Disneyland - A Travelogumentary.

My recent trip to Disneyland showed me people at their best, and people at their worst.  Don't get me wrong, I loved my vacation, I'm just reporting my observations of different behaviors from a wide spectrum of people who were, for a short time, simultaneously located at "The Happiest Place On Earth".  I wouldn't even really call this an op-ed piece, and I won't try to offer an explanation for any of it.  This is simply an observation into the diversity of human behavior.

Before I get into the meat of it, let me give some reference.  I spoke with a very pleasant Disneyland employee from Yucaipa, CA named Anthony who works in the animal care department for the park.  He is a recent college graduate of animal science and is going to veterinary school.  He helps care for the horse that pulls the trolley down Main Street, the goats in the petting zoo area, and any other live animals that belong to the park.

Anthony told me that Disneyland and California Adventures combined have over 22,000 employees.  Some are in specialized positions like animal care, security, guest relations, etc.  You have to have some background to work in those fields.  Now, while the other positions may not require a college degree there is a training period to see if you'll be able to handle the position.  I should say "positions" as most employees cover more than one attraction.  They also have multiple uniforms that differ depending on what attraction they are working at.  Many of the employees there are college interns because from what I hear, having put down "worked at Disneyland" looks good on a resume, especially if you did it during the summer.

I forgot to mention that 6,000 of those employees are custodial.  That's around 27% of the entire workforce.  You could say that's due to the sheer size of the park.  While I'm sure that's a factor there is more to it than that.  You can't count on people to behave themselves if they know someone is being paid to clean up after them.  There is some allowance for people who get sick or who drop things unknowingly, BUT:  At the Grizzly Rapids recreation area there was a bit about being kind to wildlife and wilderness and whatnot.  After it was over I watched people callously throw the backing of their "Wilderness Friend" (or something like that) sticker on the ground. There is ALWAYS a trash can nearby so why the indifference?

At the end of "Fantasmic" (a show that takes place in the island and waters of Frontierland) they close off a section of street to allow traffic to clear out after the show.  I saw people get all bent out of shape because they couldn't just bypass the roped off area in an effort to not have to go "upstream" against foot traffic.  The park employees deal with the "why can't you just let me __________ (fill-in-the-blank)" all the time.  If it were just one or two people I'm sure things would be different but when you're dealing with 20,000 + (at least) on a daily basis you can't give an inch or you'll get taken for several miles.

Fast-pass is an option to come back to a ride a bit later and not have to wait as long in line.  I won't go into details here.  Any of you that have been to the park know what I'm talking about.  Those of you that haven't....you need to get out more.  The problem comes during the evening when the time frame is different and both lines are a bit longer.  People in the fast-pass line become grumbly masses because fate has deemed it necessary for them to wait a little bit too.  Sugar-high induced children (I dare say some of them are brats) are causing mass hysteria and nobody wants to be encased in a place where the only escape for your ears is to plug them.

My point is this.  If you realize the park is a fun place to be and the employees do their best to appeal to the atmosphere you would also realize that more people want to come have the experience, ergo, the park becomes a victim of it's own success as more people enter it.  You WILL be competing with every other guest there.  I have worked with the public before so maybe that's the part of me talking here but don't be a jerk to the employees.  You ruin the experience for the rest of us.  We've become a nation of instant gratification.  You only have to wait in line for a ride.  They have to wait until the park closes.

To be sure I give equal treatment to the best of people and to end on a good note I need to recognize some of the people I saw.  I don't remember names but I remember experiences.

One guest hurt her leg or foot somehow and a retired firefighter / EMT happened to be there so he assisted while waiting for the park personnel.  He was kind and gentle with her and as we were being pushed in another direction by the masses I can only assume he stayed with her until more help arrived with crutches or a wheelchair or something.

One employee was having a difficult day with the crowds and I saw some of the park patrons just go up and compliment her on the job she was doing.  I saw her brighten slightly at this and decided to offer a kind word and smile to her as well.  It's true that watching others perform kind acts can motivate you to perform your own.

On a personal note, my camera crapped out or I'd have some candids here.  I ran into two of my 501st family, one from AZ and the other from TX.  I should have written their names down somewhere, and if my camera had been working I'd have gotten pics with them.  Also, my daughter was the Rebel Spy three times on the Star Tours ride.