Was it that long ago? It seems like just yesterday. All of the ships I served on, though, are no longer in service, with the exception of USS Nassau (LHA-4), the sister ship of the Saipan. Some have been scrapped, some were sold to other countries; maybe one or two remain in mothballs.
Anyway, here's a pic of the Saipan as I remember her:
I still remember the cinnamon rolls on the Saipan and the Nassau, they were gooey and delicious. The ships were supposed to be too big to be affected by heavy seas, thus the mess decks had cafeteria tables instead of tables bolted to the deck; it was quickly discovered that the ships rolled enough to cause the unsecured tables to slide across the decks in heavy seas, so the tables were all secured during those periods and the sailors ate chow on the deck itself, sitting cross-legged like Indians.
The ships were comfortable and pleasant for the first and last days of a cruise, when the Marines weren't embarked. *laughs* When the Marines were onboard they seemed to have little else to do than stand in lines: to get haircuts, to buy sodas from the geedunk machines, to play video games down in the game room, to eat, to go on liberty. I swear, the soda machines would be filled up twice a day, and emptied within minutes each time by the thirsty Marines.
Good times, they were. Fun days.
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