The Bittersweet Life

Who doesn't love a good cocktail, especially around the holidays? On this week's Bittersweet Moment, Katy revisits Monday's episode and her interview with author Adrienne Brodeur to discover her mother's secret for making amazing cocktails, especially her signature Manhattan.  Katy also shares a creative game she likes to play with her favorite Seattle bartender, Daniel. Grab a shaker and some ice...

Can you keep a secret? Author Adrienne Brodeur was asked to keep an explosive secret at just fourteen years old when her mother confided in her about her extramarital affair. From that moment on, Adrienne's life changed; her innocent childhood was over, and her new life of secrets, lies, and drama began. Today Adrienne joins us for a thoughtful and intimate interview. She discusses her newly relea...

Spending Christmas in Rome? On this week's mini-episode, Tiffany shares her tips on the best, coziest, and most festive ways to celebrate Christmas in Rome! Buon Natale e Buone Feste from The Bittersweet Life! ***Don't forget! All of our Patreon supportors at the $10 level or higher will be thrown into a hat to win a SIGNED copy of Mo Rocca's new book Mobituaries: Great Lives Worth Reliving mailed...

Should you visit a country if you can't speak the language? Some say no, that you'll never be able to understand or truly experience a culture if you can't make sense of what its people are saying. (One person who makes this claim is recent guest Paul Theroux in Episodes 286 and 287 .) But then again, that's awfully limiting. Even in the best scenario, in which you speak three or even four languag...

We won't be remembered for long after we die—that's a conclusion that Mo Rocca, correspondent for CBS Sunday Morning, came to on Episode 290 MOBITUARIES . Today, we continue to explore the transience of fame on this mini-episode by introducing you to Jan Merlin. You probably haven't heard of this once-famous Hollywood actor, but he's about to make you cry. Listen to this mini-interview he did with...

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...

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....

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 differenc...

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 ep...

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...

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...

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—i...

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. H...

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...

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...

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....

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 deat...

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 Hen...

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 l...

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...

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,...

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 th...

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 wi...

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 R...

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 "...