Went to Montreal over the 4th of July strictly to escape America for a minute.

Honestly, the city is just wonderful. It’s got some grit, some trash on the corners, real signs of grime—and I actually like that. Montreal has real character. Walked around for three straight days and easily could’ve kept going. Checked my steps and averaged about 30,000 every single day.

Highlights were definitely the food—especially the chicken and waffles. Also completely loved this retro arcade spot called Arcade MTL. You can grab a Mario-themed beer, eat free popcorn, and just play unlimited arcade games all night.

Stumbled right into a Jazz Festival and a Carnival while walking around, which was really, really cool. So much diversity, so many cultural events going on at once. Just amazing energy.

And I absolutely loved the parks. Saw so many people just hanging out on the grass, not too many phones in sight, live concerts setting up right there in the open. My favorite thing was just walking through a park, stopping for a smoke, and taking in the peace. That, plus the charming architecture everywhere—especially those plentiful spiral staircases on the apartments.

On the way out of town, things took a turn when I blew out a tire hitting a brutal pothole. Pulled over on the side of the road to wait for a tow truck, and within ten minutes, this Punjabi man walks out of his house and offers me water, soda, juice. Then he invited me to sit on his porch with him and his wife. We ended up talking for a couple of hours about Canada, the US, and our immigrant experiences. He even taught me some history of his people.

It was just true, authentic kindness from a total stranger—something I’m never gonna forget.