First Days as a Disney Intern!

Time for an update!

My last day working at the Clinic for the Rehabilitation of Wildlife on Sanibel Island was on December 26th. I then was able to fly home (Dec. 28th) for a little over a week, and was thus able to see tons of family and friends! My mom got married to Steven, her boyfriend of 12ish years (yeah, about time)! It was a very emotional time, considering that I hadn't seen anyone for over 6 months since I was in Sanibel until that point, and knowing that I was leaving for another 6 months made it that much more difficult to leave home all over again.



I flew back to Florida on the 10th, headed to Orlando on the 11th, and the next day I moved into my new Professional Intern apartments at Cumberland Apartments. My move-in time was 8am. I met up with some of the girls I had been talking to (did not end up rooming with them because Disney extended their time as interns and thus I wasn't able to). I received an Pro-Intern housing identification card, along with my room assignment/key and car decal. It is a very nice set up, and even though it is two people to a room, there is ton of room throughout the apartment.

I moved in by myself, and didn't end up meeting any of my new roommates until later in the day. I was able to empty my car in enough time before I headed to my Casting appointment. Everyone is so nice, it is just ridiculous. I'm not really complaining, I guess. :) Anyway, I was able to go through the process of handing in my hire documents for Disney, received more information about working for Disney, had my background check completed and got more information about Animal/Environment Program Internships. I attended a meeting specifically for Animal/Environment Program Interns where I finally was able to meet Jason and Michelle, along with others in the departments we will be working in. I got tons of information on my role and specific details and perks. Due to the confidentiality of certain aspects, I cannot share everything on here, mostly because it is different for every student. Later that night, I met up with some of the students at Cici's Pizza, and it was a blast to get to hang out and just talk to everyone!

I had the 13th off and was able to go shopping with some different interns I have met. There are some very interesting people in Orlando... Including the guy walking down a busy street (not that there are any streets in Orlando that aren't busy), with his pants hanging down pass his butt without any underwear on. Gross, Orlando. Real gross. After a successful morning grocery and supply (shoe) shopping, I relaxed most of the afternoon before checking out the apartments gym equipment. It's alright... Hey, it's free and has 24/7 access, I don't think I'm allowed to complain much.


Today (Dec 14th) was super eventful! I had my Traditions class this morning at 7:45 (which meant I woke up at 6:20am, left at 6:55am, and got to Disney University by 7:20). I really hate the feeling that I could be late, and I'm still trying to get used to driving around on Disney property. Haven't gotten lost yet, so that is a plus! Traditions was fun, we learned a lot about Disney's goals, values, and main focuses as a entertainment corporation. We were then taken to Magic Kingdom to visualize some of these aspects in real time. It was so cold today, I almost died. Florida, please continue to be the Sunshine state and stop being cold!!! I'm officially a Disney Cast Member!

I received my Disney Park Access/ Discount Identification card, my new name-tag and a Goofy critter (for being a team leader)! Needless to say, I was pretty tired after the experience. However, I ended up going out with my roommates to see Beauty and the Beast in 3D at Downtown Disney's Dine-In movie theater, and then walked around Downtown Disney's stores. Tomorrow (Dec 15th), all of the Animal/Environment Programmers will be meeting up at 8am Animal Kingdom for further orientation and training. So glad we get to wear tennis shoes tomorrow! I'm not sure how much the interns who will be working at The Seas in Epcot will benefit from meeting at DAK, but that's not my issue I guess. It will be an all day event, and I'm super excited for whatever activities will take place! I cannot wait to actually start my job!



Speaking of which -- I'm going to be working 7am - 4pm Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, with Thursday and Friday off (same schedule as CROW, which is weird), and then will work Saturday. After that, I'm not sure what my schedule will be, or if it will be constant or not. One thing I do know is that there will be nights that I am on call for emergency cases or injured animals (I'M EXCITED ABOUT THIS EVEN IF IT DOES WAKE ME UP AT 2AM)! Looking forward to starting on Monday, kind of nervous, but mostly anxious!

That's all for now! :) <3 Faith, Trust, and Pixie Dust!