The Speeding Velocipede

A fun morning spent at the Musée des Arts Forains, an amazing collection of fairground carousels and carnival games dating back to the 1850s. The museum was featured in an early episode of Emily in Paris and Woody Allen’s film, Midnight in Paris.

The tour was in French but the necessary bits were translated for the few Americans in the crowd. You even get to ride the carousels and play some of the games. The highlight for me was riding the 125 year old vélocipède carousel which is solely powered by pedaling big brass bicycles as fast as possible. There are no gears or regulator, just brute force. The faster you pedal, the faster it goes! The record is 60km/hr. A thrilling experience.

After lunch we traveled out to the Marché aux Puces de Saint Ouen, the largest flea market in Paris. We wandered the maze of market stalls for a few hours but didn’t find much to buy today. Photos weren’t permitted by most vendors so I really have no proof I was there. But why would I lie?Read more