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An International SeaWorld


June 26, 2009 by CarolynChorak •

 

International team members see the park for the first time.
International team members see the park for the first time.

     Our 2009 summer International team members have started to arrive here at SeaWorld San Antonio.  How strange it must be to fly out of China or Taiwan one morning and 48 hours later find yourself “in processing” here at the park.  They generally plod off the bus, still jet-lagged after having spent about 15 hours flying, dropping into bed at an Americanized apartment, and waking up to “weird” food.  That first “awake” day, they come in to fill out tons of paperwork, do a drug test, and get uniforms.  Some mornings that’s followed by a New Hire Orientation and tour of the park that lasts until about 3:00 p.m.  The processing and training isn’t much different for a U.S. hire, but I’ve flown around the world before.  When I got there, I was barely functional.  I doubt that I could listen to me talk for six hours!

     This is the second year of our International hiring program.  This summer group of 65 includes Busch Entertainment’s first ever group from China.  Although this year’s summer group is coming strictly from China and Taiwan, this program has brought us team members from Russia, Turkey, Korea, Italy, Thailand, and the Philippines.  We usually have one group who works during our Spring season and another that works Summer.  They are all college students who want to experience life in the United States and improve their language skills.  They get to experience BBQ, central Texas Heat, cowboy hats, Fiesta, longhorns, the Alamo and Wal-Mart.  We get to experience lumpia, lifelong friendships extended by social media sites, “presentos”, and just plain hard-workers who complain less than a lot of their US counterparts. 

     It’s not easy.  They don’t always speak or understand English as much as we or our guests might like, but the opportunities for fun and friendship are worth so much more.  If you see them, take a chance and say hello.  That’s what they’re here for.

Related posts:

  1. Paying it Forward the SeaWorld Way

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5 Responses to “An International SeaWorld”

  1. Rogelynn Artap says:
    June 29, 2009 at 10:30 pm

    Oh… Internationals coming from the Philippines just left… Thank you so much SeaWorld San Antonio for the PRICELESS experience that we gained… More power to you especially to the inspiring trainers… CHUCK CUREAU of VIVA, LISA HALSTEAD and STEVE [dont know the last name-he's the supervisor there]of Sea Lion Stadium… and many of the people =) May God bless you all more =)

    PS
    though many problems had occurred.. still the overall experience was awesome!

    • CarolynChorak says:
      June 30, 2009 at 9:23 am

      I’m so glad you had an “awesome” experience. We really appreciate all that you and your friends did for us. Stay safe in your travels. Maybe we’ll find you back here one day.

  2. Carolyn Or says:
    July 1, 2009 at 9:16 pm

    I’m part of the internationals philippines ’08, im glad working at Seaworld its all about fun fun fun and meet a lot of new people even though sometimes there’s a problem. Hope to work there again soon… :)

  3. Alyssa Scully says:
    August 23, 2009 at 12:37 am

    What an awesome way to experience the U.S.