Armchair Expat

What happens when you leave behind the nonstop energy of New York City for life in a 5,000-person town tucked into the Italian mountains? In this episode of Armchair Expat, Shannon sits down with Caroline Chirichella, founder of Chirichella Associates, to hear her story of trading chaos for community. Caroline shares her unlikely path—from training as an opera singer, to running a private dining business in New York and southern Italy, to eventually launching her own PR agency. Along the way, she opens up about the realities of navigating Italian citizenship, integrating into a rural town where everyone knows your name, learning the language, and raising children abroad. We talk about: Why Italy felt like “home” long before she moved there The patience it took to claim Italian citizenship How she found belonging in a small, agricultural community The challenges of language learning and starting over professionally Building a PR agency that helps Italian businesses connect with international audiences Her big