Orientation!

So since I last posted I have literally signed my life away on every piece of paper under the sun. Did you know that the drinking age in the USA is 21? I do. I have been told 1 million and 1 times! We have our complex ID badges to get us into The Commons and so we can use all the Disney buses now and recieved our pay cards yesterday but we can’t activate those until next week. 

Other than the paperwork we have had a few presentations to do with our Visa, how we can get termed (sent home) and housing and how to resolve any issues we may have. Oh yeah and that the drinking age is 21. One of the presentations was crazy – like walking into a rave and we had literally the most excited woman I have ever seen in my life talking us through a few things. It hasn’t been too exciting and there have been a few issues with my visa (nothing major, just dates) but once thats sorted it should be all good. They’ve been really good at sorting that for me and have taken my passport away to mend it! At least I don’t have to stress about losing it.

Other than that our first few days have consisted of repeated trips to Walmart/Publix because we keep forgetting things (soap anyone?) although we did head to Downtown Disney for dinner at Planet Hollywood on our second night which was nice. One of the girls threw us a welcome party last night and it was nice to meet a few of the other UK’s that are here. 

Today is our first day off and we are gonna hang by the pool then we need to head back to public again (yawn) as we don’t have any food yet! oops! x

Day 1 – Arrival into the US of A!

I have just woken up after the LONGEST day of my life yesterday! Since I last posted, I finished my jobs, had my leaving party and said goodbye to all of my wonderful friends and family and set out to Florida. Thank you to all of my amazing family and friends for making my last weeks in the UK awesome!

I spent my last day with my parents and Richard down south so that we were closer to Gatwick airport in the morning. We had a really nice chilled out time and had an amazing curry (yummmmm), made a crumble and played cards!

In the morning we were up at 7.30am and on our way to Gatwick at about 9am and arrived at Gatwick airport at about 10.30am. I checked in online the night before so headed to the bag drop. My bag was too heavy – obviously – but i crammed a few more things into my guitar case and we were away. After we had done that it was time to say bye to my lovely parents which was really hard 😦 I am a real home bird and I will miss them, my brother, my little pooch and all of the rest of my friends and family so much!

Rich and I then headed through to departures (as he was flying to france that day). I met up with Joe who I was flying with and then time flew by so it was time for more goodbyes as I had to leave Richard which was really sad.

After avoiding sitting near a crazy chav family, we were away. The flight was about 8 1/2 hours which was quicker than scheduled and was okay. It was really broken up by all the drinks and snacks they give you and we squeezed in 3 movies so the time went quite quickly.

When we landed it was about a half an hour wait to get through immigration. My guy let me straight through and I headed to the baggage claim to wait for Joe. I saw him head over to his counter. 20 minutes later he still wasn’t through! I was really worried. I was literally the only person in the big baggage claim room and a lady came over and asked if I was okay and I explained I was waiting for Joe. She laughed and said that he was probably in secondary and I would be here for ages. She was about to go check where he was when I saw him walking over and she said that I was lucky because they usually hold people for 3 hours! I think the man Joe went to didn’t know how to process our visa was all.

Slight hiccup aside, we headed for the mears shuttle desk, bought our tickets and got on the little mears taxi which dropped us at Vista Way check in. We were BEYOND tired by this point and slightly delirious. We had to watch a video and collect our paperwork then get on a bus to the commons, where we both were. Joe is in Building 9 (in Beverley Hills!) with the other UK boys on our arrival group in the apartment above him. I am with Nischka and Rachel – 2 of the UK girls – in the SLUMS! haha. Apparently they are nicknamed that because Building 9 is near the front of the complex where the bus and pool and everything is and we are at the back about 5 minutes walk from everything! But our apartment is lovely. We headed over to Walmart to get bedding and everything with our UK arrival group. Dan and Sara who are already here helped us out so much! I am so grateful for all their help – particularly dan who was amazing and helped my apartment out by sorting everything and helping us with taxis and setting up our internet! amazing!

We had a McDonalds in Walmart then headed back to the commons with all of our bags. I was SO tired by the time we got back – we stayed up and chatted a while then I passed out. Honestly, yesterday was one of the longest days of my life and it was stressful, emotional and knackering all at the same time. There were moments where we didn’t know if we were doing the right thing and then other moments where we were so delirious that we didn’t know what was happening and it all still feels like a dream. My housemates (apart from one) are all up now so I am going to head off and get ready for orientation.

Hopefully update you all soon! x

Visa Appointment!

The dreaded Visa appointment – aside from the early start, its not that bad!

Before you can make your visa appointment, you need to have received the I-797 Q1 Visa Petition form. Yummy Jobs will email you when they have received it and it should be with you around a day later. You can then call up to make your Visa appointment (telephone number 09042-450100) at the US Embassy. This is an EXPENSIVE call. The appointment at the embassy will cost you $190 – it had gone up since I received my paperwork from Yummy! The calls are also charged at £1.23 per minute from a BT landline and my call lasted approximately 12 minutes. MAKE SURE YOU HAVE EVERYTHING READY. If you have to faff to find your passport or I -797 form it will cost you!

The things you will need for your call are:

• Passport
• I -797 form
• Payment card (it is worth noting that they do not accept Visa Electron or Maestro card)

You then need to ensure you have the following documents to take with you to your appointment:

– Your non immigrant visa interview confirmation letter and MRV application fee receipt
these will be sent to you in an attachment via email by the Embassy after your call

• Your passort
• Your job offer letter from Walt Disney World
• Your I-797 (the letter that notifies you to make your Visa appointment)
• A visa-sized passport photo – just in case!
• Confirmation page of the DS-160 form
• A payment card to pay a courier fee (from around £15)

The DS-160

This is a LONG form you need to complete online prior to your appointment. A lot of it is a very simple formality of checking you are not a terrorist, addresses, previous work experience, checking you are not a terrorist, making sure you do not plan to outstay your visa, checking you are not a terrorist and finding out why you want to go to the USA.

It is a simple enough form and the Yummy Jobs website – in your documents section when you log in – gives you plenty of advice on how to complete the form. The only additional advise that I can give is not to worry. The form isn’t trying to catch you out, its just a case of filling in the form as honestly as possible. If you are not sure of exact details (e.g. the exact date that you entered the USA previously) just put the information to the best of your knowledge. If they have any queries about it they will ask you at your appointment.

It is worth mentioning that at the end of the form you need to upload a photograph of yourself which is ‘visa size.’ This photo will be glued into your passport so make it a good one! I got my mum to take a photo of me against a white background and uploaded it although you can get a photo taken to visa size in the photobooths and scan and upload this.

My visa appointment was for 8.30am on Friday 13th July. I met up with Rachel who also has my start date the night before and we stayed in a hotel – thank you Matt!

We were up at 5am (eurgh) to get the tube over to Marble Arch. We left literally ALL of our stuff at the pharmacy around the corner (£3 for electrical items and £3 for an additional bag) and were at the embassy for 8am.

The best way I can describe the Visa appointment is like a glorified Argos. You get a ticket.. wait for it to be announced on the screens.. go to the little counter and talk to a representative. They check through all of your paperwork then you go and sit back down. Then your number is called again, you go to another window and have your interview. Then you need to pay to have your passport returned to you (costs start from approximately £15) and you’re done! We were out by approximately 10am so make sure you allow at least 2-3 hours to get everything done.

My passport arrived back on the Tuesday (my appointment was a Friday) so it was relatively quick. Luckily I had people at home to sign for it when it arrived – just note that if someone else it to sign for your passport they need your ID (e.g. drivers license) to pick it up.

TO DO LIST.

Admittedly it is more of a checklist for myself than anyone else however I do hope that this list may help future applicants.

TO DO

1.book my flight – DONE
2.purchase medical insurance – DONE
3.pay my program assessment fee – approx. $100
4.make (and attend) my visa appointment – DONE
5.book a seat on my flight – DONE
6.purchase a US Sim Card
I want to be able to be in contact with people immediately once I land purely because I think this will make the first night easier
7.Purchase luggage
8.Sell my car (I will miss you, Froggy!)
9.Cancel my car insurance
10.Cancel my AA membership
11.Tell the bank I am leaving

I made this mistake before when visiting New York for 2 weeks. I did not inform Mr TSB that I was going to America so Mr TSB froze my account. How annoying. Wont make that mistake again!
12.Clear out my room
13.Inform Mr Tax Man that I am leaving (and hopefully get a large tax return!)
14.Inform the Student Loan Company that I am leaving and, subsequently, they will not be receiving a penny from me for at least a year. Hah.
15.Organize some form of leaving shin dig.
Inevitably this will involve Disney fancy dress.
16.Decide if I am taking a) an extra suitcase b) my guitar or c) neither
17.Cancel my phone contract – DONE
no more money for you, Mr Orange!
18.Pay off the overdraft.- DONE
Awkward that this is still on the list 2 months before I leave.
19.Sort out an outfit for Traditions!
20.Get my iPod ready for a hefty 9 hour flight!

I am planning on cramming more Britishness into the next few weeks than you can shake a stick at including football matches (come on you foxes!), music festivals and 6 million cups of tea. Rule Britannia!

I’m not a criminal!

Fantastic news 🙂 – essentially I have had my CRB form back! I wasn’t expecting to be at all excited about it but when your employer is “Walt Disney World” and your job title is “Children’s Cast Member” – how can you not get excited?!

Not a lot more Disneywise has happened! But still on a Floridian theme – I am SO excited about going to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. After rewatching the final film I got very excited at the prospect of visiting the Wizarding World! I should really start to think about saving and, more importantly, fashioning a bucket list of things I want to do once I’m out there!

Hope to update with more soon!

Come fly with me!

My flights are booked!!

I must admit that I am starting to get a bit nervous. The sheer magnitude of what I am about to do hit me after I booked my flights and medical insurance. I imagine it is a feeling most people who are about to start the program get – am I doing the right thing? What if I don’t like it? What happens when I get home? I’m sure I will be a bit homesick and will miss my family and friends terribly when I’m over in the states. However, seeing all of the Facebook posts and pictures and blogs from current CRPs always helps me to feel confident and excited again.

I booked my flights with Virgin via STA travel as it worked out one of the cheapest. Delta was slightly cheaper but flying with virgin meant my flight was direct and also I could fly with Joe who has the same start date as me in F&B. I leave the UK at 1pm on September 4th from Gatwick airport.

I decided to book my medical insurance with STA as well as I got 10% discount when booking my flight. I booked for 4 months so that I could see how the insurance was and then decide whether to make the change to Disney or not.

All in all with my flights and insurance for 4 months I spent around £500 which wasn’t too bad. I made sure to buy the excess waiver too at £12 – the woman I spoke to at STA didn’t offer it to me initially so if you do book through STA make sure you ask for it, it will save you from making the initial pay out for expensive medical treatments.

Things!

SO! A Few things to update.
I have just this minute finished filling out my CRB form (better late than never!).. £60 to prove I’m not a criminal! But hey ho, worth it in the end!
I also had a Skype chat with Kristen from Yummy Jobs. She was lovely and just updated me (and 7 others in the Skype conference!) on a few of the details of the program e.g. travel allowances and visa stuff! very exciting stuff!

That’s all for now,

Hope to update you soon! xx

To do before Disney: The Big Things

The obvious things

book a flight
Flight prices will fluctuate depending on a) what your start date is, and b) when you are leaving. I am fortunate enough (in some respects!) to be heading out at the start of hurricane season – which means cheaper flights. I am currently awaiting pay day (as ever) to book my flights. In my experience it has paid off to wait and shop     around for flights. Initially when I was looking at costs, a one-way flight was in    excess of £600. Right now, I am looking at splashing out a more reasonable £350  by booking through STA travel. It is also worth looking at booking a return flight (and not using the return flight) as sometimes these can work out as being a lot cheaper.

I would also suggest looking at different airports and consider additional costs  incurred depending on where you are flying from (e.g. transport to the airport and  hotel costs if you are travelling a considerable distance). I have looked at Manchester and London and have decided that London is going to be the most   practical for me. More updates on the flights when it is booked!

COST: It will vary from cast member to cast member but for me, around £350.00.

Medical Insurance
A cost that I had not initially considered but is possibly the most vital thing you will purchase pre-Disney. I have not looked extensively into medical insurance but if you are confused by the whole situation – as I am – I would definitely have a look at Dan’s blog post to help clear a few things up. Cast members that I know that are currently living the dream have needed to use their insurance for a range of reasons: from stomach bugs to head injuries. This is possibly the thing that I am most nervous about purchasing and will definitely be double and triple checking that I am fully covered.
COST: I expect that I will spend around £500.00 on medical insurance.

Visa
Ah the nerve wracking Embassy visit. I am told it is not as terrifying as we all anticipate however I presume it is not the most pleasurable experience either. If you live outside of London or Belfast, the visa visit takes on an additional transport and potentially accommodation cost. I am hoping to drive down (trains at peak time in the morning into London are extremely pricey). I am thinking of doing a park and ride and potentially heading down with a friend. This will allow me a fun filled touristy day in London town, and also gives me somewhere (or someone) to leave my possessions with before entering the embassy.
COST: tbc

I’m going to Disney World!

 

 

Congratulations

You have been offered a position on

Disney’s Cultural Representative Program

Your role in the show will be in Food & Beverage

Your program dates will be September 4th 2012 to August 30th 2013

….As you can imagine I am massively excited! 

I received my CRB form through the post from Yummy Jobs and my Disney Pack! Which contained my job offer letter..Also, documents have become available on the yummyjobs website for me to download (and print, and put in my shiny Disney CRP folder…geek). And tomorrow I have a Skype chat with Kristen from Yummy Jobs to fill me in about the program and answer any questions I may have! I will update with all the details after I’ve skyped!

Bon Voyage!

So on the 20th March, my good Friend Dan (of Dan@Disney!) headed off to the sunshine states! Follow his blog and his twitter account to see updates of his adventures!

On another Disney related note – I am heading back to Disneyland Paris! Being with Sky means that you can get free Disneyland Paris tickets with Sky Rewards. Head to the Sky Rewards website to find out more and claim your free tickets – well worth it!

Its been a fairly Disneyesque week! I watched Tangled for the first time – which I LOVE! And Followed it up with a bit of Toy Story 3. Good times!

But for now, Good Luck Dan – and all of the March 20th-ers!