Jellyrolls and Atlantic Dance

The Boardwalk is one of my favorite places at Disney. This past week Colleen, Christina, Kacie, and I joined up with our friends Ellen, Laura, Paige, their roommate, and two of their guy friends for an evening at Jellyrolls, a dueling piano bar. The piano players were fantastic and had a good sense of humor. 

Next door is Atlantic City Dance Hall. Inside is a large dance floor with a huge projection screen playing music videos from the 1980s to present. My roommates and I have been here a few times already. It's generally not very crowded and you can find some interesting characters being that it is a dance club at a Disney resort: aka tourists go here. 

Eat to the Beat

During the Food and Wine Fest, bands come to Epcot to perform as part of the Eat to the Beat concert series. 

For opening weekend Ellen, Laura, and I went to see Night Ranger, an 80s rock band. They were very entertaining with how enthusiastic they were about their music. I definitely hope to catch many more of these free concerts. 



For dessert I had the baklava from Morocco. One more country to stamp off on my passport!

Food and Wine Fest Cast Preview

Epcot's International Food and Wine Fest officially began on Friday, September 28 but the un-publicized  cast preview (also available to the general public) took place on September 27th from 2-8. 

Colleen, Tyler, and I all had off so we took the bus over to the Polynesian so that we could walk to the TTC and take the monorail over to Epcot. Festive signage greeted us in front of Spaceship Earth. 

Similar festival signs are located throughout the park. Working at Epcot, for about the past week I got to see them moving these signs from backstage. I also got to see the different country booths located backstage and gradually moved to their set locations around the World Showcase. I really do love working at Epcot with seeing behind the scenes of all the special events taking place: Food and Wine, 30th anniversary, and the renovation of Test Track. 

Just past the Fountain of Nations heading towards the World Showcase was a real cranberry patch. I'll have to find out more about why it's here for the fest. 

Before our trek around the world, we picked up one of the Food and Wine passports. These list each country and what food and drink is sold there along with a little box to check off if you've eaten it. Each country also has a spot for a stamp that you can get at the register when you order your food. We spent a couple of hours walking around the lake, sampling the food and drink. Most of the booths represent a typical style of architecture of that country. Here's what Ireland looks like. The chocolate lava cake from here is heavenly. The Italian sausage with green peppers was delicious, as was the Mongolian beef. 

The sake strawberry mist smoothie drink was so refreshing after walking around in the hot sun. The 60z serving sizes of beer allows you to sample a variety from the different countries. It's also decently priced which definitely helps the wallet.  

We joined up with Matt later on adn ended the day with a few rides, including the Maelstrom, one of our favorites! 

Conquering the Mountains

Last Saturday the Magic Kingdom was open till 11PM so  after work Colleen and I decided to go conquer the mountains! 

Splash Mountain, Big Thunder Mountain, Space Mountain

Before leaving we took a ride on Astro Orbiter for a spectacular view of the Castle and Main Street light up. This has become one of my new favorite rides! 

On our way out the Electric Light Parade was making it's way down Main Street. I'm looking forward to when Spectromagic returns because I like it better. 

Back at home we joined up with Christina, Tyler, and Colleen's friend from work to hang out and play some cards :)

Expedition Everest

Christina and I both had the day off last Friday so we spent the afternoon at Animal Kingdom! Last time I was there with my family Expedition Everest was still under construction and I hadn't yet gone since I began the DCP. Needless to say I was excited. 








Expedition Everest was incredible! Such an advanced roller coaster with quality show. A+ to you imagineers. We got a fastpass and then went in the standby line, waiting for about 15 minutes. The queue was outstanding with rooms of exploration gear: lanterns, show shoes, skis, backpacks, etc. Last up was the Yeti Museum with several dated items on the history of this mythical beast. After we rode the first time, we walked around Asia for a short bit and looked at some shops selling Asian inspired trinkets. The design of the buildings and decorations is fantastic and makes me want to visit in person some day. When our fastpass time came along, we rode again, posing saying "Namaste" on the in-ride photo. 

We made our way to Dinoland where we rode the Primeval Whirl. I used to like this mad-mouse type roller coaster but it was extremely jerky and we were rammed into the safety bars a few times. I dont' think I'll be going on it again any time in the near future. 

On our way to Dinosaur we saw Goofy and Pluto decked out in Dino outfits. Of course we had to meet them. The line wasn't too bad but we did have to wait a couple minutes while they went for a break to eat some treats :) Their character attendant was a friendly old man who we were chit chatting with. When it was our turn to say hi to the characters, I asked him if he could take a picture of us with my camera while the Photopass Photographer was taking a picture with their camera so that they didn't have their hands full. He pleasantly agreed and then was pretending to take a picture of himself saying "Are you sure you don't want this picture?" He asked us again as we were saying goodbye to Goofy and Pluto, who were very fun  to meet because they liked to joke around. So as we were leaving I asked another character attendant to take the picture of the 3 of us. If you ever happen to read this "character attendant James", just letting you know you made me smile that day. You help make the magic. 

Afterwards we made our way to Dinosaur and completed our mission! We had gotten fast passes for the Kahli River Rapids after Expedition Everest and while we were waiting to use them we saw a meet and great for our friends from the Hundred Acre Woods. Yes please. We met Pooh Bear, Eyore, and Tigger. Eyore was so lovable as always. And Tigger is such a bundle of energy and so fun to meet. 

 

It was a hot and sunny afternoon and a ride on the River Rapids was so refreshing. We walked out of the park drenched in water not minding at all. 

Namaste!

White Glove

Disney housing likes to make sure you're keeping your apartment clean. Ironically many of the apartments aren't in prime condition to begin with. Thankfully we have one of the renovated buildings and so our place isn't that bad. However, there's still a few issues we wish weren't there. 

We cleaned and straightened our apartment from top to bottom. Our efforts paid off because the housing inspector's gave us a ranking of White Glove! That means that our apartment was so clean and organized that we got a box of Ferrero Rocher chocolates and had our picture taken in front of our front door. 

Inspections were set to begin at 9 AM and our apartment number was first on the list. So Kacie, Christina, and I were up early and trying not to disturb everything the whole morning. (Colleen works at Blizzard Beach so she starts work in the morning) Finally it was about 11:30 and I had to cook something to take with me for dinner. I just started cleaning the dishes when the two Inspection men came to our door. Oh no! Immediately when they came in I started telling them that I had to make food for work but am cleaning the dishes asap. They told us that I was perfectly fine and they were mainly here to make sure we are keeping our apartment clean and following the basic rules (because some people do not). Also they were there to check our fire extinguisher and change our air filter. They quickly walked in and out of our rooms and told us how impressed they were with how presentable our place was. I think they also liked how friendly we were :)

Vegas Night

Every few weeks Disney housing likes to throw us a "welcome event." I was finally able to attend one as it took place after work. Instead of going home to Vista, I got off of the bus at Chatham where the event took place and joined two friends from work. 

Vegas Night featured casino game tables in a tent for our enjoyment. The catered food was much needed after hours of work. The meal was a "barbeque" theme with pulled pork and chicken sandwiches, corn on the cob, and mac & cheese. 

The DJ played some good music and as everyone was dancing, fuzzy dice and blown up dice balls were thrown into the crowd. We also got black and red dice beads. 

Before we left we met the Queen of Hearts, posed with our hands conjoined making hearts. haha. 

About a week after my arrival date all my roommates and I had the opportunity to attend the "Time for Tea" welcome event where we met Alice and the Mad Hatter. They were very fun with childlike personalities. We had Chick-fil-a nuggets and of course TEA!  I was one of the first people to complete a photo scavenger hunt and won a Disney Internships cup. 

Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party

If you thought that Main Street USA was charming in the summertime, it's nothing compared to fall. Starting late August Mickey jack-o-lanterns, colorful leaves, scare crows, orange banners, and not to mention Halloween inspired window displays brings this season to life.

On Tuesday and Friday evenings in September and October, the Magic Kingdom transforms to "Halloween Town" if you will. Last Friday, Colleen and I were so excited to attend Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party. We both went as Minnie Mouse, Minnie Mice a cast member called us. I had other costume plans but earlier that day we went to Cast Connections and I found an XL Minnie Dress that just needed to be sewed in a few places. Minnie has been my favorite my whole life and I've never been her for Halloween before so of course I had to buy the dress. With my discount it came out to be a reasonable price.

We got to the Magic Kingdom around 6:45 for the 7:00 party. Once we entered we got our wristbands, showing we bought the special event ticket. Even though we are cast members, we don't get in free for these parties. However, we do get a discounted price at about $42. We were also given a Trick-or-Treat candy bag and a Halloween map listing the trick-or-treat and character meet-and-greet locations.


What did we do first? Meet Flynn Rider of course! As Colleen would tell you, she has a major crush on Flynn from Tangled and the holiday parties are the only times you can meet him. Talking with him and Rapunzel was so much fun and they interacted with each other perfectly. I asked Flynn to see what he had in his satchel and of course it was Rapunzel's crown. If you are confused, watch Tangled. This summer was actually the first time I saw the movie thanks to my lovely roommates who each brought their dvd.

Our long wait in line to meet Flynn Rider also allowed us to meet Snow White and The Prince as well as Cinderella and Prince Charming. I reminded Snow White of our conversation yesterday and she told me that Grumpy loved her pie and that I could meet her seven little friends that night too. She loved the red bow on my "ears" and my red dress. Saying hi to The Prince was special because I don't remember ever meeting him growing up and I really don't know too much about his personality from the film. Snow White signed my autograph book the day before but I had the next page reserved for him. And yes, he does sign his name as "The Prince." Cinderella and Prince charming said how nice Minnie was to loan me her dress for the Halloween party and they were still deciding what to be. I told them that Gus Gus and his friends could help.

After meeting the Princesses, we waited by the Main Street Railroad Station for the Boo to You Parade. The Creeper Crew came around teaching everyone a Halloween dance. The parade was one of my all time favorites. Classic characters were dressed up in costumes and floats and dancers featured Priates of the Carribean, The Haunted Mansion, and Villains.



















Next we waited in front of the castle for Hallow-Wishes. AMAZING. The castle changed different colors to themed music. I loved the "hitchhiking ghost" song with the ghost projections traveling up the castle. As always, the fireworks were outstanding. 

Up next we went to the Town Square Theatre to meet Minnie and Mickey! They were dressed in the most adorable Halloween costumes: Minnie a pink princess and Mickey a pirate. These two are so much fun together. They complimented me on my dress and ears and signed my autograph book. Minnie is and forever will be my favorite Disney character and this was my first time meeting her since I arrived here. We took a picture as princesses together. Not to leave out Mickey, we pretended to be pirates and he danced with me. I got to dance with my boss! 

Then we headed over to Frontier Land to meet the 7 drawfs (so cute!) next to jewels from the mine. Then we met Captain Jack Sparrow who we were trying to meet earlier in the evening but his line was too long and he had to leave for the parade. Finally we got in line and were told we weren't guaranteed to meet with him because he had to leave in 15 minutes. We were friendly with the cast member and he finally guaranteed us and the group behind us a visit with our favorite pirate. He looked and behaved straight from the films. It was kinda unreal. 

I felt like a kid again as I trick or treated at the various locations throughout the park, light up by a Mickey Jack-o-lantern balloon. The cast members handed out small handfuls of candy and by the end of the night, my bag of candy was full. 

This evening was so magical! I highly recommend Mickey's Not So Scary Halloween Party for everyone. Embrace the Halloween spirit and let out kid at heart. :)

BOO 

Exploration Day

Future World East attractions team holds a CP welcome event each semester. We are broken down into groups based on arrival dates. I was scheduled to attend the September 9th welcome event so I clocked in at Cast Services and went to the conference room. There were CPs from Mission Space, Spaceship Earth, Energy, as well as The Seas where I work so we started out by introducing ourselves. A few of the managers were leading the event and told us about themselves. We broke down into groups to play a game matching up each manager's name with their picture and their fun fact bio sheet. My group got many correct. Hooray for us! We also played a game where a statement was said, such as "my favorite food is pizza" and if it pertained to us we stood. That was a fun way to get to know each other. 

Best part of the day? We got an hour and a half to explore the park! While being paid! My friends from The Seas and I went to China to eat, then we rode the Maelstrom in Norway and The Grand Fiesta Tour Starring the Three Caballeros in Mexico. 

Then we headed back to Cast Services to go over some more expectations and meet another manager.

Overall, this was a great way to start the day! 

Celebrating!

Last week I got an "I'm Celebrating" button. What was I celebrating? Kacie's birthday!

The day before I had a 12 hour shift (long and tiring but loving the over time pay) so I needed to sleep in. But early afternoon I joined Kacie and Devon at Main Street to look around at the fall decorations and they had Fastpasses to meet the princesses. Yes. Fastpasses.

Next we went to Epcot. After some rides in Future World, we went for a walk around the World Showcase looking at the many different shops, especially Twinnings Tea in the UK, Kacie's favorite. The candy, chocolate, and other imported food items look so good. I know where I'll be spending my money come the holidays.

We also got to meet some characters today. Snow white was near Imagination although I usually find her in Germany. She told me about the Gooseberry pie she was making for Grumpy.


Next to America there is a corridor pathway where all characters and character attendants go through training. I know this thanks to my friend Ciana who is a character attendant at Hollywood Studios. This is a unique meet-and-greet station because there are hardly any lines and it is an informal way to meet many varied characters. We chose to say hi to Eyore and Mr. Smee. My sister's favorite is Eyore and she's been wanting me to meet him. Here's birthday girl Kacie with her Minnie Mouse skirt. And Mr. Smee is such a loveable pirate. 

Faith, Trust, and Pixie Dust

"All you need is faith, trust, and a little bit of pixie dust" chanted the lady at Castle Couture as I closed my eyes and made a wish. Walking through Fantasy Land dusted with shimmering pixie dust, Kacie and I felt like princesses and that anything was possible. Disney has that magical way of making everyone feel special.



That afternoon Kacie, Devon, and I were in the right place at the right time and got the opportunity to step foot past the "dream builders at work" construction barriers and through the castle walls into New Fantasyland. When we first realized what was happening our hearts nearly skipped a beat. We walked to the entrance overjoyed. "Right this way girls" we were told by a lady who I'm pretty sure could tell we were cast members.

 Here's us entering through the walls of New Fantasyland. Kacie's excited!

We walked through a winding passageway through the forest with a view of Beast's castle up on the rock cliff. We made our way to Belle's cottage. How picturesque with wooden shutters with hearts cut out and a little wishing well out front. We entered into the front room with a fireplace and made our way into Belle's father's workshop. Our guide  introduced us to the Magical entrance way to the hall. Here she explained that we are going to help tell the story of the night Bell and the Beast fell in love. She handed out roles and props. When we were ready we entered into Belle's library. I could live there. All four walls were covered in books except for the fireplace where Lumiere sat. Belle came out and the volunteers put on a mini-play with her. It was very cute and well done. 

Here's our view on journey back to Cinderella's Castle. 

Kacie, Devon, and I also met Peter Pan earlier that day! He asked us where we were from and we said Lake Buena Vista. He was confused thinking that we lived in a lake. A character attendant tried to help him out saying that we were CPs. He didn't know what that meant. We said we work here. "So you're adults?" "No" was our answer. "So you're kids?" "Yes." "So you lied?" (in reference to working here). "Yes"  We also met Aladdin and Jasmine. They asked me if I could take a magic carpet ride anywhere, I would take a ride around the entire world. 



It was very uncrowded so many of the rides had short wait times. We convinced Kacie to ride Splash Mountain and we rode the new Dumbo in Storybook Circus for the first time! I'm sad that Toon Town is gone though. I thought seeing Mickey and Minnie's houses was really special as a kid. 

To top off a spectacular day, we had dole whips from Aloha Isle and a waffle with strawberries and whipped cream from Sleepy Hallow. I highly recommend both.