*ALL VIEWS ARE MY OWN AND NOT OF THE WALT DISNEY COMPANY, CENTRAL MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY OR YUMMY JOBS*
To my dearest Disney Ohana across the pond and all over the world,
Where do I even begin!? It’s been six months since we all received the most devastating news of the Disney College Programs and Disney International College Programs cancelling and us college program kids having to return home. Now, we’ve all gone our separate ways… some of you are making magic again; some of you are still waiting for the call from the mouse; like me, some of you will be returning to school again; and some of you have started other full-time positions. Especially with the current situation right now, I have many questions running through my head surrounding when (or if) I will ever see any of you again. But, whether you realise it or not, one thing I will never question is how much each and every one of you have changed my life.
When I applied for my Disney International College Program, I had no idea what I was buckling myself up for – and what was out there waiting to meet me. Little did I know that the people I would meet would be some of the most amazing and inspirational individuals who would soon become some of my closest friends over a short period of time. I cannot even imagine my life without you. You are literally another Ohana (family) to me and it only made saying goodbye to you so much harder than I could have possibly imagined! I must admit, there isn’t a day that goes by where I don’t cherish each and every one of your smiling faces. And with that comes missing some of the most magical memories that I made with all of you.
I miss park hopping countless times to cram in all of our favourite rides.
I miss cheating on Disney and heading to Universal.
I miss the late night grocery trips.
I miss attempting everyone's different accents.
I miss all the early morning starts and the late night finishes.
I miss splashing some cash in Cast Connections on all the Disney parks merch.
I miss making up our own Disney parks challenges and then attempting to complete them.
I miss having to ask one of you to check that I've added up my change correctly.
I miss celebrating all the holidays with you in our own special way, including the ones that I do not celebrate in the UK.
I miss the stress of evacuating Guests.
I miss eating all the American treats and drinking British tea.
I miss meeting new people on the Transdev bus rides and mentally questioning if we were going to be involved in a car wreck or not.
I miss hanging out in the Florida weather: the heat, humidity, getting soaked from a storm and frantically preparing for hurricanes.
I miss learning different Spanish phrases that I could use for communicating to Spanish-speaking Guests.
I miss dancing and singing our hearts out to old school tunes at the housing events.
I miss the day that I pretended to be an American for the day with a 'Chris from Orlando' name tag.
I miss making magic with you for Guests every single day.
I miss having fun with you on and off each shift.
I miss laughing with you.
I (even) miss having you as a shoulder to cry on.
I miss our heart-warming hugs.
I MISS YOU SO SO MUCH! 🥺
You have been and always will be a huge part of my life. I have never met a group of individuals who have allowed me to express myself so freely, whilst being completely out of my comfort zone thousands of miles away from home, loved and supported me through life’s most challenging moments as if I was one of your own, and made me have a more positive and optimistic outlook on life. I have truly been the happiest little girl from the UK and I have you all to thank for that. No matter where you are in the world or how long it has been since we last saw each other or how long it will be until we reunite again, I will always be there for you just like you were for me.
I hope we can see each other again some day.
Love and hugs,
Hannah ❤
DISCLAIMER: this blog is my personal experience on the Disney Academic Exchange Program (DAEP) 2019-2020 and may not reflect everyone’s experience. Other programs and future participants on the DAEP may have slight adjustments to their programs that may not be featured in any of my blog posts. That being said, if you do leave any questions, I will try to answer them as best as I possibly can 😊
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