A Writer In Italy - travel, books, art and life

Επεισόδια

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  It was Giotto’s blue, cypress lanes, ornate balconies, burnt orange walls, stone houses - My Italy 05.09.2026 17λ

  "In Italy I have fallen and dreamed and traveled on my own terms. My Italy is endless and a drop of pleasure each day"... Welcome to Episode #150: This week I am moved to share a story about my Italy and how it lives with me. I am slightly challenged by social media yet I guess fall somewhere in the middle, not one way or the other…. I was thinking about pop culture, ‘la dolce vita’ Italy and how my travel experiences have been quite different to that. So I wrote an article about this o...
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  Are you an Italophile? Some signs you need to look out for.... 27.08.2026 13λ

  "Italiam non sponte sequor - I am pushed toward Italy and it is beyond my control" - Virgil, Aeneid Welcome to Episode #149: Today I share some of the signs and symptoms that you may be an Italophile. Someone who loves Italian culture, who enjoys everything that Italy offers and pretty much cannot get enough! Italophile: noun: a person who admires Italian customs, traditions, etc.Enjoy this episode, Michelle x Shownotes A Writer in Italy Instagram Substack - At My Table Michelle’s Books...
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  Sometimes you just have to write the book that you want to read! My Italian book Story… 22.08.2026 42λ

  "The history, art, language, beauty, colour and so much to learn, and know. I realise, Italy as a subject is bountiful, rich, alluring. Keep teaching me Italy, I want more" - Michelle Johnston, In the Shadow of a Cypress - An Italian Adventure Welcome to Episode #148: Today I share some of the background details of publishing my new print book, In the Shadow of a Cypress that is now available in print, and that is its own kind of beautiful thing. I am excited to share some of the stories and ...
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  How to Discover Italy Through the Italian Language with Margherita Berti PhD. 12.08.2026 24λ

  “Learning Italian is about more than memorizing vocabulary. It is an invitation to experience a way of life” - Margherita Berti, Italian History & Culture Through Language Get prepared for your next Italian Journey with this wonderful book and guide - Italian History & Culture Through Language by Italian Linguistics Teacher and Podcast host Margherita Berti PhD. Today Margherita shares the release of her new book 'Italian History & Culture Through Language' and the story behind cr...
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  In the Woods, with Dante 02.07.2026 23λ

  "But now my will and my desire were turned, as wheels that move in equilibrium, by love that moves the sun and other stars" - Dante Alighieri, Canto XXXIII "Welcome to Episode #146: Dante Alighieri wrote the Divine Comedy Divina Commedia over many years and completed the work late in his life. He died a few years later in Ravenna, Italy. Many find comfort in his words, “In the middle of the journey of our life I came to myself in a dark wood where the straight way was lost” - Dante Alig...
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  Living the Italian Dream at home in Australia! 11.06.2026 37λ

  "There is only one way, and that is your way" - CG Jung Welcome to Episode #145: This share is all about reflecting on a recent milestone of seven years of podcasting and sharing stories and conversations about this Italian Love Affair - it has been a journey of living between two worlds and cultivating a sense of meaning from my journeys to Italy and being at home in Australia. I share how my books on Italian culture and living my own version of the Italian dream has been a journey of ...
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  Why Artists and Writers seek Europe, especially France & Italy! 19.05.2026 31λ

  “France had long been at the center of her philosophy. She had made France a touchstone in her writing, in which she alchemised life, love, and food in a literary genre of her own invention” - Luke Barr on MFK Fisher, Provence 1970 Welcome to Episode #144: Today I share why going to Europe for art, writing, philosophy and liberation has been a necessary evolution for many artists and writers. I contemplate my own journey and the many that have gone before seeking stimulation and artistic free...
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  Could our cookbooks save us right now? 14.05.2026 15λ

  "There is magic in cooking, and in cooking Italian food there is alchemy" - Old World Italian by Mimi Thorisson Since our lives contain multitudes, yes an American poet once said that, I feel to step away from the noise is to disarm the outside influences that are at times necessary and sometimes it is just kind of ridiculous. So the remedy is to open a cookbook and read a recipe and make something beautiful. I am an instinctual cook, I like throwing things together and using what is wi...
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  "Il mio maestro" and the Quintessence of Reading 13.05.2026 33λ

  "I am reading six books at once, the only way of reading: since, as you will agree, one book is merely a note to another book" - Virginia Woolf Today I share some beautiful moments while reading a few books on my table that have given much pause for thought. So I open a few on the fly and chat about the book, the author and what I Loved about the pages.... Teach Us To Sit Still by Tim Parks A Place in the World by Frances Mayes Enchanted April by Elizabeth von Arnim Diary of a Tuscan Bo...
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  Out on a Limb, the writer’s life…. 06.05.2026 35λ

  "A soul's journey through this uniquely itchy epoch requires a far more nourishing approach" - Sarah Wilson, This One Wild and Precious Life Sometimes you cannot see the forest for the trees, but that is the writers life. It is a process. And maybe it will all work out in the end. And if it doesn’t work out, well I guess, it is not the end. Today I share some of my trials and tribulation of the creative life and committing to the crazy idea to write a book (another book). Somehow talkin...
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  Rothko in Florence - The Liberation of Colour 26.04.2026 21λ

  “The large paintings envelop the viewer and invite him or her in, it is an invitation to a self contained world where one can lose oneself and perhaps in the process find oneself. And for all their grandest of scale it is an intimate experience, a world unique to that particular encounter” - Christopher Rothko, Mark Rothko and the Inner World Welcome to Episode #140: In Italy, Mark Rothko (1903-1970) found what he was looking for. On a long voyage in Europe in 1950 with his wife, ...
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  On Seeking Art & Beauty and Why it Really Matters! 02.04.2026 22λ

  "Fortunately for us art and travel lovers, science has caught up with what we have felt inside, what we have experienced" - Michelle Johnston In more recent years the science of ‘neuro-aesthetics’ has given us much to ponder in terms of understanding the importance of art and beauty in our lives. I share my personal experience and sound research on the positive side effects that seeking art, travel and beauty in our lives has on our mental health, neuro-plasticity and longevity. This is...
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  Cucina Classica - My favourite foodie moments in Italy 27.03.2026 28λ

  "Everything had been made honestly, quickly, without frills, but as it should be. It was wholesome, life giving...We had eaten well; we felt well. As we sat in the piazza inhaling our black half inches of double espressi, I felt very happy" - Sybille Bedford, Pleasures and Landscapes Welcome to Episode #138: Today I share some gastronomic highlights from the table in Italy. Italian food has so much to offer, and is a wonderful portal into the culture and the regional dishes. You do not want t...
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  Why if you are stuck in life or feel unappreciated, you should just go to Italy! 27.03.2026 10λ

  "Happiness is a byproduct ultimately of being in right relationship with your own soul” - James Hollis Welcome to Episode #137: There are places in Italy that are so beautiful they make you want to weep. When life occasionally does not go to plan, sometimes you just need to throw the cards in the air and do something for yourself. When circumstance and fate isn’t favoured, here and there it is best to make a distinct move that alters everything. This is for those needing a permission sl...
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  Bookshelf - Mamma Milano: Lessons from the Motherland by J.J.Martin 20.03.2026 19λ

  "Italy, you win!" - J.J Martin, Mamma Milano Welcome to Episode #136: Today I share some inspiration from the book Mamma Milano by J.J Martin. J.J Martin is a visionary, creative and designer that lives in Milan. She moved to Italy many years ago and later started her fabulous fashion empire and lifestyle brand La Double J. Today is just some musing over this beautiful book, making a life in Italy and her vibrant world of colour and flair. If in Milano you can visit her beau...
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  Milan, North Star - Il Duomo, Navigli Grande, Trams, Fashion & Aperitivo Culture & More 15.03.2026 44λ

  "In Milan, one feels at once the charm of a great city and the sweetness of Italian life" - Stendhal (Marie-Henri Beyle) Welcome to Episode #134: Today I share some fabulous things to do if you are on a budget or just a savy traveler and why Milano should not be ignored. It is one of the most charming and underrated cities in Italy and very beautiful too. So I want to share my favourite things to do for free and what to eat. There is so much to do and see, from the fabulous historic trams to ...
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  Milan, North Star - The Last Supper, Museums, Villas, Culture & More 15.03.2026 29λ

  "Italians strongly believe that being surrounded by beauty is beneficial to a happier life" - Riccardo Illy Welcome to Episode #135, Milan is a city of Art, Design, Architecture, Innovation and Commerce. It is full of great art and history. And a wonderful place to discover more about Italian culture. Here is Part 2 on some of the fabulous places you can visit in Milan Italy - Da Vinci’s Last Supper and suburb Museums & Villas. I also include some history and detail about the many p...
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  Tracey Emin at The Palazzo Strozzi in Florence - A Travel Story 08.03.2026 43λ

  "All I wanted was time" - Tracey Emin, Strozzi Gallery Documentary Welcome to Episode #133 Today I share a travel story for International Women’s Day about a glorious art and life moment in Florence from 2025. There are beautiful things that happen along the way that stay with you. I reflect on my experience and joy while walking in the Centro Storico of Florence and discovering that there was an exhibition of Tracey Emin's work on that week at the Palazzo Strozzi. It had been a long t...
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  A Travel Experience & Book Story on 'Let Them Theory' 22.02.2026 22λ

  "The let them theory is about freedom" - Mel Robbins, Let Them Theory Welcome to Episode #132, I wanted to share this personal story of something that shifted in me in a great way to create an expansive and special experience while traveling in Italy I thought might be helpful for other people on their travel (and life) journeys, particularly if solo traveling. Enjoy this share, Michelle x Book: Let Them Theory by Mel Robbins MichelleJohnston.life for the Shownotes A Writer in Italy Instagram...
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  The Birth of Venus & Musings on Life and Art 20.02.2026 38λ

  “The meaning of the river flowing is not that all things are changing so that we cannot encounter them twice but that some things stay the same only by changing” - Heraclitus, The Cosmic Fragments Welcome to Episode #131, Today is just some musing over art, philosophy and life while I get started on my projects for the year. Be prepared for many tangents and a casual monologue on life and Italy. As always, a beautiful stream to float down. Every book and side note is in the show notes o...