Would you ride one of these??

These are pics of what is commonly called the “Giant’s Wheel” here in Mumbai City. However the actual name for these is the “Ferris Wheel”, after bridge-building designer George W. Ferris who first created one of these for a fair held in Chicago in - get this - 1893 (!) to commemorate the 400th anniversary of Columbus’s landing in America.

Apparently Chicago Fair’s organizers wanted something that would rival the Eiffel Tower (which was built by Gustave Eiffel for the Paris World’s Fair of 1889, which honored the 100th anniversary of the French Revolution) (original huh??)

My dad used to always take my big sis & me to the fair where we’d ride these with great pleasure. Am so perfectly chilled in them that I usually get (yes, sadistic) pleasure by standing up mid-ride just to scare my friends riding with me. (Ok, I’ll try to grow up)

Of course the ferris / giant’s wheel is nothing compared to a Roller Coaster (really love these rides - rode one in HK which did 3 complete 360 degree loops) but they’ve got their own charm and own fear factors:
* the oldness of the steel towers supporting them (hehe),
* the fact that they don’t start the ride until every cart is full (meaning you get to sit down - sometimes right on top - for quite a bit before the ride starts, can be quite tedious for the vertigo-inclined),
* the fact that due to our brilliant technicians and safety regulations the rides can break down at any time - I actually once sat suspended in air (pretty close to the top) for over 2 hours until they fixed it (I had a great time!!) lol.
* and of course all the fun of sitting in a rotating little bucket with everyone around screaming their lungs out…

So, you feeling lucky today?