No. 21
Nackte Fotostreifen vom österreichischen Fotoautomaten! I stripped multiple layers of clothing outside in -1°C temperatures (that's 29 fahrenheit, to you) and quite literally risked my passport and international arrest to get these photostrips.
10/10 would do it again.
This tale is a bit of a doozy actually.
during my November 2019 Austrian snowboarding trip, I did my homework and came to learn there were FOUR real-film photobooths in the country, all located in Vienna and I was going to visit each one! Two in art museums, one in a nightclub and one inside a hotel. Even though Vienna was out of my way and woud eat into my snowboarding holiday, I coudn't resist the opportunty to detour.
After a 6hr train though snowcappd Austrian coutryside, I arrived into Vienna ready for my close-up....and that's when my plans went awry. Upon checking into the boutique hotel with booth, I noticed a hand-written sign taped to it "außer betrieb"...out of order. I was told it was bring fixed shortly so I waited an hour for technician to do their work, then as quickly and discreetly as possible slammed out 5 sets of photostrips, naked, just a few feet across from front lobby desk! Casually re-exiting machine, tugging and pulling at my hastilly thrown-on clothes, I then waited while the dinosaur of a machine hummed and clanked. But the nothing happened. It just stopped! Ugh. 30 euros poorer...I wouldnt be outdone by one finicky machine. So I ordered an Uber to the museum photobooth location...only to arrive and find it CLOSED! Not wanting to waste more time/money I got online to lookup directions to the bar location - but it was also CLOSED! At this point I was feeling salty and regretting this time consuming and costly side-adventure to a whole different city just to take photos. Skeptically I looked up the last of the photobooth locations...Museums Quartier Wien, and it was a go!
Museums are huge and it took a bit but I located the photobooth outside the musuem, inside a courtyard busy with Advent celebrations in full swing. "This should be interesting" I snorted while wrapping the wool scarf once more around my face and posted up nearby; patiently waiting 10, 20...35-minutes! See, I had a pocket full of 2euro coins and needed 30 minutes uninterruped in that thing...so I had to let groupings of star-crossed lovers, and moms with bundled-up babies and entire famlies taking turns using the Fotoautomaten. Freezing cold but tenacious, I eventually saw my openinng, jumped inside with my props (mask, book, dildo, bra) closed the curtain and got right to it. Opperation Vienna Photobooth, a success!