The Bittersweet Life

Latest Episodes:

Episode 533: Italy Welcomes the Digital Nomad May 20, 2024

Show notes

If you've been dreaming of moving to Italy but thought it was impossible, your chance has finally arrived!

Italy has just launched the so-called "Digital Nomad Visa" which enables non-EU-nationals who are self-employed or remote workers who derive their income entirely outside of Italy, the chance to live in Italy on a year-by-year basis.

For Italaphiles and wannabe expats around the globe, this may just be a dream come true.

Tiffany and Katy discuss the details of this new visa, what the requirements are, and if it's a good or a bad idea for Italy's economy.

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NEW TO THE SHOW? Don't be afraid to start with Episode 1: OUTSET

BOOK: Want to read Tiffany's book, Midnight in the Piazza? Learn more here or order on Amazon.

TOUR ROME: If you're traveling to Rome, don't miss the chance to tour the city with Tiffany as your guide!

Episode 532: Same Same but Different: Katy Visits Bali May 13, 2024

Show notes

In a world that is becoming ever more homogenized, what sets places apart? What are the blaring indicators that communicate we are in a place vastly different from anywhere we've ever been before?

After a magical and sometimes maddening week in Bali, Katy lays out the ways the island delighted and surprised her, the aspects that felt wholly different from what she is used to, and discusses with Tiffany how they compare with the cities of Rome and Seattle.

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ADVERTISE WITH US: Reach expats, future expats, and travelers all over the world. Send us an email to get the conversation started.

BECOME A PATRON: Pledge your monthly support of The Bittersweet Life and receive awesome prizes in return for your generosity! Visit our Patreon site to find out more.

SUBSCRIBE: Subscribe to the podcast to make sure you never miss an episode. Click here to find us on a variety of podcast apps.

WRITE A REVIEW: Leave us a rating and a written review on iTunes so more listeners can find us.

NEW TO THE SHOW? Don't be afraid to start with Episode 1: OUTSET

BOOK: Want to read Tiffany's book, Midnight in the Piazza? Learn more here or order on Amazon.

TOUR ROME: If you're traveling to Rome, don't miss the chance to tour the city with Tiffany as your guide!

Episode 531: Life as a Sociopath (with Patric Gagne) May 06, 2024

Show notes

What's it like to be a sociopath?

This week's guest tells us. On this episode, Katy sits down with author and self-described sociopath Patric Gagne for a LIVE interview with audience at Seattle's Town Hall venue, whose recent book Sociopath has been acclaimed as a "fascinating, revelatory memoir revealing the author's struggle to come to terms with her own sociopathy and shed light on the often maligned and misunderstood mental disorder." Hear from Patric about her experiences since childhood realizing that she didn't feel the same way other people did, what it was like to be diagnosed with this daunting disorder, and how she over came sociopathy to go on to have a life full of love and hope.

Don't miss this fascinating author interview! Order Sociopath here or find it wherever you buy books. Find Patric Gagne on Instagram.

This interview has been reaired on this podcast with permission of Town Hall Seattle.

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ADVERTISE WITH US: Reach expats, future expats, and travelers all over the world. Send us an email to get the conversation started.

BECOME A PATRON: Pledge your monthly support of The Bittersweet Life and receive awesome prizes in return for your generosity! Visit our Patreon site to find out more.

SUBSCRIBE: Subscribe to the podcast to make sure you never miss an episode. Click here to find us on a variety of podcast apps.

WRITE A REVIEW: Leave us a rating and a written review on iTunes so more listeners can find us.

NEW TO THE SHOW? Don't be afraid to start with Episode 1: OUTSET

BOOK: Want to read Tiffany's book, Midnight in the Piazza? Learn more here or order on Amazon.

TOUR ROME: If you're traveling to Rome, don't miss the chance to tour the city with Tiffany as your guide!

Episode 530: Revisiting a Long-Lost Place Apr 29, 2024

Show notes

What happens when you go back to a city you used to live in after not stepping foot there for twenty years?

Tiffany finds out on this episode.

After spending some of the most formative years of her life, her univeristy and post-univeristy years, in Boston, she moved to Rome and never went back. Earlier this month, she finally got a chance to visit Boston again, now with a husband and son in tow, and on this episode we capture her reactions to how the city has changed and how it hasn't changed—and how her time there changed her.

And it begs the age-old question: can you ever go home again?

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ADVERTISE WITH US: Reach expats, future expats, and travelers all over the world. Send us an email to get the conversation started.

BECOME A PATRON: Pledge your monthly support of The Bittersweet Life and receive awesome prizes in return for your generosity! Visit our Patreon site to find out more.

SUBSCRIBE: Subscribe to the podcast to make sure you never miss an episode. Click here to find us on a variety of podcast apps.

WRITE A REVIEW: Leave us a rating and a written review on iTunes so more listeners can find us.

NEW TO THE SHOW? Don't be afraid to start with Episode 1: OUTSET

BOOK: Want to read Tiffany's book, Midnight in the Piazza? Learn more here or order on Amazon.

TOUR ROME: If you're traveling to Rome, don't miss the chance to tour the city with Tiffany as your guide!

Episode 529: Going Native, Part 2 Apr 22, 2024

Show notes

Who knew that "going native" was a topic that would resonate so strongly with our listeners?

We got so much feedback on this subject—both social media comments as well as voice messages—that we just had to share them with you, and of course, open the discussion back up! So many new ideas came up hearing your thoughts, so we weigh in on them as well.

By the way, we love love love hearing from you, our loyal listeners! We invite you to share your thoughts on any of the many topics we cover on our (literally) hundreds of episodes. Email us here or better yet, you can send us a voice memo! (You can also send us a text or voice message on Instagram.) Who knows, we may just use your message on a future episode!

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ADVERTISE WITH US: Reach expats, future expats, and travelers all over the world. Send us an email to get the conversation started.

BECOME A PATRON: Pledge your monthly support of The Bittersweet Life and receive awesome prizes in return for your generosity! Visit our Patreon site to find out more.

SUBSCRIBE: Subscribe to the podcast to make sure you never miss an episode. Click here to find us on a variety of podcast apps.

WRITE A REVIEW: Leave us a rating and a written review on iTunes so more listeners can find us.

NEW TO THE SHOW? Don't be afraid to start with Episode 1: OUTSET

BOOK: Want to read Tiffany's book, Midnight in the Piazza? Learn more here or order on Amazon.

TOUR ROME: If you're traveling to Rome, don't miss the chance to tour the city with Tiffany as your guide!

Episode 528: Going Native Apr 15, 2024

Show notes

What happens when an expat "goes native"? How long does it take, and is it inevitable? Is it a conscious choice or does it just happen?

Today we chat about this idea, and Tiffany lays out the ways she has gone native—eschewing American culture and habits entirely in favor of Italian ones—as well as the aspects of Italian life that she staunchly resists and rejects, even after two decades in the country.

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ADVERTISE WITH US: Reach expats, future expats, and travelers all over the world. Send us an email to get the conversation started.

BECOME A PATRON: Pledge your monthly support of The Bittersweet Life and receive awesome prizes in return for your generosity! Visit our Patreon site to find out more.

SUBSCRIBE: Subscribe to the podcast to make sure you never miss an episode. Click here to find us on a variety of podcast apps.

WRITE A REVIEW: Leave us a rating and a written review on iTunes so more listeners can find us.

NEW TO THE SHOW? Don't be afraid to start with Episode 1: OUTSET

BOOK: Want to read Tiffany's book, Midnight in the Piazza? Learn more here or order on Amazon.

TOUR ROME: If you're traveling to Rome, don't miss the chance to tour the city with Tiffany as your guide!

Episode 527: Moving to Rome—Sight Unseen (with Brie Ripley) Apr 08, 2024

Show notes

Would you move across the world to a country without ever having been there?

That's what this week's guest did. We sit down with Brie Ripley to talk about her decision to take a 4-year contract with the World Food Program, which meant a relocation to Rome—a city she had never even visited.

She talks about the challenges of adjusting to life abroad as a brand-new expat, struggling to speak the language, searching for an apartment, missing her new husband who will be joining her soon, and quickly acquiring an unquenchable dependence on espresso.

She also talks about what it was like to move her cats here, and how that came with its own set of challenges.

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ADVERTISE WITH US: Reach expats, future expats, and travelers all over the world. Send us an email to get the conversation started.

BECOME A PATRON: Pledge your monthly support of The Bittersweet Life and receive awesome prizes in return for your generosity! Visit our Patreon site to find out more.

SUBSCRIBE: Subscribe to the podcast to make sure you never miss an episode. Click here to find us on a variety of podcast apps.

WRITE A REVIEW: Leave us a rating and a written review on iTunes so more listeners can find us.

NEW TO THE SHOW? Don't be afraid to start with Episode 1: OUTSET

BOOK: Want to read Tiffany's book, Midnight in the Piazza? Learn more here or order on Amazon.

TOUR ROME: If you're traveling to Rome, don't miss the chance to tour the city with Tiffany as your guide!

Episode 526: An Unbelievable Discovery in Rome! Apr 01, 2024

Show notes

An exciting discovery out of Rome has recently rocked the archeological community! We have the details on this week's episode.

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ADVERTISE WITH US: Reach expats, future expats, and travelers all over the world. Send us an email to get the conversation started.

BECOME A PATRON: Pledge your monthly support of The Bittersweet Life and receive awesome prizes in return for your generosity! Visit our Patreon site to find out more.

SUBSCRIBE: Subscribe to the podcast to make sure you never miss an episode. Click here to find us on a variety of podcast apps.

WRITE A REVIEW: Leave us a rating and a written review on iTunes so more listeners can find us.

NEW TO THE SHOW? Don't be afraid to start with Episode 1: OUTSET

BOOK: Want to read Tiffany's book, Midnight in the Piazza? Learn more here or order on Amazon.

TOUR ROME: If you're traveling to Rome, don't miss the chance to tour the city with Tiffany as your guide!

Episode 525: A Question of Season Mar 25, 2024

Show notes

Last week we talked—among other things—about what it would be like if the year started in March, as it used to do in ancient Rome.

This got us thinking about seasons and how they effect our lives.

On this week's episode we talk about what we love about certain seasons, how where you live can vastly affect how you experience the seasons (and therefore which ones you prefer), and the drawbacks of living in a place without distinct seasons.

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ADVERTISE WITH US: Reach expats, future expats, and travelers all over the world. Send us an email to get the conversation started.

BECOME A PATRON: Pledge your monthly support of The Bittersweet Life and receive awesome prizes in return for your generosity! Visit our Patreon site to find out more.

SUBSCRIBE: Subscribe to the podcast to make sure you never miss an episode. Click here to find us on a variety of podcast apps.

WRITE A REVIEW: Leave us a rating and a written review on iTunes so more listeners can find us.

NEW TO THE SHOW? Don't be afraid to start with Episode 1: OUTSET

BOOK: Want to read Tiffany's book, Midnight in the Piazza? Learn more here or order on Amazon.

TOUR ROME: If you're traveling to Rome, don't miss the chance to tour the city with Tiffany as your guide!

Episode 524: What if New Year's Were in March? Mar 18, 2024

Show notes

Is early January—the deepest, bleakest, darkest moment of winter—really the best time to make New Year's Resolutions? Isn't early spring a more fortuitous time for new beginnings? (And did you know that March used to be the first month of the year?)

We mull this and other season-related questions on this episode (including a check-in to see how Tiffany and Katy are getting on with their resolutions for this year).

We also talk about what we love about certain seasons, how where you live can vastly affect how you experience the seasons (and therefore which ones you prefer), and the drawbacks of living in a place without distinct seasons.

-------------------------------------

ADVERTISE WITH US: Reach expats, future expats, and travelers all over the world. Send us an email to get the conversation started.

BECOME A PATRON: Pledge your monthly support of The Bittersweet Life and receive awesome prizes in return for your generosity! Visit our Patreon site to find out more.

SUBSCRIBE: Subscribe to the podcast to make sure you never miss an episode. Click here to find us on a variety of podcast apps.

WRITE A REVIEW: Leave us a rating and a written review on iTunes so more listeners can find us.

NEW TO THE SHOW? Don't be afraid to start with Episode 1: OUTSET

BOOK: Want to read Tiffany's book, Midnight in the Piazza? Learn more here or order on Amazon.

TOUR ROME: If you're traveling to Rome, don't miss the chance to tour the city with Tiffany as your guide!

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