GRACIA + LOUISE

IS THERE KUNST IN THE HOUSE - how to get by on €4 a day
a small zine with poems by Gaby Bila-Günther, travel log by Gracia Haby & maps by Louise Jennison
Edition of 100
September, 2002
14cm X 14 cm, 16 B&W pages

How to live on 4 € a day in Budapest
you only take 4 euros in your pocket... the rest you leave at the hotel room in the safe
you have for lunch the hotel's breakfast buffet
you have picnics in the park
you take the tram because you can't buy a ticket anyway
you go out & stay sober
you can actually buy one drink, take long slow sips, & make it last all night long
you turn on your charm in pubs
you go to unnamed pubs which have pictures of black musicians & ask for drinks in English
you can sit next to some cute guys who want to marry you for your passport
you only ask for a pedicure & not a foot massage
you go to the market & eat 1 cent flour cakes dipped in oil all day long...
you look for an opening
you give up the holy smoke
you buy records half price because you pretend that's all you got
you haggle at the tourist shop when any antique is more than four euros
you don't go to McDonalds, the Armani or the Versace shop
you don't give in to the street vendors who sell you the Rubick's cube... 30 years later
you don't throw money to beggars
you can easily forget about the 100 euro you spend a night staying at the Carlton

market fever
Sausages & sauerkraut
Smudged in butter & dressed in sour cream
Litres of wine & barrels of palinka guarantee no hangovers
Floral & woven hand made knits wait for tourists to pack them up & take them to better lands
Men hard at work, playing cards, spitting out sunflower seeds on the hard bitumen floor
Women exchange hopes that you'll buy some hungarian blokes but I am hoping for some holy smoke...

Dry cleaning at The Carlton
Dry cleaning at The Carlton
has its rules and regulations
undies & bras go cheap
while socks & shirts go up a bit
we go to the market
and we run into the sock dealer
did they get them from The Carlton?
If we pay cash at The Carlton do we get a discount?
the hotel manager nods and hides disappointed looks
fills out papers
looks for keys
but his fingers still not offering a cheaper rate
if we pay in cash do we get a discount
his lips lock up
he can't say no
his fingers race to close the deal
his face has the price fixed on
we hand over
no discount only cash

Find various postal projects wih Gaby Bila-Günther (Berlin) over here as well.

Check out Gaby Bila-Günther's site here too.