Hey gang, here's a Guest Blog for ya, from a fellow Canadian Disney Cast/Crew Member named Jody (who is a guy). It gives a bit more insight from someone who's already been working on the ship for some time; I'll be putting in my two cents after I've officially started my huge contract and training's over.
, it's all Jody's.
And as usual - everything found on this blog is not the property nor associated with the property of Disney Cruise Line, the Disney Corporation or its affiliates.
Alright, here it is. I’ve set aside a few minutes and a few
dollars to get online and tell you landlubbers what’s going on. Pour
yourself a refreshing beverage, get your scrolling finger ready, and
read on at your leisure.
The Job.
My official title is Youth Activities Counselor, and I spend my day
working with a team that takes care of groups of children on the cruise
ship The Disney Wonder. The shifts are about ten hours in duration, and
are usually broken up into two chunks of about five hours apiece. There
is a slow rotation of start/end times, such that someone who starts at
8am wold be off by 8pm, and someone who starts at 2pm would be off by
2am. It’s not that straigtforward, but it’s not that interesting either.
There are a number of different jobs that get done by a YAC during
the day, ranging from sitting at the check-in desk, to performing as a
pirate in an interactive program for the kids. I was a pirate today. We
put on a show for the kids that made them believe that Captain Hook had
taken over the cruise ship and the kids had to solve the mystery. Some
kids were so scared of Hook - and so convinced of our performance - that
they actually cried and had to leave. It was aaarrrrrghhhhhhsome!
There are many of these interactive programs that the kids get to
participate in. They make cookies, they make Flubber, they solve
mysteries, they dig for whale bones on the tropical island that we dock
at. It’s fun. Even more fun is when I get to spray them with hoses on
said tropical island! Very nice.
We also take them for meals, let them play videogames (
Mario Kart and
Guitar Hero!!!!!!!), introduce them to some of the characters, and even take them to the onboard movie theater. If I have to watch
Bridge To Terabithia one more time however, I will throw someone overboard.
The Food
The ship’s mess is open 24-hours for my dining convenience, although
after midnight there isn’t really much in there besides toast and Ramen
noodles. I do love Ramen though. Mmm. At scheduled mealtimes there is
usually a good variety of food to choose from, and it’s actually much
better than most “cafeteria food” I’ve previously been subjected to.
It’s not even near the quality of the meals the guests get in the ships
restaurants, but they do switch up the menu daily to give the different
ethnic groups onboard a little taste of home. Since being here I’ve had
various curries, asian soups, fish dishes, salads, and even some of the
extra I haven’t seen poutine or back-bacon on the menu yet though, so it
isn’t really
that diverse.
On a lot of the days I work, we do take the kids to lunch and dinner.
That being so, we do eat the same food as they do while we’re in there.
It’s the exact same stuff every day for the kids; chicken fingers,
french fries, pizza, etc. That can get a little tiresome. I enjoy
healthy meals on a regular basis with that sort of thing being reserved
more for the occasional treat. Even the vegetables they put out for the
kids are so covered in butter that I am probably better off eating the
chicken fingers and pizza.
The Accomodations
My room is small. If you have an average size bathroom somewhere in
your house, you can probably picture the size of my complete cabin… that
I share with a Belgian guy. Yeah.
It’s actually not all that bad, considering I only ever go into the
room to change, shower, or sleep. The bed is comfy enough (top bunk!),
and they have a TV an DVD player in there too. The major downfall is the
shower, which is entirely too small. It’s a right-angle triangle shape
with the length of the two shorter sides being about 24 inches each.
I’ll leave it up to you to
figure out the length of the hypotenuse.
The Time Off
I do get a decent amount of time away from “The Lab,” as my workspace
is called. When in Port Canaveral on Thursdays and Sundays, there is
usually time to get off the
boat ship and over to the
mall or Walmart to pick up some stuff or just get away for a while. Once
I get the hang of predicting my schedule (we only find out the day
before), I’ll probably be able to work it so that I can meet up with
local friends for lunch or a movie or something while we’re docked.
While in Nassau, we also get time away from work and are free to
explore the island. The port area itself is kind of blah/touristy, but
there are a lot of opportunities for excursions and activities if you
know where to go. I haven’t really done much there yet, but I do plan to
start doing more once I’ve been here a bit longer. On weeks that we get
above-target scores on our performance evaluations, the Captain allows
the ship to stay docked later in Nassau, so that the crew (me!) can get
in a little night-life time. Last night was one of those such nights, so
we all went out to a little tiki-style bar called
Bamboo (I know, very creative) and had some drinks and dancing. Good times all around.
On the days that we dock into Disney’s private island,
Castaway Cay
(which, incidentally, used to be called “Gorda Cay” and was used by
drug smugglers as a hideout), we spend most of the day looking after the
kids and playing games with them in the sand. This is where I get to
spray them with the water hose, so it’s always a highlight for me! When
not working with the kids on the island, we’re usually free to go to
the private crew beach for some BBQ and R&R. There’s a volleyball
court and soccer field, and a beautiful cove for swimming and
sunbathing.
I made it over there for a couple of hours today, and went for a
swim. Having previously studied marine biology in college, I was
fascinated by the sea-life that I came across while in the water, and
spent most of my time nerding it up with the Enchinoderm phylum. I
‘caught’ no less than 10
starfish (the biggest was about 15 inches across, and had SIX legs!), plus a
sea cucumber and a
purple sea fan. I also stepped on a
sea-urchin and have about six of the spines still stuck in my foot (the Doc said to leave them in).
The Benefits
In addition to my regular compensation, Disney has given me free
access to all Disney parks worldwide (with the exception of Tokyo, for
some reason). I get additional passes to bring friends in with me from
time to time, and even more passes on occasion to use or give away as I
see fit. My position affords me many additional ship priveleges that not
all crew members get, such as the ability to go into guest areas when
I’m not working so that I may use the ship’s many services (jacuzzis,
movie theaters, etc). I am also able to get friends and family discounts
for cruise vacations, although I haven’t actually checked into the
specifics of what the discount entails. Anyone interested, let me know
and I’ll find out. Heck, I’ll even watch your kids for you while you’re
off having fun on the vacation… it’s my job!
That’s about all I can think of at the moment. If you’d like a
postcard, email me your mailing address and I’ll send one off to you
when I get some time and stamps. Even better, if you’d like to send me
stuff
(subliminal message: send me stuff!), let me know and I’ll get you
my mailing address on the high seas. Photos, letters, and snacks are always appreciated!
The Bottom Line
I enjoy it so far. The people I work with are all really great, and
the company is a pleasure to work for. Most of the guests are there to
have a good time, so there isn’t much complaining going on. Plus, you
can’t beat the location! Even on the bad days, I just look out the
window and I am instantly put back into a good mood. I mean, the worst
thing that happened to me all week was getting stuck in the foot by a
sea-urchin while strolling through a tropical lagoon. I can live with
that.
