Ever since I was little, I have always wanted to dance in Disney. I’m 17 and its till my dream.

Four years ago, I had the opportunity to dance in a parade in the Magic Kingdom. It was magical, to say the least. Better yet, I was able to dance in another Disney parade this past July.

I traveled to Florida with my dance studio and a group called Dance the World. They organized the entire trip from start to finish with all of the perks of being in a Disney parade. Before we arrived, we learned a routine to Pharrell’s hit single “Happy”, and our costumes were delivered before we left.

Once there, we had a large parade practice with all of the participants, and then the following day was parade day. Our parade was the opening act to the Electrical Parade in Magic Kingdom. Knowing it was going to be dark, the navy blue costumes with criss-crossing red swirls came with lights embedded into the seams into four rows. Ruby red heels completed the look.

Our group boarded a charter bus to get backstage. We were not allowed to have anything with us, and all our teacher was allowed to bring were our tickets, her phone (which should be turned off) and a small bag the company provided. Once we got off the bus, we went backstage.

Then we were placed in lines, four people across in rows and rows for what seemed like miles before us. I was about four rows from the front. The large group of dancers had a nice view of the sunset from the backstage.

We counted down the minutes to the park announcement introducing us. The music blared and we were off.

Main Street USA was where we began, or the front of the park. We went around the large circle and came up to Cinderella’s castle. Crowds on the street were cheering us on as we were smiling and dancing just as the castle was starting to light up and twinkle. It was breathtaking.

After dancing past Cinderella’s Castle, we rounded another circle and headed towards Liberty Square, an area themed like colonial America. As we danced, the sun continued to set, and our costumes continued to glow and glisten. It was lit (no pun intended).

We finished the parade in Frontierland, a wild west-themed section. By that point, it was night and our costumes were the main event for the people who saw us last.

By now, sweat was dripping into my eyes, it was hot and humid, and I didn’t really care. I was dancing in the most magical place on Earth, what is there to complain about?