Disneyland - Jungle Cruise - Last Day (for now?)

Greetings, Jungle lovers! I post the bitter news that my current tenure as a Disney Cast Member has come to an end (there's just way too much coming up this summer for me to be able to juggle the Park and the rest of my life).

Today I share with you pictures from my last day at the Park, April 19, 2009.

Let us begin, shall we, with a picture taken of me and one of the executives from Team Disney Anaheim (apparently they are really cutting back over there due to the worsening economy). This was taken during my final walk-through of Tarzan's Treehouse.Since those Treehouse walk-throughs can really take it out of you, sometimes you have to slow down the pace and kick your feet up. I'm just saying.Next, let's take a look a few of my fellow skippers with whom I shared some of my final day.

We have Skipper Kip below. He is a Class A Jungle veteran and a fabulous skipper. His spiel is subtle, refined, like a good wine. It is filled with nuance and the kind of oddball humor that brings guys like us back to the Jungle again and again. He's a tall fellow and, if you get the chance, be sure to catch his boat! His baby hippo routine during a night cruise is a fine example of skipper excellence! Thanks, Kip!
Next, we have Skipper Megan below. We spent many hours on Jungle and probably even more working Parade guest control shifts! She is very funny and her evil twin "Muriel" is an absolute delight. "Muriel" is the Little Mermaid's less attractive, chain-smoking sister (kinda the black sheep of the family). If you ever ride her boat, you might want to ask her how Muriel is doing!Here is Skipper Gill. We agreed to start a rumor together among the other Jungle Skippers that she was originally a man (this was partially Gill's idea, so don't think us cruel). Around the Jungle dock skippers began calling her "Gilbert" during the last week I worked at Jungle. Gill is simply a great person and she has a fabulous sense of humor! I never rode her boat, but her guests always seemed in pretty good moods when she pulled up to unload. That's always a good sign! Gill---I'll miss you and all my friends out there on Jungle!
Below is a shot of me and one of the Parade leads, Ryan, as the sun set on my last day. Had to get a shot of Sleeping Beauty's Castle while I was still in costume! Ryan and I worked many busy parade/fireworks (or "pyro" in Cast Member lingo) shifts. He was also a Lead on Jungle and was in Jungle Central when I had to go out in my boat and rescue one of our fellow skippers whose boat had derailed at the hippo pool! I want to say one thing for the record: you can't understand a thing that anyone is saying on those darned walkie-talkies we had on our boats. I think we ended up using smoke signals from the native village in order to communicate with each other during that six-shot episode! Thanks, Ryan!Well, what farewell to Disneyland would be complete without a night shot in front of the castle on my way to turn in my costume for the last time. Perhaps, like the Terminator, I'll be back!
For now, thanks, Disneyland, for welcoming me back! I had a complete blast and, as you might see from some guest comments posted in this blog, it looks like a few of my passengers did, too!

I have plenty more photos to share, but this should appease the masses for today.

Now, please stand up and exit the boat. If you don't stand up and exit, well you'll have to go again and, trust me---the jokes DON'T change!

---Mike