Day 4 ~At Ease~

Today was the first day I actually felt relaxed and at home.  Moving here on my own, figuring out transportation, and acclimating to a city has been more stressful than I care to admit.  (Still fun, though!)

I finally have all of my luggage moved in and a pillow on my bed.  I took a walk over to the outlets in the morning to get myself dress pants and then attended a housing meeting.  The meeting was longer than I expected but there was plenty of excitement.  I am so ready for the different housing events that are offered throughout the program!

After the meeting I went to Chic-fil-a and Walmart with Courtney, Gisselle, and Nora. (three of my roommates)  I was able to get everything I needed for my bedroom plus food for the week.

Annnndddd I am now out of money. :(

Tomorrow afternoon I have Traditions - a 4 hour orientation class for Walt Disney World.  I'm excited for my first paid Disney activity!

P.S. I'll post pictures of my beautiful apartment here later on.

Day 3

I am beyond exhausted right now so Ill just post some pictures and ramble later!

First attraction of my trip. But how did they make fake Captain Jack Sparrow so freakin hot?! 

Another new favorite - Haunted Mansion!

The beautiful Hollywood Studios

Finished the day with fireworks in Epcot!

I've arrived!

I just finished my second day in Florida. 

~Sunday~

My flight got to MCO around noon on Sunday, at which point I met up with my friend Daphne. Daphne and I spent the day swimming at a resort and exploring Downtown Disney. We made friends, got free stuff, and ate tons of food. Everything seemed like a dream. (cliche but true) We ended the day with the kids menus at IHOP.

~Monday~

I woke up at 5:30 this morning to get ready for my day. I met my fantastic roommates and went to Vista Way to begin the check on process. I spent the next six or seven hours in lines, talking to cast members, and filling out paperwork. One of my roommates, Gisselle, has the same schedule as me so we had plenty of bonding! And by bonding I mean fawning over British accents. 

I finally made it to my apartment at 2pm, and let me tell ya, its perfect! It is very close to the gate, clubhouse, mail kiosk, and bus stop. The rooms are spacious and we have a nice corner balcony. 

Ending the day, I couldn't be happier or more exhausted. Daphne and I are heading to Disney World tomorrow so its time I hit the hay! Night folks.

30,009 People Applied. 2,400 Received Internship Offers. 1 Proud Kat is heading to Disney Workd!

Only about 7% of applicants make it into the Disney College Program each semester.  I still have a difficult time believing that I was one of them!  THIS SUNDAY (that's right, in less than a week) I will be on my flight to Orlando, Florida.

I have taken so many wonderful opportunities in my life, each leading to the next.  I am so unbelievably honored that I get to take this next step into my future.

So what have I been doing in the past couple of weeks while all I can think about is Disney?

• Packing
• Night trip to NYC
• Spending time with Kagiso
• Packing
• Crunches
• Meeting up with High School friends
• Packing
• Worrying about every possible thing
• Still not done packing....

Just a few more days.

Why Disney? (21 Days)

 I am not big on cartoons, I haven't memorized every line to Beauty and the Beast, and I'm not dying to get autographs from every princess I meet.  So why Disney?  

1. Walt Disney only had $40 in his pocket when he moved to California to make his fortune.  He built an entire empire from nothing, and that inspires me.
2. Walt found what many people dream of and search for: Immortality. (In a positive way!)  
3. As a future business owner I look up to everything that he has accomplished, and continues to accomplish even after death.
4. I would love to work for Disney corporate when I graduate.  More specifically, with Touchstone or ABC.
5. I want to help make other people's days magical.
6. It will look good on my resume. (Damn good if I do say so myself!)
7. I am excited to take classes taught by Disney Leaders in areas such as marketing and leadership.
8. This is my chance to explore and try new things.  Where better to start than Orlando, Florida?
9. And of course, the perks!  Free park admission, meeting people from all over the world, cast-member only locations, etc.

I am honored to be a cast member, and I cannot wait to finally start in Walt Disney World!

My Surprise Party! (IUP Friends)

28 Days Until Departure

     I finished out my fall semester on Thursday and came how to the Poconos on Friday night.  Now I'm playing a waiting game.

     The end of my semester was bittersweet.  I was excited and scared and sad and sick as hell.  Not to mention a Prob & Stats final set to kill.  Up until this point I haven't allowed myself to actually believe Disney was going to happen.  I am not a fan of getting my hopes up.  I finally had to decide it was real when I arrived at my surprise party thrown by my IUP family!  Several of my best friends gathered to say goodbye.  I am so lucky to have people who care about me enough to do something like this.  They all wrote me little good bye letters and gave me cookies and ......punch.  I was all drugged up on cold medicine and had an 8am final the next day, but I was so thankful for the party anyhow.  The next two days were spent taking exams and sleeping off the sick.

     Now that I am home I am going stir crazy.  I haven't yet gotten my plane ticket because we are waiting for a check to come in first.  I don't have any luggage to pack in and I already miss my school friends.  Realizing that I wont be seeing them every weekend of the next semester hit hard.  My home life is boring and uneventful, so I want to go out with my high school friends and spend all of my time with them.  I'm hoping to spend a lot of time in Manhattan with one of my best friends over the next few weeks.

Disney is happening. My life is happening. 

It's finally time to step up and be on my own.  

I am ready.