A Writer In Italy - travel, books, art and life
A Writer in Italy is about travel and life. A place to share the travel journeys and the 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 people and like minded souls who share a deep love affair with Italian Culture and the country as a place of beauty and spiritual renewal.
Michelle Johnston lives in Australia with her family.
Episodes
138 episodes
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" - S...
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Episode 138
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28:09
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 HollisWelcome to Episode #137: There are places in Italy that are so beautiful they make you want to weep. When life occasionally...
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Episode 137
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10:33
Bookshelf - Mamma Milano: Lessons from the Motherland by J.J.Martin
"Italy, you win!" - J.J Martin, Mamma MilanoWelcome 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 mov...
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Episode 136
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19:46
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 travele...
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Episode 134
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44:31
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 IllyWelcome to Episode #135,Milan is a city of Art, Design, Architecture, Innovation and Commerce. It is full of great art and ...
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Episode 135
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29:29
Tracey Emin at The Palazzo Strozzi in Florence - A Travel Story
"All I wanted was time" - Tracey Emin, Strozzi Gallery DocumentaryWelcome to Episode #133Today I share a travel story for International Women’s Day about a glorious art and life moment in Florence from 2025. There are...
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Episode 133
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43:00
A Travel Experience & Book Story on 'Let Them Theory'
"The let them theory is about freedom" - Mel Robbins, Let Them TheoryWelcome 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 ...
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Episode 132
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22:57
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 FragmentsWelcome to Episode #131,Today is j...
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Episode 131
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38:45
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...
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Episode 130
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36:34
A Small Act of Rebellion while the world goes Crazy!
"A book can never disappoint you" - Cinzia FerriWelcome to Episode #129:Just a little rumination about books and life as the new year arrives! Enjoy xThe Substack Post that inspired this podcast:
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Episode 129
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18:45
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,...
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Episode 128
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30:39
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 ...
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Episode 127
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28:44
Pentimento - Artist's Lives, Reflections, Muse Italia
"I fall in love with places" - Cy TwomblyWelcome 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 abo...
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Episode 126
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48:04
Cy Twombly - Life and Art in Italy
"I am a Mediterranean painter" - Cy TwomblyWelcome 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...
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Episode 125
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13:34
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...
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Episode 124
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48:03
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'ArcangeloWelcome to Episode #123,Today I share an enriching and beautiful conversation w...
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Episode 123
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30:56
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 th...
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Episode 122
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34:31
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, SubstackWelcome to Episode #121:Today I share a p...
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Episode 121
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31:15
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...
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Episode 120
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37:24
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 BeagleyWelcome to Episode #119:Many of us dreaming about a home in Italy, a place to enjoy la dolce vita. The big question...
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Episode 119
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1:00:11
The Italian Soul with Judith Valente
"Italy taught me to readjust my focus" - Judith Valente, The Italian SoulWelcome 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. <...
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Episode 118
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28:05
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 ...
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Episode 117
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55:06
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...
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Episode 116
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42:57
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 AdventureWelcome to Episode #115:More and more I realise there is just something about Italy. This podcast is a culmination of an eventful s...
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Episode 115
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33:06
