A Spanish mountain climber emerged on Friday from an underground cave where she had spent 500 days on her own. It was part of an experiment on the effects of isolation on the human body.
Wearing dark sunglasses, Beatriz Flamini smiled. She embraced family members who had gathered to greet her as she climbed out of the cave in southern Spain.
"I haven't talked to anyone for a year and a half, only myself," she said. But she called her experience "excellent, unbeatable".
Beatriz began her challenge on November 21, 2021, while the world was still in the grip of the Covid-19 pandemic. She stayed 70 metres underground.
"I don't know what has happened in the world ... for me it is still 2021," she told reporters after leaving the cave.
Beatriz spent her time reading with the aid of artificial lights, doing exercise, and knitting woolly hats.
She was monitored by a technical team, who left food at an exchange point in the cave without having contact with her.
Beatriz had two cameras to record her experience. The video footage will be turned into a documentary film.
"There have been many challenges of this type, but none with all these rules," said David Reyes, who was in charge of her security. "Being in total isolation, without contact with the outside, without natural light, without a way of telling the time."
Spanish tourism minister Hector Gomez called it an "extreme endurance test". He hoped it would have great value for science.
Beatriz said it had been a tough experience, but she never thought about abandoning the challenge.
"There were difficult moments, and there were very beautiful moments, and both are what made it possible to carry on," she said. "I got along very well with myself."
Five things to know about
1. Spain is a country in southwest Europe. Its capital city is Madrid. The second largest city is Barcelona.
2. Spain is bordered by France and Portugal. It sits on the Mediterranean Sea and on the Atlantic Ocean. It is very close to North Africa.
3. The Spanish language is also spoken in many other countries around the world, especially in Central and South America. These countries include Argentina, Peru, Chile and Mexico.
4. Lots of tourists love going to Spain for its islands, beaches and hot weather. It also has famous art galleries.
5. Spain's cuisine is also popular. It has unique dishes such as paella (a kind of rice dish made with seafood) and tapas (a range of cooked snacks served on small plates).
