Bassin de la Villette

The Bassin de la Villette stretches as a long, narrow rectangle of water, lined with stone quays and shaded by tall rows of trees. Napoleon Bonaparte ordered its construction in eighteen oh two to provide fresh drinking water for Paris and a harbor for canal barges. Before the railroad took over, this was the primary port for the city, where wine, coal, and grain arrived from the countryside. Today, the water serves leisure, hosting floating swimming pools and rowers instead of heavy commercial freight.