YOLO Part Cruise: Land, Sea and Halloween! Updatedx2 4/27 TRIP VIDEO

[Credit Man]

Your Everest pics are beautiful.

 

[uncle toad]

we've never eaten at Sanaa. looking forward to your review. we've stayed at the Animal Kingdom Lodge 4 times. it is a beautiful resort. one of our favorites. we've had savannah views twice, swimming pool once, and parking lot once. the animals are interesting to watch in their habitat, but i find the creatures from the parking lot to be more entertaining. there are some strange folks in this world. while we have not eaten at Sanaa we have eaten at Boma about 3 or 4 times. very different, but very good. at least it was for us. my wife has this ritual of finishing her meal by salting a lemon and eating it. she calls it "cleaning her palate". might have misspelled that. anyway while eating breakfast at Boma she did her thing and the rest of us stopped and stared in amazement as she cleansed her palate. the fellow sitting next to us found it rather amusing. like i said we are easily entertained. so good of you to indulge Brittany in her dream resort. hopefully she can stay there one day.

 

[khertz]

Wow, I had a lot of updates to get caught up on!!!

Ewwwwww to the yellow stain on the bed! Not cool, Disney, not cool.

I love that you get so many compliments on your shoes. You are so incredibly talented!! I can see why so many people stop to talk to you about them.

Sounds like a fun best friend morning at AK hitting the highlights! We really love that park.

Yay for the new ticker! We are going back in May too, but at the beginning of the month. Boo for just missing you AGAIN! But I'm sure the 24-hr event will be amazing for you!!

 

[xoSamma]

Your Everest pics are beautiful.

Thank you ​

we've never eaten at Sanaa. looking forward to your review. we've stayed at the Animal Kingdom Lodge 4 times. it is a beautiful resort. one of our favorites. we've had savannah views twice, swimming pool once, and parking lot once. the animals are interesting to watch in their habitat, but i find the creatures from the parking lot to be more entertaining. there are some strange folks in this world. while we have not eaten at Sanaa we have eaten at Boma about 3 or 4 times. very different, but very good. at least it was for us. my wife has this ritual of finishing her meal by salting a lemon and eating it. she calls it "cleaning her palate". might have misspelled that. anyway while eating breakfast at Boma she did her thing and the rest of us stopped and stared in amazement as she cleansed her palate. the fellow sitting next to us found it rather amusing. like i said we are easily entertained. so good of you to indulge Brittany in her dream resort. hopefully she can stay there one day.

It is so delicious! I wouldn't mind staying at the AKL I just don't know if I would be a fan of staying farther away from the other parks. But it probably isn't as bad as I believe it is. Never ate at Boma I'm not sure if I would like it there but who knows, I might! I love the eating lemons, but salting them is a little weird. Maybe one day we will stay there. But I will need to stay at Wilderness lodge first​

Wow, I had a lot of updates to get caught up on!!!

Ewwwwww to the yellow stain on the bed! Not cool, Disney, not cool.

I love that you get so many compliments on your shoes. You are so incredibly talented!! I can see why so many people stop to talk to you about them.

Sounds like a fun best friend morning at AK hitting the highlights! We really love that park.

Yay for the new ticker! We are going back in May too, but at the beginning of the month. Boo for just missing you AGAIN! But I'm sure the 24-hr event will be amazing for you!!

Casual...but really I was a little mad.
Thank you so much, I greatly appreciate it.
I am liking...loving it more and more. There was a time when it wasn't a park I was a fan of.
Always missing you! One day we will be at Disney at the same time. We literally are super excited for all day at the Magic Kingdom and dressing up!​

 

[xoSamma]

TWO WORDS: BUTTER CHICKEN​

Sanaa is a cute little restaurant and although we didn’t all eat together we could see each other from across the room.





But really the decoration in this restaurant



First thing was to order our drinks. Alicia and I ordered the lemonade while the other 3 ordered pop. We enjoyed our cardboard straws…they just get to soggy to quickly, not a fan.



We looked over the menu for quite some time. I knew what I was going to order a long time ago and have been obsessing over getting it for a long time. However our waitress got lost somewhere and it took some time to order.

Alicia and Brittany ended up ordering the bread service at an extra cost. This was probably one of the best decisions they have ever made. While we waited for our food Ma came over to chit chat.



The bread service came out and Alicia and Brittany dug in. They were kind enough to let us try some. I was a HUGE fan! I need to go back to Sanaa just for the bread service.





Once again my family breaks every rule, Alicia and Brittany only purchased some of the different dips while Ma’s table got all of them. So since for some reason their table was getting served quicker she decided to bring a dish of all the dips to our table….pretty sure that is not allowed but whatever it happened.





The Roasted Red Bell Pepper Hummus was my personal favorite.
The bread service was gone in a matter of minutes and then I became antsy. We waited FOREVER for our food. I was literally unimpressed with Sanna’s service



The whole time I was watching the clock because we had things to do and places to be at! Finally our food came, lets see if the wait leading up to this meal would pay off.
Alicia and Kiss got the open burger. Alicia isn’t a fan of burgers but a fellow CM she knows says Sanaa’s burger is the only one she will eat. Kiss got it cause kiss likes burgers



They didn’t rave to much about it, Alicia prefers the Juicy Lucy at House of Blues.

Me on the other hand have known what I was going to get for a long time. Slow cooked 3 bowl meal. I got the spicy durban chicken and butter chicken with some basmati rice.



I dumped out all the bowls so I could mix the sauce with my rice properly.



The Durban chicken definitely had a kick to it, Brittany got the shrimp in the Durban sauce and at one point she was dying because she didn’t realize how spicy it actually would be. I personally enjoyed the spicyness to it.
However the BUTTER CHICKEN!!!! It was so good. Everyone raves about it and now I know why! Next time I’m going to go with 2 bowls of butter chicken.

Someone from the other table also enjoyed the slow cooked meal



After we finished our entrée it took forever to get our desserts. I couldn’t handled it I was ready to get back to Fort and get ready for our exciting night! Mickey’s Not So Scary was calling our names.

Finally our desserts came







The bread pudding was delicious I however only took maybe 4 bites because I was full, it was really hot and I had places to be. So next time I eat there I will be sure to finish it all because it really was good. Brittany response to the bread pudding after finish it all was that it was spicy.

Overall the service really sucked but the food was so delicious that I would go back there in a heartbeat. I mean the bread service and butter chicken sold me.

We left AKL, which was actually nicely decorated. I don’t know why I’m so surprised since it’s a Disney resort of course it’s going to be nice.



We left the wonderful AC and hit the Florida heat.



Luckily a bus was there for AK, we hopped on and took a short ride over to AK. Then we got in the Fort Wilderness bus line.
No bus in sight means time to relax…





A bus finally came and we entertained ourselves all the way back to Fort Wilderness.




Continue to Next Post
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[uncle toad]

that was our hold out; being farther away from the other parks. but it didn't matter because he bus service was always quick and we never waited long for one to come. plus you don't share a bus with another resort. i ain't a huge bread fan but that bread service looks very inticing. anything bell pepper gets two thumbs up from me. you're "i'm unimpressed with the service' photo reminded me of a little episode at Tusker House. we ordered our meal and waited and waited and waited. no vittles were forthcoming. my wife, let's just say, lost her cool. next thing we knew, a fist came down on the counter and a shout of "where's my food". we looked at each other with a "do we know this woman" look. wel the food eventually came and all was right with the world again. of course never one to forget, we still bring it up to her about the dent her fist made in the counter. ya just got to love life. ain't it grand, especially at Disney.
i do believe you made the right choice ordering that chicken. i do love spicy food. i would pass on the bread pudding. gimme a Mickey bar instead.

 

[Dreamer7787]

I might have OD on your TR and now I want to go back. Actually I just want to redo this whole trip. If I could only ever take this trip for the rest of my life, I would totally do it.

Sanaa's service was horrible. They also gave g-ma the dinner menu instead of the lunch menu and when she ordered they were like "Uh oh, let me see if they can make that at this hour." But that bread service. *drool*

 

[xoSamma]

that was our hold out; being farther away from the other parks. but it didn't matter because he bus service was always quick and we never waited long for one to come. plus you don't share a bus with another resort. i ain't a huge bread fan but that bread service looks very inticing. anything bell pepper gets two thumbs up from me. you're "i'm unimpressed with the service' photo reminded me of a little episode at Tusker House. we ordered our meal and waited and waited and waited. no vittles were forthcoming. my wife, let's just say, lost her cool. next thing we knew, a fist came down on the counter and a shout of "where's my food". we looked at each other with a "do we know this woman" look. wel the food eventually came and all was right with the world again. of course never one to forget, we still bring it up to her about the dent her fist made in the counter. ya just got to love life. ain't it grand, especially at Disney.
i do believe you made the right choice ordering that chicken. i do love spicy food. i would pass on the bread pudding. gimme a Mickey bar instead.

I mean the bus time must be the same as the allstars since they are around the same area. The bread service was so good that I will need to chip in to get more next time. I can't wait to get some more butter chicken, it was delicious.​

I might have OD on your TR and now I want to go back. Actually I just want to redo this whole trip. If I could only ever take this trip for the rest of my life, I would totally do it.

Sanaa's service was horrible. They also gave g-ma the dinner menu instead of the lunch menu and when she ordered they were like "Uh oh, let me see if they can make that at this hour." But that bread service. *drool*

I would be fine to just relive this trip over again.
The service may have been horrible but the food was delicious!​

 

[xoSamma]

Life Update - Disney College Program​

On February 6th applications for the Disney college program for fall 2014 came out. I filled out my application that night and got an invitation for a WBI. I did that the following night. After that I moved onto my phone interview, which I had on Valentines Day at 6:30. My top 3 choices were BBB, Character Performer, and recreation- children’s activities (mostly all very selective roles). During my interview we discussed a lot about working with children since that’s what my past 3 jobs have consisted of.
On March 4th I got pended, which got my a little sad. But it did not mean I was declined so there was still hope!

This past Sunday March 9, 2014, Brittany and myself headed to Columbus Ohio for character performer auditions and here is our story.


On Saturday I packed up all my stuff for our weekend getaway.



I was a bag lady who thought she was going away for a week and not a day.
Ma and Pa were kind enough to drive us to Ohio. Even though Ma tried warning us about the process and what Alicia went through at her first audition.

So we packed up the car and picked Brittany up at 2:15.
We then hit the road for a 5-hour drive to Columbus Ohio!

The back seat turned into papers everywhere! Brittany and I had just finished up our first placement for student teaching and NY state being dumb decided to add another requirement to be certified called the edTPA. It is literally a big headache that no one has time for. But I told myself I would complete Task 1 before we arrived…that ended up not happening because my battery died before I finished.

Brittany snoozed because she already finished task 1. I drifted off for a while but was awoken by Pa wanting me to find something for dinner.
We decided either Sonic or Chick Fil A since we don’t have them near us and Brittany lived a sad life and never had either. We decided on sonic!





We all got the chicken strip dinner, which told me it came with gravy dipping sauce but lied. Brittany wanted to switch the plain tatter tots with sweet potato tots but Anthony said no.

Even with no sweet tots, we still all enjoy our meal



and some BBQ sauce instead of country gravy



Once we finished our meal, we hit the road and got to our hotel.
It was about 8 when we arrived and decided to hit up the pool and hot tub.

Brittany and I discussed what we thought the next day would be like.
But our main topic was what costumes to wear for the 24 Hour event in May. We are trying to think of a group theme for Alicia, Andy, Brittany and myself. So if anyone has any ideas please let us know!

We headed back to the room and got ready for the night. We watched some SNL as I updated that TR because Brittany told me it has been awhile since I updated last. While I was doing that Brittany was taking selfies and sending them to her parents back home



We called it a night around 11 since it was spring forward and we would be loosing an hour of sleep.
We woke up at 8ish and headed down to breakfast around 8:30. We made our own waffles and I hardly ate because I was too nervous too. Brittany was the eating champ. We headed back to the room and got ready for the audition. We watched some HGTV because that is literally Ma’s favorite channel to watch. At 9:30 we left and headed to the Pinnell Dance Studio.

We arrived at 9:40 and the audition started at 10:30.
There was already a huge line forming in this small dance studio and I became the doorstop. The girl in front of us noticed my splash toms and told me she loved them. Brittany gave me that “of course she does” face.

We took one quick selfie before the line started moving



We were taken into a studio that was actually 2 studios just opened up into 1. There we got in line, signed in, got a number and got measured. I measured at 61.25 inches, Brittany was 63 or 64 inches. Then we found a spot to sit and waited FOREVER. We sat with girls who were inline behind us Heather and Rebecca.

After waiting forever the casting director spoke to us saying how it was a bigger turn out than they thought, there was about 200 people. How they have over 2,000 performers at WDW. And how the audition was going to go. He warned us that the first cut was going to be a drastic cut and if we didn’t make that first cut we wouldn’t be considered for a performer role.

So we learned a very easy 2 counts of 8 parade march. After doing it about 5-8 times we were put into number order and we went across the floor in groups of 4. This is the only time to show what you have before the first cut. After we finished going across the floor we were placed in a super small studio that was so HOT! I saw Hannah who is a disboards member as well as someone I know through twitter. We exchanged hellos but unfortunately I didn’t see her after the audition.

They had us all come back out and they started calling off numbers. They called my number and I was so happy, unfortunately Brittany’s number wasn’t called. Those who weren’t called were thanked for coming and got their stuff and left. From the 200 people they kept about 60 of us.

Round 2 was animation, they gave us 2 scenarios to act out. We all did it together and then we did it 5 at a time. Once we went through each group there was another cut. I got cut after this round. But from what I read the last round is for parade dancers as well as face character. Going into this I knew I was to short for parade and I don’t have a face for face character.

So I got my stuff, went to find Brittany, and got in the car to drive the 5 hours home.
Brittany corrected her students work while I watched some Frozen



We stopped for lunch and got some pizza hut & Popeye’s
We dropped Brittany off and arrived home safely.







So today I received my congratulation email saying I accepted into the program. I was offered a role in Custodial, although it was one of my last choices I accepted it because I’ll be working for Disney! I read a lot about this role, some call it the best-kept secret. I will get to roam the park, pin trade, talk to guests, watch parades/fireworks, and make sidewalk water art! So there is a lot of pros to the role!

I start August 4 and will be at Disney World until January 7!
​

 

[crepemyrtle]

Yay CP!!! Congratulations Sam.

 

[littleorangebird]

Congrats on CP!!! Oh and I have an idea for your 24 hour event costumes....you guys should be Ralph, Vanellope, Felix, and Calhoun from Wreck-It Ralph! Have fun in May and with your CP

 

[katt789]

GREAT updates!! I really do have to try out Sanna one of these days! Sucks that the service was so bad for you guys!! The butter chicken sounds amazing though, I wouldn't be surprised if I ended up getting it lol

Also LOVE AKL, I've been able to stay there twice now and would stay there forever if I could lol!

and of course CONGRATULATIONS on everything that is DCP related in your life right now!! I'm so happy for you!! I do hope you hear good things back from the audition!! Man, weird to think that we could've been at the same one lol! We just chose Phoenix cause it was cheapest lol!! YAY!!

 

[Volunteer]

congrats!!

 

[Credit Man]

Congratulations on your acceptance. YOLO, but if done right, once is enough!!!

 

[poison ivy]

Sam,

I've got to get caught up on your TR but I just read your last post

Woo Hoo!

Congratulations!!

I'm so happy you got accepted. I know how hard it is. great job!!

Oh and I love that you auditioned.

Iron Man (ZERO dancing or entertainment experience whatsoever) decided on a whim to audition in Phila in 2012 and had the same experience with a monster turnout.

Amazingly, he made the first cut. I have no idea how. Unfortunately he didn't move to round 3 either.

Keep trying. Who knows?? We're pulling for you.

p.s. I'll be in the world the last week in Aug for a conference so if Ma and Pa are planning a quick trip around then, we'll be up for a mini meet!!

 

[khertz]

Saw your post on Instagram last night, and could not be happier for you!!! Literally some of the sweetest and friendliest CM's I have ever met were in custodial, so I'm sure they can see that you are a real people-person! I hope you will post lots of pictures from your CP on IG because I will definitely want to live through you.

 

[Crazy8Ma]

Sam - what are parents for if not to help their children chase there dreams. One day poop scooper next day Micky mouse. I bet Gma never thought 41 years ago when she loaded her 4 kids into a small camper van and drove to a place she heard "had real dancing and floating ghosts" that she would end up with disney obsessed grandchild - one of whom might just be Mickey Mouse some day. We are so proud of you as you continue to chase your dream.

Ps: sorry PI we will have to take Sam beginning of August but we are still waiting for update on that AC.

 

[unbrelievable]

Congrats on your acceptance! I have two roommates who are custodial and one of them really seems to love it! Too bad you aren't coming sooner, I leave August 1st.

 

[Windsor Princesses]

Life Update - Disney College Program​

So today I received my congratulation email saying I accepted into the program. I was offered a role in Custodial, although it was one of my last choices I accepted it because I’ll be working for Disney! I read a lot about this role, some call it the best-kept secret. I will get to roam the park, pin trade, talk to guests, watch parades/fireworks, and make sidewalk water art! So there is a lot of pros to the role!

I start August 4 and will be at Disney World until January 7!
​

Oh my gosh Sam that is so exciting! I start my CRP (for Canada) on July 8 and am down there for a whole year.
It will be nice to have a fellow DISer down there, hopefully we can have a fun meet up or two!

 

[uncle toad]

congratulations again. i'm guessing they didn't check your Disney rap sheet and see that little deal with the comb. i'm glad for you. you will definately be an asset to the Disney company. by the way, is Brittany going to join you for the DCP?