USS Stennis Danish

USS John C. Stennis Danish

Of the many fascinating displays at the Puget Sound Navy Museum in Bremerton, WA, I was most struck by an exhibit about life on board the aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis. I learned about 1-minute showers (as opposed to the leisurely "Hollywood" variety), tried tucking myself in for the night in a claustrophobic bunk more like a metal dresser drawer, and got a taste of slingshot launches from a fighter pilot's perspective.

Considering that the crew of over 5000 chows down on nearly 17,000 meals a day, a corner of the exhibit is fittingly devoted to the challenges of producing that much food on a ship in the middle of the ocean. From notes left in the comment book by sailors and their families, I gather that the museum's model food (such as the plastic danish, above) looks a little better than the real thing but probably tastes about the same.