What makes someone’s life worth remembering? Mo Rocca spends a lot of time thinking and talking about this, on his podcast Mobituaries with Mo Rocca. Today he joins The Bittersweet Life to continue that conversation, and to talk about his new book, Mobituaries: Great Lives Worth Reliving . He discusses what it is about certain people’s lives that piques his interest, and how sometimes it’s not the thing they are famous for. He's fascinated by people who are not remembered in the way they should ...
Dec 02, 2019•38 min•Season 7Ep. 290
We are so grateful for all of our wonderful listeners around the world for your love, attention, and support throughout the over five years of this show! On this extra-mini-episode, we have a quick Thanksgiving message for you. ---------------------------------------- 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 ...
Nov 28, 2019•7 min•Season 7Ep. 35
In the lead up to Thanksgiving, Katy and Tiffany muse on the inevitable missing out on important holidays and events that comes with being a far-away expat. And the annual November dilemma: do I make the effort to celebrate Thanksgiving this year, or do I just skip it? In addition, in light of the numerous losses of loved ones they have both been through in recent years, they discuss the difference between being "home" when someone important passes, and having the opportunity to process it as pa...
Nov 25, 2019•35 min•Season 7Ep. 289
Do you love opera? Hate it? Indifferent? Give Tiffany the length of a mini-episode and you might finding yourself warming to it. Tiffany tells how she fell in love with opera at age 12, and how her passion for the art form goes hand in hand with her passion for Italy and the Italian language. She also explains where to start your exploration of opera (in a word: Puccini). Music featured on this episode: O Mio Babbino Caro from Gianni Schicchi by Puccini (with Kiri Te Kanawa) Dunque è proprio fin...
Nov 21, 2019•14 min•Season 7Ep. 34
Mike Shaw recently moved to Bali after eleven years in Beijing. So far, it has been a hard move. On this week’s episode, he chats with Katy about why he decided to leave an adopted city he loves so much, and what he's discovered about himself in the process. He also talks about getting a clear “call” to move abroad, and how when he first arrived in China, everything seemed to just fall in to place, and it quickly became clear that he was exactly where he was supposed to be—synchronicity, perhaps...
Nov 18, 2019•38 min•Season 7Ep. 288
Paul Theroux is back! This time, live onstage. If you loved Monday's double-header episode featuring an in-depth interview with legendary travel writer Paul Theroux, tune in to this week's mini-episode to hear a snippet of his live stage interview with Katy at Town Hall Seattle . Paul reveals the one thing you should never do when you are about to take off on adventure. He also shares some of the things that most surprised and fascinated him about his travels in Mexico. Grab a copy of his new bo...
Nov 13, 2019•10 min•Season 7Ep. 33
World-famous travel writer Paul Theroux joins us again for the continuation of this fascinating discussion. In Part 2, Theroux weighs in on the cult of social media, and how much of the travel posts we see on Instagram are the antithesis of travel writing. How authentic travel writing tries to get at the truth of a place—even if it’s not beautiful. He also shares his views on the expat community—it might not be what you expect. He comments on his so-called irascibility and why he has often been ...
Nov 11, 2019•20 min•Season 7Ep. 287
Legendary travel writer Paul Theroux joins us this week for a candid, backstage interview delving into his five decades spent traveling the world and writing about it. He delves into what brought him to traveling and to writing, and how those two things are inexorably linked, at least for him. He remarks on why he thinks that growing up in a big family helped teach him how to be a good traveler. He also explains what it means to travel “close to the ground” and offers advice on how to do so (and...
Nov 11, 2019•29 min•Season 7Ep. 286
Dying to move to Italy? Be forewarned: renting over here is a bit different than it is back home. On this mini-episode, Tiffany lists some of the oddest and most unexpected aspects of renting an apartment in Italy, and how to navigate the Italian rental market without losing your mind (or getting conned). ---------------------------------------- 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: Ple...
Nov 07, 2019•12 min•Season 7Ep. 32
Since moving back to the states from Rome in 2014, Katy has flit around the country, moving from Seattle to New Orleans to San Francisco and back again. A common occurrence in repats who struggle to find their place in the world after living abroad. Perhaps that's why it's extra shocking that Katy has decided to put down roots in a major way. In other words, she has bought a house. Does that mean she'll never move abroad again? Listen to this week's episode to find out. -------------------------...
Nov 04, 2019•38 min•Season 7Ep. 285
In honor of Halloween, today's mini-episode features a snippet from Katy's most controversial NPR story ever recorded. Listen in to hear an interview that is equal parts, gruesome, disturbing, and adorable. And let us know what you think about it—is it wrong or just hilarious? ---------------------------------------- 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 T...
Oct 31, 2019•7 min•Season 7Ep. 31
Self-described dead body enthusiast and corpse geek, Caitlin Doughty joins us this week for a fascinating discussion about all things death. Doughty is quite possibly the most famous mortician on the internet, and her new book Will my Cat Eat my Eyeballs? and Other Questions from Tiny Mortals about Death , is a light-hearted but honest discussion of things many people would like to know about death, but are afraid to ask (lucky for us, kids are not afraid to ask). Caitlin recounts her own earlie...
Oct 28, 2019•34 min•Season 7Ep. 284
A glorious Guercino ceiling fresco, Caravaggio's only wall painting, a maybe-Michelangelo, an oasis off Via Veneto, and a real live American princess! In this week's mini-episode, Tiffany takes listeners on a visit to one of the most unknown troves of art in the entire city, Villa Aurora. This glorious yet unassuming private home is all that's left of Villa Ludovisi, a garden that Stendhal and Henry James considered to be the most beautiful place in Rome. Find out how to visit here . -----------...
Oct 24, 2019•16 min•Season 7Ep. 30
Have you ever encountered a ghost? As the Halloween season pulls into full swing, we replay one of the most popular shows from our archives: our ghost episode, featuring spooky and unexplainable stories, be they run-ins with ghosts, scary stuff that's happened to us, or the tales of the ghosts of Rome. So get comfortable, pour yourself a cup of cocoa, curl up in your favorite arm chair, turn the lights down...and enjoy! ---------------------------------------- ADVERTISE WITH US: Reach expats, fu...
Oct 21, 2019•39 min•Season 7Ep. 283
How do you conduct a successful interview? What are the best tricks for organizing and carrying out an effective interview? And what are some things that you should definitely NOT do? On this week’s Bittersweet Moment, Katy shares her considerable knowledge and experience on the matter after nearly two decades working in public radio and over five years on this podcast, interviewing everyone from Mary Beard to Anthony Doerr to (most recently) Paul Theroux. Whether you do your interviewing in a p...
Oct 17, 2019•10 min•Season 7Ep. 29
How do you flirt in a foreign language? What if you barely speak the language in question? Is it easier to flirt with a foreigner than with someone from your own culture? What happens when cultural miscommunication crops up? And how do you manage to be witty and charming in a foreign language? On this week’s episode, we delve into Tiffany’s (many) experiences dating and flirting with foreign men, her bad dates, misadventures, and embarrassments. She shares why she finds foreign accents so irresi...
Oct 14, 2019•45 min•Season 7Ep. 282
Want to kickstart your Italian language learning? On this week's mini-episode, Tiffany offers five practical tips for learning Italian fast, with specific tricks for building a vocabulary and learning to conjugate verbs. Aurelio also stops by to share his thoughts on learning Italian. ---------------------------------------- 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 supp...
Oct 10, 2019•14 min•Season 7Ep. 28
Fifteen years of living your life in a foreign language can change the way you think in your own native tongue, or at least that's the case for Tiffany. This week, we chat about the unexpected side effects of speaking your second (or third) language more than you speak your first, and how it can be especially hazardous if you're a writer. Also, we talk about how couples from different countries will naturally settle into only one language to speak together, to the point that it feels downright w...
Oct 07, 2019•39 min•Season 7Ep. 281
Longing to visit Rome but don't want to dip into your life savings? On this week's mini-episode, Tiffany shares her tips for visiting Rome on a budget. Everything from eating, drinking, sleeping, and sightseeing. You never knew Rome could be this cheap. A few links for places mentioned on the episode: Alice pizza by the slice I Nasoni di Roma water fountain app BiciBaci Bike Rental Collalti Bike Rental The Beehive Hostel ---------------------------------------- ADVERTISE WITH US: Reach expats, f...
Oct 03, 2019•15 min•Season 7Ep. 27
Oprah Winfrey's former executive producer Sheri Salata and her cohost Nancy Hala from The Sheri + Nancy Show podcast, join us again this week to continue their fascinating conversation! On this episode, Sheri delves into the title of her new book, The Beautiful No . She explains how a devastating professional rejection at a time in which she was in a difficult period in her career became for her "the beautiful no," that is, the best thing that could have happened to her. That rejection eventuall...
Sep 30, 2019•24 min•Season 7Ep. 280
"Are we brave enough to want our heart's desires?" One of the best parts about hosting this podcast is getting to meet amazing authors and talk about their books with them. A bonus is when the author agrees to read you your favorite excerpt from their book. On this mini-episode, our most recent author guest, Sheri Salata, reads one of the quotes that Katy appreciated and promptly highlighted during her reading of Salata's The Beautiful No . Be sure to listen to the previous Episode 279: NO if yo...
Sep 26, 2019•7 min•Season 7Ep. 26
The executive producer of the Oprah Winfrey Show, Sheri Salata and her cohost Nancy Hala on the popular podcast, The Sheri and Nancy Show join us on this very special episode! Sheri is the author of the new book, The Beautiful No, And Other Tales of Trail, Transcendence, and Transformation . They discuss the inevitable question that arrives somewhere in your 50s: what's next? In the midst of a major career, an enriching family life, or other successes, how to you find inspiration for your next s...
Sep 22, 2019•29 min•Season 7Ep. 279
On this week's Bittersweet Moment, Katy takes to the streets of Seattle to ask passersby if they've ever had a brief encounter with someone and never forgotten that person. Why was that? Why do some people stay with you even if they are not physically there? What makes some people stand out in your memory, despite the brevity of their time in your life? ---------------------------------------- ADVERTISE WITH US: Reach expats, future expats, and travelers all over the world. Send us an email to g...
Sep 19, 2019•11 min•Season 7Ep. 25
Today Katy recounts her relationship with a long-time listener, someone she never met but communicated with often, and how finding out about his death brought up unexpected emotions. Digging back through his emails, she finds an invitation to cherish memories without bemoaning the passage of time—perhaps the exact message that her nostalgic soul needed to hear. ---------------------------------------- ADVERTISE WITH US: Reach expats, future expats, and travelers all over the world. Send us an em...
Sep 16, 2019•36 min•Season 7Ep. 278
In this week’s mini-episode, Tiffany takes you on a virtual tour of one of the most fascinating and little-known sites in Rome, which also happens to be one of the greatest optical illusions in the world. ---------------------------------------- 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 generos...
Sep 12, 2019•13 min•Season 7Ep. 24
SEASON 7 is opening with an announcement from Katy. Another move is in store for her! In fact, part of this episode captures some of the highlights of her journey to her new home. Where will it be, you wonder? I guess you'll just have to listen to find out. ---------------------------------------- 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 ...
Sep 08, 2019•44 min•Season 7Ep. 277
Every year on Labor Day, we take the day off to enjoy the fruits of our labors, and post one of our favorite episodes from the archives. Today we take you back in time to the summer of 2014, on Katy's very last morning as an expat living in Rome. She and Tiffany spend 20 minutes in walking the streets of Trastevere at dawn before Katy has to hop on a bus and make her way to the airport, where a plane is waiting to take her back to the US. We hope you enjoy one of our most emotional episodes ever...
Sep 02, 2019•31 min•Season 6Ep. 276
On this mini-episode, Katy takes us back in time to the the Golden Age of radio, by re-broadcasting a piece she produced for the Radio Retrospective. In it, she looks at the way the news was manipulated and dramatized leading up to and during World War II, in segments that were aired at the cinema, right before the feature. ---------------------------------------- ADVERTISE WITH US: Reach expats, future expats, and travelers all over the world. Send us an email to get the conversation started. B...
Aug 29, 2019•8 min•Season 6Ep. 23
This episode is Part 2 of an interview with bestselling writer Anthony Doerr, author of Pulitzer Prize-winning All the Light We Cannot See, and Four Seasons in Rome . Be sure to listen to Part 1 if you haven't already! As the conversation continues, Anthony tells the story of finding out he had won the prestigious Rome Prize literally the same day his twin sons were born, and what it took for he and his wife to make the monumental decision to pack up their newborns and move to Rome for a year. H...
Aug 26, 2019•25 min•Season 6Ep. 275
In this very special episode, we are joined by the award-winning, best-selling writer, Anthony Doerr, author of All the Light We Cannot See, and Four Seasons in Rome , among others. Anthony shares his writing journey with Katy, from his earliest beginnings as an amateur writer to the challenges of writing from the perspective of a young blind girl in All the Light We Cannot See . He also shares how he got the idea for this book that would become a world-wide sensation, and why it took him a deca...
Aug 26, 2019•25 min•Season 6Ep. 274
