Traditions
The day before Easter, I had Traditions yet again. This is Disney’s orientation for their new cast members (employees), and this is the 3rd time I’ve sat through it. It’s not the most riveting class, but the instructors do a great job at trying to keep things entertaining. During Traditions, you learn all about the 4 keys (safety, courtesy, show, and efficiency), some of the history of the company, and some of what Disney has to offer. It’s a huge company, which encompasses Marvel, LucasFilm, ESPN, Disney Parks, and so much more. Traditions is an 8 hour long class, with a 30 minute lunch break, and several smaller breaks. It is important to arrive at least 15 minutes early, as your class will be called out of the cafeteria (where everyone waits) prior to the start time. You must be in Disney look for this class. If not, you will be sent home, or possibly given a razor (men), and will have to take it another day.
Traditions includes a short trip to Magic Kingdom, so wear comfy shoes! You’ll get to see some of the utilidor, and have a peak at Main Street, USA. Our group also went to Fantasyland. Now this was a Saturday (peak park day), the day before Easter, during the middle of Spring Break. Needless to say, the park was packed! They do give whisper units to everyone, which are earpieces that allow you to hear your instructor as long as you’re within range. That helped a lot!
Easter and Ops
On Easter, I had a class entitled “Welcome to Operations.” This class is not quite as fun or exciting as Traditions, which includes a few magical moments along with the trip into MK. Welcome to Ops explains the different roles included in the Operations umbrella, such as photopass, merchandise, food and beverage, attractions, etc. It also goes over the “Safe-D begins with Me” information, which is how to lift things and how to stay safe in the workplace. After lunch, everyone was divided into their separate roles. For some reason my location, Pirates League, is included in merchandise for this part of the day. It’s weird, because in my interview I was told it’s actually part of entertainment, and since we don’t handle cash I double checked to make sure that I was being sent to the right place. The class was 2 hours long, and was all about how merchandise cast members can stay safe, incorporate the 4 keys into their location, and help people find their Magical Memory Merchandise (or something like that). I felt out of place, because it wasn’t really applicable to me, as I am not selling anything.
Hair Braiding
On Thursday, I had a Hair Braiding class from 8-5:30. I honestly didn’t know what to expect, as Pirate Masters don’t braid hair! The only hair we do is for the mermaid look, and it’s a simple twist from what I’ve seen. Turns out, the class was mostly about safety and sanitation. Lots of instructional videos, but the instructor tried to keep it interesting with crosswords, and jeopardy type quizzes.
Once Upon a Time is Now… Again
On Saturday, I left the apartment at 6:25 in order to get to the Mouseketeria inside Magic Kingdom’s utilidor (utility-corridor- We make up a lot of words, acronyms, and abbreviations at Disney) by 7:15. I’m glad I left so early, as the busses to get from West Clock, the cast member (CM) parking lot to Magic Kingdom (MK) were backed up for some reason. Even though it is a short distance and could easily be walked to, for safety reasons and probably other reasons I don’t know about, all CMs must take the bus over after presenting their ID to security. They had us clock in at about 7:00, so be sure to get there before your actual scheduled time for this shift. Once clocked in, we received whisper units again and headed into the Utilidor.
“Once Upon a Time is Now” is the orientation that all CMs working at MK have to go through. I actually took this when I did my college program (CP) in 2011. I’ve also become WAY more familiar with MK since then, so I didn’t have a whole lot to learn, except for navigating the utilidor, which as a guest I obviously could not do. Still, it’s a great orientation, because most of it is spent walking around the various lands of MK.
Spoiler Alert:
You also get to ride one of MK’s most famous and classic attractions, Haunted Mansion. Now personally, I’ve seen enough of the Haunted Mansion to want to ride it as a regular guest, but when riding it with the group I became quite nostalgic. Perhaps if I had been healthy when I worked there I wouldn’t have found it so foreboding. I still prefer pixie dust to dust bunnies and cobwebs, and I’m still terrified I’ll get stuck in the stretch room, but it’s really not so bad. Personally, I think there’s another ride that would be even better for new CMs to go on, simply because it’s so informative about the land. This would be the Tomorrowland Transit Authority Peoplemover. It takes you all through Tomorrowland, even through Space Mountain, and talks about all the attractions, shops, and characters in the land. Highly underrated ride IMO. But still, Mansion is fun.
The Pirates League
After we headed back downstairs we were taken into a room where we watched a conclusion video and then were picked up by various leaders according to the land we were headed to. As I was the only Pirate League recruit, I went by myself to meet my trainer. She was awesome! Her name is Brooke, and she looks like Ariel (she was close friends with Ariel, so she must have taken up some of her styling suggestions). She’s my age, super friendly, and down to earth. We took lunch, then navigated our area for a bit. I saw inside The Pirates League (TPL), including the back room. Quite different from peeking in through the barred windows. We took the bus back to West Clock, where the costuming building is and I got my costume. It’s quite elaborate. Shirt, skirt, a corset-type waistband, a long bandana, and beads. With my mansion costume, I could throw my apron and bat hat on while standing on the bus. I have a feeling this won’t be quite as easy. Back in our location, we played the Pirate Adventure: Treasures of the Seven Seas game, which is one of the very few things in MK I’ve never done! It’s similar to Sorcerer’s of the Magic Kingdom, but it only takes place in Adventureland. You’re given a map and a clue, and it leads you on a scavenger hunt of sorts. It’s free to all guests, so if you’re ever looking to kill time or are bored, it’s a fun thing to do. We also rode Pirates of the Caribbean. We both agreed that “we wants the redhead” could’ve been kept in the ride, but that the redhead could’ve made a snappy retort, or as Brooke suggested, since they’re auctioning off hens, they could’ve changed it to “we wants the red hens”. Opportunity missed, imagineering.
We finished up by looking over TPL’s menu and discussing a bit about how things are run there, and what’s included in each of the looks. We also went down and I got to see a library of pirate books that CMs had donated, and I filled out an “about me” paper for the managers. I also was given a lot of info to look over, including TPL’s backstory, how to talk like a pirate, and the pirate oath. Luckily, I had already memorized the oath, which will make learning everything else much easier. Next, I’ll start my land training. Land is basically front of house, where guests are greeted and checked in. We train on land one day, then start the back.
The Rest of Life
After my shift, I needed to go and get shoes, because I was told the one’s I had from attractions weren’t going to work. Earlier this week I had gotten a watch that would be fitting in a pirate environment, as my white digital one didn’t exactly fit the role. I had to go to a few places, but I found some shoes and stockings that would work, and picked up some allergy med for Zuri, my puppy. Aside from the fact that I spent more than my first paycheck on items for work, the dog, and groceries, by the time I got home I was also exhausted! Still, Zuri is on 4 meds that I needed to administer, plus I had to take care of all the stuff I’d brought home. Life’s just been a little crazy, so for anyone that’s been trying to get in touch for the last week, sorry! Between vet visits, work, and packing up the apartment, it’s been a lot. Still, I’m excited about where things are going.
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Faith, Hope, Trust 