Burrill Lake’s Marney Dalgarno has embraced COVID-19 with podcast This Is Living

With overseas travel off the table, Burrill Lake’s Marney Dalgarno bought a van, hit the road and avoided the south coast housing crisis. Now her podcast is changing lives.

With international travel stopped due to COVID-19, more and more young people are breaking tradition and trying something different – getting outside their comfort zones.

When Burrill Lake’s Marney Dalgarno left home she decided she could squeeze the best out of life without breaking her budget, and struggling to navigate the south coast’s housing crisis.

The 18-year-old faced her fears, bought a van, customised it to live in and hit the road on her own.

She even started a podcast on her experience called This Is Living to show others life on the road is possible and “one of the best things you can ever do”.

“Always do things that push you out of your comfort zone,” she said.

Marney Dalgarno turned to van life when overseas travel was stopped due to COVID-19.

“I loved the concept of being able to go wherever I wanted, whenever I wanted to, while still being able to take my ‘home’ with me.

“I also loved the freedom that it gave me, plus I loved not being stuck in the one place or having to pay rent.”

She said the journey, which started in February, has helped her grow.

“Some of the best moments in my life happened purely because I pushed myself out of that comfort zone, so buying a van and travelling on my own was that next step in doing that,” she said.

“Travelling has always been a huge goal for me and with everything going on with Covid I unfortunately couldn’t go overseas.”

The Burrill Lake teen said the current south coast housing crisis has been a big motivator.

“Plus living in a van was extremely cheap so being able to travel on a budget, see beautiful places and not have to pay for bills or rent was a dream come true.

“The housing crisis on the coast definitely did play a big part in why I decided to live in a van, because it’s very difficult to find a rental when you’re young with no rental references.

The podcaster wants to help others enjoy life on the road without blowing their budget.

“I am so glad that I decided to do the van life instead though because I grew a lot more as a person and I got to see a lot more of our beautiful country.”

She‘s seen everything from the Whitsundays to the snowfields, met like minded people and enjoyed a morning coffee in a new place every day.

Ms Dalgarno said many young Australians are ditching the idea of travelling overseas to see the diverse sights of Australia.

“Younger people especially myself are feeling very frustrated and trapped about the lockdowns and not being able to travel overseas,” she said.

“Being able to see the world is a huge goal for many teenagers growing up and getting to the age where you’re ready to that, and then Covid happens and it all gets stopped is quite heart breaking.

“A lot of young people are feeling very disappointed and as if they are missing out due to not being able to travel and achieve those travel goals they have had for a long time.

“In saying that, I’m sure we are all also very grateful to be living in a safe country compared to other countries when Covid was at its worst.”

Marney Dalgarno said young people are frustrated by lockdowns but haven’t let Covid destroy their dreams.

“This is a crazy time to be alive but we’re all in this together and we will eventually get out of it.

“I see this as an opportunity to see our beautiful country instead of sitting at home and being upset that I couldn’t go overseas.”

Her podcast covers everything from budgeting tips to mental health and all things travel.

“I like to cover all of these topics because I want to be able to guide my audience through as many situations in their lives as possible,” she said.

Marney Dalgarno has turned her new life into a way to help others.

“I hold all of these topics very close to my heart, and I enjoy being able to share my life stories based around these topics so other people can relate to it.

“I want to be that support person for as many people as possible where they feel comfortable with me so they can talk about anything they need advice on or help with.

“I always say my main goal in doing this is to help and guide at least just one person. If I can make a difference to one persons life then I’d be so stoked with that.”