View north across the Danube from the Western Buda

Now I know why the Hapsburgs were hanging in Budapest. It’s visually stunning and in comparison to the other two Hapsburgs happenin’ towns Vienna and Prague, I would say Budapest comes in number one. For me it was the vista from Buda across the Danube that tipped the scale over Prague. For history buffs, it has more than its fare share of sights to see including the Neo-Gothic Parliament, authentic Turkish bath houses and real deal Roman ruins.

On the flip side, it’s certainly a modern city when it comes to nightlife. The city has some top-notch restaurants where you can get a modern take on classic Hungarian dishes as well as cool watering holes were locals and tourists gather when they are in the mood to party. Unfortunately, I can’t say so much about Hungarian locals. They don’t seem to be the mingling sort. However when it came to service they were very courteous, and attentive. I was also pleasantly surprised at the level of angol (English) they spoke. I am not sure if it was the places I was going but everyone, from the metro attendants to the café baristas, spoke a basic level of English, which was impressive.

You can definitely get a good feel for the Hungarian capital in a quick three-day tour, which is what I did with a friend of mine. While she worked I toured the city mainly on foot and only took advantage of the metro and trams when I needed to warm up from the 20 degree temperature.

For a three-day whirlwind trip to the Hungarian capital try out my tips below! (more…)

I have a new addiction: VH1’s Sex Rehab. I stumbled across it one  day but couldn’t turn. I had given up on VH1, what with all of their “…Love…” reality shows and limited my reality TV intake to “Man vs Food,” “Bizarre Food,” Anthony Bourdain’s “No Reservations,” “Say Yes to the Dress” and “Bridezillas.”
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However, there was something about these Z-list celebrities sitting in front of Dr. Drew (remember Lovelines!) peeling back the layers of their hardened exteriors revealing the root of their sexual addictions.
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I’m no sex addict but I did relate to some of the cast when they spoke about being cold towards intimacy. My issue has been that of trust. It takes a long time for me to let the wall down and allow myself to feel. Ironically, I watched the show with my S.O. (Significant Other) right next to me. I had to be mindful of my nods in agreement with some of what these hurting folks had to say.

One woman, Amber, is a former model and drug addict. Only once the drugs were gone did she realize that sex was another problem. She claims she’s never been in a relationship. She’s in her 40s.

Amber was discussing her issues with men:

“Either I love on a 10 or a 1. 10 means I’m head over heels and my world revolves around him. There’s passion. 1 is when I get a guy who’s all into me, I trap him and have my way with him. I want something in the middle. I need to love on a 5″

Things that make you go hmmm… (more…)

Can I just say how happy I am that Graydon (Carter) and Annie (Leibovitz) are catching flack outside of the US borders for the overtly colorless cover of Vanity Fair’s young Hollywood issue. I generally surf through the pages of El País every morning to catch up on the latest national news and last week, there it was… a title that caught my eye, “Vanity Fair Elige el Blanco como Color de la Década (Vanity Fair elects White as the Color of the Decade).” 

I pumped my fist and thanked the Washington correspondent for feeling the lack of color was important enough to report. I mean, the magazine blatantly ignored up and coming actresses of color. I was probably the only one here that read the piece and rejoiced as most Spaniards don’t have the same obsession with Hollywood as Americans. Furthermore, the highbrow Vanity Fair only began publishing their Spanish edition two years ago and it’s pages mainly feature the who’s who of Spanish aristocracy and high society. (more…)

A recent study by the Consejeria de Inmigracion y Cooperacion in Madrid found that overall foreigners and Madrilenos are getting along just fine and in fact, 54% of immigrants and 35% of Spaniards in Madrid stated there has been a notable improvement in the relationship between the two groups.  Furthermore, the most outstanding fact is that 76% of foreigners residing in Madrid feel totally integrated in the community albeit the largest hurdle most have to overcome is the language barrier and employment.

This isn’t all surprising to me as it is common knowledge among all Spaniards and foreigners that have spent some time living in Espana that out of all of the big cities, Madrid happens to be the most cosmopolitan with a positive multi-cultural presence. If the study were to be conducted in Barcelona I have a sneaky suspicion those numbers would be flipped on their heads. Even fellow Spaniards from other parts of the country get the cold shoulder from their Catalan brothers and sisters so being a legal immigrant one can just imagine how hard it can be to break the ice with the locals.

As beautiful as Barcelona is with its regal boulevards lined with magnificent buildings styled in Catalan Nouveau, its picturesque seaside location and amazing cultural institutions its not as open nor open minded as its sister city, Madrid. This schism causes one to ponder the irony of it all because Barcelona is the design capital of Spain. (more…)

Last go ’round, MAC Cosmetics and Milk Studios partnered for shows and presentations. According to WWD, they’re back at it.  For fall 2010 MAC & Milk will have 32 runway shows and presentations at the West 15th Street space. Designers include: Jeremy Scott, McQ by Alexander McQueen, Patrik Ervell, Richard Chai, Suno, Gwen Stefani’s L.A.M.B., Vena Cava, Band of Outsiders, Threeasfour, Temperley London and many more!

To further define the MAC x MILK partnership, both companies have developed a limited edition collection of 14 key backstage products used by MAC makeup artists. From Feb. 2 to 22, this MAC & MILK collection will be sold on maccosmetics.com. Yay!