Nancy Mueller, founder in 1977 of Nancy’s Specialty Foods in Newark, Ca., commissioned construction of the vessel which was christened in January of 2003. Her daughter, Carin, is married to John Rollins III whose family has deep roots in the Lewes community. John Rollins Sr. - now deceased - moved to Lewes from Georgia many decades ago and with a car dealership started the business empire that includes Rollins truck leasing and rentals, Dover Downs and other NASCAR tracks, and a wide variety of other national and international businesses.

“Andiamo is traveling the world and is on the east coast for the summer,” said John Rollins III. “We needed to show off Delaware and our home town of Lewes. So many people worked with us to make the visit possible, from the mayor to Capt. H.D. Parsons to members of the Pilots Association. Nancy was overwhelmed by everyone she met - the pleasant nature of everyone in Lewes. And the captain was too. They really enjoyed their stay in Lewes. The stop made sense. They were on their way from New York to Baltimore so they had to come right by. Then they’re headed for the Caribbean for the winter.”

Lewes Mayor Jim Ford said he has been in touch with Rollins for several weeks about he visit. “We explained that we have a no reservation policy for our city dock so we couldn’t make any promises. But we said we would work with them and it all worked out. When Andiamo came in, there were some other vessels at the dock. Through cooperation, we were able to find them docking at nearby docks, such as at Sam Gossage’s house next door to 1812 Park. Everyone involved was very pleasant and I think it worked out well for the town as well. A lot of people came into town to see the excitement.”

Ford noted that Andiamo’s captain made arrangements to follow Fisherman’s Wharf’s Thelma Dale IV into the canal with the rising tide Aug. 6 after the morning fishing trip. “The captain wanted to make sure he stayed in the channel to avoid running aground.” Ford said he was told that the $25 million vessel draws nine feet of water. The canal was dredged two years ago to a mean low water depth of 11 feet.

Rollins, who wanted to make a good impression on his mother-in-law, said he breathed a sigh of relief when he received a phone call saying the vessel was tied up safely at the dock.

Ford and other members of Lewes City Council toured the vessel Saturday morning, meeting the owner and captain. “It was the most magnificent thing I’ve ever seen,” said Ford. “Everything about it was absolutely gorgeous - the woodworking, the lighting, the decorating - the 12,000 CD music system, the multiple galleys and eating areas, the teak floors. The security system includes electric doors and pressure sensitive plates in the decking. When the system is turned on at night, alarms will activate if someone steps aboard and walks on the plates. I was also impressed by the captain’s breadth of knowledge - not only of the sea and seamanship, but of fire prevention and fighting, first aid and organization of the seven crew members. He showed us the extensive first aid system with items all packaged and numbered. Since the vessel may often find itself in waters where there are no medical facilities, they have a system of contacting a physician. The captain is then in charge of doing what the physician orders with the different numbered materials based on the diagnosis of the symptoms.”

Ford said Andiamo was “the talk of the town. Considering our town’s number one core value is its historic relationship with the sea, the efforts that it took to get this vessel in town says a lot for Lewes. All the correspondence we’ve had with the owners and crew have been very complimentary about Lewes.”

Shipbuilders at the Feadship/Royal Van Lent Shipyard in Holland constructed Andiamo. Owner Mueller played a strong role in the vessel’s design including galleys and eating areas that emphasize the sociable aspects of preparing and eating meals. That’s not surprising from a woman whose Nancy Specialty Foods company manufactures and distributes frozen appetizers, quiches and desserts to supermarkets and warehouse stores throughout the US and Canada. She also asked that her main stateroom be amidships where there is less rock and roll than in the traditional bow location for many staterooms. Mueller reportedly made the maiden voyage aboard the vessel when it left Holland and then motored south across the Atlantic, through the Panama Canal and up the coast of California. The steel-hulled vessel was also constructed with an ice belt two feet above and two feet below its waterline which means there is - in Andiamo’s case - 50 percent more steel in than in the rest of the hull to protect against ice damage in colder waters and floating debris. The vessel carries 15,712 gallons of diesel fuel to give it a range of 4,150 nautical miles between refills. Powered by two 720 horsepower Caterpillar diesels, she cruises at 11 knots with a top speed of 14. Her beam measures 20.2 feet.

Mayor Ford presented a flag of Lewes to Andiamo. After her captain eased the vessel away from the dock near the top of the Aug. 8 flood tide at the end of her visit, she passed the Lightship Overfalls where many people stood on the bow to give a final salute. Councilwoman Barbara Vaughn blew the Overfalls whistle and, in true nautical fashion, Andiamo returned the Overfalls’ salute. The Lewes flag presented earlier was flying from Andiamo’s stern.

“Maybe somewhere along her world tour the captain will pop up the Lewes flag in some exotic land and the crew can tell the people there about Andiamo’s visit to Lewes,” said Ford.