My First Few Days in the Boutique!

Hello All!

Well – I’ve been in the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique for a few days now and I really like it so far!

Sunday was a sea day so it was 9am to 9pm – I didn’t know any of the hairstyles yet so I just buddied up with the other FGIT’s (Fairy-Godmother-in-Training).  That meant that I would do the princesses nails and make-up while they did the hairstyle.  It was a really long day, but fun.  The little girls are so adorable in the boutique.  You can really see the impact that you have on them.  Their eyes when they finally get to see their hair at the end is really special.

After work Sunday I watched a really stupid movie, ‘White House Down’.  I had a couple hours to kill and I didn’t want to sleep so I thought I’d turn off my brain with the movie.  It worked!  After that it was the crew Halloween party.  It was really fun and some of the costumes were really elaborate.  I didn’t bring anything with me so I just wore my purple tank top and purple bandana and went as Donatello from the ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles’.

I didn’t get much sleep on Sunday so being at the boutique Monday at 9am wasn’t easy, but I managed.  Luckily there were no princess until the afternoon so I got to spend the morning with my trainer Briana practicing on the mannequin heads.  I got pretty good at the twists and started to learn the Fairy Tale.  I haven’t done the other two yet and might learn another one at the end of the week, but maybe not either until next week.  It’s at least a two-week training process to become a FGIT so I’m actually a little ahead since I already know the Fairy Tale.  I just need to practice, practice, practice.

I got off an hour early on Monday and was able to go to eat at one of the guest restaurants. Enchanted Garden.  It was amazing!  I had an ahi tuna and avocado tower for an appetizer and then caramelized sea scallops for dessert!  It was sooooo good!  But I have no idea how the guests eat like that every night for seven days.  I was completely stuffed afterward…

I got the morning off this morning and slept.  My body hasn’t quite adjusted to the timetable we run on around here so it was nice to get some sleep.  I was able to go to the Royal Tea this afternoon because the boutique sets everything up.  It’s where a few young princesses get to have tea with the real princesses.  It was adorable, but it’s super expensive for guests so I’m glad I got to see it, because that’s the only way I would!

After the boutique closed tonight the pirates took over!  The whole boutique changes over to The Pirate League!  I learned how to do a girl pirate for tomorrow so I think that I’ll actually be working on a few girls on my own!  I’m nervous, but I’m fairly confident that I’ll be ok. 

Anyway, off to bed because I have to be up early for pirates tomorrow!

Steph :)

Some Exciting News!!!

Hello All!

So here’s an update from the last few days – lots of exciting things happening!

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 25

Castaway Cay!  Today we were on Disney’s private island, Castaway Cay.  It is beyond gorgeous, an absolute paradise for the guests.  And there are actually some really awesome crew spaces as well.  The island has a lot of things for the guests to do.  They can lie on the beach, pet the stingrays, go snorkeling and a million other things.  We had a tour of the island, but it didn’t start until noon – so I actually got to sleep in a little, which I loved.

After the island tour we had lunch at the crew BBQ, which is right next to the crew beach!  The crew beach is really nice. There are picnic tables for eating lunch, hammocks, a sand volleyball court and a soccer pitch.  I hope I get to spend some time there – because it’s quite the paradise.

Had a short break after that and then it was off for a night in the shops!  It was definitely busy because being the last night of the cruise, everyone was out buying last minute souvenirs.  I had a meeting with the manager for Mickey’s Mainsail, just a little ‘how’s your first week’ going meeting.  But during that meeting he told me that I would be going up to the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique!  I am super excited about this!  Originally I wanted to be in the BBB, but they said I didn’t have the experience.  However, I was somehow hired for BBB anyway.  I looked at my contract and it says Merchandise Hostess B, which means BBB!  So – I will start tomorrow – yay!

I am definitely going to miss the people in the shops, because they have all been so nice to me this week.  But I will still get to hang out with them on our time off and after work.  Which makes me happy – because I feel like I’ve already gotten to know some of them, and it would suck to all the sudden not be able to hang out with them anymore…

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 26

This was an early morning; it started out at about 6:20am.  That’s because I got to go to Magic Kingdom today!  It was a crew activity and all of merchandise was going.  It was so much fun!  We ended up only being in MK for about four hours, but it was awesome.  I walked around with five other crewmembers and we were able to go on: Space Mountain, Buzz Lightyear, Thunder Mountain, Haunted Mansion, and Pirates of the Caribbean.  It was so much fun.  I was also able to go to the Starbucks on Main Street, which was awesome – I was definitely craving the Bux…

I took a nap on the bus back to the ship, and then I had a short break.  I ran down to wardrobe to be fitted for by BBB costume, and then I was able to call home and talk to the family, which was really nice.  And then it was off to the BBB!

It was a fun night!  There weren’t very many princesses, so I was able to talk with my trainer a lot.  I watched a few princess transformations, and then was able to practice the simplest, easiest hairstyle.  Just a twist.  You practice on mannequin heads first, and I got kind of ok at it – but I will practice more tomorrow.  It just takes time.  The training will take at least two weeks.  But it was fun, and I’m excited for tomorrow!

Well. I have got some fun stuff to read, so I think I’m going to do that, and watch a little of the Oregon State game.  But I’m not going to stay up too late – because the crew Halloween party is tomorrow night and I’m going to need all the sleep I can get tonight!

Steph :)

An Update!

Hello All!

So – I know it’s been a few days since my last update, but I have been super busy and haven’t had time until now.  So – here are the updates from the last three days!

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 22 – St. Maarten

Today was our first port day, in St. Maarten, the half-French, half-Dutch island.  We had a crew drill in the morning, which is just the crew practicing what to do in case of an emergency.  I didn’t screw up or get lost too bad, so I’m calling it a win.  I don’t have any safety duties yet, and probably won’t for a month or two.

After that I was invited by a couple other merch people to go onto the island – yay!  We got onto St. Maarten, which is beautiful, and took the water taxi over to the downtown and beach area.  We ate lunch at a restaurant where I had spicy shrimp.  It was quite good.  We were also able to get free wi-fi from the restaurant so we all ate and looked down at our phones/ipads…

Then it was off to the beach!  We rented a couple beach chairs and an umbrella and just relaxed on the beach for a few hours.  It was super nice after being in the ship for three days straight to get some Vitamin D.  I did, however, put sunscreen on so that I wouldn’t burn, which was very important.

That night, I had another short training class, and then I went to the shops for a few hours.  After that I got to go watch the fireworks!  It was pirate night, which was really fun, as all the guests were dressed up.  The pirate show on the open deck by the pool was fun, but the fireworks were amazing!  They were so much more than I thought they would be.  They were just like being at the park!

After that, it was time to pass out, because I was exhausted…

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 23 – St. Thomas

So it was up very early this morning, 6:30am, for immigration.  St. Thomas is in the US Virgin Islands so all the new and returning crew had to through customs.  It was easy for me, being an American citizen.  Basically I don’t need anything to go ashore in the US, just my DCL ID and driver’s license, both of which I wouldn’t be without anyway.

After immigration it was more safety training, then my training group got to have lunch at Cabanas!  It’s the guest buffet restaurant up on deck 11.  It was really good food, and we got to sit outside, which I enjoyed immensely.  Luckily, since I have deck privileges, I may get to go again sometime! 

After lunch, I didn’t have to work til that night.  I didn’t feel like getting of the ship so I went up to our crew sun deck to use my phone.  Because St. Thomas is technically in the US my phone worked!  As did my 4G.  So I was able to go on facebook and post pictures, which I really can’t do from the internet in my cabin, it’s just too slow…

I also called my family.  I got to wish my brother Nick a happy birthday, because his birthday was yesterday.  I didn’t even realize that it was his birthday, because time just makes no sense here.  I already find myself not thinking of dates or days of the week, but of sea days and port days…

After that I had my first full night shift at the stores.  From 5:30 to 11:30.  It was kinda busy, so that was nice.  But since it was Halloween on the ship all the guests were dressed up, it was cool to see all the guests’ costumes; some of them were so elaborate!  My trainer is in charge of Officer Pin Trading, which is an event in which a bunch of officers come and stand in front of the store and wear pin lanyards, and then trade with the guests.  I was able to participate and it was so much fun!  Part of my costume is a pin lanyard.  We fill it with pins the company sends us – then we trade with the guests.  It’s really fun and the guests get really into it – and so do some of the officers!

I had a little break next, then it was off to the Halloween party in the atrium.  I helped sell “glow” which are things that light up, swords, hats, wands, etc…  It was fun to walk around and dance a little with the guests at the party.

However, I was beyond exhausted when I got back to my cabin so I went straight to sleep…

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 24

Today it was up early for another day of safety training.  From 8:45 to 4pm…  It’s a lot of information to remember, so I’m glad that they don’t expect us to be experts right away.

After that I had a short break then headed off to the shops for three hours before leaving to go see the show ‘Disney’s Believe’.  It was my favorite show by far.  I loved it!  It’s about a father who doesn’t believe in the magic his daughter does so the Genie from Aladdin and various other Disney characters help him believe.  It’s super cute, and really fun.

And now I’m sitting in my cabin watching the World Series and writing.  I get to sleep in tomorrow so that’s nice!  Because tomorrow is Castaway Cay – Disney’s private island!  I am so excited about it!!!  We get a tour and a barbeque tomorrow so that will be fun!  But luckily we aren’t doing our ‘wet drill’ – where we get in the water and swim around – that will be next week!

So now I’m going to read my book (Allegiant!) and go to sleep early.  I need to get some sleep because apparently the last night is crazy in the shops!

Steph :)

My 3rd Day on the Disney Fantasy!

Hello All!

So – apparently its Monday, keeping track of the day here is not easy.  I guess since they don’t have a weekend its difficult to change your brain to stop thinking about a weekend as well.

Today involved a lot more HR training in the morning.  Luckily I didn’t have to start until nine in the morning so I got some sleep.  There are a lot of night activities for the crew, like a bar, and parties.  I haven’t been to any yet, and I think I’m going to wait until I adjust to my new schedule a little bit more before I do. 

After lunch it was off to engineering for a tour and so they could check everything electrical that I brought.  Now, everything that plugs into a wall has a little tag saying that it’s good to go!  Next was to medical so that they could sign off on the medicines that I brought.  I had heard that you should bring your own medicines because when you’re sick, you want the medicines that you like.  So I brought a lot.  But they all checked out.

It was off to the shops for a few hours next.  It was nice, kind of like I knew what I was doing, and yet was really unsure at the same time.  I’m sure that over the next couple of days/weeks it’ll all come back to me like no time passed at all.

Then it was dinner and then I got to see the show Wishes.  It was really fun, a little ‘High School Musical’ but I loved all the Disney numbers that they did.  Then a few of the girls, who work in the spa, but were part of my training group, and I walked up the deck 11 where the pools are for some ice cream.  I had chocolate and banana swirl, yum!  We walked around a little, and watched some Monday Night Football on Funnelvision.  That’s the HUGE television attached to one of the funnels by the pool.  They normally show movies so people can watch while they swim, but tonight they were showing the game.  It was pretty cool.

Now I’m back in my room with the game on and will probably go to bed early again.  There has been so much information thrown at me this week I think my brain might be overloading…  it needs sleep!

I will try and write tomorrow, although maybe not until Wednesday, because tomorrow actually looks to be a little lights – although I do get to see the pirate fireworks tomorrow night!!!

Steph :)

Day 2 of 141!

Well, I’m still exhausted!  Today was another very long day, with many more to follow.  Since my body hasn’t yet adjusted I’m going to bed early again.  I will probably be going to bed early for the next few weeks until I feel less beat.

Today started with a short intro of all the hotel department heads.  That included the Hotel Director, the Merchandise Manager, the Food & Beverage Manager, the Housekeeping Manager, the Spa Manager and the Photography Manager.  After that it was three and a half hours of HR training.  It was mostly just the policies of the ship.

Then it was off to lunch!  So far the mess has had a bunch of different things every meal, so I have been able to have a little variety.  It will all probably get old soon, so I’m enjoying it while I still can!

After lunch was a four hour safety class.  It was not easy to get through, but I managed to survive.  I know how important security is and we got a lot of good information, but my goodness it can be boring…

Then it was off to crew wardrobe to get my costumes, I actually have quite a lot.  I’ll take pictures of all the different costumes and post them soon.  Then dinner and back to the room where I had a break for about an hour.  I turned on ESPN (which I’m loving having in the crew rooms!) and saw that the Beavers won! GO BEAVS!

Then it was off to the shops for about 45 minutes.  I basically just followed Carolina, my trainer, around.  We have a bigger chunk of time tomorrow for training.  But I did get to meet Tim, my friend from Germany finally.  That was really fun to finally put a face to the facebook face :)

After the shops a few of us were taken to see the show in the Walt Disney Theatre.  It’s the main theater on the ship where all the stage shows are.  Tonight was ‘Aladdin: A Musical Spectacular’.  I’ve seen the one in Disneyland and this one is really similar, but it was awesome.  The genie was really funny.

I came back to my room after that and had my first experience in the shower.  My goodness it is small…  But I was successful none the less.  As I sit here writing this I am watching some of the fun crew channels and feeling more and more tired.  So it’s off to bed for me, tomorrow involves a lot more training of all kinds.  So I’ll talk to you later!

Steph :)

My First Day on the Disney Fantasy!

Hello All!

Well, I’m exhausted… I’ve been awake for about 18 hours now and it’s been non-stop…

The morning started by 4:00am when my alarm went off.  I got up and showered, then went to check out of the All-Star Sports Resort.  We were on the bus by 5:15, and at Port Canaveral at 6.  We spotted the ship a few miles out, and it was amazing!  It’s so much bigger than even I imagined.  It really was gorgeous at night.  I posted a picture, but it doesn’t do it justice. 

After our security screening we went inside for training.  There is a lot of training this week.  Today was mostly safety training that we needed before we could even set sail!  My trainer for the week is Carolina from Chile, and she’s really nice, and knows so much.  We had a ship tour, although I really don’t remember where almost anything is.  I will definitely have to carry the map in my back pocket for the next few weeks.  I’ve actually already gotten lost a couple of times, but luckily the crew is so incredibly nice and willing to direct the newbies.

We had lunch in the crew mess, which wasn’t nearly as scary as I thought it was.  The food wasn’t bad, not the best thing in the history of the world, but I’ll get used to it.  They do have a lot of variety, and always have salad stuff, so that’s nice.  I was able to go up to the crew sundeck on the top of the ship and call home for a minute, so that was good.

After lunch, it was more safety training, and then we got our group picture taken with Captain Mickey!  We were also able to watch the sailing away party.  It’s a deck party where the pool normally is, and its full of dancing and music, it’s very fun.

Then, I was able to meet Carolina, my trainer at the shops.  It was a little confusing at first, TWO Carolina’s, but I’ll make it work.  My shops trainer Carolina is from Mexico and seems really nice.  We went and got my costume fitted, and then she gave me a tour of the shops.  I’ll be in Mickey’s Mainsail, which is basically the Disney Store at sea.  It has the plush, the pins, mostly the kids’ stuff.  They put all the newbies there.  It seems like it will always be busy, so that’s not bad…

After that, I was on my own!  I walked up to the crew deck to try and make another call, but instead I ended up meeting a guy from merchandise, so we ended up chatting for a few minutes, then went and got some ice cream.  I’m excited to meet other merch people as well, as they all seem so nice.  He had to go after that, so I thought, since I’ve had dessert, I should go have dinner.  I was a little nervous to go in there by myself, but I ran into a few people from my training group so we had dinner together.

When I was done with dinner I came back to my cabin and unpacked.  I think I like where I put everything.  I figure that I’ll live with it for a week or two, and if I want to change something, I can.  Then I figured out how to get onto the internet.  We don’t need internet cards anymore, we can login and buy minutes wirelessly, so that’s what I did.  However, it’s not super speedy, so I am writing this in Word, then I will just cut and paste it into my blog.

As I write this I am watching the TV in my room.  It was some on-demand stuff and a few channels. Disney channels mostly, but that does include ESPN!  So maybe I’ll be able to catch a game or two soon.  But probably not tonight, I’m just way too exhausted.

Well, I need to go to bed; I have to be up early again tomorrow.  So good night all, I’ll write more tomorrow!

Steph

PS I couldn't post pics today. I will post when I get a better internet connection...

Day 3!

Hello All!

Well, I'm again exhausted...  Today was a great day, but I am tired, and since my wake-up call is scheduled for 4:15am, I'll keep it quick.

Today was Traditions.  It's basically the 'Welcome to the Disney Company' training.  Although, because this is the cruise line, they added some cruise stuff.  It was company history, cruise history, Disney cruise history, and basically what's expected of you as a Disney cast/crew member.  There are a few surprises thrown in there, but I won't give them away in case anyone who reads this is ever going to eventually participate in Traditions, I wouldn't want to ruin the magic!

We did get our name tags - which is a really important part of being a Disney team member.  Every person who works for Disney has one, from Bob Iger on down.  On the cruise line name tags is my name and country.  What I love about the name tag is that it's just a first name.  Disney is a first name company, just as Walt wanted.  Everyone is called by their first name.  So if I ever got to meet Bob Iger, I would call him Bob, which is pretty cool when you think about it.

After Traditions, a few of us headed over to Epcot for a few hours.  We did Test Track, Mission Space (my favorite!), then just walked around World Showcase.  It was crazy busy though, because the Food & Wine Festival is currently going on.  I would love to come back someday and really go through the festival and try a bunch of different kinds of food, there just wasn't time today.

So, then it was back to the rooms and I had to re-pack my duffel bags because they somehow managed to become almost totally undone in the three days I've been here.  Which would be odd, except it's me so it's not...

Anywho, so now I'm just sitting here, watching the Dodgers lose on national television, and getting super excited about tomorrow.  I don't think I'll sleep very much tonight... I'm way too excited!

I don't know when I will be able to post next, because I don't think that I'll have internet for a few days, but I will continue to write and take pictures so when I finally do get internet, I'll post then.

Wish me luck - tomorrow I embark on the Disney Fantasy!!!

Steph :)

PS Pictures from today.

Day 2!

Hello All!

Well, day 2 has come and almost gone... It's 7:30 at night here, and I am exhausted!  It's been a very busy, but totally awesome day.  And since I get to do it all over again tomorrow, I'm going to try and get to sleep a little earlier than I did last night.

For some reason I was tossing and turning all night, so I'd be surprised if I got 3 hours of sleep.  When my alarm went off at 5:30, I was not the happiest camper in the world.  But I managed to get myself out of bed, shower, make my hair curly and pretty, then take off to grab some breakfast.  Unfortunately, the food court at the hotel is currently closed for refurbishments so I walked to the resort next door.  No biggie, just a ten minute walk.  But, in that ten minutes the humidity totally killed my beautiful curls.  I was kinda pissed.  Although now I know that it's the hair straightener for me tomorrow...

After breakfast, it was to the lobby with my paperwork and passport in tow.  Myself, along with the other people doing training with me, took a bus to Celebration, FL.  We signed our contracts, got our temporary cast ID's, then we were given the day off.  To the parks!

Now, there are 12 people in my Traditions (training) group.  We will all be on the Fantasy, but in different departments.  There are two other Americans, and people from the Dominican Republic, Scotland, St. Vincent, India & Indonesia.  However, there are only three girls, including me.

It turns out the boys all wanted to go back to their rooms and nap, so us girls said, See Ya! and headed off to Animal Kingdom.  We were only there for a few hours, and probably only went because I had never been on Expedition Everest, the roller coaster.  The two other girls, Vanessa (who's from Wisconsin, with the accent to prove it) and Karla (from Scotland, also with the accent to prove it), and I traipsed around Animal Kingdom for a couple hours.  We ended up not going on the Safaris because the line was just too long.  We did go on Dinosaur, Expedition Everest (which was awesome), and we watched the Festival of the Lion King show.  Way fun.  But since Karla had never been to Disney World before we took off for the Magic Kingdom!

We ended up having perfect timing because we got there just as a show was happening in front of the castle, so we watched that.  Then we got some food and headed for Fantasyland.  Now, we were in the old Fantasyland, not new Fantasyland.   We never made it there, so I guess I'll just have to go back!  We ended up doing PhilharMagic, Haunted Mansion, Small World, Pirates, & Jungle Cruise.  Karla is not a thrill ride person so we skipped those at MK, and since Vanessa and I had been before we didn't mind.  Next up, meeting Mickey.  That was the only thing that Karla had really wanted to do.  So we were able to find him in his tux, and we only had to wait ten minutes.

We headed to the buses after that, we'd all been up since very early in the morning and were still adjusting to the time difference (aside: jet lag sucks...).  So, now I sit here in my room, waiting and writing.  In a few minutes we will be off to grab some dinner at the resort next to ours, then maybe watch 'Finding Nemo' by the pool under the stars.

Anyway, up early tomorrow for Traditions - talk to you after!

Steph :)

PS A couple of the fun pics from today.

Day 1!

**Stephanie's Note - The first part of this blog was written while I was somewhere over the southern US en route from Phoenix to Orlando**

Hello All!

As I sit here on the plane from Phoenix to Orlando I think I am 80% and 20% nervous.  However, those numbers fluctuate rather frequently.  I’m sure they’ll stabilize when I finally get on the boat.  Of course, I may just be exhausted and feeling nothing else but that…

So, it turns out that I over pack.  Which, if you know me is actually no surprise at all.  I’ve been a compulsive over packer my entire life.  They said don’t pack a lot, you won’t need it, but I just couldn’t help myself…  I basically tried to get everything I own into two duffel bags.  It kinda worked.  I know I brought too many shirts, so hopefully I won’t purchase too many more in the Caribbean.  I also had to bring Disney look clothes (appropriate for Traditions training and going out in guest areas on the ship).  I probably have to many of those.  They do include a skirt, which I didn’t own and had to go buy at Old Navy.  But it is purple and teal, my colors, so I guess it isn’t so bad.  I also unfortunately had to leave a few of my toiletries at home because they made my bag too heavy.  In fact, it was 1.5lbs too heavy, but the airline check-in lady was nice enough to overlook that little bit.

I love the Portland airport.  I just had to say it.  I love the Portland airport.  The weird green carpet, the free wifi, I will definitely miss the Northwest.  I actually bought a small Portland magnet in one of the cheesy airport gift shops so that I some reminder with me in my room on the ship. 

One of the other things that I did was have about 60 pictures printed, and I brought little teeny magnets to stick them on my wall.  Since the ship is made of steel the walls are magnetic.

Well, I’m sure that I’ll write more when I get into my room at the hotel, Disney’s All-Star Sports Resort.

Speaking of, here’s hoping that right now the Dodgers are keeping hope alive!

Steph :)

**End of first post**

Hello All again!

First things first, Go Dodgers!

Now, when I finally arrived in Orlando it was 85 degrees and humid outside.  The 85 I love, the humid, not so much...  But after coming from 40 degree weather, I'll take it.  It took 45 minutes for the airline to get the bags to the baggage carousel  so that was a little annoying, but then I was off on the Disney Magical Express!  I don't think I've ever been on it before, if I had, it was over 15 years ago...  It was very fun, and the driver did a great job of getting everyone into the Disney spirit, including a countdown to the exact second we entered Disney property.

I'm staying at the All-Star Sports resort.  It's a nice place, clean room, all you could ask for.  The only deal is that the food court is currently closed for renovation, so I had to go over the All-Star Music for dinner (at this time it's about 9:45pm EDT).  However, since it's so nice outside I walked it.  It was only about 10 minutes and it felt great to move around after being cooped up in a plane all day.

Anywho, I need to try and get some sleep now, since I'm up at 5:30am tomorrow (which of course is 2:30am my time - my brother probably won't even have gone to sleep yet...)

I'll write more tomorrow, which I believe involves paperwork and playing at the parks!

Steph :)

PS Here's a couple pictures from my travels today.