Couple who unwittingly self-isolated in style

It was supposed to be the round-theworld trip of their dreams, and their parting instruction to family was please stay in touch but save any bad news for when we get home.

So as Elena Manighetti and Ryan Osborne set off across the Atlantic for the Caribbean, little did they know that a pandemic that would claim thousands of lives was brewing.

The couple, from Manchester, quit their jobs in 2017, bought a boat and set sail from the Canary Islands on February 28, planning to dock at Guadeloupe, 5000km away, by the end of March. During their 25 days at sea with no consistent phone signal, they were all but cut off from the outside world. It was when their phones finally sprang into life hours before they were due to arrive that they discovered the coronavirus had spread rapidly, forcing countries into lockdown amid soaring death tolls.

Manighetti told The Daily Telegraph of the chilling moment they learned of the havoc it had wreaked.

‘‘We were in total shock,’’ she said. ‘‘I instantly called my family and asked how they were and to please tell me right away if anyone had contracted the virus or passed away. I was especially worried because my home town, Lombardy, was the worst hit.

‘‘I remember Ryan reading the number of cases and deaths out to me and having my mouth wide open in awe.’’

The couple knew at the start of their trip that there was a virus in China but assumed it would be over by time they reached the Caribbean and that it could not affect an area so far from the site of the original outbreak.

But as they approached Guadeloupe, the realisation that the ‘‘whole world had been infected’’ finally dawned.

Two weeks into their voyage, they heard that some Caribbean islands were closing their ports to protect their populations from the virus, but they had assumed this was just a precaution.

Fearing they would not be allowed into Guadeloupe, they began sailing towards Grenada, only to discover they would not be able to dock there either.

In a final effort to reach dry land, they headed for Bequia, in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines.

Then came the warning they may be refused entry because of Manighetti’s Italian nationality.

But thankfully, the couple were able to prove, using the satellite device on their boat, that they had effectively selfisolated for 25 days – and had been nowhere near Italy.

Today, they are safe and well in Bequia. But their dream of exploring the Caribbean is on indefinite hold.

Recalling the moment she first spoke to her father, Manighetti said: ‘‘He told me to not panic but our town had been one of the worst affected. I was shocked.

‘‘My family is thankfully safe at home and have been in lockdown for over six weeks, but people we’ve known for years have died.’’