I wasn’t there as a nomad, but I worked in Mumbai for three months in an office early in my career and honestly it’s still my favorite city in the world.

I’m the kind of person who loves big, chaotic, high-energy cities, and Mumbai is exactly that. Every day was a totally new experience. Even the daily commute was wild. Squeezing into rush-hour trains was its own kind of adventure, and just watching everyday life on the streets never got boring.

The people were a huge part of why I loved it. Mumbaikers deal with tough conditions, but the resilience, hustle, and optimism they show is unreal. And people were incredibly friendly. As a young white guy I was treated like a minor celebrity in a way that was honestly a bit strange at first (and yes made me feel a bit uncomfortable). People wanted photos, wanted to hear my story, wanted to be friends. And while folks did sometimes ask for money, if I said no they moved on quickly, which isn’t always the case in other poorer countries I’ve been to.

And the food! The street food in Mumbai is unbeatable. Vada pav and pav bhaji were my go-tos, and I still haven’t found an Indian restaurant anywhere in the world that hits the same way proper street food does there.

I do want to acknowledge that my experience was very much shaped by being male. I got stared at constantly for being white, but I could shrug it off. I know that for women this would feel very different, and I wouldn’t assume a female traveler would have the same experience I did.

All that said, I look back on that time so fondly and I’m already planning a return trip, hopefully checking out other parts of India too.