"Winter Wonderland" in Hyde Park (by kerouac2)

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In spite of the crowds, I visited the fun fair in Hyde Park, drawn to it like a moth to a flame. I had never heard of it before, but a tiny bit of research tells me that this is its 7th year, so it's not as though as if it is a tradition from medieval times. Just like in all of the rest of Europe, most of the rides and attractions are manufactured in Germany.

This was new to me. People are supposed to flip rubber fish onto the platforms, using a mallet.





Prizes are the same absolutely everywhere in Europe.









Frankly, I found everything a bit less scruffy than fun fairs on the continent.







The violence of some of these rides cannot be captured in a still photo, so it's a good thing there will be a video later.

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For me, the most interesting was to watch the local chavs.

















The Wild Maus is an immortal favourite everywhere in the world. I rode it for the first time at Ponchartrain Beach in New Orleans around 1959!

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a thought for the Bangladeshi children who makes these things but never get to play with them









When people are not becoming nauseous on the rides, they are eating and drinking.









Naturally, there are rides for small children, too.





Some of these structures are really massive.





There was also a skating rink.



Winter Wonderland also contains the Christmas market. It was so huge, I didn't even try to visit it.

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It was a relief to finally spot the Ferris wheel again because that's where the exit was.





And so here it all is in full motion and loud noise!

[patricklondon]

I'm glad you've seen it and reported back. Now I know I needn't bother (can't you tell I'm not a massive fan of such things?!)

[bjd]

I was on a Wild Mouse for the first and last time at around the age of 11 -- that's probably the last time I went to a fun fair. I'm with Patrick -- wouldn't go to a place like that.

[mossie]

Yes, I'm with Patrick as well. Makes me feel ill just to watch them

[lola]

So that's what that was. We could see the Ferris wheel as our buses lumbered by the bottom of the park, and in daylight from Speaker's Corner. I'd have strolled through.

So I salute you, O young at heart Kerouac.

[fgrsk8r1970]

Wow - that's huge…. as someone growing up in a small town and MAYBE going to a fair in Mainz or Wiesbaden, this looks scary big and I am with everybody else saying that I salute you for braving these crowds.

I am so surprised to see so many German signs - I know you said they were made in Germany but still interesting to see a lot of the signage in German too…. and I spotted Dream Catchers…. something we love here in the Southwest !!

Great photos

[Deleted]

Frankly, my interest in such things is anthropological more than anything else. For example, I spent about two hours there and did not consume a single item or attraction. I was absolutely fascinated to observe British youth of the year 2013. While this place is heavily policed and probably does not attract the rowdier elements from the rough areas of London, I found the crowd to be much better behaved than in similar fun fairs in Paris (which require a full body search to get in -- that did not at all occur here). Another detail that amused me was how dressed up most of the young people were -- totally overdressed and overly made up as far as the girls were concerned, with hairstyles and clothing from several years ago, if one believes fashion magazines.

This little visit to the "Winter Wonderland" taught me much more about the current mood and interests of Britain than anything I learned by going into the shops on Oxford Street (of which 50% of the customers are foreign anyway). I think the fact that I go to places like this which any "reasonable" person would avoid is why I have so many views contrary to what people report about various cities and countries.

[bixaorellana]

Wow!

Dec 12, 2013 6:43:22 GMT kerouac2 said:

Frankly, I found everything a bit less scruffy than fun fairs on the continent.

It all looks downright ritzy to my little boondocky eyes. Wonderland is a great name for it. I don't go on rides because I'm scared of them, but I absolutely love all the lights and energy. Can you guess at how much area it covered? It looks like a small town.

[Deleted]

Well, here's a map of it.