Introduction by Tricia Heaton: It is so fun for me to sit and read this interview Abby did with Sheri. I have been going to Lucca regularly for about 15 years and Sheri is my first (and only) American friend who lives in Lucca. We met through our mutual friend (who is Australian) and I am so grateful to Siobhan for introducing us. Not only is Sheri extremely likable but she is also really fun and interesting. It is really joyful for me to have an American I can speak to when I am in Italy (which is frequently) who shares a love of my favorite Italian village. It’s been fascinating getting to know Sheri. She is deeply connected to the artisan community in Lucca and our last two Island Hopper trips have had the opportunity meet Sheri and learn about Lucca and the artisans from her. Plus we all want to know what it is like as an American to live in Italy!! Sheri makes it very tempting!! It’s really fun for our guests to ask about the realities of this dreamy life! You can find Sheri’s website here. You can also find Sheri on her personal instagram @sheri.doyle and her business instagram account @artfulitalia.

What is your favorite luggage?

My favorite luggage is full luggage. Seriously though,I like hard-sided luggage that is uniquely colored with two pockets for shoes, and a zipper pocket for little things. For some reason they usually have bright green either on the wheels or the entire piece or the lining. I am not brand loyal, but I do dream of a classic aluminum Rimowa suitcase.

Do you have a travel uniform?

I don't but I admit I do like to be dressed nicely, so often palazzo pants, a sweater, and sneakers, or flats. Sometimes I wear a comfortable but elegant dress with flats and a sweater for the plane.

What are some essentials you are never without while traveling?

Books for sure! A notebook and a couple of pens, I love the ideas that usually come in the quiet moments of traveling so I want to be ready. My computer, headphones are essential, sunglasses, and some device to take photos (it used to be my camera but I am less and less excited about carrying it around, although I really miss it on long interesting trips). I never travel anywhere without at least two tubes of eos vanilla mint chapstick (one of the last products I still have people bring me from the States).

Any pro travel tips you'd like to share?

Be realistic about what you want to do and how fast or how much you want to move around. It is easy to think we are going to be more energetic or adventurous on trips but often it sets unreal expectations and one ends up either too busy to enjoy the trip, or doing things that in their heart they don't like doing which leaves them feeling really disappointed. Try to acclimate as soon as you can to your new time zone, so change the time on your watch to your destination as soon as you get on the plane, don't translate time "back home", and try to push yourself to acclimate immediately (but don't skip a short nap if it will help you make it through the day a little better.)

What is your favorite destination?

I think it would be any place where I can experience something different. Having said that, I rarely leave Italy (where I live) because every discovery seems even better than the last so I just don't see a point in leaving the country. I do love scuba diving so those are always the exception, the peace of being under the water is such a gift, just me and my breath and no other sounds, observing this foreign world where no words are ever used to communicate-it is pure magic.

Most unforgettable trip?

I have visited 50 countries, part of which I saw when I traveled for 3 years straight. So in one sense that was my most memorable trip. The most life changing was an island called Utila in Honduras where I visited a school on a tiny, tiny island during a scuba diving vacation. I ended up volunteering at that school for 7 months and I have to say it changed me, and the course of my life dramatically. The other would be of course my first trip to Italy, I was 20 years old and I knew immediately I had to live in Italy and then everything after that trip was with the focus of moving to Italy one day.

Where are you dreaming of visiting that you haven't been to yet?

I am dying to do an African Safari, visit the South Pacific, Tibet, Bhutan, and the Antarctic. I hope one day Iran is a secure enough country I can visit it.

Do you collect anything on your travels?

I don't. I am not a collector. I have never had roots in my life so I just carry everything in my memory.

Where are you off to next?

There is a possibility I may go to Turkey, but definitely finally go to the Maldives! I have dreamt of diving there during whale shark season so finally I get to do that.

Tell us about your life in Lucca. How long have you lived there? What drew you to it particularly?

I have lived in Lucca for 6 years. We found it in 2005 through a friend's brother who lives close by in the town of Montecarlo. It felt like home the minute we walked through the medieval wall. My life here is like a college campus but with older people, with more money. It sounds strange but there is a sense of adventure, wonder, and joy amongst my friends here that reminds me of being in college. The walls feel like a college campus and after 6 years here I know or at least recognize so many people it feels like being back in college. Of course there is all of the socializing as well, and the occasional drama just like college. I started my business Artful Italia here a year ago and that has been an extension of my love for Italian artisans. The doors the business has opened have been amazing. I am able to connect with Italians on a different level and understand much deeper this culture that I continue to love. Plus, the idea that in some way I am helping to preserve their history by selling their products to the worldwide consumer makes me really proud. Of course there are bad days here, and frustrating days, and days I just wish someone could explain something in English that is significant but I have to say even in those rough moments, I have never been anywhere in which I felt so deeply that my soul belonged and that is the most amazing thing about my life in Italy.

Apparently, you have some great stories about driving in Italy. Do tell!!

Well getting a driver's license in Italy is required after living here for a year. There are over 7,000 potential questions on the test. The test has 40 questions of which you can only miss 4. It is completely in Italian. I have yet to meet anyone, Italian or foreign, who doesn't say it is one of the hardest, if not the hardest test, they have ever taken. I Studied for 5 months about 6-8 hours per day to pass the test. The day I took the test out of 25 of us (me being the only non-Italian), three of us passed the exam.

When I took the physical driving test the instructor was so impressed with my driving, which made me laugh, I was 49 and learned how to drive in Los Angeles at 16 so I had a bit more experience than he was used to. During the test he kept chatting with me about how to say words in English, just random driving words. Once you get your license you can only drive a 75 horsepower car (for reference my friend's moped has more horsepower), for 3 years. So on these windy, uphill roads, with the air conditioner on and my 6'3" husband in the car have quite often almost not made it up the hilly roads or driveways. Italians are extremely fast drivers and they follow very closely, but once you get used to that you realize they are exceptional drivers. They are kind and patient, until they want to pass you on the highway and they flash their lights until you move. They do whatever they want on the road, and so they allow you the courtesy of tolerating whatever you do. My driving teacher told me that in order to be a good driver in Italy you learn all the rules, pass the test, and then do whatever you want. I think in many ways that is true of the Italian lifestyle in general.

MEET SHERI DOYLE: An American in Italy and a Friend to Italian Artisans.