PARIS, France

The marchés aux puces, or flea markets, of Paris are legendary. In fact, the name itself originated at the biggest and most famous, St.-Ouen, just outside the city’s ring road at Porte de Clignancourt, where back in the 1880s (according to ParisPuces.com, a Web site run by the Association des Puces de Paris St. Ouen) an “unknown bargain hunter” looked down from nearby fortifications, observed junk dealers selling scrap metal, rags and old furniture, and exclaimed, “My word, but it’s a market of fleas!”
Apocryphal? Perhaps, but whatever the origin of the term, les puces, as they’re now known, are synonymous with treasure hunting. In the 120 years since St.-Ouen coalesced, other markets have sprung up in every corner of the city, and in many different forms. During my Frugal Traveler trip to Paris, I hoped to explore a few, find some prized items and — fingers crossed — successfully bargain for something I loved.

The Rue de Bretagne, in the northern part of the Marais, was, though chaotic, a good starting point. Technically, this was not a marché aux puces but a vide-grenier — an attic-emptying. Vide-greniers are the least formal markets, popping up in a location for as little as a day. (See www.vide-greniers.org for a schedule of vide-greniers throughout France.) Just about anybody can sell their knickknacks there — and that’s both their appeal and their challenge.

I waded through the foot traffic, unsure of how and where to stop, or what price was right for a particular object. One stand was selling a metal sign, written in Hindi, warning, “Danger! High voltage!” What is such a sign worth? How can anyone be an expert in Hindi signs — not to mention old LPs and amateur paintings and midcentury desks and gooseneck lamps — and stay sane amid the frenzy?

About to lose it, I spotted a rack of children’s clothes, and in short order had bought for my daughter a hand-knit, machine-washable, rainbow-striped cardigan with pearlescent buttons. It cost 10 euros, or $14.43 at $1.43 to the euro — a bargain even I understood.