15 Things I Learned on the Disney Cultural Exchange Program (Part 1)

So I've been thinking about how I could possibly start to blog about my experience and to be honest, it's a little overwhelming.  And since my go-to technique when facing an overwhelming task is to write lists, I figured that's how I would begin this process.  2015 was a huge year of growth and change for me and I learnt a complete butt-load of life lessons (yes, butt-load is the  correct term here).  I learnt so much about myself and other people and I came out a stronger person.  In fact I learnt so much I had to break this up in to 2 posts!  So here's your first installment: 15 Things I Learned on the Disney Cultural Exchange Program (Part 1).

1. Walt Disney World is both huge and tiny at the same time  

Disney is full of paradoxes, and one that I became aware of is the fact that despite how absolutely massive WDW is (it's like the size of a City!) it's begins to feel small pretty quickly when you live there.  People call this effect the 'Disney Bubble' and over time you realize that it really is like living in a huge invisible dome.  That's both a good thing and a bad thing.  It's good because getting around Disney World is incredibly easy - especially when you're a cast member and you can get just about anywhere without too much hassle.  Signage is impeccable and transportation is both plentiful and reliable.  Cast Members are friendly and helpful and cheerful music is always playing.  It's a magical wonderland designed to bring joy and happiness (and to get you to spend lots of money lol).  But sometimes it's so claustrophobic too.  You run into fellow Cast Members all the time, the crowds can be unbearable and the music starts to grate on your nerves sometimes.  The artificial quality of it all can be too much at times and you just want to spend one day without seeing something shaped like Mickey Mouse!  I made the effort to just get out of the bubble when I could and spent time in regular old Orlando.  It kept me same to not always feel like a perpetual tourist.  One of my favorite things to do was to catch the bus to the Florida Mall and just hang out there because it felt so normal, and that was very important for me.

2. I am so much older than I realized

This is what we call truth.  Oh my Lordy me, I am so much older than I think I am.  You see kiddos, in my mind, I'm still a sprightly young 21 year old, full of hopes and dreams and potential and so on. But in reality, I'm 32 year old and cynical and in need of sleep and coffee and with zero interest in clubbing and drugs and I have knees that creak when I get out of bed in the morning.  It took living and working with kids in their 20's for me to realize this.  I'm not meaning to sound condescending at all here, and I made so many great friends with people in their 20's at Disney, but I became very aware of how much I have grown and changed in the last 10 years or so.  I'm actually amazed at how much wisdom I have -I'm so wise now lol!  So It's not so much a criticism on others as it is a comment on myself.  And I've come to realize that I'm ok with myself and my age and who I have become.

3. It's best not to go in with too many expectations

This is a good lesson for life in general, but something I think anyone considering the DCP/ICP/CEP should take in to account.  I had so many expectations about what Disney was going to be like, what sort of job I would have, the fun I would have with my roommates etc and when those expectations weren't met, I struggled a lot to get my head around that.  In reality, I didn't get the job I really wanted, but I discovered that I'm a very good in retail and sales and that's helped me with my current job and plans for the future.  My roommates turned out to actually pretty nasty people and not the sweet and funny young ladies I had imagined them to be, but I eventually accepted that there were so many amazing friendships waiting for me outside of my apartment.  I wanted so much to work at Magic Kingdom that when I was assigned to Animal Kingdom I was truly devastated - but it turned out to be my favorite Disney park ever and I feel like I squandered my time there a little bit wishing for something else.  If my mind had been more one from the start I could have achieved so much more.

4. American's love Aussies and Kiwis

I sort of already knew this, but working in a Customer Service role just highlighted it tenfold.  People went crazy about it, asked so many questions, took photos and imitated my accent.  You get sick of answering the same questions over and over again ("Australia huh?  You're a long way from home!") and sometimes you will use an American accent just to avoid those conversations.  You'll have days where you simply cannot wrap your head around how naive and unworldly the average American is, but then you'll have moments where you're sitting in Miller's Ale House at midnight, trying to explain the complex rules of Aussie Rules football and having American friends actually wanting to watch a match with you and your heart will be so full of love for those crazy kids.

5. There are some really stupid people out there.

So stupid.  So, so stupid.  Disney Cast Members have a little joke that when people come to Disney, they accidentally leave their brains at home.  It's not meant to hurt or belittle people (and it's not something we actually say to guests) but it is unbelievable how many people fail to use common sense at Disney.  And I get it, truly I do - Disney is big and overwhelming and if you've never been there before and you're corralling four kids and trying to read a map and remember what time your fast pass reservation is and what parking lot your car is in.... well, something is going to fall by the wayside.  As a Cast Member, you just have to get used to stupid questions and assumptions and lack of understanding.

6. There are some really amazing people out there.
In 2015 I met some really fascinating people, like the woman whose grandmother knew L.M. Montgomery, the kid who looked like a super-cute toddler version of Thor, or the American father who was a random Aussie Rules Football fan and totally geeked out over sharing his passion with me.  I also made some incredible friends, like the ones who gossiped and giggled with me at work, drove me to Wal Mart at 11pm because we both desperately needed groceries, or took me to get a pedicure when some stupid guy stood me up and I was feeling sad.  People will spout cliche sayings about the DCP like it's a contest, but this one is true: it really is the people that make the experience worthwhile.

7. The roommate game is is tough
This is a whole blog post in itself!  I don't even know where to start with how crazy the whole roommate situation is.  Sometimes people get the most amazing roommates and everything is sunshine and roses and perfection - but that is extremely rare.
Living with strangers is difficult.
Living with friends is even harder.
Sharing a bedroom with anyone when you're over the age of 12 is a giant pain in the you-know-what!
You want to know a person's true character?  Live with them.  The sweetest person can turn into a psychotic monster if they don't like your placement of the toilet paper.  And being crammed into over-populated and aging apartments while you're adapting to a new country and working 60 hour weeks?  Yeah, it's tough.

8. Living in America isn't all it's cracked up to be (but sometimes it is)
This wasn't my first rodeo, I'd been to the US before so I had some idea of the culture and all, but living in America is very, VERY different from visiting there as a tourist.  Of course there's the fun of driving on the wrong (aka: right) side of the road and the excitement of visiting huge super-stores like Wal-Mart, but that novelty soon wears off and you find yourself having to adapt to daily life in a foreign country.  Despite the fact that you're technically speaking the same language, there will be translation issues.  Their paper money is just weird (seriously, so easily damaged!) and pennies will make your wallet triple in weight.  Adding on sales tax to almost everything is a constant nasty surprise, and remembering to factor in a tip (and working out what you're supposed to tip for) will do your head in.  People carry guns like it's not dangerous and going to the doctor is devastatingly expensive.  There is poverty in America that rivals third-world countries, and yet they speak constantly of freedom and how lucky they are, ignoring the violence on their local news programs every night.  Sometimes it's terribly overwhelming.
But then you chat to someone from Alabama about southern hospitality and you fall in love with their adorable accent.  You discover amazing places to eat and interesting products you can't get at home.  You go to a sports bar, eat buffalo wings and watch hockey, american football and baseball at the same time.  You watch the Oscars live and laugh at yourself when you realize you can't just google the winners.  You buy a bag of chips big enough to use as a sleeping bag and then try to explain to your American friends that we use the word 'chips' to mean both crisps and fries.
You realize that America is the weirdest version of Wonderland ever.

The Emotional Equivalent of Space Mountain: Part 3

I've been a bit busy lately but I'm finally getting around to updating the story of my application dramas, and tonight I shall share the conclusion of my tale thus far!

Last time, I had just received an email from Disney's Australian recruiter, and in that email she asked if she could phone me in two days time to discuss my application questions.  To say I was stunned would be an understatement of epic proportions!  I quickly replied to confirm the time for the phone call and then proceeded to spend the next two days wondering what it could all mean.  I figured she was just going to explain the situation to me, but there was that tiny glimmer of hope inside that made me think that just maybe I could still have a chance with Disney.

We had organised for the phone call to be at 8am so on the morning of the call I woke about 7am and just lay in bed waiting for the call.  Around 8:10 my phone rang and I had to take a few deep breaths before I could answer.  The conversation started with the usual pleasantries (I think we may have talked about the weather) before Jill, the recruiter, began to talk about my studies.  She confirmed that I had indeed begun my course in January 2013, but then she said the words that made my heart skip a beat.  It was something along the lines of "And you completed that in December 2013?"

For a moment I forgot how to breathe, how to speak, how to do anything.  

Eventually though, I found my voice and managed to say "Uh, no.  My course doesn't finish until December 2014.  I'm still a student."

Jill sounded surprised and quickly re-checked my application and CV before telling me the wonderful news: A mistake had been made and I was still eligible for the program!  I tried to remain calm as the conversation finished up, Jill promising I would receive the interview invitation in the next few days.  I think I said "Thank You" about fifty times in two minutes!

When I hung up, I just sat there staring at my phone for a couple of minutes, not really sure what to do or what to think.  After a week of devastation at having my dream taken away and finally beginning to adjust to that, suddenly it was being handed back to me.  I will admit that even though I was excited, it did take me a couple of days to re-adjust.  But by the time my interview invitation came through, I was ready to take my second chance and make the most of it.

So after not hearing anything for months, being made NLIC then being told it was a mistake, I finally got to book in my interview with Disney on August 25th, exactly four months - to the day - that I first applied to Disney.  My interview is on September 9th which is now only 4 days away and I'm pretty excited, so I'll make sure to update again soon!

The Emotional Equivalent of Space Mountain: Part 2

I promised I would update my application saga today so here I am, keeping my promise.  When we left off, I was about to call Disney International Recruiting in America.  After working out how to put in the international phone codes I managed to get through to Disney recruiting.  Unfortunately, my delight at speaking to a real person was short lived when I realised that I wasn’t going to get much help.   Unfortunately the recruiter in charge of the Australia and New Zealand program was out of the office (I knew this already as she was in New Zealand conducting interviews) and apparently she was the only one who could tell me anything about my application.  I was told “Your application still needs to be reviewed”, but pretty much couldn’t be told anything else except to call back in about a week when the recruiters would be back in the office.

So, frustrated and confused and a little worried, I waited that very long week until the day I’d been told to ring back.  Because of time differences between Australia and America, I had to wait up until about 11pm for the Disney offices to open so I could call them.  I spoke to a different person this time, but this call was even less helpful than the first.  Despite being advised to call back at this time, the recruiter was once again not in the office so I couldn’t speak to her.  This time I was given some generic information about application reviews involving a lot of variables like experience etc.  When I tried to question further about my application and personal information, it became evident that I couldn’t be told anything specific.  Even more frustrated, I wrote yet another email to recruiting but decided to call back the following day.  Once again the recruiters weren’t available but this time I was told that the delay could have been caused by me being ineligible for a visa.  Still confused, I woke the next morning to an awful discovery – according to my Dashboard, I had been made No Longer In Consideration.

I was devastated.  I didn’t understand what I had done wrong or why they wouldn’t even give me an opportunity to interview.  The explanations I had received didn’t make sense and suggestions that I wasn’t eligible were equally baffling.  I was disappointed, upset and completely bewildered.  Not expecting to really hear much, I nonetheless wrote one last email to recruiting, asking politely for some feedback or at the very least an explanation for the decision to make me NLIC.  To be honest though, I didn’t really expect to hear anything.

And I didn’t hear anything…until 5 days later, when an email popped up in my inbox from none other than the very recruiter I hadn’t been able to contact.  And what she had to say gave me a very small glimmer of hope.

To Be Continued…

The Emotional Equivalent of Space Mountain: Part 1

 If you read my last entry, you know that my application process for the program has been rather eventful.  I thought I would go into more detail about what I went through and the roller-coaster of emotions that I had to endure.

I feel I need to preface this story by saying that you cannot ever be over-prepared for the torture of waiting for updates on your application.  I thought I was prepared and boy was I wrong.  So very, very wrong.

So let’s back up to a couple of weeks ago.  After 14 weeks of waiting, Disney finally sent out emails inviting Australian applicants to interviews.  This should have resulted in me dancing around the house, squealing and singing Disney songs at the top of my lungs...right? 

Wrong!

In case you haven't worked it out yet, I did not receive one of those lovely "Please book an interview" emails.  My mind immediately started racing with thoughts and questions that all revolved around one theme: Does this mean it's all over for me, that the Disney Adventure has stopped before it's even begun?

Well, in a word: No. 

In three words: I'm not sure. 

In four? I don't think so.

You see my friends, this process is not always easy as the lucky, never-had-a-problem, gosh-this-was-simple, applicants would have you believe.  Oh no, not at all.  At this point I felt like I was on the world’s longest train journey and just as we were almost at our destination the train stalled at some stupid town where nobody ever goes!

"Attention Passengers, we have made an unscheduled stop at Frustration Station.  We have no idea when we will be back on our way again, so please just sit back, relax and stew in your over-active imagination's capacity to think up as many worse case scenarios as possible."

See, whilst I hadn't yet received an interview invite, neither had I been made NLIC.  In other words, my application was still open but just hasn't moved anywhere yet.  I’d been suspicious for a few weeks that something might be wrong, since I hadn't received an email about uploading anything to DOC.  I tried to get to the bottom of this through research and emailing Disney recruiting and the answer I got every time was "Keep checking your email and dashboard for updates."  (I will tell you now that nobody can send a vague email that doesn't actually answer your questions like Disney recruiting).  I did what I was asked and remained patient, sure that Disney recruiting knew what they were talking about, yet in the back of my mind this niggling little thought wouldn't leave me alone - a thought that told me something was wrong.

Well when I didn't receive an interview invite, it took me all of 2 minutes on to work out that something was indeed very, very wrong.  I emailed Disney but couldn't bear the waiting so eventually I bit the bullet and made a phone call to Disney recruiting.  It was an international call to their offices in Florida, since that was the only number I had been given.  And if I thought the waiting was annoying, I was about to learn that frustration could reach a whole new level!

Stay tuned for the next installment of my application saga!

Disney Drama in 9 Easy Steps

So I haven't updated in forever and for good reason too!  I will update with some more in-depth posts soon but for now I don't have a lot of time so I'm going to keep it brief.  I have been AWOL because my application has been rather...erm, well...let's say 'rocky' (I want to use much stronger language but my rational brain is suggesting I keep it censored for now, lol.

Long story short :

1. I did not receive a DOC request
2. I did not receive an interview invitation
3. I rang Disney and bugged the daylights out of the poor recruiting staff
4. I got made NLIC
5. I was devastated
6. I emailed Disney and asked for an explanation
7. Jill (The wonderful Aus/NZ recruiter) phoned me and we discovered there was a misunderstanding about my student status.
8. I have been made eligible for the program again!
9. I am now awaiting the promised interview invitation.

So there you have it!  Jill said I should receive the email this weekend so expect lots of updates soon!