I felt like I shouldn't write up this summary straight after I returned. I was full of a mixture of emotions, and there were certain things I knew may have tarnished my post, and I wouldn't have given an accurate account of how I feel about my Disney Adventure.
I find myself here and ready to write today as a result of a few things. One, I got through the 'I'm ready to go home now' and the 'I love being home and don't want to think about Disney' phases and am now beginning to miss being in Orlando. Two, I finally have a day off and have time to sit down and write. And three, the craziness of moving to Wellington and working two jobs has started to slow down and I am able to think about my time away, rather than block away those thoughts in order to stay focused in what I am doing.
A whole lot of my CP (College Programme) friends have been talking of their 'Disney depression' ever since getting back. I can understand why they feel that way, but I just don't feel it on the same level as they do. I had a lot to come home to (I'm not saying they didn't), and I was so ready to be back with Mana again, see my family, see Gretel, know what foods I liked in the supermarkets etc, and have my own space away from my roommate. My CP friends have been a little confused by my lack of yearning for being in Orlando, but I guess we all just process these things differently.
Just this week, twelve weeks after coming home, more than half the time I spent in Orlando, I have started to miss being there. I especially miss the easiness of being able to go into the parks on any day even before my shifts started, and going on rides, or popping into a shop to check if they have the latest Disney item, or grabbing a Disney treat on my way to work. I saw a photo of me holding a rice crispy treat a few days ago and I was craving one of them so badly.
I also developed a similar craving for a caramel apple when I met someone who had done the DCP in the past. I would not have had any connection with that stranger had I not been on my amazing adventure to Orlando, and we would not have been able to reminisce about our times there, as we did.
I even miss the ease of getting Starbucks. How sad is that! It's something we have here in NZ, but in Orlando we had one pretty much at the end of our street, and multiple stores in the parks and on Disney property. We could just grab one on the way up Main St at the start of our shift.
Last week the episode of The Middle, which was filmed in the park while I was working there, aired on TV here. It was fantastic to see those familiar spots, and it got me thinking how amazing it was that I could just walk through that park on my way to work. I walked through 'Magic Kingdom' to get to my job hidden away at the back of the park- how awesome is that?
I get asked by so many people if working for The Walt Disney Company has 'ruined the magic' for me. Not at all. I love knowing how things work, and also all the effort that goes into making it work like it does. I was also given the opportunity to take part in a Disney Marketing course which taught me SO much more about the size of the company and how they make their decisions. The course and it's content was fascinating, and extremely inspiring (despite being at 8am). I realise why so many people dream of working 'out of the parks' for the company. Your job would be forever changing and forever creative. I am still in awe of how Disney World (all four parks and other components of Disney property) comes together and works as smoothly as it does. I cannot wait to go back and be there as a guest. Yes - I will not have as easy access to elements of the park and the benefits we possessed as Cast Members, but I want to go back and explore. The parks were my back gardens. I was free to play and make believe as much as I liked, or as little as I liked. I am also extremely excited to take Mana over sometime and give him a guided tour.
My thoughts about my time at Disney World always come back to the fact that I was placed on one of the best rides possible. I had specified early on where I would like to be, and that could possibly have led to disappointment. So it was amazing when I found out that The Little Mermaid was my spot. The job and its components were all I could have hoped they would be. I got tired of them at times, but I preferred being there to being anywhere else in the park (most of the time). I like that our ride had a moving walkway/travellator, it was a novelty which did seem to ware out fairly quickly... but I don't think I'll ever have another job where I walked constantly, but in the same spot, for hours on end. I also met some amazing amazing friends. We were all there together, doing the same thing, but we also all had a lot in common too. The Mermaid cast members made coming into work on bad days worthwhile. And we all looked awesome in our costumes! I also came to be friends with a few of the regular park guests, I cherished these friendships and still keep in contact with them.
I remember going to the break room one shift and messaging Mana saying something along the lines of 'If I ever mention missing my job here, remind me that the guests are so awful and not worth the trouble'. Some days they made you furious. Families could have so much disrespect for you and your job, and the rules/processes you were trained to stick to. They didn't care. You were ruining their holiday. It was your fault, no one elses. I saw others around me be spit at, hit, shoved, and threatened. It is a shame, but the majority of families who were good were quickly overruled and forgotten because of the disgusting families which came along every so often. I came to think that the only way these guests could be so rude to people who are there for your safety, is that upon entering into the parks they had engulfed the fairytale lifestyle and forgotten that for us, our jobs were still reality, and amazingly we still had feelings like normal humans. But then again, they could have just been awful people! One time someone even pooed in our line.
These guests would get verbally abusive with you if the ride was closed. I understand that if you have been wanting to go on this ride for some time that you will be upset if it is closed. However if the staff at this ride are telling you it is closed (most commonly for technical issues or hygiene reasons), take their word for it. You wouldn't want to go on this ride in the state it is in, and sometimes the ride isn't even moving. If the cast members let you in, as you are demanding they do, you would sit still in the dark not moving anywhere. This time could be used more wisely going on one of the other multiple attractions the park has to offer.
On the one occassion when I was threatened with a formal complaint by a family, I was beyond caring. I didn't mind if they 'dobbed me in'. I knew I hadn't done anything wrong, and I also knew that Disney were likely to reward this family for their disrespect of my adherence to the protocols I had been taught. A little bit mixed up when I state it like that, but that is how it works.
Bottom line is, I was shocked at how badly people can treat others when they are in the mindset that you are working for them and that is your soul purpose.
Another thing I have come to realise is that while I would become extremely frustrated with some families who came through, they were there on their holiday and at some points I would forget that. I would forget that they were in this fantasy theme park away from their own reality. Yes they were rude to us, but I can see how this may have come about. It doesn't make it ok that we were sometimes treated the way we were, but I do recognise now how that would come about. It also makes me smile when I think about occasions where I would think, oh my goodness you guys are so excited, maybe a little too excited. I smile now as I know this is what my family are like when we go into the parks. We believe it all, we absorb every little detail around us, and some days that is what we live for.
I hadn't expected to experience some of the things I did when I headed off to Disney World, but everything makes you grow as a person.
Now onto one of the best elements of my time away. I met some of the funniest, kindest, and friendliest friends I will ever know at Vista Way. We had a blast. It was amazing how close we were both emotionally (and geographically) at all times. My friendships far exceeded my expectations and I miss those beautiful souls a lot.
Thanks for coming along on the ride.
Polly Mouse xoxo