Buda + Pest (Part I)

Budapest Keleti Station

Heroes Square

Just last night I met up with a couple of friends who spent the summer abroad with me. We picked a local beergarden, or biergarten, themed restaurant to pay homage to the foreign adventures that made us closer friends. Of course I was feeling all nostalgic and just a teensy bit tipsy, so as soon as I got home I started to flip through all of my photos from the summer. At that point, I realized I had forgotten to even write about most of my trips.

On our last weekend in Prague, a friend and myself took a train to Budapest, Hungary for the weekend. The city was beautiful and I refused to let the oppressive heat or the uncomfortable night train ride ruin the joy of exploring a new city. I don't remember where I heard this, but apparently Keleti Station is modeled after Gare du Nord in Paris, and it's the site of quite a few movie scenes as a stand-in for the Parisian location.

Budapest reminded me so much of Prague, in the architecture, the food and even the language. I spoke no Hungarian and neither did my friend, but we recognized that most people were using the word "prosim," a commonly used Czech work that meant pardon and you're welcome among other things.

The courtyard of the building where our hostel was located

Our train arrived at about 8 in the morning, so once we checked into our adorable hostel, we were off on our first day of exploratory adventures! We walked all the way to Heroes Square, but by the time we reached the monuments we were ready for a break from the heat. We coerced a clerk at the national art museum to give us the European Union student discount, and we took a respite from the heat inside the museum's collections.

City Park was home to scenic lake full of swans a boaters, a beautiful castle, and most importantly, ample shade. Did I mention it was hot? Because it was really hot.

That night we went to a couple of strange little bars on an island in the middle of the Danube. One, a beergarden called Wnderlnd, hosted resident artists who took turns redesigning its interior. When we arrived, the entryway was made out of bicycle frames and the central lamp post was surrounded by a fan of crash-test dummy limbs.

From the island in the center of the river, we could see both sides of the city, Buda and Pest, illuminated against the night sky.

Street Style: Ajay

Remember when I said I was going to try to feature people I didn't already know? Well, I sort of gave up this week. To say I have too much on my plate would be the understatement of the year, but let me just elaborate on my situation: I'm on campus two days a week where I'm in class from nine in the morning to six at night, albeit with a few breaks in between, often followed by meetings. When I'm not on campus I'm either in New York City for my internship, and when I'm not fulfilling either of the aforementioned obligations I'm doing homework and picking up the pieces for Style contributors who have not met the deadline. So how's that for self-justification?

Street style can get boring and predictable, not only in the format but also in the content of the article. Does anyone really care about a random student's style inspiration or favorite article of clothing? Probably not. Just like when I inquired with Sola about her sandwich of choice, I used my insider knowledge regarding Ajay's current musical obsession (based on our lengthy discussions of Beyonce's album over a cup of Starbucks) and made an effort to be timely and relevant. His answer was also phenomenally sassy, and it is because of moments like this that I have decided keep Ajay in my company.

Ajay Raghavan, senior, biomedical engineering

Jacket — Bar III, T-shirt — Target, pants — Urban Outfitters, scarf — American Apparel, boots — Kenneth Cole

Q: How would you describe your sense of personal style?
A: I’d like to think my sense of personal style changes from day to day depending on how I feel or what I’m doing with my day. You could call me a chameleon in that sense, I suppose.

Q: Are you more prone to invest in statement pieces or staples?
A: At this point, definitely statement pieces. However, I think a delicate balance of both is crucial. Too many staples make you look blase and basic, and too many statement pieces and you run the risk of looking like Professor Trelawney from “Harry Potter.” But, I suppose if that’s your prerogative, more power to you.

Q: What were your new year’s resolutions?
A: I guess be the best version of myself? I just try to make every year better than the last.

Q: How do you feel about Beyonce?
A: I’m sorry, if you don’t like Beyonce or find her to be “average at best,” you can sign yourself up for an investment banking class, buy a whole lot of stock in Raymour and Flanigan and proceed to take SEVERAL seats. Seriously, I don’t think you could find a more exemplary version of a musical icon in today’s day and age.

Perks

 Coat - Target / Elma skirt and Lauren blouse - Club Monaco / Chelsea boots - Asos / Sloane satchel - Madewell

One of the perks of working at one my favorite stores is being able to snag a piece or two (or three...or four) during a crazy town banana pants sale. That being said, most of what I earn at work goes towards food and school things for the most part, so while in an ideal world my wardrobe would consist entirely of my store's offerings, that's very far from the truth. The point of this little side note is that I grabbed this frog print shirt during our Black Friday sale. That's right. Frog print.

As it was cold enough to warrant the slightest bit of snowfall, I was only able to keep my coat off for a minute or two before my arms started to get numb. With the streets outside my apartment still laden with snow and ice (kudos, Philadelphia Streets Dept.), the snowfall captured in these photos is comparatively minuscule. When I bought this jacket last year, I didn't think about how its color would make me stand out. After first being pulled aside by a fashion design professor who wanted to take pictures of my coat, some students in the lobby of the media arts and design college building complemented its color and told me they had "seen me around campus." Is it normal to feel weird about that? Because I do, only a little bit. Regardless of how easy I may be to spot in a crowd, I'd take this coat over a drab gray one any day.