Ashley Bartner of "La Tavola Marche" and Susan Dufresne of "Get Lost in Italy" chat about life as American expats in Italy. We talk about living in a country with different traditions and cultures, learning a new language, gaining residency, citizenship, what we love, and what we miss the most. If you dream of moving to Italy, we hope this video answers many of your questions.

Starting all over again in Italy definitely has its challenges, but I wouldn’t change a thing. I feel honored to have been interviewed by Cinzia Ferri of Instantly Italy. We talk about living in a small village in Italy after years of working in San Francisco, being away from family and friends, cultural differences, how my life has changed, and what I miss the most since moving to Italy. Hint - it has to do with food - always!

My 5 favorite things about living in Italy. There is so much to love about Italy so I chose the things I look forward to every day: Italian coffee, Italian food and wine, the pausa (or siesta), a strong sense of community, and the beauty and diversity of Italy. Read about my 5 Favorites and some expats and locals who have inspired me.

The first thing the locals ask you when you tell them you have moved here permanently is “Perche?” “Why?” That’s not always an easy answer for me because I knew nothing about the Campania region or Guardia before my move. I had planned to move to Sicily or the Marche region in the North, but never Campania.

Luca is one of my favorite people.  He’s a great teacher and a very kind person.  After my move to Italy, I started taking online group classes with him.  The classes really helped me to progress and more importantly, to start speaking in a friendly group setting.  Whenever my expat friends ask me how I am learning Italian, I always refer them to Luca.

5. What do you wish language learners would do more often - other than practice? 

One common mistake people do is to translate literally from their native language. Like using long sentences or expressions that don’t mean anything translated into another language. I always suggest not to think this way, but instead make easy, short sentences from scratch.

9. What do you miss most about Italy? What do you love about Sweden? 

This summer was the first time I stayed in Sweden the whole summer. I missed the summer in Italy so much! I especially miss the warm evenings outside until 3 a.m.   I miss being able to use my language and the possibility to visit places dreamed of by people all over the world I miss drinking a well-done cappuccino in the early morning.