It All Starts With A Wish: A Disney College Program TR NEW 9/3

[lamom18]

I'm loving your trip report! I have a cousin who has been doing the College Program and wished he would have been there next year, when we take our trip. I have another cousin that I tried to convince to do the program, but he's into the theatre stuff and he just wasn't having it. Hope you continue to enjoy it!

 

[pookersmom]

Wow, what a great trip report! It's so fun to read about all your adventures. It's wonderful that you hit the roommate jackpot. I'm sure that could make or break the experience!

I'm stunned -- STUNNED! -- that pkondz would give anyone any sass.

 

[pkondz]

I'm stunned -- STUNNED! -- that pkondz would give anyone any sass.

I know, right! Me? Me?????
Must've been a typo.

 

[courtneybelle]

July 10, 2015 (Part 1): Character Hunting and Dream Along with Mickey

This morning Shayla and I headed to the Magic Kingdom pretty early on a special mission…we wanted to see my pal Skipper Mandy on the Jungle Cruise!

This was so amazing. I love the Jungle Cruise normally, but to see one of my friends as the skipper made it a million times better. Mandy even threw in a Frozen joke for me. (“If you drop anything over the side of the boat, just be like Elsa and let it go.”)

After that we decided to go visit Merida! I love this picture because it shows us as we truly are, highly functional human beings.

She was very sweet. We talked about bears a lot—she had seen a yellow one eating honey nearby and was a little concerned, but we assured her that Pooh is a very nice bear.

We got a bite to eat at Cosmic Ray’s and then headed to New Fantasyland to see the man, the myth, the legend…Gaston! He was a riot. He told me he liked my Belle shirt, then asked Shayla why she wasn’t wearing a Gaston shirt so Belle and Gaston could be together.

He also asked us if we were going to see Belle, and said that if we were, when they asked for volunteers during the show, we should raise our hands and say how much better the show would be if Gaston were in it.

Then we headed to see Shayla’s favorite, Peter Pan, but the line was closed. So we did some Pascal hunting and charged our phones until his next set.

This was an absolutely hilarious meet. I let Shayla go by herself because she loves Peter so much. Peter asked her if she knew any good jokes, and she didn’t, so I jumped in with “Hey Peter, why are you always flying around?” He gave me the SASSIEST look and pointed at the sign that said “Neverland.” I said he asked for a joke, not a good joke, and he responded with a bunch of puns, like, “I actually Tink it’s pretty Darling.”

Our next stop was Starbucks to get drinks, but on the way we took this picture. Shayla loves Anna and I love Elsa so it was appropriate.

Then we watched Dream Along With Mickey! I decided to actually use my nice camera today and I was very happy with the pictures I got.

My favorite picture:

Keep scrolling for the next update!​

 

[courtneybelle]

July 10, 2015 (Part 2): Last Animation Class and More Frozen Fun

We headed over to Hollywood Studios and met up with Kristen, who had just gotten off work. We decided to do one more animation class before the building closed.

We ended up drawing Eeyore! I felt bad because Kristen had just drawn Eeyore earlier in the week, but I still had fun.

We got dinner at Pizza Planet and then went to see the Frozen Sing-A-Long. Once again I decided to use the nice camera, and I got some pretty funny pictures:

"YOU LIIIIKED HER! YOU WANTED TO KISS HER!!!"

After the sing-a-long, we did Tower of Terror!

Then we got to ride Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster! Aerosmith even gave us some backstage passes.

We wanted to get spots closer to the front for the Frozen Fireworks, so we headed over pretty early, and I was happy to see what was going on during the show as opposed to just hearing it! And I FINALLY got to see Olaf out and about. I need to meet him. I don’t know when. I don’t know how. But it needs to happen.

Keep scrolling for the next update!​

 

[courtneybelle]

July 11-15, 2015: More Work

This was a stretch of working and sleeping and not much else, but it included a fun PAC shift, and my first Extra Magic Hours shift, when I didn’t get off until 2:45 a.m. I was tired but it was still fun!

Keep scrolling for the next update!​

 

[courtneybelle]

July 16, 2015: Chip and Dale Campfire Sing-A-Long

Today I went over to the Magic Kingdom with Katie! Since we would be ending our night at Fort Wilderness, we parked there and took a boat over to the Magic Kingdom. We had an amazing CM on the boat with us who took some fun pictures of us:

My mom finds this picture creepy.

We met up with Mandy, got Starbucks together, and took a castle picture with our cups:

We met up with Kristen in Liberty Square and decided to play some Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom. I have gotten really hooked on these interactive experiences in the parks—I don’t like doing them on vacation because I only have so much time in the parks, but now that I have a lot of time here I’ve been playing this and Agent P at Epcot a lot, and they’re so much fun!

After we saved the Magic Kingdom from Governor Ratcliffe, we decided to save the galaxy with Buzz Lightyear.

Mandy is really good at Buzz Lightyear and tried to give me tips on which targets to hit…it didn’t go well.

After that Mandy went home because she had a long shift the next day, but Hayley met up with us and we headed over to Fort Wilderness to do the Chip and Dale Campfire Sing-A-Long! Hayley had never had a smore and we figured it would qualify as a cultural activity.

Pics from the boat ride over:

We met Chip and sang along to a few songs.

And of course, we made delicious hot shmoes. Hayley LOVED them.

Then we stayed to watch the movie they were showing, which was The Parent Trap (Lindsay Lohan version)! I hadn’t seen it in forever and I loved it. This is such a cute event, and attending is totally free! We brought our own smores ingredients but they do sell them there (we ended up buying sticks to roast the marshmallows). I hope to be back very soon!

Keep scrolling for the next update!​

 

[courtneybelle]

July 17, 2015: Duffy and San Angel Inn

This morning Shayla and I headed over to the Magic Kingdom to see Dream Along with Mickey—it was about to go under refurbishment for about a month and since it’s one of our favorites we had to catch it! Duffy came along for this morning's adventure.

Then we headed over to Epcot, got Starbucks, and hopped in line to meet our pal Duffy! I had brought my small Duffy because I wanted him to meet large Duffy.

Duffy was absolutely adorable today—he grabbed my Duffy and brought him outside because he wanted to use Poncho Duffy to summon the rain. Too cute. The Duffy obsession is very real.

Shayla headed out after that to do some homework, but Kristen, Gavin, and Hayley wanted to meet up for dinner at Epcot after they got off work, so I decided to stay! I went over to France to try the ice cream place. I got a lemon sorbet and it was delicious.

Then I decided to try something brand new—I watched O Canada! I actually really loved it because Martin Short was hilarious. It also made me think of my Canadian pals Amber and Marie.

I finally got to ride Soarin’—I hadn’t been able to because of wait times, but I scored a Fastpass!

Then, I met up with Gavin and we met SOMBRERO DONALD! My very favorite iteration of Donald.

Gavin and I have a lot of things in common—we love character meet and greets, Disney’s Hollywood Studios, and CircleVision 360 films. So we watched Reflections of China and agreed that we need to plan a trip there. Maybe once Shanghai opens…

Then Kristen met up with us and we did some more Agent P missions! We went to Japan and Germany this time. I think the Germany one may be my favorite…there’s some very cool effects.

Finally, Hayley made her way to Epcot, and we had a lovely dinner at San Angel Inn! I am not a big Mexican food fan but I have always wanted to eat here because I love the atmosphere.

We got a perfect table right by the river and spent most of our dinner waving to people riding the Gran Fiesta Tour.

Gavin, Kristen, and I all got margaritas (unfortunately, while Hayley is of legal drinking age in the U.K., she is not in America…). Mine was passion fruit and it was delicious!

I really liked the plates here.

We all got the pollo a las rojas, which was this delicious chicken and rice dish! I enjoyed it a lot more than I thought I would—it had a bit of a kick but it wasn’t too spicy. I would absolutely recommend it!

​

 

[SarahDisney]

Too much there for me to comment on individual things, but I just wanted to say that I think it's awesome that you and your friends are having so much fun! I think that being at Disney every day is one of those things that could get repetitive after a while, but you seem to still be finding great new experiences and enjoying the activities you've done before. It's so great to read about all of it!

 

[chookie94]

your program looks amazing!
what is it like at your work location?

 

[ElenaJane]

Will be there in just a few weeks! I hope to see you at Splash! Fun updates!

 

[ariane37]

Heading to MK tomorrow, I'll be looking for you at Splash

 

[pkondz]

we wanted to see my pal Skipper Mandy on the Jungle Cruise!

I think it's cool that you know the skipper.
Plus, in case of emergency... preferential life vest assignments.

I love the Jungle Cruise normally, but to see one of my friends as the skipper made it a million times better.

I can only imagine! That'd be so much fun!

Great shot of the two of you!

I love this picture because it shows us as we truly are, highly functional human beings.

but we assured her that Pooh is a very nice bear.

"And then she shot him with her bow and had him stuffed and mounted."

We got a bite to eat at Cosmic Ray’s and then headed to New Fantasyland to see the man, the myth, the legend…Gaston! He was a riot. He told me he liked my Belle shirt, then asked Shayla why she wasn’t wearing a Gaston shirt so Belle and Gaston could be together.

I really think that Gaston and the stepsisters are the best character interactions.

“Hey Peter, why are you always flying around?” He gave me the SASSIEST look and pointed at the sign that said “Neverland.”

oy.

and he responded with a bunch of puns, like, “I actually Tink it’s pretty Darling.”

double oy.

Shayla loves Anna and I love Elsa so it was appropriate.

Do you have any idea how long it took me to figure out why that picture was about Anna and Elsa?

Geez I'm dumb some times.

I decided to actually use my nice camera today and I was very happy with the pictures I got.

They are nice! Great pics Courtney!

We decided to do one more animation class before the building closed.

I was so bummed about this.
Kay doesn't know much about WDW, but she had heard about that and wanted to do it.
I had to tell her that they don't have it anymore.

"What's a matter with you people? Sing!"

Then we got to ride Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster! Aerosmith even gave us some backstage passes.

Perks of being a CM, I'm sure.

but it included a fun PAC shift,

I know you don't respond, but... I have no idea what a PAC shift is.
Something to do with Parades?

My mom finds this picture creepy.

I think it's clever. Don't think I've seen that effect before.

I have gotten really hooked on these interactive experiences in the parks—I don’t like doing them on vacation because I only have so much time in the parks, but now that I have a lot of time here I’ve been playing this and Agent P at Epcot a lot, and they’re so much fun!

I tried to get Kay to try one but... nope.

After we saved the Magic Kingdom from Governor Ratcliffe, we decided to save the galaxy with Buzz Lightyear.

You guys are life savers!

Mandy is really good at Buzz Lightyear and tried to give me tips on which targets to hit…it didn’t go well.

Glad to hear I'm not the only one who sucks at Buzz Lightyear.

Hayley had never had a smore

What??? How is this possible?

And of course, we made delicious hot shmoes.

Has anyone seen Woody's hat?

Hayley LOVED them.

She certainly looks pretty happy!

I had brought my small Duffy because I wanted him to meet large Duffy.

Makes sense.

The Duffy obsession is very real.

Then I decided to try something brand new—I watched O Canada! I actually really loved it because Martin Short was hilarious.

I hadn't seen it until last Feb. I thought it was pretty good!

It also made me think of my Canadian pals Amber and Marie.

I think the Germany one may be my favorite…there’s some very cool effects.

Do the Beer Steins still do the song?

Mine was passion fruit and it was delicious!

Looks (and sounds) delish!

 

[afwdwfan]

This morning Shayla and I headed to the Magic Kingdom pretty early on a special mission…we wanted to see my pal Skipper Mandy on the Jungle Cruise!

I'm sure that seeing a friend working on an attraction probably isn't something that is extremely rare anymore, but I can't think of a more fun attraction to ride with a friend who is working!

He also asked us if we were going to see Belle, and said that if we were, when they asked for volunteers during the show, we should raise our hands and say how much better the show would be if Gaston were in it.

We met up with Kristen in Liberty Square and decided to play some Sorcerers of the Magic Kingdom. I have gotten really hooked on these interactive experiences in the parks—I don’t like doing them on vacation because I only have so much time in the parks, but now that I have a lot of time here I’ve been playing this and Agent P at Epcot a lot, and they’re so much fun!

I can imagine that would be a huge draw! I think they are very interesting concepts and I'd love to spend some time to check it all out. But when I'm going maybe once a year or once every couple of years, it just isn't a good use of my time. I'd be all over those if I had more time to just hang out in the parks though.

Finally, Hayley made her way to Epcot, and we had a lovely dinner at San Angel Inn! I am not a big Mexican food fan but I have always wanted to eat here because I love the atmosphere.

I love eating there. I like Mexican food and while I'm not necessarily blown away by the food there, it is good and I love the look and feel of the Mexican pavilion.


As always, I love reading your updates! Enjoy the rest of your time in the CP!

 

[xlsm]

Oh, fun! You're talking about the days when we were in the parks!

Great updates as always!!

Love that you're having such a great time

 

[MarieLightning]

All caught up! Man you're having so much fun and so many adventures! I mean, I know there's some work thrown in there as well, but that seems like a good sacrifice to make

Yaaay for O Canada! Took you long enough

Last time we saw it there was a bunch of drunk people in with us (F&W..) and they sang along with the song at the end. At first it was a bit annoying but it actually ended up being pretty funny. It also gave us the motivation to learn it so we too could know it by heart next time we went, and now we do Well, Amber doesn't know the whole French part by heart, but that's okay

I can't believe we're gonna be there in like, just a little over two months! I really hope we can work around your schedule to plan a meet up! We have a couple of days where it's just gonna be the two of us, but if we have to ditch the family for a bit because you're working on those days, so be it!

 

[KathyM2]

Fantasmic was spectacular, as always.

I have never seen this but really want to...just haven't managed to stay late enough at DHS....

I'm loving your TR....this is a quick drive by because I'm trying to catch up with everyone...but it's so much fun reading about your time there!

 

[princessofcs]

Just caught up with this and decided to comment! What a great College Program report. I would love to do the College Program, but I'm not sure if my school and field would be cool with me taking a semester off. Either way, I'll definitely be living vicariously through this reports for a while!

 

[TheMaxRebo]

That's so cool that you got to ride the Jungle Cruise with a Skipper you know ... pretty good pun about Elsa ... also the reason you should never let her hold a balloon

Speaking of puns, what a great meet with Peter!

Speaking of Peter, I love this picture you got from Dream along with Mickey:

Also super sassy, Kristin Chenoweth Cinderella

Glad you got in another animation class ... I really hope they re-open that at a new location!

I kinda agree with you about the interactive quests ... they seem cool, but if I started doing them I would get way to into them and it would eat up too much of vacation. Perfect for you though!

That's pretty cool that the Chip n Dale camp fire is free ... not a lot is free at Disney so to get one that includes a character meet and a movie, and you can bring your own smores ingredients, that's a pretty good deal!

Sounds like a fun day at EPCOT! Cool being able to do some new things. I think San Angel is a little under-rated. It's not amazing but I think it is pretty good and you can get some apps and split an entree and wind up doing it for not much more than the quick service option in Mexico.

 

[HikingBelle]

Great TR! I love how you are doing lots of fun things at Disney, and there's STILL new things for you to do!

I'll be in Disney in October and hope to see you in Frontierland.