Bob I loved sailing under the Blue Star as they where truely rough in the accomodation stacks but by heck where they great crews that where on them. The old saying of "chatty but happy" was the mantra on them. As for overtime we where never short of that on deck some of them where like a bloody forest with all the sticks and some had spare sticks stored in the hatches. They where true ships. I hear that the modern ones only have a crew of around 12 all up. Would hate to be on one of those but if it is good accomodation you are after then the new ones have it. No matter how much we whinged about them we loved the old ones. Last one I was on we had single cabins with all the mod cons and that is why it was the last one I signed on as I could not take all the bulldust that went with it.
That's the way the mop flops.
My thanks to Brian for this site.