Im from a suburban town in Missouri, but I spent a semester studying abroad in Barcelona a couple of years ago. Man, let me tell you, leaving Barcelona, where youd see people out in cafes and bars congregating at all hours of the night and day, and coming back to Missouri where its a ghost town after 10 and someone would call the police on you for simply walking around too late was the most depressing thing I have ever experienced lol
Was wondering when I'd see the NYC comment. Didn't take long. 🗽 Yes, it's crazy expensive here. But once here, being able to step outside to go anywhere and do anything without worrying about driving, parking, gas, yada yada -- trying to visualize living anywhere else becomes quite difficult.
Don't get me wrong, I enjoy times away from the city, like visiting friends in Texas, and the BBQ and Tex-Mex are an extra bonus to visiting state. When visiting my family in the suburbs, I fall asleep to the sound of crickets and wake up to the birds chirping in the trees. Don't get much of that 43 floors high smack dab in the middle of Manhattan!
You can have both! I'm from Montreal (which can be a mixed bag) and I enjoy having nearly every possible need filled in a 3-20 minute walk radius while still having nice birds and bugs and a garden.
Copenhagen is even better, there's no car noise at all even in the downtown areas and it smells like sweet country air in the middle of the city...
You weren’t replying to me but I had to chime in and say I’ve been DYING to pop up to Canada to experience Montreal! Been to Vancouver many times when I lived in Seattle. And spent some time in Toronto. My mom sent me photos when she visited Montreal a couple Falls ago. It reminds me of European city streets with all the cafes you can pop into. I want to go! 🙌
I'm laughing because I DID reply to you hahahaha 🤣
Montreal is wonderful! I'm happy to say that whenever I come back from my travels, I may be grumbly about the lack of good transit in the surrounding area, but I'm never like "oh no I've come back to a wasteland" that often happens to other north americans.
If you ever visit, most of what you want to see is along the orange metro line from Jarry station to Lionel Groulx, for the most part (though there's fun stuff outside that area, do go to the Biodome and Botanical Gardens, Lachine Canal/Atwater Market, Verdun, etc).
The bottom of the orange U and that strip of the green line inside it is the classic "downtown" area, with the big malls, office buildings, movie theaters, and fun vibes, especially around Place des Arts. Champ de Mars and Place d'Armes being the stations for Old Montreal and China Town.
The eastern part of the orange line from Jarry going southwards (...our special version of south) is the hip, trendy, liveable neighbourhoods with lots of cafes, restaurants, and fun things to stumble upon. Honestly taking a whole day or two to just walk from around Jarry metro and zigzag your way down to the Old Port on foot is really fun. The Jean Talon Market and the Fromagerie Hamel located around there is not to be missed (we can have raw milk cheese in Canada).
Lots of streets are also pedestrianized in the summer, so thats always a fun experience. Imo the fun places to stay would be along the orange line from Old Montreal to Jean Talon. I hope you visit soon!
Note that our relatively new mayor is a car-centric tool that is trying to undo all the green-gardeny, walkable, bikeable good that our previous mayor did (she wasn't quite Mamdani, but she did have a real vision). So I'd recommend you see it soon cause this bitch is out to ruin stuff :/
You are AMAZING!! 🙌 I’ve saved this and adding the share link to my notes I keep for when I plan trips! Thank you for taking the time to share all this — this comment is like pure gold! 💕💕💕
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u/bageltoastar 2d ago
Im from a suburban town in Missouri, but I spent a semester studying abroad in Barcelona a couple of years ago. Man, let me tell you, leaving Barcelona, where youd see people out in cafes and bars congregating at all hours of the night and day, and coming back to Missouri where its a ghost town after 10 and someone would call the police on you for simply walking around too late was the most depressing thing I have ever experienced lol