A COUPLE has told how they abandoned normal life to live in a van and travel the world for half the year.
Anna Buckle, 26, and Lawrence Benson, 31, grew up in Cumbria but gave up normal life to live in a two-metre by four-metre van.
The couple bought a "grim" old rental van for £6,000 and spent another £6,000, and a year, renovating it in 2020.
Now, they park the van in a friend's field and work minimum wage roles for six months of the year.
The rest of the year the couple, and their German wirehaired pointer Bear, travel around Europe.
They spend just £300-a-month on living expenses – and even in the winter just £5-a-week on fuel for their heating.
Anna told The Sun Online: "It's a small space but it's meant complete freedom.
"We don't live a normal life. When we're on the road for six months it's a holiday. We do what we want.
"But then while we're home we work constantly. We save up, travel for a bit and spend it all."
Anna balances working in hospitality and being a gardener, while Lawrence is a stone mason and a digger driver.
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The pair have just left the UK to travel around France for the summer.
Anna added: "We're going over to see friends so unusually for us we'll have a secure base, and then travel around from there."
They use an app called Park The Night while they're away, which tells them the best place to access water, electricity, toilets and Wi-Fi.
The couple spend £40 and £60 on their phone bills each month so they have access to unlimited 4G internet.
Their van is kitted out with a bed, a fridge, a diesel heater, toilet, shower, and gas hob.
They don't have an oven so always request a frozen pizza whenever they visit pals.
Anna said: "Anything cooked from an oven is a real treat for us. We survive off curries, pasta and sandwiches. We did think about buying a slow cooker but we just don't have the space for it."
When building their van's interior the couple had to be incredibly mindful of weight.
Their three-and-a-half-tonne van can only carry 1,000kg extra inside.
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She said: "When we moved into the van we got rid of stuff but there's nothing I miss, nothing I wish I hadn't thrown out.
"When we were building it every decision we made was about minimising weight."
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