The expansive gardens of Versailles were absolutely beautiful: 250 acres of lush greenery, flowers, fountains, ponds, lakes, and labyrinths. One of the more impressive sites is the Grand Canal, a mile long man-made lake used for boating parties. In 1674, King Louis XIV ordered the construction of Petite Venise – Little Venice. Located at the junction of the Grand Canal and the junction of the northern transversal branch, Little Venice housed the caravels and yachts that were received from The Netherlands and the gondolas and gondoliers received as gifts from the Doge of Venice, hence the name. One interesting note: when the Italians came to work as gondoliers, they introduced ice cream to the French. That is how ice cream came into the country.

The Grand Canal had a practical use as well; it is situated at the lowest part of the garden, so it collected water as it drained from the fountains in the garden above. Water from the Grand Canal was pumped back to the reservoir at the highest point via networks of windmill-powered and horse-powered pumps.