These Are a Few of My Favorite Things

Hello there!

Sorry it's been forever since I've posted, I've been traveling around Louisiana and Texas for the past 10 days without laptop/blogging access. But now I'm back, with a little over a month until I pack up the car and things are starting to get REAL! Today I'm going to be sadly unoriginal and do one of those "Favorite Thing" posts- Disney style. I think what people like says a lot about their personality, so maybe through this y'all can get to know me better! Here we go:

- Favorite Theme Park: Magic Kingdom! Especially at night-you can't get more Disney than that.

- Favorite Ride: This is incredibly hard to decide, but I have to go with Expedition

Everest! I'm a thrill ride junkie, and being hurdled backwards into total darkness

is my idea of a good time. The theming is incredible, and I never fail to really believe

a Yeti is about to eat me alive.

- Favorite Resort: You must know that one by now...that's right, it's the Polynesian.

My ultimate home away from home.

- Favorite Disney Snack: The homemade ice cream cookie sandwich from the

Main Street Bakery...words cannot do this thing justice. It is literally heaven on Earth.

3 scoops of vanilla ice cream smooshed between 2 warm, made from scratch, chocolate chip

cookies. Yum.

-Favorite Way to Get Around the World: Monorail. Nothing says "I'm in Disney World!"

like hearing those infamous Spanish words... "Por favor mantenerse al lado de las puertas."

It's also one of the best perks about staying in the Polynesian- the Magic Kingdom is all of 3 minutes away from you at any given point.

So that's just a little bit about my favorite Disney World things! I'm going to try to add more in every post, but we'll see how that goes. Did I mention how little time I have left before I move?? Insanity.

Until next time my friends-

"Don't tell me about the problems - I make the problems." —Walt Disney

Emily

"Just Don't Hide People In Your Trunk...They WILL Catch You"

I was not looking forward to getting up this morning. All I had on my agenda was a trip to the bank before it closed at 12, and work at 3:30. It was especially hard after having a dream that I was back at the Polynesian...

I know, I know. It's heaven on Earth, but somehow I managed to get my butt out of bed. As I walked into Chase this morning, I was met with a line comparable to that of Space Mountain in the middle of July. It was chaotic to say the least. Luckily, a teller (Marcus) walked up to me and saw that all I needed to do was make a deposit, so he said I could just follow him into his cubicle. Having worked in commission based retail, I know that getting me 1-on-1 meant he was going to try to up sell me something. I walked in there ready to say "NO!" to everything he offered me. After 1/2 way listening to something about draft protection, 0% APR, cash back, blah blah blah, I interrupted him and said I actually DID have something he could help me with.

Me: Yeah, I'm actually moving to Orlando in August for this Disney thing, are there any Chase branches around there?

Marcus: *Laughs* I was a Jungle Cruise skipper

Me: .......Excuse me?

Marcus: Yeah I did the program back in college!

Me:...........Ahhhhhhhhh! That's so amazing! Tell me everything!!

What a small freakin world! I've met tons of friends who have done the program before through Facebook and school, but I hadn't met anyone randomly, like Marcus, who was just out of the blue. He was really funny and was the first person who gave me a blunt, honest opinion of the program. He said something like-

"I went there because I wasn't doing well in school. I needed a semester off with out really taking a semester off. My sister had done it, so I thought I could handle it. But at the end of the day, it was a low paying job. It was a lot of work. But look at what I have now- a wife and best friends who I couldn't live with out. It was all worth it."

I found out that Marcus actually left the program early, right before the Christmas holidays, because he got so homesick. I got the feeling he hadn't grown up visiting the parks or watching the movies like I had, so I could understand why- you have to be diehard in love with the Mouse to put up with so much BS on a daily basis. But listening to him reminisce about his time there made me so happy. He showed me his wedding photos from this past January, when he married the woman of his dreams from Arizona, who he met during his CP. His best man? A guy from Kentucky that was his roommate. All of this was a bit overwhelming, just because it's weird to think that this could be the time when I meet those special people. Frightening but exciting all at the same time!

His advice to me?

"Are you legal? Good. A lot of people get termed for drinking underage... like, a lot. No guests after 9, and don't try to hide people in your trunk. They WILL catch you. Make sure you know when inspections are, and plan accordingly. You're going to have an amazing time, I know it."

I'm. Pumped.

Until next time my friends-

Emily

"When you're curious, you find lots of interesting things to do. And one thing it takes to accomplish something is courage."

Walt Disney

Hidden Mickey's FTW

Before we begin, I just have to say- who else had no idea what "FTW" meant? I kind of found out today, and suddenly a lot of Facebook statuses make sense! If there are any of you out there who were unaware like myself, it means "For The Win." And now I can't stop using it... everything good is now FTW...

Like the fact that my Blogger background has "Hidden Mickey's" in it! A Hidden Mickey is exactly what it sounds like: the famous 3 circle shape that forms Mickey's silhouette found in unexpected places. There are literally 1000s of them all over the Walt Disney World Resort. Here are a few of my favorites--

In the lobby of the best resort on Disney property, The Polynesian-

Inside Snow White's Adventure in Fantasyland-

Inside Mouse Gears, aka the coolest store in Epcot

See what I mean? It's details like these that make me fall in love with Disney time and time again. What other company puts that much time, energy and thought into each and every one of their projects? None. It's Disney FTW.

Until next time my friends-

Emily

"I only hope that we don't lose sight of one thing - that it was all started by a mouse."
Walt Disney

Hello Friends!

Long awaited much? I swear I've been meaning to set up this blog for at least the past 6 months... but oh well! It's here now! And I am SUPER excited to start the official memoir of my journey to Orlando and my time spent there. Oh...you didn't know I was moving to Orlando in August? Yeah, um, about that...guess I should fill ya'll in!

First some background info:

If you know me even just a little bit, you know I'm borderline obsessed with all things Disney. Movies, characters, theme parks, etc. I can sing you any Disney song, tell you any obscure character's name, or tell you where to get the perfect view of the fireworks in the Magic Kingdom. I was born in Florida, so my parents would always take me and my sister to the parks for day trips. Once we moved to Louisiana, we just kept going back...and back....and back. I blame my love for Disney totally on them. Thanks mom & dad!

Fast forward 20 years. It's the end of my junior year in college, and time to apply for the opportunity of my dreams: the Walt Disney World College Program. I get to spend 5 months, in Orlando, working and taking classes. I'll be working as a hostess in one of Disney's full service restaurants, and taking a marketing class that's all about Disney and their brand. Oh, and I get paid. And I get into all the parks for free. And I get to meet people from around the world. Yeah, it's a pretty sweet deal.

After completing my web based questionnaire (which I still don't get how some people failed?), I scheduled my phone interview... my moment of truth! All went well, I got the infamous "Purple Folder," and long story short-- here I am typing my WDWCP Fall '10 blog!

Well, I think that's enough for a short introduction, but don't worry! Look forward to Top 5 lists, adventures in packing, a couple of Vlogs, etc!

Until next time my friends-

All your dreams can come true if you have the courage to pursue them.
Walt Disney