Constructed by Union Naval Levante SA of Valencia Spain in 1968, the ship was originally known as Antonio Lazaro and was owned by Compañía Trasmediterránea. The ship was designed to operate a ferry service to Morocco, carrying 400 berthed and 200 deck class passengers. She later sailed between Spain and Spanish territories in North Africa. She was designed with a cargo hold forward and side doors for the loading of vehicles. GBA Ships renamed her Logos II in 1988 and made extensive renovations and upgrades to prepare the ship for service as the replacement for GBA Ships' first ship Logos. During her 20 years of service, over 11 million visitors were welcomed on board for tours, programmes and visits to the floating book fair. With stops in over 350 ports of call, this unique ship visited 86 countries and territories in Africa, the Americas, Europe, the Near East and many island nations.