From Berlin and Amsterdam to New York and Philly, many cities I had grown to love have one thing in common: I discovered their magic together with my courageous, creative, and graceful friend Lisa. The two of us recently met up in Montréal, where we spent three days getting absorbed by the city’s vibrant scene and talking about the latest changes in her life. Just ahead of turning thirty, Lisa started undergoing a powerful metamorphosis across all—personal, professional, and existential—aspects of her life, and is now learning to let all her colors paint the skies.

While in Washington D.C. for work, I squeezed in extra time to spend a weekend with my exceptionally thoughtful friend Arun, whose unwavering intentionality is nothing short of inspiring. As we explored the charming streets and parks of this historic city, I talked to Arun about his roots, his experiences living in Mumbai and Boston and Washington D.C., his fulfilling relationships, and his business travels to Africa, where he co-leads several development projects and applies his expertise in energy and finance to help regulators advance national infrastructures.

Strikingly charming and infallibly glamorous, my childhood friend Sandra is a living example of resolute individuality. I spent three weeks with her, going from San Francisco and Las Vegas to San Diego and Los Angeles and Tulum, which is the longest amount of time we have had together since our competitive ballroom dancing days. During our trip, Sandra talked to me about her rapid ascent in the world of diplomacy, her unwavering empathy and stylishness, as well as her determination to live life boldly and unapologetically, on her own terms and by her own rules.

He is quick-witted, he is perceptive, he is conscientious, and he is delightfully, genuinely English. My neighbor-turned-friend Dan, a managing producer in tech hardware by day and an artistic polymath by night, is one of the first people I text whenever I need someone to refine my opinions on music, film, photography, and art. We spent two days together for his interview, talking about his upbringing in Dorset, the transition from the UK to the US, his pursuit of beauty in everything that he does, and, obviously, the painstakingly-curated lists of his favorite films and music.

Patty and I might have started off on the wrong foot at a crowded party eleven years ago, but it didn’t take too long for us to let go of our grudges. Now one of my closest friends, Patty recently came to California for a week to visit her boyfriend, and I took the opportunity to spend a full day with her. We talked about her nomadic, multicultural life—which brought her from Venezuela to Florida to Massachusetts to Texas to France to now Switzerland—while we enjoyed San Francisco and its outrageous Halloween decor, set against the backdrop of the city’s rising technofuturistic aesthetic.

With an animated sense of humor and a flair for the theatrical, my friend Megan breezes through life playfully, but never at the expense of not coming through soulfully. She orchestrated a truly memorable interview experience in San Francisco, showing me the chicest and the quirkiest sides of this magical city, and unraveled all the chapters of her life story, be it her career as a therapist, her profound empathy for marginalized communities, her stellar attention to detail, or her exciting social life at the intersection of disparate communities in the city.