DCP Housing

All the Fall CP's will be starting their programs in August. Exactly a year ago, I was in the same place. I remember having so many questions running through my head because I had no idea what to expect. For example, where am I going to live?! When the time comes closer to the start of your DCP, you will be able to rank the top three complexes you would like to live in. Here, I will do my best of giving a brief run down on all the possible places you can live at the WDW College Program.

Patterson Court
This is where I lived, so naturally I know the most about it. It is quiet, calm, and there is never anything too crazy going on. Like all the other apartments, it has a nice pool and gym. I lived in a three bedroom with six girls total. The apartments are very spacious, have a full living room and kitchen, and all the bedrooms have their own bathrooms and walk in closets, which I loved! The only part that sucks is that you have to walk across the street to Chatham Square to catch the bus to work or the parks. It's only a 4-5 minute walk, but sometimes that makes all the difference when you're about to be late. Also, when it comes to groceries, I always went to Publix, which is about a 15 minute walk from Patterson or Chatham - probably 20 from the Commons. This kind of sucks because of the fact that you then have to carry all your groceries back, but the security office does rent out small wagons if you'd like to take that. You could also take the Walmart bus - it's more time consuming, in my opinion, but it's good if you want to buy a ton of stuff.

Chatham Square

Though I didn't live here, most of my friends did, so I spent a decent amount of time in this complex. The apartments are set up the same and are just as spacious. It also has the field where all the Housing Events take place, so that's convenient. It is right across from Mickey's Retreat, where you can take your family and friends to play games, go kayaking, or just hang out (I never went, which I regret, so I don't know a lot about it). And, like I mentioned before, the buses stop right in front of this complex, which is nice. If I could do the program again, I would definitely cross my fingers for Chatham, though Patterson would be a close second.

The Commons
This is the newest of all the complexes, as well as the most expensive. This is where the housing orientation/welcome meeting takes place. Other than that, I never went here often. Originally, this housed only International College Program participants (ICP's), but it recently opened up to everyone. However, because of this, it is still ICP's that live here. It has it's own bus stop, but some routes do not stop at the Commons, so you may have to make the 8-10 minute walk to Chatham in that case. A huge plus is that they have washers and dryers in the units, while the other complexes have a public laundry room. Also, it is right across the street from the outlet mall (which is where much of my paychecks went on more than one occasion). Forever 21, Charlotte Russe, Starbucks, Papaya, Coach, Fendi, North Face, Saks Off Fifth Ave. You dream it, they have it.

Vista Way
I know that this is the most infamous complex, but I will admit that I do not know much about it. This is where some of the classrooms are if you take a class through the DCP (the other classrooms are at Patterson). It has its own bus stop, but while the other three complexes are clustered together, Vista Way is farther away from the rest. However, it is right across the street from Walgreens and a couple restaraunts, which is convenient. I heard the hot tub (which I would never step foot in, judging by the stories I heard) was recently taken out, which sucks for them. But yes, this is where the youger, wilder CP's stay, from what I've heard and seen. I went into a VW apartment once, and it definitely was not as nice as the other complexes, though that can be attributed to the fact that this is the oldest complex. This will be your first stop of the DCP, though, because this is where you check in and find out where you will be living and working!

I Made It To Orlando!!

I made it to Orlando! I'm staying in the Lake Buena Vista Marriott Courtyard, and it's so nice! My room has a flat screen TV, king size bed, balcony that overlooks the pool, and bath tub with jets! I am so excited and can't believe that this is all finally happening. It's just starting to phase me that I'm on the completely opposite side of the country - just typing that sounds so surreal!

After my flight landed, I boarded the shuttle that took me right to my hotel. It was so difficult to carry all my bags from the car to the lobby, despite the fact that it was less than thirty feet away. That's what happens when you have four bags, so here's a shout out to that random guy who carried my bags inside! Once I got settled in and went out to grab some pizza, I went on a walk to see if I could find the Vista Way apartments, which is where check-in is tomorrow morning (or this morning, technically speaking). I'm pretty sure I went to the wrong place, but the humidity was getting to me, so I turned around and headed back to the hotel. And on the subject of humidity, I've never been in anything like this! I feel like I'm practically eating the air, not breathing it! But on the bright side, I saw my very first real-life palm tree!

But seeing as it's nearly two in the morning, and I'm leaving at seven, I should probably get some sleep in my ridiculously gigantic bed! I'm just hoping I have time to blog this week!

Disney Onsite Resident Management System

Well it has been a very stressful week when it comes to my DCP housing situation. First off, my roommate that I originally planned to stay with told me she is no longer doing the program. By this time, DORMS emails were already being sent out, so I was afraid I wouldn't find another roommate in time! I posted on the August 12th arrivals Facebook page, and luckily I had a response. However, when we tried putting each others roommate ID numbers into the corresponding part of the form, it said that it was invalid. I come to find out that we have different departure dates, so we couldn't be roommates. Come to think of it, everyone that I've heard of has a different departure date as me. They all leave January 3rd, and I am January 2nd. Seriously, am I the only one like this?

With only about four hours left to submit the DORMS paperwork, and after a short phone call to the DCP, I had to accept the fact that I could only do random roommate selection. This past year of college, I did this as well, and it worked out great - hopefully I have the same luck! Really, I'm just hoping for someone who doesn't mind that I sleep a lot and that I'm not the tidiest of people when it comes to my bedroom... But I do like doing dishes, so that's a plus!

I requested Vista Way as my first choice, mostly because it is the cheapest and I have low expectations for housing conditions. My college dorms were built in 1953 for crying out loud! Also, I believe I did 2-bedroom as my first preference, 3-bedroom second. It was a pretty simple process other than the whole roommate thing, so I hope check-in goes just as smoothly!

Update - I had emailed Disney about the DORMS situation prior to calling them, but did not expect them to reply in time. Several hours after writing the above blog post, I received a response saying that they would make an exception and link my roommate and I together despite our different departure dates! I'm so excited!

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Two Months!

It's official - exactly two months until I check in for the Disney College Program! As I get more and more excited about moving to Florida, I will definitely be posting more often now!

We're at that point where we no longer need application or interview advice, yet we're still a few weeks away from starting to pack our bags. So what do we do? Here are a few of the websites and blogs that I have been pouring over as the DCP draws nigh!

If you're looking into which apartment complex you will live in, be sure to check out MouzeKateerz.com. This page in particular (click here) was very informative! Personally, I'm leaning towards Vista Way because it's the cheapest, in a more centralized location, and the rumors of the wild parties are a bit exaggerated, from what I hear.

Although I haven't started packing my luggage, it doesn't mean I can't read over all the packing/arrival day lists that are out there! Here is one that I thought was fun to read. And of course, you can't forget about the Disney College Programs Blog! To see the plethora of information this site holds, click here!

Also, this blog answers a great deal of the random questions you may have! And if you have any specific questions you want to ask, don't hesitate to visit Tumblr and ask here - you'll probably even see a couple questions that I asked on there!

I hope these links have proven useful, and let me know if you have any questions!

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Destination: Miami Beach

Only a couple more days until I hit the two month countdown! The past few weeks, I've done well to keep myself distracted (to read about these fun distractions, visit my main blog here), so the DCP has been pushed to the back of my mind, until recently. Disney World is nearly within reach now - how can I not start thinking about it!

The other night, I even took to looking at my flight/hotel confirmation emails repeatedly, just to make sure I didn't dream this whole thing up! One thing I did notice is that I have a four-hour layover in Miami the morning of my arrival in Florida. If my first flight goes according to schedule, I plan to take advantage of these four hours! Hopefully I have a small carry on so that I don't have to lug too much around.

Maybe I'll take a cab to Miami Beach, stroll down the coast, and visit the shops nearby! It may sound silly, but I'm excited to see the sand in Florida! The only beaches I've ever been to were either here in Washington, or in Oregon, and they tend to consist mostly of rocks. And the sunny weather down there is definitely a plus! Maybe I can walk through all the shops that they have down there! Or maybe I'll just sit in the airport for four hours and play games on my iPod.

And please don't get me started on my hotel! (I haven't been on a real vacation in years, and the hotels have always been my favorite part, so don't mind my excessive enthusiasm). Most CPs are staying at the Holiday Inn Express right across from the check-in location at Vista Way, but I decided to save $50 and stay at the Marriott instead, which is about a ten minute walk from Vista Way. I've googled pictures of it, and part of me thinks that I looked up the wrong hotel - it looks amazing! I'm glad my flight comes it at noon so that I'll have plenty of time to explore!

 

And, last but not least, let me just point out that this is where I'll be staying for the duration of the program. Can August come any sooner?!

 

 

 

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