After my (Chris) business meetings, we stayed behind and spent a weekend in Budapest.

We were strolling through downtown Budapest on Halloween Friday night and came across this high-end fashion department store  – il Bacio di Stile.

The store was throwing a Halloween party – Spooky Friday – and would open till 10pm. Not a word of Hungarian on this poster.

Perhaps we should not be so surprised by the global reach of American culture. After all, vampires and Count Dracula lived just next door in Transylvania – which was a part of Hungary, and is now in Romania.

.

On the sidewalk, … loungy-clubby music, flashing lights, and warm spiced wine served by costumed employees to passers-by…

il Bacio di Stile is located on the main shopping street – Andrássy út – which is the Champs-Élysées of Budapest – the city itself sometimes referred to as the Paris of the East – considering that in the pre-World War II era, Eastern European capitals are just as rich and glamorous.

This store is a clone of Barneys in NYC, a tad bigger than Louis in Boston but smaller than Harvey Nichols or Le Bon Marché.

The pale color of the atrium reminded me of Le Bon Marché (see our post here about Les Grands Magasins.)

.

Since it sells only designer clothes, adopting an Italian name meaning “Kiss of Style” definitely helps its image.

.

The night was young, although it was dark outside. The shop was practically empty – all the party-goers were still getting ready with their costume.

.

The DJ was working hard … trying to get our attention …

The walkways across the atrium make great people-watching spots.

A few tall skinny girls, probably models, were circling the entrance as we were leaving. It would have been interesting to see the people in costumes but by that time, we wanted dinner.

Happy Halloween !

The store’s web site is here: http://www.ilbaciodistile.com/