While many of us stayed close to home during the pandemic, forsaking travel and evenings out, others chose a different route. Take Kate Wheeler, a freelance cartoonist from Seattle. Wheeler’s parents retired to Italy six years ago. After dreaming for months about following in their footsteps, Wheeler, her partner, and their two dogs pulled up stakes and relocated to Rome in January. 

A regular contributor to The Washington Post and other outlets, and the author of several graphic novels, Wheeler chose to document her move to Rome in a candid, charming, and very visual way: a four-part cartoon series currently running in The Washington Post. The series kicked off on February 12 in the paper’s By The Way feature. Two installments will appear in March and the last one in April.