For more than 30 years, Mauro Morandi has been the only inhabitant of a beautiful island in the Mediterranean Sea.
She hoped to make it her lifelong home, but that is now under threat.
Italy’s response to Robinson Crusoe faces the eviction of the island of Budelli, off the coast of Sardinia, if it does not leave voluntarily, which it has no intention of doing.
Local authorities are speeding up plans to remodel his shabby cabin and make it an environmental observatory, ending his happy stay.
Morandi, a former teacher, came to the island by accident while trying to sail from Italy to Polynesia 31 years ago. He fell in love with the crystal clear waters of the pristine atoll, the coral sands and the beautiful sunsets, and decided to stay.
He took over the previous caretaker soon after and, at the age of 81, he is still there and ready to fight for his home, whatever it takes.
“I am ready to do my best to stay here, even if it means they will have to drag me away. I would not know where else to go to live, certainly not at home in the north, nor what to do” This is my life. I just don’t see myself playing cards or bowling, “Morandi told CNN Travel in Italian.
Morandi, who has enjoyed a secure and isolated retreat during the Covid-19 emergency in Italy, believes that authorities will give her her eviction notice once the summer is over.
“All I ask is, if I must be fired during the renovation work, that I can go back and continue doing what I do every day: protect the endangered pink coral beach, keep tourists at bay, protect nature I’m afraid if I go, it will be the end of Budelli too. “
The island has changed ownership several times in recent years. Since 2015, Budelli has been owned by La Maddalena National Park, rendering Morandi’s role obsolete.
Authorities say they are simply complying with the law.
“Our priority is to intervene against all illegal buildings within the park, including Mauro’s Cabin, a former World War II radio station that has undergone modifications that are not in accordance with the rules. We have to lead by example, protect our environment by first restoring this illegal structure and then moving forward with a new project that will probably be a scientific center for the dissemination of environmental awareness, “La Maddalena Park president Fabrizio Fonnesu told CNN in Italian.
Budelli’s caretaker
Budelli is known for its beautiful pink coast.
Courtesy of Mauro Morandi.
Fonnesu says there is no set date for Morandi’s eventual eviction, given that it will be months before the reconstruction phase begins.
“Nobody wants to drive him away, but what title does he have to keep since the island is no longer private?” Says Fonnesu. “If there is a need for a caregiver in the future, we might reconsider his position, but when the works begin, he must go.”
The island is a pollution-free paradise with crystal clear turquoise waters, lush wild vegetation, purple rocks that resemble natural sculptures, and healthy air. “Many people would like to be Budelli’s caretaker,” Fonnesu says.
Locals complain about Morandi’s romantic portrait painted by foreign media, calling him a “hermit” bon sauvage. In truth, Fonnesu says, he is “a squatter” of Budelli.
Meanwhile, Morandi says that while the very thought of leaving hurts him, he is more concerned with the fate of the “pink atoll,” named for the rosy hue of its unique coral sand beach.
“Just the other day, I expelled two tourists who were invading the pink beach,” he says. “I clean the trash from the sand and prevent intruders from coming into chaos at night. The truth is, I’m the only one who has dealt with Budelli so far, doing the surveillance task that park authorities should do.”
Morandi fears that Budelli will follow the fate of his sister sister Spargi, where an observatory was established in the past and then destroyed by visitors. He says: “They stole everything from Spargi, the new furniture and everything, they plundered and destroyed the place. Is that also the future of Budelli?”
No matter how things go, the ardent guardian will never leave Sardinia.
Morandi could return to her Modena home for the duration of the style change, temporarily stay with friends or family, but if park authorities do not allow her to resume her caretaking job on the island, she would need to find a new home.
‘Sardinia is my land’
Mauro Morandi has made Borelli his home for over 30 years.
Courtesy of Mauro Morandi.
“I don’t even want to think about it,” he says. “I don’t have a house and I would need to find one here in Sardinia, somewhere cheaper than the La Maddalena archipelago, where prices are too high.”
“Sardine is my land,” he says. “Nature here is still alive, wild, vibrant. I need contact with nature.”
Every night he sleeps in the old stone cabin and wakes up in the morning surrounded by Mother Nature. He likes to explore bushes and cliffs and talks to birds at breakfast as they fly in and out of the small kitchen window.
Left alone, he spends the day admiring the sea, inhaling the fresh air, collecting firewood, preparing his meals and, of course, posting on social media.
Budelli is one of the most beautiful islands in the entire Mediterranean. Dating back to prehistoric times when the Earth’s crust was still forming, legend has it that it is a fragment of the mythical lost continent of Atlantis swallowed by the ocean.
But the island is not completely immune to climate change and man-made destruction of nature, Morandi says.
Not long ago, a clear line of pink sand cut along the shoreline, made of crushed coral, crystals, fossils, and dead sea creatures of bright pink, orange, and salmon, giving the shore a bright strawberry color similar to that of the sunset skies.
If forced to leave forever, Morandi fears the pink atoll will survive only on postcards from the past.
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