The Bittersweet Life
WARNING: This show might change your life. What began as a podcast about what it means to live abroad has become a dynamic examination of what it means to live. Public Radio’s Katy Sewall and Italy expert, Tiffany Parks, guide you on a vulnerable, entertaining journey to discover a more wondrous and adventurous life. Their famous guests, topic-based conversations, and visits to Rome will tweak how you see the world, keep you company, and expand your life view.
Episodes
Writer and scientist Hope Jahren, author of the New York Times best-seller Lab Girl, joins us on this episode from our archives to challenge how we experience the plants of the world. She also tackles the difficulties of being a female scientist and why us laymen can often feel intimidated by people who study the natural world.
***The Bittersweet Life podcast has been on the air for an impressive 10+ years! In order to help newer l...
Another mini-episode, another amazing little-known Roman site that Tiffany explores on our listeners' behalf.
Did you know there is an escape route—hidden inside a medieval wall built in the 9th century—that has been used by popes to flee attacks on the Vatican? The Passetto del Borgo is an 800-meter raised tunnel that stretches from the Apostolic Palace in the Vatican all the way to the safety of Castel Sant'Angleo. It's a place s...
What's it like to have children in a foreign country, only to uproot your family and move to a whole new country?
Today's guest tells us all about it on this eye-opening interview.
Longtime listener of The Bittersweet Life and international teacher Sara Gladding sits down with us to tell us her fascinating story. After living for a short time in France and moving back to the States for a period, Sara and her husband decide on a whi...
Travelers and expats often encounter animals. From the humble, common pigeon to a monkey or a great white shark. On this episode from our archives, we share animal stories from all over the world. Special guest stars: Andrew Blechman, author of Pigeons: The Fascinating Saga of the World's Most Revered and Reviled Bird and Clark and Evalea Beck, pigeon rescuers.
***The Bittersweet Life podcast has been on the air for an impressive 1...
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If you've ever spent any significant amount of time in Italy or around native Italians, you will soon have discovered: Italians are loud.
A recent trip to the peaceful Austrian Alps, in which she was confronted with lots and lots of Italians on vacation in a place outisde of Italy, brought home this reality to Tiffany more than ever before. Turns out, when Italians are in a non-Italian context, they seem even louder.
Is there a gen...
On this fun episode from our archives, we sit down with three American sisters living in Orvieto, Italy. Giulia (age 13), Paloma (age 11), and Viola (age 8) have been expats their whole lives. How do they view the United States from afar? Do they feel like they fit in with the local kids their age?
This interview was taped over a decade ago! What are Giulia, Paloma, and Viola up to now? Should we do a follow-up episode?
***The Bitt...
Palazzo Farnese is one of the most magnificent palaces in Rome—and until recently, one of the most difficult to visit.
But that has changed and Tiffany took the opportunity to visit this incredible site while her mom was in town recently. In this mini-episode, she talks about the palace's history, the scandalous way the Farnese family rose to prestige in the Renaissance, and the glorious art that you can admire inside.
Aurelio als...
We all think we know what wil make your brain sharper, faster, and more agile. But what does the neuroscience actually say on the subject?
There's no one better to answer that question that Therese Huston, cognitive scientist, and author of Sharp: 14 Simple Ways to Improve Your Life with Brain Science. And today we are lucky to sit down with Therese and get into the nitty-gritty of brain science and wh...
Comedian Marsha De Salvatore brings humor to a discussion on living abroad with a serious blood disease in this interview from our archives. We also touch on socialized health care systems, modern day dating, comedy and the differences between American and Italian women.
***The Bittersweet Life podcast has been on the air for an impressive 10+ years! In order to help newer listeners discover some of our earlier episodes, every Frid...
Our interview last week with brand-new expat Jennie Spohr brought up lots of thoughts and ideas on our part, so we've decided to weigh in together on this follow-up episode.
What struck us most was the idea of running AWAY from somewhere as opposed to running TO somewhere?
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COME TO ROME WITH US: Our third annual Bittersweet Life Roman Adventure is all sold out for 2025! If you'd l...
A common stereotype is that expats are maladjusted and running away from real life.
But is it really true?
In this episode from our archives, Katy Sewall sits down with psychiatrist, author and former expat John Wynn to discuss this interesting topic. Later, Tiffany shares her own story.
***The Bittersweet Life podcast has been on the air for an impressive 11+ years! In order to help newer listeners discover some of our earlier epi...
After a seeminly endless summer (nearly 3 and a half months!), Aurelio is finally back to school this week!
In this informative mini-episode, Tiffany lays out all the ways Italian school—and elementary school in particular—is different from American school, from the early introduction of cursive to summer homework, to the ubiquitous grembuile (school smock).
If you've ever wondered what school is like across the pond, listen in and...
There are many reasons a family might choose to move abroad. In the case of Americans, that reason is generally motivated by a desire for adventure, change, new scenery, unfamiliar culture, a slower pace of living, or just plain fun.
But not always. Today we sit down with friend of the show and past guest Jennie Spohr, a Seattleite historical fiction writer who chose to pack up her life, leave her home country, and move to Ireland...
Life is full of major transitions. When Katy moved to Rome in 2013, then back to Seattle less than a year later, the transition was hard to say the least. In this episode from our archives, Katy sits down with psychiatrist and former expat John Wynn to explore why change is so hard. He also shares his insight on how to handle transitions in a healthy and productive way.
***The Bittersweet Life podcast has been on the air for an imp...
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We've all heard it. We've all said it. But what does "when in Rome" really mean?
Katy reveals the somewhat surprising origin of this ubiquitous catch-phrase, which has become the title of more Rome-based rom-coms and expat memoirs than we could count.
Tiffany and Katy have different opinions of the meaning of this cliché expression, and we end up down a rabbit hole discussing the correct way to use it. (And if Tiffany lives by it,...
Twenty years ago, on August 29th 2005, Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans. The Category 5 storm and its aftermath devastated the city, and the consequences still last today. Listen in as Katy takes you on a journey of remembrance to mark the occasion. You’ll hear some of the New Orleans voices she has never forgotten in the intervening decades.
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When Tiffany's husband Claudio takes a photo with the karate instructor of his youth, Tiffany realizes that by being an expat, it can sometimes feel like her life has no continuity. She can't revisit old teachers and places. She never unexpectedly stumbles upon people and objects from her childhood, and maintaining relationships longterm takes extra effort. Is this just one of the side effects of moving abroad indefinitely?
How imp...
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