I'm Going to Disneyland!

Today was our Traditions training day. This is where new cast members learn history and go over the keys of the Walt Disney Company such as:
"What do we make?" "HAPPINESS!"
"Who does this?" "WE DO!"

I also found out that I will be work on attractions in Tomorrowland!

The most exciting thing during Traditions is we got a backstage tour of Disneyland Park. Unfortunately  I have signed some legal papers so I can't tell you about that stuff, but it was very exciting. I can say I saw some stuff for attractions coming in the near future.

At the end of Traditions we were welcomed to the company by Bob Iger (via a video) and then our favorite mouse led us to pick up our official Disney name tags and Disneyland ID cards.

With my ID card I can get into the parks free plus great discounts at all kinds of Disney and non Disney stores. I can also get into the Disney Studios in Burbank! I sense an exploration day of that in the future!

Now that I have my ID card what's the first thing I do? I'm going to Disneyland! Of course I had to stop by Town Hall and get "My First Visit to Disneyland" pin. Then we started up Main Street toward Sleeping Beauty Castle. I had a decision to make: what was going to be my first attraction at Disneyland to ride? I picked the Matterhorn Bobsleds. We don't have this ride in Florida, so I was excited to try something new. 

After riding Pirates of the Caribbean, The Haunted Mansion, and Indiana Jones Adventure, we headed over to Disney California Adventure. All we rode there was California Screamin'. Most of California Adventure was under construction, so it was hard to get a full grasp if the park.

I didn't have enough time to explore the park sin great detail, but that is what I'll be doing the next few days while I'm off!

Touching the Pacific

The housing party was almost as lame as I expected it to be. It was very similar to the Orientation luaus we had at main campus such as this:

It was mostly lost of people standing around with loud music and free pizza. I left early and went up to my room. About that time my roommate, Jace, got back from work. He has a car and he said we should go explore the city! It was amazing! We went through downtown LA, Hollywood Blvd., Rodeo Drive,  the Hollywood sign, Malibu (home of Elle Woods), and Zuma beach. While it was dark, we made out way to the water so we could touch the Pacific Ocean. The waves were huge! While we were out we saw two movies being filmed: one in Downtown and one in front of the Grauman's Chinese Theatre. I think I'm going to like it here.

FUN FACT: The Hollywood sign isn't always lit at night. The city wants to cut down energy costs and the residents of the neighborhood right below it don't want traffic looking at it all night. That being said, this is what it looked like last night:

Today I went to Team Disney Anaheim (TDA) to take my picture for my ID as well as fill out my scheduling card and pick my classes. I had a pre-warning to make sure to smile because they don't tell you when they are taking the picture, so I cheesed it up. I think I have a good one. We got done earlier than expected, so I don't have much else to do today. Here is what TDA looks like:

Tomorrow is my first official paid day of work. We start with a class called Traditions, which covers history and information about The Walt Disney Company and Disneyland Resort. I'm super excited about this. I'm also going to get my Disney ID so I will be able to go to the parks whenever I want for FREE! Guess what I'm doing tomorrow! Check back tomorrow night for my update of my California Adventure!