A Writer In Italy - travel, books, art and life
A Writer in Italy is about travel, art and life. A place to share the travel journeys and the many discoveries along the way. Italy has many attractions - art, design, architecture, history and the wonderful food culture. Michelle shares her love of books on Italy and the places and regions that have inspired her along the way.Michelle started 'A Writer in Italy Podcast’ to share personal stories and the love of books on Italy that would lead to beautiful conversations with like minded souls who share a deep love affair with Italian Culture and the country as a pla...
Tuscan Treasures - On Florence, Part 2
“It goes without saying that Florence is a city that lives in the past. Its medieval and Renaissance history, immortalised in famous buildings, sculptures and paintings, is the main reason the city is as loved and visited as it is today. In every nook and cranny, history seeps out onto the well trodden stone streets and into the everyday” - Emiko Davies, Florentine: The True Cuisine of Florence
Welcome to Episode #153:
Here is the next instalment on the Tuscan Treasures to be discovered in Florence in the region of Tuscany.
Today I share more...
Tuscan Treasures - On Florence, Part 1
"And so, I wandered along, heart open wide, marvelling, all the way to the Duomo like a typical foreigner seeking beauty" - In the Shadow of a Cypress by Michelle Johnston
Today I go on a grand adventure exploring the heart and soul of Florence. I share travel stories and thoughts on writers and artists and why Florence has always been a beacon for not only tourists seeking Italy but scholars, students, writers, artists, authors and explorers of Italy.
There are many tangents one can go, and so I ponder a few; the Medici Empire, t...
Italian Folklore: Rituals, Celebrations and Ancient Traditions with Gina M. Miele PhD.
"Stretta la soglia e larga la via, dite la vostra ché ho detto la mia. . .” (Narrow the threshold and broad the way. Now you tell your tale, for I have told you mine)"
- Gina M. Miele, Italian Folklore, Chapter 1 - What is Italian Folk Tradition?
Welcome to Episode #151:
Today we gather to share a conversation about keeping the traditions of ancient Italy alive. Dr Gina M. Miele, Professor of Italian studies at Montclair State University in the US is here to talk about her beautiful book Italian Folklore: Rit...
It was Giotto’s blue, cypress lanes, ornate balconies, burnt orange walls, stone houses - My Italy
"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 on...
Are you an Italophile? Some signs you need to look out for....
"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
Sometimes you just have to write the book that you want to read! My Italian book Story…
"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 adventures of...
How to Discover Italy Through the Italian Language with Margherita Berti PhD.
“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 creating her Italian Matters Language courses for seekers of Italy. Enjoy this conversation...
About the Author:
Margherita Berti is th...
In the Woods, with Dante
"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 Alighieri
I c...
Living the Italian Dream at home in Australia!
"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 discovery and i...
Why Artists and Writers seek Europe, especially France & Italy!
“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 freedom amongst the avant-garde and the lively cafes of Paris and othe...
Could our cookbooks save us right now?
"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 within reach, but sometimes I do f...
"Il mio maestro" and the Quintessence of Reading
"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...
Out on a Limb, the writer’s life….
"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 talking about it...
Rothko in Florence - The Liberation of Colour
“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, Rothko found himself in Florence, in the cr...
On Seeking Art & Beauty and Why it Really Matters!
"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 a broad topic yet I cite recent book publications and examples on the i...
Cucina Classica - My favourite foodie moments in Italy
"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 to miss the opportunity to discover new flavours and...
Why if you are stuck in life or feel unappreciated, you should just go to Italy!
"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 slip.
Italy changes you, opens you and m...
Bookshelf - Mamma Milano: Lessons from the Motherland by J.J.Martin
"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 beautiful world on San...
Milan, North Star - Il Duomo, Navigli Grande, Trams, Fashion & Aperitivo Culture & More
"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...
Milan, North Star - The Last Supper, Museums, Villas, Culture & More
"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 places to visit while in the city of Milan.
<...Tracey Emin at The Palazzo Strozzi in Florence - A Travel Story
"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 time since I had seen her work and...
A Travel Experience & Book Story on 'Let Them Theory'
"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
<...The Birth of Venus & Musings on Life and Art
“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 or you can read the t...
The Tarocchi Players - Renaissance Italy and the History of the Tarot
"Around the middle of the fifteenth century, not so long after the first written references in Europe to cards of any kind, an artist named Bonifacio Bembo painted a set of unnamed and unnumbered cards for the Visconti family of Milan", Origins of Tarot, Seventy Eight Degrees of Wisdom: A Tarot Journey to Self Awareness by Rachel Pollack
Welcome to Episode #130,
Did you know that the roots of tarot have their beginnings in the north of Italy at the height of the Renaissance. The first playing cards emerged in the courts of the noble Milanese f...
A Small Act of Rebellion while the world goes Crazy!
"A book can never disappoint you" - Cinzia Ferri
Welcome to Episode #129:
Just a little rumination about books and life as the new year arrives! Enjoy x
The Substack Post that inspired this podcast:
A book can never disappoint you!
MichelleJohnston.life for the Show-notes
A Writer in Italy Instagram
Substack - At My Table
Michelle’s Books
Musical Scores by Richard Johnston
A Writer in Italy is about travel and life. A place to share the beautiful travel jo...
What I loved about Visiting Bologna!
“Bologna was unique in championing the professions of women. The home of Europe’s oldest university, which has supported female students since the thirteenth century, the city considered women artists integral to its development” - Katy Hessel, The Story of Art Without Men
Welcome to Episode #128:
Bologna is one of those places that has that quintessential Italian feel. A medieval city with wonderful heritage and a place where tradition and conviviality are maintained.
Many people love to visit for the food and there is a lot to say about the glories of the table i...
Italy - Healing for the Soul
"Live the journey as faithfully as you can" - James Hollis
Welcome to Episode #127:
A notebook from Bologna led me to contemplate the profound effect that Italy has had on my psyche these past few years. The journeys and the moments that have awakened a lively contemplation.
I share my story of healing through the ups and downs and how Italy made everything sing.
Michelle x
Episode #127 🎙️ Life, Travel, Ischia, Jamie's Pizza, Naples & Procida
Shownotes at MichelleJohnston.life
A Writer in Italy Instagram
Substack...
Pentimento - Artist's Lives, Reflections, Muse Italia
"I fall in love with places" - Cy Twombly
Welcome to Episode #126,
While still reflecting on the life of Cy Twombly, I muse over a few artists that have been influenced by Italy (and my artistic process). There is just something about the visual beauty and the history of Italy that seems to impact many artists, writers and creatives.
I go further into thoughts on the art of Cy Twombly and Robert Rauschenberg throwing his art into the Arno River in Florence after a disparaging critic’s comment, and how artists move forward reg...
Cy Twombly - Life and Art in Italy
"I am a Mediterranean painter" - Cy Twombly
Welcome to Episode #125:
In 1952 Robert Rauschenberg photographed his friend and fellow artist Cy Twombly standing with a thin notebook next to Constantine’s colossal hand while on holiday in Rome. They were together on a traveling arts scholarship. They traveled extensively for months in Italy and North Africa.
Five years later Cy Twombly moved from America to live in Rome, Italy.
Cy Twombly (1928-2011) made a life in Rome as an artist. He kept the art world at bay, painting vast canvases full of...
Merchants & Vagabonds - Tales from Travel in Italy
“To awaken quite alone in a strange town is one of the pleasantest sensations in the world. You are surrounded by adventure. You have no idea of what is in store for you, but you will, if you are wise and know the art of travel, let yourself go on the stream of the unknown and accept whatever comes in the spirit in which the gods may offer it....." Baghdad Sketches, Freya Stark
Welcome to Episode #124:
Today I take you on a journey through a few travel experiences that have a left a wonderful impression on...
A Story about Family & Pizza with Erica D’Arcangelo
"There's just something about sitting at a cafe, and the food, and the culture that just, it's not like anything else in the world" - Erica D'Arcangelo
Welcome to Episode #123,
Today I share an enriching and beautiful conversation with Erica D’Arcangelo, host of Pizza Story Podcast. So this is a tale about pizza, family, heritage and Italy.
Erica’s first book was written in honour of her Grandfathers journey as an Italian immigrant from Abruzzo Italy to America - A Story about Pizza. She is also an author of a series of childr...
Immersive Travel Experiences with Katerina Ferrara
"One summer morning, my husband, son, and I arrived by car from Sirmione and spent the day wandering through the city’s walkable center. Verona revealed itself slowly, with Roman ruins beside medieval churches, Renaissance palaces glowing in the sun, and piazzas alive with the laughter of locals. The soft pink of its buildings shimmered in the warmth, giving the city a dreamy, romantic air" - Katerina Ferrara, Venice and the Veneto Ultimate Festival & Travel Guide
Welcome to Episode #122:
Today is a fun conversation with Katerina Ferrara about her connection to Italy and how she im...
Two Castles in Italy
"Perhaps my vision has been somewhat romantic but who out there has not been lured by an Arcadia unlike our own? It seems it has been a thing for centuries..." - Michelle Johnston, Substack
Welcome to Episode #121:
Today I share a podcast I made last month while contemplating the after glow of being in Italy and sharing new adventures writing on Substack - At My Table.
I read an excerpt from Two Castles in Italy, that weaves together Italian moments and books I have enjoyed and the life moments that have happened along th...
Are you a Traveler or a Tourist?
"The journey changes you; it should change you. It leaves marks on your memory, on your consciousness, on your heart, and on your body. You take something with you. Hopefully, you leave something good behind" - Anthony Bourdain, No Reservations
Welcome to Episode #120:
"Be a Traveler, Not a Tourist!" - Today I explore this wonderful statement by the late Anthony Bourdain.
I have been going around in circles for years musing over this whole thought about the traveling journeys and contemplating moving beyond being a complete tourist and embracing more of the unknown...
Buying a Holiday Home in Umbria with Jaclyn Beagley
"The money was always for a dream of sorts, an Italian dream, and now it's one we get to keep living" - Jac Beagley
Welcome to Episode #119:
Many of us dreaming about a home in Italy, a place to enjoy la dolce vita. The big question is, can you do it on a conservative budget and find something special?
The answer is - Yes you can!
Australian couple Jac and Josh Beagley spent $32,000 Euros (approx. $50,000 Australian dollars) on an apartment in a medieval hilltop village in Umbria. Their holiday home is l...
The Italian Soul with Judith Valente
"Italy taught me to readjust my focus" - Judith Valente, The Italian Soul
Welcome to Episode #118:
Today I talk with Author Judith Valente about her recent book The Italian Soul - How to Savour the Full Joys of Life.
In Judith’s introduction to The Italian Soul she writes, “I depart Italy with the same feeling: I found what I was looking for”. Judith shares not only practical advice on how to savour the daily details, but what she has learned from her ancestors and her time in Italy with friends and family. While o...
Becoming Mariella, a Sicilian Book Journey with Janet Constantino
"If you could write about anything you want to write about what would it be?"....
Welcome to Episode #117:
I am excited to introduce you to Janet’s Constantino’s beautiful debut fiction novel 'Becoming Mariella’. This is a deep and rich conversation about her gem of a book and writing journey. We discuss in depth Janet’s Sicilian-American heritage, navigating traditional values and family expectations.
There are many wonderful tangents in this conversation - we talk travel and Italy and how place can be a powerful magnet without really know why, yet something deep insi...
On the Beauty & Necessity of Creative Action in Changing Times
"What we can be in control of we should be, especially when it comes to creativity" - Tracey Emin, Strozzi Gallery Florence - Documentary
Welcome to Episode #116:
This podcast share has been percolating for some time. Over the year I have found myself musing about creativity and the importance of opening up space in our busy lives to not only make beautiful things but to be available to our creativity as a way to keep steady as technological advancements continue to shift our lives in various directions.
I love that we get to ha...
There is just Something About Italy - from the Piazza della Repubblica, Roma
"I adore the spirit of Rome" - Michelle Johnston, In the Shadow of a Cypress - An Italian Adventure
Welcome to Episode #115:
More and more I realise there is just something about Italy. This podcast is a culmination of an eventful solo journey in Italy and Paris, and the culmination of the days wandering around Italia has me feeling very open to the beauty of the day and those last precious moments in Rome…
Enjoy x
Find all Shownotes at michellejohnston.life
My book: In the Shadow of a Cypr...
In Rome, Lost but Happy....
"The brittle crust off the present fractures; my feet sink into the quicksand of antiquity" - Anthony Doerr, Four Seasons in Rome
Welcome to Episode #114,
A spontaneous moment sipping an Aperol Spritz sitting at a caffe/wine bar on the corner of a busy side street close to Via Nazionale has me musing over some beautiful moments in Rome, purely sunny days full of grand adventures, being lost but absolutely happy in Italy…
Find all Shownotes at michellejohnston.life
My book: In the Shadow of a Cypress - An Italian Adventure
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