L'eremita che vive in un'isola e non ha paura del Covid-19

Mauro, the hermit from the island of Budelli: «Here I don't fear the coronavirus»

For almost everyone it is a nightmare. But the national quarantine that Italy is still going through in these days of Covid-19 emergency has not scared him at all.

He is Mauro Morandi, guardian of the island of Budelli, in the archipelago of La Maddalena, a pearl of the Mediterranean, which has lived isolated from the world for over 30 years. A former teacher, originally from Modena, where his family still lives, Morandi today enjoys his hermit dimension and is happy about it. 

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For the few who don't know it, Budelli is an island in the far north of Sardinia, near the Strait of Bonifacio, and it is an inaccessible paradise, a mirage to be admired from a distance that reveals the wild nature of one of the most beautiful beaches in the world.

Even from afar, it shows itself in all its beauty with sensational colors. Budelli is famous for its turquoise waters and for the Pink beach, among the most beautiful in the Mediterranean, whose color comes from the crumbling of the miniacinia miniacea, a pink microorganism that lives in seagrass inside shells and shells, transported to the shore by currents.

Always privately owned, Budelli definitively passed to the La Maddalena national park in May 2016.

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In this small and uncontaminated corner of paradise, in what can be defined as a fort in the Mediterranean, Mauro Morandi is precisely the only inhabitant and the virus has very little chance of being able to land.

Morandi, arrived on the island of Budelli, by chance while trying to sail from Italy to Polynesia. He fell in love with the crystal clear waters, coral sands and beautiful sunsets and decided to stay there forever.

When he chose to retire, he made the decision to pursue his dream: to reach a tropical paradise to visit it and, if possible, live there permanently. Together with some friends, after having found and renovated a catamaran in Gallipoli, he set off on an adventure.

The turning point came when, by chance, it stopped in the La Maddalena Archipelago. More precisely in Budelli, an island that Mauro Morandi didn't know existed.

The opportunity presented itself after speaking with the then guardian of the island. In fact, he would have left in two days, leaving the place forever. In fact, the stress accumulated by his wife during the summer, due to the horde of tourists, and in the winter, due to the loneliness, was too strong. 

He didn't think twice: it was what he was looking for at the time and what he had always wanted. The fulfillment of a dream.

So he took over from the previous caretaker…….and is still there, having earned a reputation as the Italian Robinson Crusoe. Although he explains that "Crusoe wanted to return. I want to stay."

Even in summer, when the La Maddalena archipelago is invaded by tourists, you cannot disembark in Budelli. On the island there is always and only Mauro!

Every night he sleeps in an old stone farmhouse and wakes up in the morning surrounded by uncontaminated nature. He likes to explore the island, of which he knows every nook and cranny, and talks to the birds at breakfast as they fly in and out of the kitchen. Physically isolated but always constantly informed.

He keeps up with the news thanks to his smartphone. 'I'm bored, so I kill time by taking photos of the beaches, wildlife and landscapes - he explained to the American broadcaster CNN - and I share them on social media and on Instagram'.

"His island", he explained to CNN, is as if it were "the safest place on Earth". "I'm fine, I'm not afraid, I feel protected here. Budelli offers a total natural defense. No risk. No one can access it, not even a boat can dock without permits.'

For Morandi the main concern during the Covid-19 emergency is the health of his family and friends who live in northern Italy in Modena, one of the most affected areas of the country.

For the 81-year-old, little has changed since the outbreak of Covid-19. The only thing is that now he has to wait longer for people to bring him food from the mainland due to the severe restrictions imposed due to the emergency.

And so even the sporadic visits of tourists during the winter have ceased. Left alone, he spends the day admiring the sea, breathing pure air, collecting wood, preparing his meals.

However, Mauro Morandi has some suggestions for people forced into solitude due to the pandemic.

In fact, he says a few weeks cooped up inside is nothing to worry about.

Instead, it should be considered an opportunity to practice soul searching.

SWe are all too used to not thinking and quarantine, according to Morandi, gives us the opportunity to do so because it forces us to get bored, not to drown ourselves in distractions, in shopping and in the thousand lights that our cities offer us in the usual life.

 Thinking means recognizing that we are good and bad, it means stopping and recognizing ourselves, focusing on what we are and what we often run away from.

 And we add... excellent reflection!

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