Last days of work....

My last couple of weeks of work have passed really quickly. It didn't feel like it at the time but looking back on it right now, it went fast. It was really quiet so I ended up being cut from alot of my last "normal" shifts. On my last PM shift, I was given an ADO so I never stood watching Illuminations while thinking "this is my last Illuminations". I wasn't too bothered to miss it though.

On my last days off, Rene and Iselin and I went round MK collecting autographs. I filled up most of my autograph book. We managed to get Chip, Dale, Pinocchio, Donald Duck, Peter Pan, Wendy Darling, Captain Hook, Mr. Smee, Princess Aurora, Cinderella, Belle, Pooh, Tigger, Stitch, Buzz Lightyear, Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse. Seventeen in one day is pretty good going!

Time card started on the 19th. Time card is the last week. They have already sorted out our paychecks at this point so we have to do the set hours. Even if we finish two hours before we're scheduled to leave.

Our throwout on Tuesday was alot of fun! It was a huge throwout. Andy, Rhys, Lauren N, Vikki and I all got our stuff together round at mine and Vikki's apartment. I had no idea I had so much crap to throwout! I had a ton of stuff and added to everyone elses, we had a huge mound of things! Throwouts are fantastic! Everyone gets together and you hold up each item and whoever yells "SHOTGUN!" first gets it! I can't believe we managed to fit so many people in our little apartment. As you can see by the pictures, we managed it! I was quite satisfied that I managed to get rid of everything I wanted to get rid of, including ALL the books.

On Wednesday was my last day of work. Vikki and I exchanged cameras and spent the whole shift taking photos of...well, pretty much everything. I have photos of me filling drinks, using the POS, serving a table, even scraping food at potwash! Everything had such a finality to it! I was pretty jazzed because I knew it was my very last time getting drinks or straws or salt or anything for tables! I broke every rule I could think of. I deliberately took out glasses WITHOUT a tray, I drank the chocolate milk, I didn't spiel anything to any table and I spent more time hanging out at podium than talking to my guests. It was great! I signed the back of the portraits that are hanging behind the bar so if you're ever there, look out for my signature!

That evening, Vikki and I walked back to our apartment and as we passed the lake, we grabbed our shoes off and tossed them in! I was so happy to get rid of them! Evil little buggers! We had to check all around us first to make sure security wasn't watching us as we could still get termed at that point.

In the evening, we had our last meal at Tu Tu Tangos. It was a nice meal and afterwards in the carpark, everyone posed for photos and hugged each other. I felt terrible because I was the only one who didn't seem to be able to cry. I felt sad but not crying sad. Everyone was saying the nicest things and I couldn't even produce one little tear! I'm not a cryer in public generally, I like to wait for privacy but it felt really bad that I couldn't get upset and everyone decided I must be dead inside.

The following day I spent getting prepared to leave. I picked up my last paycheck and packed my bags. I have two cases and they are ridiculously heavy! I can't believe how much stuff I've acquired over the last year and there isn't anything that I don't want to keep! I'm not the most girly girl in the world, in fact, I'm a bit of a tomboy. So can anyone explain to me how I have ended up with EIGHT pairs of shoes?! I don't even have lots of books (for a change). I'm taking home only two books! That's really good going for me! Yet all my stuff together fills two whole cases! Weird! The only time I felt anything approaching sad was when I got into the apartment after visiting the post office and noticed that Vikki had been and gone, taking all her stuff with her. I was alone in an empty apartment and that felt a bit sad.

In the evening, I met up with my Norweigan friends, Rene, Iselin and Siri and we went to MK to see my last Wishes. I stood there in the street holding hands with Izzy and Siri and finally, I cried! When the song at the end came on, my lower lip was trembling and I had to bite it to try and keep the tears back. After Wishes, we sat and watched Spectromagic. Rene and Izzy disappeared for a few minutes and came back with a light up rose for me! That was it, the floodgates opened and I was there sobbing while everyone hugged me! There was no way I could pretend I had "something in my eye" either as I was in complete floods! I intend to keep that rose forever. I will throw out clothes to fit it in my case!

We all came back to the apartment and had a group hug while listening to "Feels Like Home". I cried, Rene cried and so did Izzy! It was a big crying fest! I was just glad that I could cry, I was beginning to believe I really WAS dead inside. Someone once told me, if you can't cry over your year here, it's a wasted year.

Siri and Iselin went down to the car and I shared a special hug with Rene. He told me I was the only UK girl he's ever loved, something I'm never going to forget! I will miss him so much. He's been one of my best friends out here and he is the greatest guy I have ever had the priviledge to call a friend. I actually feel sorry for people who don't know him, you have no idea what you're missing!

This morning I moved over to the hotel Clarion on International Drive. I was very lucky as they let me check in at 10am, instead of 4pm. The first thing I did was take EVERYTHING out of my cases and spread it over the bed. Then I picked out anything I could possibly get rid of. Annoyingly, it's mainly clothes which don't weigh much. I don't get what exactly is making the cases so heavy. It couldn't possibly be the 300 odd pens I pinched from work! I'll repack them again tonight and if they are still too heavy, I'll....erm...freak? Nah, I'll pay excess baggage. No biggie. The trouble with that is you have to pay it on a card and I don't have one I can use. I've closed my American account, my English account hasn't got enough in it to cover the costs and my credit card is having issues. I have cash but apparantly, cash isn't good enough! Well, I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.

So, here I am in the hotel for the next few days. I have passes for Aquatica, Universal, Islands of Adventure and Seaworld, not to mention all the delights I-Drive has to offer. I also have a pass for the Disney parks so I'm spoilt for choice. I'm not sure I'll do Disney again. I want my last night to be the special one I shared with Rene, Izzy and Siri. All three of us are meeting up on Sunday to do Seaworld together so I've only got two days in which to play as I fly on Tuesday. Right now I'm going to pack my cases again and then grab some Doritos, dip and have a night in watching a movie. I'm thinking Aquatica tomorrow but it depends on the weather. We'll see....

Until next time, this is a very tired Tori signing off!

I've truly earned my ears!!!!

I am now a Disney International Program graduate!!!! We all graduated yesterday and it was brilliant! I cannot believe our entire arrival group has lasted out the year, no terminations, no self terming....

Vikki, Lauren N, Nicola and I spent the night at The Swan which is a really nice resort. We were upgraded to a room offering a view of the Tower of Terror. We all had a fairly early night (after a meal at Garden Grove) as I made everyone get up at 5am the following morning. With four girls and only one bathroom, I knew we'd need all the time we could get. Turns out I was the only one up and about though, the rest pulled themselves out of bed about an hour later.

Once we were all dressed, we went down to the lobby and took photos by the fountain. Then we caught a taxi over to the Coranado Springs where our graduation was being held. We arrived twenty minutes early but most people were there so we all mingled and took photos. I must be in at least 20 different peoples pictures. At 8am, they let us into the ballroom. It looked amazing. There were lots of round tables all set up with balloons and graduation hats and there was a full buffet breakfast. Everyone was going round taking photos with everyone else and to be honest, I barely ate a thing as there was so much else going on. Over in one corner were about 15 caricature artists and everyone got a caricature for free. Mine was okay; the artist drew me as Peter Pan so I was pretty happy but some of the pictures were awful. It was like the artists decided to choose the thing you were most self conscious about and accentuate it.

Over on the other side of the room was Mickey and Minnie. For the first time, you had to have a photo with them seperately which was a bit of a bummer. I queued for Mickey but I'm not a big Minnie fan so I didn't bother with her. Mickey was wearing green too so it was a pretty "green" picture!

We were all given our graduation ears which I wore for the rest of the day. Our arrival group managed to get a photo together which was important as I'm really proud that we've all finished our year. So many times I expected one of us to leave. Poor Rhys was very homesick at the beginning, twice I've come close to being termed, Pippa's grandfather died and Nic's had a major operation...It's quite an achievement that we're all still here. All the other arrival groups are missing at least two people. Some are down 50% and I know of one that had only one remaining person at the end!

We were given a speech by someone but to be honest, I really wasn't listening. I was too busy having pictures and giving hugs. Alot of people were graduating at the same time so there were alot of friends to congratulate. There were about 25 UK's and I also had to congratulate my Norweigan mates (particularly Rene, Iselin, Siri and Vader!) and a few Mexicans, Germans and Canadians that we have come to know. Our leaders were there, including Rachid who was reassigned a while ago. I was very happy he came!

As the graduation was winding down, I went back to my table and did a quick change. I put my blue dress over my head and shimmied out of the green right there in the hall. It's bizarre that there were 500 people and no one saw me do it. When people came back to the table, there were some confused looks about how I was wearing an entirely different dress! I wasn't being a diva though, there was just no way I was wearing two and a half inch heels round the park! Plus, I didn't want my green dress ruined. I love that dress!

We all stole the balloons from our table and then headed off into the parks. I went to MK with Vijay, Vikki, Nic, both Laurens, Rhys and Andy. We stole the balloons from our table and had one each. I got the blue green one which was very apt with the dress change! It's tradition after graduation to go round the parks all dressed up and wearing our graduation ears. We had the obligatory photo taken at the castle and then Vijay and Vikki went home. Vijay had work and Vikki was hot. The rest of us took alot of photos and then watched the parade. We also headed over to Toontown where we all got our graduation ears embroided with our name (something Disney lets us do for free!) Andy had had the foresight to make reservations so we had lunch at Tony's, the Italian restaurant on Main Street. I actually really like that restaurant, I'd never been before.

As it was fairly hot, we decided to switch parks and enjoy the air conditioned bus ride over to Hollywood Studios. Once there we did Tower of Terror and the Rock 'n' Rollercoaster. I had a slight dress situation in that I nearly ended up flashing on the ride photo but it was okay. We also watched the Beauty and The Beast show.

By this time we were all flagging a little so we took a break at The Dolphin resort for a drink. Then we went back to MK for Wishes. Standing there watching the fireworks just reminded me of standing there at the beginning of this year thinking "wow, I'm a cast member". Now it's nearing the end.

I can't believe it's nearly over. It's been an incredible year. I've laughed and cried, stressed and played. I've floated home on Pixie dust and cried my eyes out in my room while begging to go home. I've enjoyed my time but I miss my family terribly. Every second I'm here is a second I'm missing with my little niece, she's growing up so fast. I've gotten closer to my sister in the time I've been away which is one of the best things to come out of this year and for once I haven't freaked my mum out with news of lightening strikes, hurricanes or spider bites! I've made some really good friends in Rene, David, Stephie, Vikki and Kevin AND I've even managed to go back on the cruise! In a few more weeks it'll be my throw out and I'll be heading out of the Disney bubble for good. In a way, I'm glad as there's only so much cheese you can take but I'll miss the pixie dust. Still, I may be going home and growing up but I truly believe you can still be a kid at heart. I intend to be like Peter Pan and never truly grow up. As long as there is faith, trust and pixie dust, your dreams can come true.....

Rain, rain, go away....

Well, I've got ten weeks left to go now before I head on home. I'm looking forward to it but at the same time, I'm gonna miss quite alot of stuff from out here. One big thing is the weather. The sun rarely shines in the UK and when it does, the entire nation strips off and you see bald, aging fat guys with pale white bellies parading around the seafront wearing kiss me quick hats! Hardly a reason to wish good weather on the UK!

Anyway, I think Florida knows I'm gonna miss the weather and it's preparing me for back home already. It has been raining solidly for the last three days. I don't mean the odd shower or a light rain either. Since about 11am this morning, it has been raining and it has not stopped once. Sure, it's got light and then heavy but it has never actually stopped. Five inches of rain have fallen in the last twelve hours. It feels like Hurricane Fay all over again! Apparantly, this weather is due to stick around for at least a week. If you look at the map on the left, you'll see the huge rain cover that's heading for us. The tornado on the right is just to freak out my mum! Hee hee! Still, I called by costuming today and got a full length raincoat so it won't cause too much of a problem.

On my last day off, Rene, Iselin and I went to Seaworld. The new rollercoaster, Manta, has just opened and Rene and Iselin (being mental for rollercoasters) were insistant that we ride it. One of the most unusual features of this rollercoaster is you ride it horizontally. The whole attraction is ridden with you on your belly facing forward, like a hangglider or...erm....Superman. Rene made us ride first at the back because the "G's are more extreme". I've no idea what that means but I can tell you it's horrible. On one of the loops, I could barely catch my breath and developed an instant headache. In the ride photo, my eyes are screwed shut and I'm wincing in pain while my mouth is being shaped by whatever the heck "g's" are! Once we got off, Rene and Iselin instantly rejoined the line, this time to ride at the very front. To be fair, the front is alot better. ALOT better. You feel like your flying and I had a few Peter Pan flying fantasties come to life. I still hated the loop though.

After a day in the park, we decided to do the "Dine with Shamu" experience. For those who don't know, Shamu is the killer whale from Seaworld. The Dine with Shamu experience means you eat at a buffet right on the edge of the whale tank. Shamu swims close enough that you could touch him (though the staff watch you like hawks to make sure you don't). The trainers do a short interaction and Rene was able to take some fantastic pictures with my little camera.

I've been sorting stuff out for home recently. I finish work on 22nd July and I have to leave The Commons by the 24th and my flight isn't until the 28th so I've booked a hotel on International Drive so I can spend my last few days relaxing and chilling out. Disney take thier ID back on the day you finish work so I won't have access to the parks but I still have a year long pass for Seaworld, Aquatica, Universal and Islands of Adventure, not to mention all the various attractions I-Drive has to offer. The biggest draw for me was free Internet access so I can still keep in touch with home and check my flight deets and things. I want to spend a day just going in all the giftshops on I-Ride because my family and I always spend a day doing that when we visit Florida. I don't care if it's scuzzy, I like it!

I still need some presents for home. I've got my sisters' (I got her something amazing! I'm so excited to give it to her! However, she reads this so I can't tell you what it is). I know what I'm getting my brother, I've got half of my mum's and a little something for my bratty little sister (though she's been such a little shit recently, I don't think she deserves it!) I still need mylittle niece's, my manager and my best friend's gifts. I've set aside a "present fund" and it'll be so good to blow the lot on my family and friends.

One other thing I've sorted out with home is a start date for my old job. My old manager has invited me back into my last job and I am really excited about it! I loved that job and I was sorry to leave it. I start back on the 3rd August. My mum is already freaking because that "only gives you three days". Hmmm, maths never has been my mum's best subject. I get home on 29th July, I start work FIVE days later on the 3rd (July has 31 days in it). Yeah, I need to move house but no biggie. It's not in my nature to stand still and relx for long, besides I'll have my mini holiday for that.

Work has been pretty busy recently and my job has not been made any easier because of Brian! I can practically hear you thinking, "who is Brian?"

Brian is normally my friend. We normally get on brilliantly but for some reason he was in a weird mood today. He was in my section alot, freaking out my guests, jumping on the tables and stealing food. Twice he ran in front of me almost causing me to drop a tray as I tried to avoid him. In case you haven't twigged on this yet, Brian is the UK squirrel. He's a little grey squirrel that has been hanging out in the UK for so long, we've named him. I personally love the little guy, he's friendly and cute and normally respects my authority when I tell him to take his french fries and leave. I'm not sure if it was the weather today or what but Brian was NOT giving me respect today. At one point, he was eating a chip on the floor. I went over to shoo him off and he held the chip (french fry) up and it looked like he was giving me the one figered salute! That squirrel is lucky he hasn't been stuffed and mounted the cheek he gave me today!

Well, better go. I'm an AM again tomorrow. Still, at least tomorrow is "my Friday" as we say here. Not that I'll be up to much on my days off. Not unless the rain stops. Oh, quick update. it's taken me 45 minutes to write this (I was watching TV too) and the rain still hasn't stopped.

My Birthday

It's been a odd couple of weeks since I last blogged. First of all, everyone (and I mean everyone) has been ill recently! There's a really nasty 'flu bug floating around and everyone seems to be out with it. Plus we've got a couple of cast members out with gallstones and wisdom tooth ache so The Rose and Crown isn't very healthy at the moment.

On April 6th, I felt really ill as soon as I got up. However, I never call in unless I'm actually sick (which makes me a complete idiot as everyone else does it so why not take advantage?). I went into work but I ached all over and I felt really hot. Half way through my shift, I went to Jamie and asked to be cut because I really didn't feel well. She said it was a bit inconvienient so I struggled on with service. When Jamie tried to seat me an 8 top, I just gave up trying to keep the illness at bay. I had to sit down in the kitchen (where I threw up in the trash can - ewww!) and I literally couldn't get back up again. I felt like I was going to pass out and kept gasping in air. Of course, that did nothing good and I ended up really light headed. The long and the short of it is, Alisha called the medical team who checked me over and sent me home. I then had to call in for the next two days to try and get my feet back under me. I spent the time sleeping and resting and I never even left my apartment but I finally got over whatever it was I caught.

Work has been weird recently. It's Easter at the moment and all our guests seem to be British. I have nothing against the Brits, in fact, I am one but the worst part is they don't tip. In England, even servers are included with the minumum wage but out here, servers are expected to get tips so our basic wage reflects that. When you work your butt off for a table, you find it really hard when you cash it out to find that they haven't tipped you anything. It's really hard not to take it personally. I always tip when I'm in the States but that's because I understand it. Oh well, it's the start of the summer season now she I'll hopefully get the Yanks back. They tip. They tip well!

On Tuesday, it was my birthday. I turned (inaudible) so I lied and told everyone 22. Most of my friends know I'm really four years older than that but we all went along with it anyway. I'd arranged a day at MK and we all agreed to meet up at mine at 10am (early, according to David!) At 10am, the skies opened and threw down one of the most violent thunderstorms I've ever seen. I stood out on the balcony and watched it. That is, until the wind started pushing the rain sideways. Then I came in. Luckily, it stopped at around 10.30am and soon Vikki and I were joined by Kevin, David, Rene and Iselin. Rene and David apologised as they'd ordered something for me that hadn't arrived so David said he'd sent me the rain and Rene claimed credit for the thunder and lightening. Kevin got me a bottle of Baileys and Vikki got me a bottle of Creme de Menthe so I can mix up a Green Goblin, my favourite cocktail (Baileys, Creme de Menthe and milk, sometimes with Kahlua).

We headed into the park and started off in Adventureland where we did the Jungle Cruise in the rain. Really not fun. Then we did the Tiki Room and Pirates as both were indoors. Fortunately, the weather kept most of the crowds away though the line for Peter Pan's Flight was STILL nearly an hour (we didn't go). We spent the whole day playing on the attractions. We tried to see Peter Pan but the weather must have made it difficult t fly over from Neverland.

In the afternoon, we were joined by Laura (Mitzy) and Stephie. Mitzy pulled me into a little shop in Fantasyland and the cast member noticed my birthday badge. She got me to ring a bell and when I did, lights flashed round the room like Tinkerbell had flown in. She then appeared behind the till before flying off again. It was really sweet. Then the cast member got me to close my eyes and I was "pixie dusted" (covered in glitter). She told me not to think any happy thoughts or I'd end up flying but I did and I never flew. Oh well.

We ate at Cinderella's Royal Table, right inside the castle. It was really good. You start off having your photo taken with Cinderella and then you go upstairs into the banquet hall. The decor was amazing and the stained glass windows looked up and down mainstreet and fantasyland. We were visited by the mice from Cinderella as well as the fairy godmother. Kevin (bless him) had arranged a cake as a surprise so I got a huge chocolate cake with candles to blow out! One of the most amusing parts of the night was when we were all given fairy wands or swords, depending if we were guys or girls. I was opposite Rene and I picked up my wand, he picked up his sword and without a word we traded them. I'd much rather be a knight than a princess and Rene is a fairy anyway! Hee hee!

All in all, it was a really nice day out. The weather could have been better but it didn't matter too much. At the end of the evening, I caught the end of Spectromagic and got to see my Peter Pan at last!

Anyway, gotta go. We have inspection on the 20th and there's a stupid new rule about nothing on the walls so I've got to take it all down. Boo!

Talk to you all soon.

Catch up

Hi Guys,

Well, they weren't kidding when they said that February would be a quiet month. Work has been really dead. Still, it's given the staff a well needed rest and we've all been using the time to go out to places we've been meaning to see since we got out here. I have a list of things I want to do that I haven't got round to yet.

One of the major ones was Medieval Times. I've been once before wtih my family but that was quite a few years ago. So, a couple of days ago, I got together with David and Stephie and we all went to Medieval Times. It was brilliant! It's a dinner and show and you eat the food (with your hands) while cheering on your knight. We were supporting the red and yellow knight which I was disappointed with because I like green. However, neither our knight or green won so it didn't matter. The blue knight was cute though! It was great to sit there cheering on your knight while you were served by "serving wenches" and watched over by the King. I was in my element. Everytime the server came over, I had to smile because I can remember my little brother, Peter at Medieval Times clicking his fingers are yelling "wench! Wench!" with great delight (he wasn't being rude, they ask you to do that!)

David, Stephie and I paid a little extra to upgrade to the "Royal Package". It gave us front row seats, a program, a DVD, a banner to wave and a free photo. The photos were hysterical! They take your picture and put it on the body of either a lady of the realm or a knight. All the guys were knights, all the women were ladies which upset me as I wanted to be a knight. Knights had so much more fun.

In the gift shop outside, they had all sorts of knight memorabilia. They had swords and shields and statues and all sorts. We found some knight tunics so somewhere there's a picture of me, Stephie, David, Kevin and Danny (who joined us later) wearing the knight tabbards in the shop. I really wanted one! There's something romantic about knights. Imagine going round the country fighting for justice and honour and truth and courage. Sounds good to me. Only thing was, they were expected to fight for God. Hmmm, an athiest knight? Weeelllll....

I managed to get a week off work recently as I had a friend visit from England. We spent the time visiting the parks but nothing special. I've done the parks so many times now that I'm a little bored with them. That's why I'm trying to get the money to go to Cancun next month. I really want to see Mexico.

A few days ago, it was Rene's birthday so we snuck into his apartment one morning and surprised him with a cake. We also threw him into the pool fully clothed! That was fun. We also went to Japan for his birthday meal. The food was cooked right in front of us by the chefs which was cool!

Well, that's all for now. I'll write again soon!

Slow times

It's typical. During the really busy period when I was working so much I didn't have time to report on what I was up to. Now its so quiet, I have plenty of time to blog but nothing much to tell you. Ironic, huh? Still, I've got a few things to write about.

Work is really quiet at the moment. It's actually quite nice after the craziness of Christmas and New Year. Managers are giving out alot of ADO's and ER's (Authorised Days Off and Early Releases). The only draw back is money is getting a bit tight. Still, I'm enjoying the free time. I was ER'ed today so I used the time to visit the bank and Walmart and run a few errands. Not terribly exciting but still stuff that needed to be done.

On my days off, I've been taking full advantage of the parks being so quiet. On Saturday I met up with a few friends (Rene, Iselin and Vader - all Norweigans), and we went over to Hollywood Studios. Hollywood is my favourite park and we had a great time doing all the rides. We really loved Toy Story Mania! We did boys V girls and naturally, the girls won! Hee hee!

We also went on the Tower of Terror (one of my favourites!). Unfortunately, I've been on it so many times, I'm getting rather blase about it. To make it a little different, we did special poses for the in ride photo! If you were there that day, you'd have noticed a photo with a couple kissing Rene and Iselin) and a girl reading Star Wars. It's actually really funny, all you can see are my eyes over the top of the book! It was funny!

In the afternoon, we ate at the 50's Prime Time Diner. It was brilliant! Our server (Memory) was awesome. She told me off for giving my greens to Rene and she made me stand in the corner with my head against the wall! I was laughing so hard I could barely stand. Memory picked on Rene even more. She called him Poky and kept telling him off for putting his elbows on the table. To stop him she drew a line of tomato ketchup! Rene still managed to put his elbows on the table so Memory made him stand up and sing "I'm a Little Teapot", complete with actions! It was so funny!

A few days ago, I got a bit of a blast from the past when an old friend turned up. I worked with Lil Steve on the ship and he was in Florida so we caught up. We ate at The Rose and Crown and visited EPCOT and MK. It was great!

Well, now you're up to date. I'll write again soon.

Merry Christmas everybody!

Well, Christmas is now over and we're already preparing for the New Year. It's been a rather strange Christmas but I've had fun anyway. I could not have got through it without the group though (David, Rene, Kevin, Vikki and Sam). The friends you make out here end up becoming your adopted family and you rely on them alot.

For the last month of work, our managers have been warning us "it's going to be really busy, be prepared, you'll be weeded, it's uncontrollable...." I'm not sure if they were trying to scare us or if they really thought we'd be busier than we have been. Don't get me wrong, we're really busy but we're not out of control. We're handling it really well. I only hope New Year will be as good.

I had a pretty good schedule over Christmas. On Christmas Eve I was a PM and then an AM on Christmas Day. The Christmas Eve PM was fine. Everyone was really excited and all my guests were a pleasure to talk to. At 7pm, all the UK's got really excited because it was Christmas Day back home (due to the time difference). The guests were in the spirit of things and celebrated with us which made it a pretty fun night.

After work, we all went round to Kev and Rene's apartment. David brought his mattress round while I carried his toy Wall-e that he felt had to join us for Christmas. It was amusing to see David carrying his mattress as he looked like a mattress with legs! Once we all arrived, we sat in a circle and opened our Christmas tree presents. I got the DVD Scrooged which I was pleased with. We all showed each other our presents and then it was suggested we open another one. After all, it was actually Christmas Day at this point. We agreed to open one more; our secret santa presents from work. I recieved a small book called "101 things to do with a thumb tip". I use thumb tips in my magic and I was touched that someone knew me well enough to pick out the perfect present. Kevin got UK chocolate which he was over the moon about (you can tell by the photo). Poor David didn't have a secret santa gift. I guess whoever chose him hadn't got round to buying one. The boys wanted to open "just one more present" but Vikki and I were firm and sent everyone to bed (oh yeah, girls rule!)

I was up extra extra early the following morning. I'd set my alarm for 6am but it had been knocked in my bag without me realising so I actually got up at 5am. I showered and dressed before noticing the time! Annoying! Anyway, I went online to Skype my mum but she wasn't available. I waited online until 6.30am and then decided it was time to get everyone up. Hee hee! I poked Dave a few times and jumped up and down on Rene for a while. I avoided Kevin as he is NOT a morning person! Vikki and Sam had spent the night round Sam's apartment so I called them and they came over. Then we sat on the floor and Vikki handed out the presents (she was nearest the tree).

Considering none of us have our families out here, the stack of presents for the six of us was quite impressive. Soon we all had a pile in front of us and we got stuck in. The photos show how much fun we all had! Kevin loved his Tigger soft toy and me, Vikki and David had a go of David's new foosball table. I got a really cool book on dinosaurs (yes, I'm a geek!) from Sam but the sweetest present was from Rene. He painted me a huge Peter Pan! I loved it! He'd worked on it so hard and the fact he'd put so much effort into it made it really special in my eyes. He was up until 5am Christmas morning working on it so he only had one and a half hours sleep! Bless him!

Kevin, Rene and I had work after that so we headed off to catch the bus. I expected the guests to be in great moods, after all, it WAS Christmas Day. However, everyone seemed really miserable and moody. Most of them were in the complaining mood. I was lucky, my tables were really nice but one guest told managers "the servers are too happy" and another complained "Christmas is everywhere!" We started the shift on a high. Everyone gathered at podium and sang "we wish you a merry Christmas" but the guests pulled us down. By the end of the lunch shift, two servers were in tears and security had to escort one group of guests from the park for causing a scene! I was determined not to let it affect me though and on the way home, I wished every single person I passed a Merry Christmas (much to Kevin's amusement). I got a few smiles but mostly people grunted at me. Still, I tried so it didn't bother me.

When we got home, David had started cooking. Kev and I set the table and opened our presents from home. I'd asked my family NOT to send me anything because anything they send out, I have to bring back at the end of my year here. However, my mum and my best friend are disobedient and I love them for it. I got a cool fox calendar and a dolphin necklace from my mum while my best friend, Lou gave me a new diary (purple! Yes!) and a rather puzzling thing called cat soap. Apparantly, you get it wet and it grows fur. I laughed out loud when I saw it. I'll have to be careful, if I leave it in the boys bathroom, it will be hard to tell apart from all the other stuff growing fur in there!

We settled down to dinner at around eight. It was brilliant! We had turkey and cranberry sauce, stuffing (made by me, Vikki and Sam so I'm surprised it was edible!), roast potatoes and mashed potatoes, broccoli and sweetcorn.....it was great! We also had Baileys to drink and Christmas crackers to pull! I loved every second of it. After dinner, we continued to drink the Baileys which had the unfortunate side effect of me not really remembering much after that. We played Monopoly and....something about a cat....I fell over a few times....erm.....I woke up this morning in my own bed, fully clothed with a few extra bruises and no idea how I got home. I later found out Rene took me home and put me to bed. He even set my alarm clock for me. So, all in all, a very fun Christmas! I love my friends and I'm glad I had them to celebrate with!

Christmas traditions, shopping, crackers and smelly newspaper!

Well, it's nearly Christmas. We've only got a few more days. It's going to be my first Christmas away from home. I've worked abroad alot but normally the season would end well before Christmas. This time I'll be gone for Christmas and New Year (and my nieces 3rd birthday and my birthday and easter....) It's really hard to be away from family this time of year but I'm coping. Mainly because I have a terrific group of friends out here.

It feels really strange to see Christmas decorations on palm trees. I'm used to cold weather this time of year and walking around in a T-Shirt just feels strange. Still, it's interesting to see how the Americans celebrate Christmas. For one thing, they call it "the holidays" rather than Christmas. They include Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year as the whole celebration. Everywhere you go people wish you "Happy Holidays". I always answer with "Merry Christmas!"

At work we're not allowed to wish guests a "Happy Christmas" because "Disney is a non discrimatory organisation". Apparantly it might be offensive to people who don't celebrate Christmas. Rubbish! I'm British and we wish everyone a Merry Christmas and that's our tradition so I will continue to give that as my holiday greeting until I get in trouble for it. If someone wished me a "Happy Hannakah" it wouldn't bother me even though I'm not Jewish so our guests will just have to get used to it.

I've got some good plans for Christmas anyway. I'm working an AM shift but I should be done by about 4pm. I'm getting together with Kevin, Sam, Vikki, David and Rene round at Kev and Rene's apartment. We're having a Christmas Eve sleepover and we're all going to be together to open the presents in the morning. Then I'm off to work (as is Kevin and Rene) and Dave, Vikki and Sam are making Christmas dinner. Then when we get back, we're decorating a Gingerbread house and having dinner all together. Poor Rene is working late but we won't leave him out.

We all got together this morning to go and get the Christmas food. Kevin hired a car and we went down to Kissimee to The British Store. Oh my goodness! You have never seen any group of people so excited to see Heinz Baked Beans! Us Brits were rushing round the store picking up things and screaming "oh my God, look, they have Penguins!!!!" (Chocolate coated cookies for the Americans reading this!) We were in raptures over the Aunt Bessies yorkshire puddings and when we found Lilt we were near tears. All those brands I take for granted at home....I never thought I'd be so excited to see a bottle of TCP! The sales assistant must have thought we were barking! However, she got into the spirit of things and brought out some English newspapers that were out of date. She was going to throw them away but said we could have them for free. Of course, we jumped at the chance and Vikki sniffed the paper and said "it smells like home!" Of course, that meant all of us had to smell the newspaper. Picture the scene, five people in a shop in Florida sniffing an out of date newspaper while our random Norweigan friend, Rene looks on in horror, convinced we've all gone nuts! It was the funniest thing ever and we were all laughing our heads off! Most importantly, the British store sold Christmas Crackers! I never knew they were a European thing, I thought it was universal but you can't get them in America. I was so happy to find them! At the end of our visit, the sales assistant (a lovely, elderly lady) whom we had been chatting with came round the counter and said "I know you're all away from your families so I'm going to give you all a hug". We all got a huge hug from her and Vikki was near tears when she pulled away. It was so sweet.

As this will be a rather strange Christmas for all six of us, we're trying to incorparate everyone's traditions into one. You would think that would be simple as five of us are British and one is Norweigan but it seems even in Europe people celebrate things a little differently. Rene is used to opening all his presents on Christmas Eve and he never has turkey for Christmas dinner. He has Christmas ham or Christmas sausage. I always have roast potatoes but Kevin has mashed potatoes. David always has Brussel Sprouts even though he doesn't eat them and most of the others want them because they're traditional (though no one really likes them). Vikki opens all her presents in the morning but Kevin spaces his out throughout the day. It's hard to mix it all together but I think we've hit a compromise. Christmas dinner will be turkey and stuffing with roast AND mashed potatoes. We'll also have sausages and sausage rolls. I think we're doing the presents half and half (half in the morning, half in the evening). For dessert, Rene is making a traditional Norweigan dessert called Riskrem (pronounced Rice-cream). Apparantly it's delicious but it's a bit worrying when Rene told us it's "creamy, sweet, smooth, light, fluffy and a little chewy" and is made from "rice and some other stuff." Still, we'll give it a go.

So, that's my Christmas all planned and it's going to be weird but also alot of fun. I never realised how much tradition there is in Christmas, I just thought everyone celebrated the same way. However, I've learnt that it doesn't matter how you celebrate or even IF you celebrate as long as you can surround yourself with friends or family and have an open mind to other peoples customs. So, I happily wish everyone "A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR!" (or God Jul for the Norweigans). Have a fantastic Christmas, whatever you're doing and wherever you are!!!!

Big apologies!!!

Okay, okay, okay! I'm really sorry I haven't written my blog recently. Things here have been really busy and to be honest, I didn't think anyone was bothering to read it. However, that myth has been laid to rest. I've had lots of e-mails along the lines of "what's happened to the blog?" so I guess I'll carry on with it.

Okay so the last entry was over a month ago on the 21st October. Luckily I keep a diary so I should be able to do an update quite easily. Back then I was still really new to service and finding my feet. Over the following weeks most of my arrival group also entered into service. I helped to coach Lauren P on her menu learning and now all of us minus Lauren N (Newt) are servers. Newt decided she doesn't want to do service and sometimes I think she was the wisest one of us all! Service can be really stressful.

HSM3 came out at the end of October and I went along with a huge group of people to see it at one minute after midnight. Yep, I'm that sad. Sadder yet was the fact that the cinema was packed with adults desperate to see the film. It was crazy. The film itself was actually pretty good. Better than the second, anyway!

Towards the end of October the servers working the PM shift were rather amazed to spot our first celebrity diner! Noel Edmonds dined at The Rose and Crown. For people who don't know (ie. Americans), Noel Edmonds is the presenter of "Are you Smarter Than a 10 year old" and "Deal Or No Deal". He's not a major celebrity but we were all quite excited. When celebrities come to the restaurant, we're not allowed to behave any differently towards them than anyone else. I think we did a fairly good job, no one bothered him but I noticed an increase in the amount of servers that just had to use the till nearest his table or take plates to the kitchen the long way round so they passed his table. He seemed a nice enough bloke though personally I think he wanted to be recognised. If he didn't, he wouldn't have eaten at the UK pavillion. Any other pavillion wouldn't have had a clue who he was!

Halloween ended really suddenly. One night it was all orange and black everywhere and the following day it had vanished! Instead we started to prepare for Thanksgiving. For people who don't know (ie. British), Thanksgiving is an American holiday that celebrates the pilgrams sitting down with the Indians and getting through their first winter with thier help. Of course, the pilgrams then turned round and said "by the way, we're taking ALL the land" but that tends to be glossed over during the celebrations. Park attendance began to pick up in the run up to the holiday.

On November 4th, history was made here in the US when Barack Obama became the first black president. I have no idea what he's doing now or what plans he's putting forth as I've been too busy to catch the news but it's still quite cool to be here for an historic occasion.

On November 5th, it was Bonfire Night. Once again, let me explain for the Americans. Guy Fawkes was a man who entered parliament a long time ago in order to blow it up. The only man ever to enter our government with honest intentions! He didn't succeed and every year we celebrate that fact by burning a "guy" on the bonfire and setting off fireworks in the evening. To my surprise, Disney did a "Bonfire Day" celebration for the UK pavillion. We had hotdogs and burgers and alot of people wishing us "Happy Guy Fawkes Day" which felt weird as it's not that sort of holiday. Still, it was really nice that they tried.

November brought about the birth of our group. It consists of Kevin, Rene, David, Sam, Vikki and myself. Once a week we all get together and go for a meal at a different resort. At first it was just a coincidence but now we do it once a week without fail. We hang out at different times as well. I've never been a part of such a close group of friends before, it's really good. It's like being in a Friends episode. Practically every evening for the last week you could find us all hanging out playing board games or Kevin's Nintendo wii or watching a movie or something.

In the middle of November, Kevin, Rene and I drove down to Key West for the weekend. It was a seven hour drive but so worth it. Key West is really scenic. The water is an indescribable blue and they have a bridge called the Seven Mile Bridge. You drive across it and there's water both sides. It was brilliant. We had a meal on the marina and looked round Mallory Square. We stayed overnight and headed back the following day so we really didn't get to do that much. Next time we'll plan to stay longer. On the way home, we stopped at Miami and played around on the beach. The sea was warm, like bath water which was strange.

At the end of November, "our group" went to Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party. It was a really cold night but they give you free hot chocolate and cookies. The parade was amazing but the best part was the castle. It's all lit up like it's made of glass and it's really incredible. The old castle will look really dull when the lights come off. We're hoping to go to the party again before it finishes.

Thanksgiving came and went. I was a bit crazy, wishing everyone a "Happy Thanksgiving" just because I've never been able to before. We had a special turkey dinner in the restaurant and it was really busy. In the evening, our group went out for Thanksgiving dinner. I had turkey and it was a fun night.

That brings us up to date. The Candlelight Processional has begun at EPCOT now. Guests pay for a meal and ticket to see the show which is the nativity read by a "celebrity". I use the term lightly as I've never even heard of the celebrities they have. It means the restaurant is REALLY busy. It's almost crazy! I'm finding it difficult but the thing that's keeping me going is knowing that after the end of this month, things will calm down. We're already on the 8th and Candlelight ends on the 6th of January so I only have a month to get through. Service will be a doddle after this next month though.

Okay, I'm due at work so I'd better go. I'll try to update a little more often. Bye for now!