The crew - the visible staff, that is, upstairs, as opposed to the invisible folks downstairs - seem heavily drawn from Dutch colonial history, esp Indonesia. Apparently many stay on board for months or years, sending money home.
Ralph Nader is here. Saw him walking down a hallway in a dark suit looking like he missed a career as a funeral director. He introduced himself at the briefing session for speakers as "a consultant to GM."
The Nation cruisers seem like a very agreeable bunch - mostly fairly old, and wow do they love The Nation. You do get asked questions like "whose your favorite Democrat" [i.e., presidential candidate]. I've got to come up with a better comeback than "they all suck." Advice welcome.
Doug