The Bittersweet Life

Most break-ups are painful, but every now and then, they can be fun. Or even funny! Have you had a funny break-up? Tune in to hear ours. This is just a sneak peek of a much longer bonus episode, available exclusively to our generous Patreon supporters. Want to hear more? Become part of the Bittersweet Life community by supporting just on Patreon! For as little as $5 per month—less than the price of a coffee in some places—you will have access to multiple bonus episodes every single month. You'll hear conversations that would never take place on the main show, you'll be part of our new chat community, you'll have access to Patreon-only content in addition to bonus episodes, and you'll be invited to join us for regular live meet-ups. But most importantly, you'll be doing your part to help keep this show alive—an independent podcast with no corporate support. (You'll also help keep it virtually ad-free!) Check our our Patreon page for all the details, and consider joining us at the $5 level or above. We are eternally grateful! ------------------------------------- COME TO ROME WITH US: Our third annual Bittersweet Life Roman Adventure is in the books! If you'd like to join us in 2026, and be part of an intimate group of listeners on a magical and unforgettable journey to Rome, discovering the city with us as your guides, find out more here. 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. TIP YOUR PODCASTER: Say thanks with a one-time donation to the podcast hosts you know and love. Click here to send financial support via PayPal. (You can also find a Donate button on the desktop version of our website.) The show needs your support to continue. START PODCASTING: If you are planning to start your own podcast, consider Libsyn for your hosting service! Use this affliliate link to get two months free, or use our promo code SWEET when you sign up. 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. JOIN THE CONVERSATION: If you have a question or a topic you want us to address, send us an email here. You can also connect to us through Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Tag #thebittersweetlife with your expat story for a chance to be featured! 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!

February 17th is a big day in Tiffany's life this year... from Martedi Grasso with Aurelio (aka Pulcinella) to her Italian sister-in-law's Master's graduation to her mom's birthday. Hear Katy and Tiffany chat about what Italian graduation looks like (and what it takes to get your degree) as well as the fun and the surprising (yet very traditional) Carvenale costume Aurelio chose this year. ------------------------------------- COME TO ROME WITH US: Our third annual Bittersweet Life Roman Adventure is in the books! If you'd like to join us in 2026, and be part of an intimate group of listeners on a magical and unforgettable journey to Rome, discovering the city with us as your guides, find out more here. 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. TIP YOUR PODCASTER: Say thanks with a one-time donation to the podcast hosts you know and love. Click here to send financial support via PayPal. (You can also find a Donate button on the desktop version of our website.) The show needs your support to continue. START PODCASTING: If you are planning to start your own podcast, consider Libsyn for your hosting service! Use this affliliate link to get two months free, or use our promo code SWEET when you sign up. 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. JOIN THE CONVERSATION: If you have a question or a topic you want us to address, send us an email here. You can also connect to us through Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Tag #thebittersweetlife with your expat story for a chance to be featured! 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!

What do you do when your partner of almost a decade finally proposes, and after a just few short months of marriage, tells you he thinks you made a mistake getting married? Well, if you're the guest of this episode from our archives, you pack your bags and start traveling the world. You might never even come back. On this episode, we sit down with Asia Dawn Simonelli, who's unexpected heartbreak made her realize that life is too short and uncertain to do anything but what brings her joy. Her sudden divorce inspired her to spend a year traveling around South America, eventually settling in Mexico City, only to decide that Italy is where she truly belongs. Hear how her love of travel led her to a life of her dreams, and how she turned what could have been a devastating crisis into a new career that brings her joy and purpose and helps other women who've been through similar trauma. Find out more about Asia's relationship coaching services on her website, read about her travels on her travel blog, and follow her adventures on her Instagram page. Read her viral HuffPost article After My Divorce at 32, I Left the Country and Never Came Back. ***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 Friday we are now airing an episode from our vast archives! Enjoy!*** ------------------------------------- COME TO ROME WITH US: Our third annual Bittersweet Life Roman Adventure is in the books! If you'd like to join us in 2026, and be part of an intimate group of listeners on a magical and unforgettable journey to Rome, discovering the city with us as your guides, find out more here. 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. TIP YOUR PODCASTER: Say thanks with a one-time donation to the podcast hosts you know and love. Click here to send financial support via PayPal. (You can also find a Donate button on the desktop version of our website.) The show needs your support to continue. START PODCASTING: If you are planning to start your own podcast, consider Libsyn for your hosting service! Use this affliliate link to get two months free, or use our promo code SWEET when you sign up. 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. JOIN THE CONVERSATION: If you have a question or a topic you want us to address, send us an email here. You can also connect to us through Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Tag #thebittersweetlife with your expat story for a chance to be featured! 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!

On this mini-episode, we talk about one of the most over-looked and underappreciated sites in the entire city. It has it all: glorious medieval mosaics (some of the oldest you'll find in the city), exquisite works of proto-baroque statuary, hidden frescoes that almost no one knows about, and an ancient underground level that ties the history together. What to know what it is? Listen to this week's Bittersweet Moment and Tiffany will take you there. And if you want Tiffany and Katy to take you there in person, sign up for our intimate Rome listener trip, coming up in fall of 2026. Find out all about it here, or email us for more information! ------------------------------------- COME TO ROME WITH US: Our third annual Bittersweet Life Roman Adventure is in the books! If you'd like to join us in 2026, and be part of an intimate group of listeners on a magical and unforgettable journey to Rome, discovering the city with us as your guides, find out more here. 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. TIP YOUR PODCASTER: Say thanks with a one-time donation to the podcast hosts you know and love. Click here to send financial support via PayPal. (You can also find a Donate button on the desktop version of our website.) The show needs your support to continue. START PODCASTING: If you are planning to start your own podcast, consider Libsyn for your hosting service! Use this affliliate link to get two months free, or use our promo code SWEET when you sign up. 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. JOIN THE CONVERSATION: If you have a question or a topic you want us to address, send us an email here. You can also connect to us through Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Tag #thebittersweetlife with your expat story for a chance to be featured! 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!

On the occassion of Valentine's Day, The Bittersweet Life looks at the many different kinds of love, from family love to romantic love to the love you feel for your pets. Katy sits down with her sisters Dana and Sara to talk about the love that binds them as siblings, and she shares the kind of the love that she feels doesn't get enough credit. She also gets her sisters to open up about their oddest and most inappropriate crushes. The conversation deepens as they discuss their love for things like birdwatching, the music of Prince, or arranging books in a visually pleasing way. ***Katy's sister Dana has recently been diagnosed with stage 4 agressive brain cancer. To help with the staggering medical costs—her specialist is outside her insurance network—as well of the costs of temporarily relocating to San Francsico for her treatments, please consider donating to her GoFundMe. Anything you can contribute will be extremely helpful. Thank you.*** ------------------------------------- COME TO ROME WITH US: Our third annual Bittersweet Life Roman Adventure is in the books! If you'd like to join us in 2026, and be part of an intimate group of listeners on a magical and unforgettable journey to Rome, discovering the city with us as your guides, find out more here. 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. TIP YOUR PODCASTER: Say thanks with a one-time donation to the podcast hosts you know and love. Click here to send financial support via PayPal. (You can also find a Donate button on the desktop version of our website.) The show needs your support to continue. START PODCASTING: If you are planning to start your own podcast, consider Libsyn for your hosting service! Use this affliliate link to get two months free, or use our promo code SWEET when you sign up. 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. JOIN THE CONVERSATION: If you have a question or a topic you want us to address, send us an email here. You can also connect to us through Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. Tag #thebittersweetlife with your expat story for a chance to be featured! 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!