Training

Hey, all!

WELL, they don't lie, they work you hard here. Today is my first day off since I began work, yeesh!

Training has been a lot of information crammed in to a short amount of time. There have been the general orientations-- like Traditions class that I talked about in my last post, but more recently, training has gotten concentrated, honing in on exactly what my job will be.

I'll be working in Hollywood Studios (formerly MGM Studios) in the area called "Hollywood Hills" which includes Rockin' Roller Coaster, Tower of Terror, and Fantasmic. I'm part of what Disney calls their "Merchantainment" Cast Members, which is a combination of Merchandise + Entertainment.

Training has ranged from being quizzed on where the nearest bathrooms and smoking areas are, to learning the tips and tricks of how to "magic" a guest's day. I might get the opportunity to call Goofy up and have him wish one of the guest's a very special birthday over the phone, trade Disney pins with another collector, or I could point out the Hidden Mickey's in my area.

That's the fun part though-- learning the registers is rough, since we only had one day of practice, and didn't even get into the particulars of our area before we were put on the floor with the full force of the summer crush of people bearing down on us, yipe! I did fine though, phew!

I work in the gift shops at both Tower and Coaster, but I also may be put on "photo" helping guests select and purchase the ride photos that they like. It's fun because they're always laughing at themselves and ready to have a good time.

But my absolute favorite part of the job is working on Fantasmic, the water/fireworks/and special effects show just down the hill from the Tower of Terror. Last night, I wore an apron with... I don't know how many pockets that I could stuff with light-up glow toys. I had so much fun just talking to guests and the kids. Some of the smaller fry were simply mesmerized by this glowing, walking, talking girl-- adorable. By the time I got back to the stock room, I had $500 dollars on me, thank goodness I learned how to count back change the Disney way and quickly. Twice I was given a $100 dollar bill for a $7 purchase-- whoa.

I'm excited to get back out there, but I have tomorrow off too. Hoping to get to the parks again sometime soon! We went out to Toy Story 3 a few days ago, which was FANNNNtastic. Then, stopped by House of Blues on Sunday since it's free to get in for CPs and on top of that it was ladies drink free night! With paid-for bus transportation on top of that... I didn't pay for a thing. Score.

Thanks for reading, everyone! Love ya. Please comment and stay in touch!!