and close the place.
I did get to work with Brittany, who was wonderful. She's got this 'I'm better than Epcot ODF' attitude going on, but I don't really blame her. She just figures that if she wanted to serves fries and fast food, she could be doing it at home. And, I get her point, but there's no sense in complaining about it now. And, to her credit, she didn't let it affect her guest interactions; she was wonderful.
This is going to be a short post, because there's not much I can say about spending 13 hours in the sun handing people food and getting their money back. You do it a lot of times. You try to do it right. You sift through heavy accents and a lot of hand motions. And at the end of the day you take a long bath and hope your muscles will be okay with getting you up in the morning again.
All in all, a good day. A hot day, but my till balanced and I was home earlier than I thought I would be... even if it was a half hour later than I was scheduled. I was able to skype with my momma, skype with my sister, see my brother, and facetime with my daddy :) A very good evening, for sure! I'm also in the midst of making plans to visit my aunt and uncle when I'm finished my program; I'm so close to them while I'm here that it seems like such a shame to waste such a great opportunity! :)
Up early again tomorrow. Today I was falling asleep in the break room, but tomorrow's short shift and an early bedtime should help with that! Goodnight!
June 18, 2013
Homesick, but better.
Today I was up at 6am to get ready for work; I felt so bad for Emily, who had to hear me getting ready so early on her day off. Hopefully I didn't wake her up too much!
My day was pretty uneventful; I got a slight sunburn on the backs of my legs because of the last half of the day with little shade, but other than that things went well.
By far, my favorite part of the day was seeing David again! Remember this picture?
It was taken at the parade on my 14 hour MK day, when I met this wonderful family! (The full story is in the post here!) Today, David showed up at my ice cream stand, and I recognized him immediately. When he realized who I was he became very animated and excited and took my picture with his phone to send to his sister to tell her that he'd seen me again! He asked me how my job was going and we had a very lovely (albeit short) chat! It was awesome!
My day passed slowly after that, but soon enough I was home again; and I was able to skype Mom and Becca almost right away :) I talked to them for a while and was able to write my post from yesterday. I soon hung up and Emily arrived home to tell me all about her day, and Dad called me on Facetime and I was able to chat with him and then Tanya and I talked and giggled and got caught up. It's been a wonderful evening for talking to all the right people :) :) :)
At about 9:30pm, Emily and I left to go get groceries at Publix which is a 15 minute walk from us. I don't know what we were thinking, because we bought far too much stuff to comfortably walk home. However, our night was saved by the Walgreens cart that could; we affectionately named him Wall-e. He was just a little half-sized cart with no wheel lock that we found sitting on the sidewalk on the way home. And he carried our groceries the rest of the way! We had to leave him on the sidewalk outside of Patterson Court though, so hopefully he'll survive the night out there on his own ;)
All in all, a much better day than yesterday! Now I'm all tucked in and ready for sleep - another long day tomorrow :) Goodnight, and I miss you!
My day was pretty uneventful; I got a slight sunburn on the backs of my legs because of the last half of the day with little shade, but other than that things went well.
By far, my favorite part of the day was seeing David again! Remember this picture?
It was taken at the parade on my 14 hour MK day, when I met this wonderful family! (The full story is in the post here!) Today, David showed up at my ice cream stand, and I recognized him immediately. When he realized who I was he became very animated and excited and took my picture with his phone to send to his sister to tell her that he'd seen me again! He asked me how my job was going and we had a very lovely (albeit short) chat! It was awesome!
My day passed slowly after that, but soon enough I was home again; and I was able to skype Mom and Becca almost right away :) I talked to them for a while and was able to write my post from yesterday. I soon hung up and Emily arrived home to tell me all about her day, and Dad called me on Facetime and I was able to chat with him and then Tanya and I talked and giggled and got caught up. It's been a wonderful evening for talking to all the right people :) :) :)
At about 9:30pm, Emily and I left to go get groceries at Publix which is a 15 minute walk from us. I don't know what we were thinking, because we bought far too much stuff to comfortably walk home. However, our night was saved by the Walgreens cart that could; we affectionately named him Wall-e. He was just a little half-sized cart with no wheel lock that we found sitting on the sidewalk on the way home. And he carried our groceries the rest of the way! We had to leave him on the sidewalk outside of Patterson Court though, so hopefully he'll survive the night out there on his own ;)
All in all, a much better day than yesterday! Now I'm all tucked in and ready for sleep - another long day tomorrow :) Goodnight, and I miss you!
June 17, 2013
Homesick.
Today was the first day where I really, actually, truly just wanted to not be here. Other days have been "I miss home, but..." and that but has always been something awesome. I miss home, but I'm in Florida. I miss my family, but I'm at Disney World. I miss Nova Scotia, but I just met Gaston!
But today? There was no but. I just missed home. Sleeping in held no satisfaction for me. Video games before work were just draining. I got to work and felt like I was going to be sick, like my head would explode and like I was going to faint all at once (I hear that's called dehydration!). And I just wanted to be in my bed. At home. I wanted my mommy and daddy and I wanted Nova Scotia. I wanted my family and my home. I wanted a hug and a back rub and a hug and some cold weather and hug and funny faces and a hug. In that order.
I hated where I was working. The hot sun and rude guests were just irking me in all the wrong ways. But, after my break I felt a lot better and decided to stick it out. God bless Jennifer; a coworker who refilled my water bottle, got me a cup of powerade and made sure I was the first break on the list. She was wonderful! The lightning storm that came meant I was shut down early and so I was sent home early, even though my radio was dead and I didn't know until Jennifer showed up! But it meant I got to talk to my parents when I got home because they weren't asleep yet :)
Talking to mom and dad made my day so much better. Mom gave me a pep talk about going back to work tomorrow and I think I'll be okay to handle another day at the same location? I hope anyway!
Up outrageously early tomorrow, so goodnight all :)
But today? There was no but. I just missed home. Sleeping in held no satisfaction for me. Video games before work were just draining. I got to work and felt like I was going to be sick, like my head would explode and like I was going to faint all at once (I hear that's called dehydration!). And I just wanted to be in my bed. At home. I wanted my mommy and daddy and I wanted Nova Scotia. I wanted my family and my home. I wanted a hug and a back rub and a hug and some cold weather and hug and funny faces and a hug. In that order.
I hated where I was working. The hot sun and rude guests were just irking me in all the wrong ways. But, after my break I felt a lot better and decided to stick it out. God bless Jennifer; a coworker who refilled my water bottle, got me a cup of powerade and made sure I was the first break on the list. She was wonderful! The lightning storm that came meant I was shut down early and so I was sent home early, even though my radio was dead and I didn't know until Jennifer showed up! But it meant I got to talk to my parents when I got home because they weren't asleep yet :)
Talking to mom and dad made my day so much better. Mom gave me a pep talk about going back to work tomorrow and I think I'll be okay to handle another day at the same location? I hope anyway!
Up outrageously early tomorrow, so goodnight all :)
June 16, 2013
Soar and Relax.
This morning Emily and I had planned to go to Epcot for opening to ride Soarin' - a great ride that routinely has a 2 hour wait throughout the day. Which meant another early morning!
We were out the door before 8, catching the bus to Epcot. We caught the cast bus from the service center to the guest entrance and speed walked to Soarin'. We grabbed fast passes for it and got in line. About 20 minutes later, we were seat-belting ourselves in and enjoying ourselves. Our fast passes weren't for another hour, so I decided to add mine to my collection instead of using it. We rode the Nemo ride and spent a few minutes in the aquarium; nice and air conditioned in there and the manta rays were being fed by divers! We were going to do Test Track, but even the single rider line was a 40 minute wait, so instead we headed home.
It was probably the fastest park trip I have ever done! But Emily had to work this afternoon and I was eager to get home for a nap and some relaxing by the pool. we were back home by 11:30am and I knew it would rain later, so I went out by the pool for some sun while it was still nice out :) I set an alarm on my iPod which was lucky, or else I would have been burnt to a crisp... because I fell asleep!
Emily left for work around 2:30, and after she left, I don't think I left my bed except for supper. My apartment was quiet, and I was (and still am) in serious need of some quality alone time. I caught up on some tv and youtube, fell asleep for a few hours, got all snuggled in and just... relaxed. I was planning on some MK tonight, but since I went yesterday, I decided that staying home would be much better for me!
And I feel so much better for it! I was able to talk to my daddy for a while, and once Emily got back from work I realized that I had laundry to do and should probably finish blogging from last night! So I've been doing laundry (lucky that my laundry building is open all night!) and I just finished watching Tangled (soooooo good!). I'm going to play some video games and fall asleep to Hunchback of Notre Dame! Goodnight all :)
We were out the door before 8, catching the bus to Epcot. We caught the cast bus from the service center to the guest entrance and speed walked to Soarin'. We grabbed fast passes for it and got in line. About 20 minutes later, we were seat-belting ourselves in and enjoying ourselves. Our fast passes weren't for another hour, so I decided to add mine to my collection instead of using it. We rode the Nemo ride and spent a few minutes in the aquarium; nice and air conditioned in there and the manta rays were being fed by divers! We were going to do Test Track, but even the single rider line was a 40 minute wait, so instead we headed home.
It was probably the fastest park trip I have ever done! But Emily had to work this afternoon and I was eager to get home for a nap and some relaxing by the pool. we were back home by 11:30am and I knew it would rain later, so I went out by the pool for some sun while it was still nice out :) I set an alarm on my iPod which was lucky, or else I would have been burnt to a crisp... because I fell asleep!
Emily left for work around 2:30, and after she left, I don't think I left my bed except for supper. My apartment was quiet, and I was (and still am) in serious need of some quality alone time. I caught up on some tv and youtube, fell asleep for a few hours, got all snuggled in and just... relaxed. I was planning on some MK tonight, but since I went yesterday, I decided that staying home would be much better for me!
And I feel so much better for it! I was able to talk to my daddy for a while, and once Emily got back from work I realized that I had laundry to do and should probably finish blogging from last night! So I've been doing laundry (lucky that my laundry building is open all night!) and I just finished watching Tangled (soooooo good!). I'm going to play some video games and fall asleep to Hunchback of Notre Dame! Goodnight all :)
June 15, 2013
Full day of Kingdoms!
Today started off very early - I hadn't yet been to Animal Kingdom since I arrived and knew I needed to remedy that issue ASAP. However, I also knew I wanted a full day to not feel rushed, and one where I could get there first thing to jump on a safari truck before the lines were long and before the animals were sleeping the the shade for the day! I headed out and caught a bus by myself, with plans to meet up with Hudson and Emily later on.
I was lined up at the rope, already through the Animal Kingdom gates, and raring to go by 8:55. And at 9:05, after the ropes were moved and a short walk to the Kilimanjaro Safari, I was walking right onto a truck with 0 wait time. I even got an edge seat! Highlights of the safari were definitely the rhinos, the lions, the elephant and the giraffe so close to the car that I could have reached out to touch it!
I left the safari and had french toast for breakfast; with maple syrup! It was delicious, and the perfect taste of home to start off my day perfectly! :) I wandered from the Africa area to the Asia area to ride Expedition Everest; DAK's roller coaster. I managed to get into the single rider's line twice and on the train twice in about 10 minutes! So much fun. Looking at my picture afterward, I was clearly more excited than my fellow travelers to be going down the big hill ;)
I went to the Flights of Wonder show after that, which was essentially a comedy sketch with birds of prey as guest stars in the show. It was spectacular, and I was in the second row and was able to see all the animals up close. My favorite joke of the show was a parrot who could do math; the trainer would ask what is 1 + 3, or 7 - 3, or 12 / 3, and the parrot would answer 4! Clearly the parrot only knew one answer, and the trainer explained that instead of knowing math, the cue was the word "three". Every time the parrot heard it, he'd say "four". The trainer then told us that even words that sound like three will work; and asked the parrot, "What you would say if you hit your golf ball over a tree?" To which the parrot replied, "Fore!" (I laughed!)
After the show, I walked the Jungle Trek trail and saw some beautiful tigers napping in the shade. Then I went to a few of the merchandise stores in the middle of the park to wait for Emily and Hudson to arrive. I chatted with a Pin Trading guy who was working and got the scoop on the best way to pin trade at Disney (pin trading is huge there - there are pins that cast members wear on a lanyard and are not available just for sale. You need to trade for them. Apparently the best way to do this is to buy official Disney trading pins on ebay for cheap!) I called Dad on Facetime to let him know to start searching!
I was also looking for a Belle button in a box on one of the counters, when I was offered assistance by the ladies working there. Little did I know that assistance would mean dumping them all out!I wasn't able to find it, but I bought the four other princess pins in the hopes that somewhere I'll find the Belle one to match the set :)
When Hudson and Emily arrived at about 12:30, we started by going back up to the Asia area for lunch at the Yak & Yeti. I had sweet and sour chicken, which turned out to be surprisingly good! I've also decided that eventually regretting not buying the yummy-looking desserts on every menu will be worse than not finishing part of a meal. So I also ordered the triple-chocolate mousse; it turned out to be be more of a double-choclate-in-three-layers pudding, but it was chocolate and had whipped cream, so it was wonderful :)
The three of us walked down to Camp Minnie-Mickey, another section of the park for the Festival of the Lion King; a live musical show with acrobats and dancers and huge animatronic animals. It's Emily's favorite live show in all of Disney World, and I can see why. It was absolutely incredible, and I don't know why I don't remember doing it with my family. Sometimes you miss these things because you don't know just how good they are! :) They are building a brand new stage for it in the Africa area and I'll be excited to see it when it's finished!
We trekked over to Dinoland, stopped in the restaurant where Hudson works (Restaurantosaurus!) and got in line for Dinosaur - a ride based on the Disney Dinosaur movie from 2000. Originally, this ride was apparently just kind of like a travel back in time adventure with scary dinos jumping out at you, and then when the movie came out they refurbished it with the movie's theme. Every time someone I know here talks about this ride though, they always talk about how scary it is! And every time I see one of those ride photos with my friends in it, everyone looks horrified as the camera snaps the picture. So, it was about a third of the way through that I thought that I would rather not see what was happening around me. I held onto my handles, closed my eyes, and focused on breathing knowing that nothing could actually hurt me in there. So as long as I stayed calm, I'd be okay. I saw the flash of the camera through my eyelids and felt everyone in my car flinch but still kept my eyes shut until we were safely back at the loading dock. I wasn't having it.
We went from Dinoland back up to Asia to hope on Expedition Everest. The single rider line only took us about 10 minutes, and we even all got on the same train :) I'm loving this single rider thing they are doing now - going on Everest three times in one day is unheard of unless you want to spend all day in line for it, or waiting for your fast pass time to come up! I love it; especially since I've been park hopping on my own so often! I wish they had space to put a single rider line in a Space Mountain, although I would probably spend wayyyy to much time there! ;)
The rain started as we got off the ride, and I thought it was time to head home... but nope! Emily and Hudson wanted to hit Magic Kingdom... and who was I to say no?! We hopped on the Contemporary & Polynesian guest bus because MK is such a short walk from where the bus drops us at the Contemporary. However, on the way to MK the rain started to pour, so we decided to go to the Polynesian Resort and get Dole Whip. The Poly is right across the lake from MK and a short boat ride away and so we hoped the rain would stop before we got to that point. As we walked unto the resort, a cast member was there giving out stickers, and he gave a couple to Hudson. We were about to keep going when I said, "Hey! I want stickers!" and ducked around Emily to get my own. The cast member, who would normally just rip one off his sticker roll, instead crowned me a Sticker Princess, and wrapped the stickers around me like a sash because he hadn't done it yet that day :) I was very excited. We continued on for Dole Whip! Dole Whip is pineapple flavored soft serve ice cream... and is actually quite delicious. You can only get to at the Poly or at Adventureland in MK, but the one at Poly is a self serve! ;) Our Dole Whips were piled pretty high! ;)
I was lined up at the rope, already through the Animal Kingdom gates, and raring to go by 8:55. And at 9:05, after the ropes were moved and a short walk to the Kilimanjaro Safari, I was walking right onto a truck with 0 wait time. I even got an edge seat! Highlights of the safari were definitely the rhinos, the lions, the elephant and the giraffe so close to the car that I could have reached out to touch it!
I left the safari and had french toast for breakfast; with maple syrup! It was delicious, and the perfect taste of home to start off my day perfectly! :) I wandered from the Africa area to the Asia area to ride Expedition Everest; DAK's roller coaster. I managed to get into the single rider's line twice and on the train twice in about 10 minutes! So much fun. Looking at my picture afterward, I was clearly more excited than my fellow travelers to be going down the big hill ;)
I went to the Flights of Wonder show after that, which was essentially a comedy sketch with birds of prey as guest stars in the show. It was spectacular, and I was in the second row and was able to see all the animals up close. My favorite joke of the show was a parrot who could do math; the trainer would ask what is 1 + 3, or 7 - 3, or 12 / 3, and the parrot would answer 4! Clearly the parrot only knew one answer, and the trainer explained that instead of knowing math, the cue was the word "three". Every time the parrot heard it, he'd say "four". The trainer then told us that even words that sound like three will work; and asked the parrot, "What you would say if you hit your golf ball over a tree?" To which the parrot replied, "Fore!" (I laughed!)
After the show, I walked the Jungle Trek trail and saw some beautiful tigers napping in the shade. Then I went to a few of the merchandise stores in the middle of the park to wait for Emily and Hudson to arrive. I chatted with a Pin Trading guy who was working and got the scoop on the best way to pin trade at Disney (pin trading is huge there - there are pins that cast members wear on a lanyard and are not available just for sale. You need to trade for them. Apparently the best way to do this is to buy official Disney trading pins on ebay for cheap!) I called Dad on Facetime to let him know to start searching!
I was also looking for a Belle button in a box on one of the counters, when I was offered assistance by the ladies working there. Little did I know that assistance would mean dumping them all out!I wasn't able to find it, but I bought the four other princess pins in the hopes that somewhere I'll find the Belle one to match the set :)
When Hudson and Emily arrived at about 12:30, we started by going back up to the Asia area for lunch at the Yak & Yeti. I had sweet and sour chicken, which turned out to be surprisingly good! I've also decided that eventually regretting not buying the yummy-looking desserts on every menu will be worse than not finishing part of a meal. So I also ordered the triple-chocolate mousse; it turned out to be be more of a double-choclate-in-three-layers pudding, but it was chocolate and had whipped cream, so it was wonderful :)
The three of us walked down to Camp Minnie-Mickey, another section of the park for the Festival of the Lion King; a live musical show with acrobats and dancers and huge animatronic animals. It's Emily's favorite live show in all of Disney World, and I can see why. It was absolutely incredible, and I don't know why I don't remember doing it with my family. Sometimes you miss these things because you don't know just how good they are! :) They are building a brand new stage for it in the Africa area and I'll be excited to see it when it's finished!
We trekked over to Dinoland, stopped in the restaurant where Hudson works (Restaurantosaurus!) and got in line for Dinosaur - a ride based on the Disney Dinosaur movie from 2000. Originally, this ride was apparently just kind of like a travel back in time adventure with scary dinos jumping out at you, and then when the movie came out they refurbished it with the movie's theme. Every time someone I know here talks about this ride though, they always talk about how scary it is! And every time I see one of those ride photos with my friends in it, everyone looks horrified as the camera snaps the picture. So, it was about a third of the way through that I thought that I would rather not see what was happening around me. I held onto my handles, closed my eyes, and focused on breathing knowing that nothing could actually hurt me in there. So as long as I stayed calm, I'd be okay. I saw the flash of the camera through my eyelids and felt everyone in my car flinch but still kept my eyes shut until we were safely back at the loading dock. I wasn't having it.
We went from Dinoland back up to Asia to hope on Expedition Everest. The single rider line only took us about 10 minutes, and we even all got on the same train :) I'm loving this single rider thing they are doing now - going on Everest three times in one day is unheard of unless you want to spend all day in line for it, or waiting for your fast pass time to come up! I love it; especially since I've been park hopping on my own so often! I wish they had space to put a single rider line in a Space Mountain, although I would probably spend wayyyy to much time there! ;)
The rain started as we got off the ride, and I thought it was time to head home... but nope! Emily and Hudson wanted to hit Magic Kingdom... and who was I to say no?! We hopped on the Contemporary & Polynesian guest bus because MK is such a short walk from where the bus drops us at the Contemporary. However, on the way to MK the rain started to pour, so we decided to go to the Polynesian Resort and get Dole Whip. The Poly is right across the lake from MK and a short boat ride away and so we hoped the rain would stop before we got to that point. As we walked unto the resort, a cast member was there giving out stickers, and he gave a couple to Hudson. We were about to keep going when I said, "Hey! I want stickers!" and ducked around Emily to get my own. The cast member, who would normally just rip one off his sticker roll, instead crowned me a Sticker Princess, and wrapped the stickers around me like a sash because he hadn't done it yet that day :) I was very excited. We continued on for Dole Whip! Dole Whip is pineapple flavored soft serve ice cream... and is actually quite delicious. You can only get to at the Poly or at Adventureland in MK, but the one at Poly is a self serve! ;) Our Dole Whips were piled pretty high! ;)
 |
| My Dole Whip was piled higher than that spoon before I started. |
We finished off our treats and caught the boat to MK. And that's when everything started to go perfectly! As we walked through the gates, the Town Hall showed only a 5 minute wait to meet the boss himself - Mickey Mouse. As we walked inside, it was even less than that! We walked down the line and right in to meet him; no one was ahead of us! Right afterwards, we jumped in line to meet the princesses. While this line was not walk-right-in, it was only about a 15 minute wait. Both Mickey and the Princesses are often over an hour's wait, and so I was so excited to meet Cinderella, Aurora and Rapunzel! :) I still haven't met Belle, but she has her own area now, so the next time I go to MK for opening, you can bet that it where I'll be headed first thing!!
Because of the rain, a lot of the guests had been scared away and gone home, so when we got up to the castle on Main Street, there was hardly anyone around.We took a while to take pictures and we walked through the castle to the other side; just wandering and taking our time :) We decided that none of us had really explored Storybook Circus yet and so we should do the rides there; we looked around the shops and decided that doing the rides would actually be more fun in the dark and that we should get supper first! We walked through new Fanatasyland and ate at Pinocchio Village Haus and I had a delicious barbeque chicken pizza... and chocolate cake!
On the way back to Storybook Circus, we passed by the the new Ariel ride which, again, is usually a very long wait. The sign said only 5 minutes, so we raced down the queue and again, were able to just walk on to the ride :) It is very cute and we all sang along and pointed out the things we hadn't noticed other times we'd been on. As it came to an end, I expressed the thought that we could almost just stay on! The cast member heard me, and in very-unlike-Disney fashion, let us get right back on using the exit ramp! It was one of those great Disney moments :)
As we went to Storybook Circus, more Disney moments were about to be had; we got into the line for Dumbo, there was a really cute college programmer who works there, and again were able to just walk right on! Then we went to the kiddie roller coaster, and AGAIN basically walked right on. It was unexpectedly intense and very short, but still fun.
By the time we were done, it was about 10 minutes until the light show on the castle. We found a perfect spot right up front and center and I tried my best to not take any pictures and just enjoy it! Wishes came right after, and was beautiful as always. Some of the fireworks were hard to see though, because we were actually so close.
At the end of wishes, Emily and Hudson wanted to stay and go on Space Mountain, but I was definitely done for the night. So we split up and I followed the masses down main street, out the gates and caught a bus home.
Another very long day of parks, so I know I will sleep very soundly tonight!
June 14, 2013
Cool Post; not aptly named.
Today I was working at Cool Post... and it was very very warm. The back room is air conditioned, but with the large windows open to the outside, the front room gets very uncomfortable.
Today I was working with Katie from Illinois - who is very good at her job and a delight to talk to. Felipe from Colombia showed up later and helped us out as well; this was the first day where I didn't feel like someone (or myself) was incapable of doing their job. It was nice :) We sell ice cream, slushies, beer, fountain pop and hot dogs. A refreshment stop around the World Showcase. I like working around WS because most of the guests are of my generation - it's a long walk for older folks and a boring one for small children. You get some interesting conversations when people find out you are their age and from Canada! Especially if they are 'drinking around the world' and are mildly intoxicated when they start up a conversation!
A long ten hour day, and my favorite moment was when a couple came to my window, ordered their food, and while waiting commented on where I was from. "Nova Scotia! You're a long way from home!" is a very common thing that I hear, which the guy said to me; but then the wife looked at me and said, "Your English is very good! Practically perfect!"
... Thanks? Also, practically?!
I looked at her, and told her it was my native language, and her husband just burst out laughing. She was a little embarrassed once she realized it was Canada we were talking about. But we all laughed about it and it made my day.
My till didn't balance today - I was a whole nickel short! ;) While I was hoping to keep my 0.00$ streak going, I'm not complaining about a busy day and 5 cents!
I got home in time to facetime my daddy and brother before they headed off to sleep :) Time for bed and a movie for me, and up bright and early for Animal Kingdom tomorrow!!
Today I was working with Katie from Illinois - who is very good at her job and a delight to talk to. Felipe from Colombia showed up later and helped us out as well; this was the first day where I didn't feel like someone (or myself) was incapable of doing their job. It was nice :) We sell ice cream, slushies, beer, fountain pop and hot dogs. A refreshment stop around the World Showcase. I like working around WS because most of the guests are of my generation - it's a long walk for older folks and a boring one for small children. You get some interesting conversations when people find out you are their age and from Canada! Especially if they are 'drinking around the world' and are mildly intoxicated when they start up a conversation!
A long ten hour day, and my favorite moment was when a couple came to my window, ordered their food, and while waiting commented on where I was from. "Nova Scotia! You're a long way from home!" is a very common thing that I hear, which the guy said to me; but then the wife looked at me and said, "Your English is very good! Practically perfect!"
... Thanks? Also, practically?!
I looked at her, and told her it was my native language, and her husband just burst out laughing. She was a little embarrassed once she realized it was Canada we were talking about. But we all laughed about it and it made my day.
My till didn't balance today - I was a whole nickel short! ;) While I was hoping to keep my 0.00$ streak going, I'm not complaining about a busy day and 5 cents!
I got home in time to facetime my daddy and brother before they headed off to sleep :) Time for bed and a movie for me, and up bright and early for Animal Kingdom tomorrow!!
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