Sunday, May 29.
Dinoland - Theater in the Wild.
11:30-21:00
First day all on my own from start to finish. Scary, scary, scary. Actually it was; I went into the office knowing I would be in Dinoland and telling myself I had no idea in the world where the break room for that section was. Random thought, but important enough when you don't want to wander around aimlessly and missing breaks or lunches.
Once I clocked in, the coordinator in the office asked me if I knew where I was going. I laughed inside and told her I knew where Dinoland was, I had no recollection of where the break room was. Trina was assigned the task of showing me both the break room and the custodial closet. Turns out I had been to this break area, you have to cross the Main Entrance area, the Main Entrance break room and back area, go through Dinoland and then you get to the Dinoland break area. Trina showed me the break room and closet, which is actually a whole shed. She then left for her own area and left me stranded in a shed surrounded by towels, chemicals and trash bags. I stood in front of the paper listing my breaks, lunch, and trash runs and felt a little dazed when I realized I was placed in "Theater in the Wild" on my own and had three (3) trash runs in a row, from beginning to end. They offer little maps of all the cans in the shed. Let me tell you, those maps are useless. After standing there for 10 minutes feeling completely lost a man arrived and asked me how I was doing. I answered that all was well but I honestly did not know what Theater in the Wild encompassed and I was not quite sure how to start my trash runs. He was nice enough to show me where to get my banana boat (on the opposite side of the break area), my supplies (in the shed), and where to wash my boat when I'm done. He then took me around my area, the area surrounding the theater where Nemo the Musical takes place. It turns out it's a pretty easy run, the cans are easy to find, except for two of them which are inside the theater, in which we are not allowed unless right after the show when people are getting out. I was then left alone once again to sweep my area until my first trash run. It's a pretty shady area so it's nice, benches and tables with people to talk to and a stroller area with lots of trash falling out of the strollers.
After my first trash run I felt just a little better, it wasn't that hard after all. I had a small mental breakdown of "omg I am not going to get through this day, there's not way someone can do 3 runs in a row". (Turns out it's common to only have one person working that area, I'm still not sure why...). After my second run I felt much more confident and almost looked forward to the closing run, which is usually a lot emptier because of a certain lack of guests in Dinoland. The day ended on a happier note; I finished my closing trash early, washed the boat, got my pan and broom back in my locker and made it back to the bus and home.
Monday, May 30.
Asia - Caravan.
10:00-21:00
Not much to report for this second day. Only one trash run, the closing one. This is the area I worked with Joseph on my first day of training so I remembered where the cans were, where my cart was and where to empty the recycling, etc etc etc. The day went by pretty smoothly, I took my breaks. Realized the vending machines can be used with debit card --- oooo yeah.
The trouble with finishing at 21:00? The bus for Cast Members leaves the bus stop at 21:09. It takes at least five minutes to walk to the bus stop. We are allowed to clock out 2 minutes before the end of our shift, but after walking all day, rushing for the bus is not very pleasant. The next bus leaves at 21:40-ish. Wouldn't a car be nice? Why yes, yes it would!
Tuesday, May 31.
Off - Costuming
Going to DAK Costuming is an adventure in itself. The bus is the same as the one going to work, which means you spend over an hour in the bus going to and from there and you have to time your costume-picking just right so you can catch the next bus that comes by, usually 30 to 40 minutes. The problem is that each pair of pants should be tried on, some are definitely not 14 by 32, or I lose that much weight in 30 seconds hehehe. Considering the time I usually get up, going to Costuming is about all I get to do on my first day off.
Wednesday, June 01.
Off - Downtown Disney with Ricky.
We woke up early - just kidding, we didn't - and decided to go check out Downtown Disney. A little open "shopping mall" with lots of wonderful stores and nothing to pay for if you choose not to buy anything. Free free free to walk around and admire the lake, run around stores like little kids, and stuff our faces with delicious Ghirardelli milkshakes.
Dinoland - Theater in the Wild.
11:30-21:00
First day all on my own from start to finish. Scary, scary, scary. Actually it was; I went into the office knowing I would be in Dinoland and telling myself I had no idea in the world where the break room for that section was. Random thought, but important enough when you don't want to wander around aimlessly and missing breaks or lunches.
Once I clocked in, the coordinator in the office asked me if I knew where I was going. I laughed inside and told her I knew where Dinoland was, I had no recollection of where the break room was. Trina was assigned the task of showing me both the break room and the custodial closet. Turns out I had been to this break area, you have to cross the Main Entrance area, the Main Entrance break room and back area, go through Dinoland and then you get to the Dinoland break area. Trina showed me the break room and closet, which is actually a whole shed. She then left for her own area and left me stranded in a shed surrounded by towels, chemicals and trash bags. I stood in front of the paper listing my breaks, lunch, and trash runs and felt a little dazed when I realized I was placed in "Theater in the Wild" on my own and had three (3) trash runs in a row, from beginning to end. They offer little maps of all the cans in the shed. Let me tell you, those maps are useless. After standing there for 10 minutes feeling completely lost a man arrived and asked me how I was doing. I answered that all was well but I honestly did not know what Theater in the Wild encompassed and I was not quite sure how to start my trash runs. He was nice enough to show me where to get my banana boat (on the opposite side of the break area), my supplies (in the shed), and where to wash my boat when I'm done. He then took me around my area, the area surrounding the theater where Nemo the Musical takes place. It turns out it's a pretty easy run, the cans are easy to find, except for two of them which are inside the theater, in which we are not allowed unless right after the show when people are getting out. I was then left alone once again to sweep my area until my first trash run. It's a pretty shady area so it's nice, benches and tables with people to talk to and a stroller area with lots of trash falling out of the strollers.
After my first trash run I felt just a little better, it wasn't that hard after all. I had a small mental breakdown of "omg I am not going to get through this day, there's not way someone can do 3 runs in a row". (Turns out it's common to only have one person working that area, I'm still not sure why...). After my second run I felt much more confident and almost looked forward to the closing run, which is usually a lot emptier because of a certain lack of guests in Dinoland. The day ended on a happier note; I finished my closing trash early, washed the boat, got my pan and broom back in my locker and made it back to the bus and home.
Monday, May 30.
Asia - Caravan.
10:00-21:00
Not much to report for this second day. Only one trash run, the closing one. This is the area I worked with Joseph on my first day of training so I remembered where the cans were, where my cart was and where to empty the recycling, etc etc etc. The day went by pretty smoothly, I took my breaks. Realized the vending machines can be used with debit card --- oooo yeah.
The trouble with finishing at 21:00? The bus for Cast Members leaves the bus stop at 21:09. It takes at least five minutes to walk to the bus stop. We are allowed to clock out 2 minutes before the end of our shift, but after walking all day, rushing for the bus is not very pleasant. The next bus leaves at 21:40-ish. Wouldn't a car be nice? Why yes, yes it would!
Tuesday, May 31.
Off - Costuming
Going to DAK Costuming is an adventure in itself. The bus is the same as the one going to work, which means you spend over an hour in the bus going to and from there and you have to time your costume-picking just right so you can catch the next bus that comes by, usually 30 to 40 minutes. The problem is that each pair of pants should be tried on, some are definitely not 14 by 32, or I lose that much weight in 30 seconds hehehe. Considering the time I usually get up, going to Costuming is about all I get to do on my first day off.
Wednesday, June 01.
Off - Downtown Disney with Ricky.
We woke up early - just kidding, we didn't - and decided to go check out Downtown Disney. A little open "shopping mall" with lots of wonderful stores and nothing to pay for if you choose not to buy anything. Free free free to walk around and admire the lake, run around stores like little kids, and stuff our faces with delicious Ghirardelli milkshakes.
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| That's on the floor. And it's upside down because I'm LAZY. |
But that's not how our day started. We thought it would be pretty cool for us to go by Hollywood Studios and then catch the bus over to Downtown Disney. Needless to say, that is not how it worked out. There are no buses straight from Studios to Downtown (I learned later there are no direct buses from DAK to Downtown either).
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| Ricky and I when we realized there were no direct buses to Downtown Buses. |
We did make it to Hollywood Studios, where we were told that the quickest bus to Downtown Disney was the one that stopped by POP Century Resort. Yeah, kind of random, but I have to admit, the exterior of the place looks pretty amazing.
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| First sign when you reach the Resort. |
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| I like the 60s one the best. |
Once there we managed to catch the bus to Downtown Disney (finally hehehe) and that's where the fun began. So many stores, Disney, LEGO, jewelries, restaurants, Harley Davidson... it's amazing.
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| Ricky realizing there's more to Downtown than we realized. |
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| Huge Disney store. |
I ran around like a kid in a candy store once again. The first time we went through Downtown Disney we didn't cover all of it. We just saw a teeny-tiny part, the main store, the LEGO store and a few others. But this time we walked from one end to the next to see everything. And then we had to walk all the way back to catch the bus back to Vista.
I would like to mention now that I did not buy anything. Ricky keeps repeating that we can buy everything super discounted at any Company D store and that we are here for seven months. So I did not spend a dime outside of food items.
I would like to mention now that I did not buy anything. Ricky keeps repeating that we can buy everything super discounted at any Company D store and that we are here for seven months. So I did not spend a dime outside of food items.
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| LEGO Store!!! |
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| LEGO Dragon/Lochness thingamajiggy. |
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| Planet Hollywood. |
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| Cirque du Soleil tent. |
It really is magical. So much to see and experience. Seven months are not enough!!!
Thursday, June 02.
Discovery Island - Flametree.
10:30-19:00
Not much to report. This was my first day in Discovery Island, the greater part of it is in the sun but it's still a beautiful place to spend the day. I was shown around the trash route by another gentleman who took me around, showed me the break room, and took me to see Winnie the Pooh, Eeyore, and Tigger. Oh yeah.
Halfway through my day I was told there was a "Safety Fair" going on at the Custodial Main Office and that I should go, you know, as an extra break. I went. I did their little tests: how to lift a box, where to put packs of ice on someone who had a heat stroke, what to put in your trash cart, and how to lift a trash bag out of a can properly. I then proceeded to turn in my little card with my hole punches in with my name and within two hours I was called back to the Main Office to receive my raffle prize: an Animal Kingdom umbrella. It's so pretty!
That was the highlight of my day, and pretty much all that happened.
Friday, June 03.
Asia - Anandapur.
10:00-19:00
Nothing to report. My trash run went fine, I remembered where all the trash cans were and Benela pulled some of them for me because he was bored. That's how our team works, if you have time, you double bag for the person after you. If you're tired of sweeping you help out the person doing their trash run. Or you listen to the screaming monkeys, no joke, at 10:30 they start screaming. Painful cries to make sure their territories are safe. Painful cries for our ears.
Saturday, June 04.
Asia - Restrooms.
08:30-19:00
Not much to say, they stick us in restroom the whole day. When taking care of Asia, you gravitate between the restroom in Caravan and the one in Kali/Anandapur. It's kind of nice, kind of crazy. Those are the restrooms I worked in during my training so I remembered where the closets were and I realized that it doesn't even take five minutes to go from one restroom to the next. Disaster came along at the end of my shift, when I realized that I was taking too long or hadn't started early enough. I rushed. Rushed. Rushed. Rushed. And ended up being early at the office to clock out. But the restrooms were clean, so I guess I did my job?
Thursday, June 02.
Discovery Island - Flametree.
10:30-19:00
Not much to report. This was my first day in Discovery Island, the greater part of it is in the sun but it's still a beautiful place to spend the day. I was shown around the trash route by another gentleman who took me around, showed me the break room, and took me to see Winnie the Pooh, Eeyore, and Tigger. Oh yeah.
Halfway through my day I was told there was a "Safety Fair" going on at the Custodial Main Office and that I should go, you know, as an extra break. I went. I did their little tests: how to lift a box, where to put packs of ice on someone who had a heat stroke, what to put in your trash cart, and how to lift a trash bag out of a can properly. I then proceeded to turn in my little card with my hole punches in with my name and within two hours I was called back to the Main Office to receive my raffle prize: an Animal Kingdom umbrella. It's so pretty!
That was the highlight of my day, and pretty much all that happened.
Friday, June 03.
Asia - Anandapur.
10:00-19:00
Nothing to report. My trash run went fine, I remembered where all the trash cans were and Benela pulled some of them for me because he was bored. That's how our team works, if you have time, you double bag for the person after you. If you're tired of sweeping you help out the person doing their trash run. Or you listen to the screaming monkeys, no joke, at 10:30 they start screaming. Painful cries to make sure their territories are safe. Painful cries for our ears.
Saturday, June 04.
Asia - Restrooms.
08:30-19:00
Not much to say, they stick us in restroom the whole day. When taking care of Asia, you gravitate between the restroom in Caravan and the one in Kali/Anandapur. It's kind of nice, kind of crazy. Those are the restrooms I worked in during my training so I remembered where the closets were and I realized that it doesn't even take five minutes to go from one restroom to the next. Disaster came along at the end of my shift, when I realized that I was taking too long or hadn't started early enough. I rushed. Rushed. Rushed. Rushed. And ended up being early at the office to clock out. But the restrooms were clean, so I guess I did my job?
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