Tag: Residences

A home called Ballybeg

| June 23, 2015 | 0 Comments
A home called Ballybeg

Ballybeg is the anglicized version of the Irish word for “little town.” The large stone Rockcliffe house that bears that name may not exactly fit the translation, but it is as much a hub of activity today as it was in the days of admiral Sir Charles Kingsmill, who, during the First World War, commissioned […]

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Ties that bind at home and abroad

| April 4, 2015 | 0 Comments
Ties that bind at home and abroad

There is more to Belgium than chocolate, beer and diamonds, the country’s new ambassador to Canada, Raoul Delcorde, reminds us. Not only do our countries have commercial links; they are both federal states with more than one official language and they share much history through two world wars. Many Canadian soldiers died on Belgian soil […]

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A Manor House mansion for the Holy See

| January 5, 2015 | 0 Comments
A Manor House mansion for the Holy See

When you arrive at the end of Manor Avenue in Rockcliffe Park, you can’t help but gawk. You have to pinch yourself to realise the white-turreted gatehouse with the beautiful arch, stone crest and antique lamp is not situated in France. Nor is the elegant tree-lined driveway beyond, nor the looming stone mansion at the […]

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Vietnam’s home away home away from home

| September 26, 2014 | 0 Comments
Vietnam’s home away home away from home

Vietnamese Ambassador To Anh Dung and his wife, Tran Phi Nga, meet photographer Dyanne Wilson and me at the door of their Glebe home. Ms Tran is wearing a traditional hand-painted silk Ao Dai, a national dress that bears a slight to the exterior of their heritage house whose architecture is Spanish. But inside, the […]

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The UAE’s multi-purpose residence

| June 22, 2014 | 0 Comments
The UAE’s multi-purpose residence

Ambassador Mohammed Saif Helal Al Shehhi is the third ambassador of the United Arab Emirates to live in the distinctive Rockcliffe home that overlooks charming Rockcliffe Park and the Ottawa River. The house was once the focus of gossip by the chattering classes as it was the first of the many über-sized homes that now […]

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Peru’s residence: authenticity on Island Park

| January 5, 2014 | 0 Comments
Peru’s residence: authenticity on Island Park

It is impossible to meander along Island Park Drive without noticing the impressive brick and half-timbered residence of Peruvian Ambassador Jose Antonio Bellina. Situated on a large corner lot, the home was built in 1928 for Stafford Kirkpatrick and designed by leading Ottawa architect Werner Edgar Noffke, the man whose landmark buildings include the Korean […]

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A condo full of Croatian culture

| September 30, 2013 | 0 Comments
A condo full of Croatian culture

Croatia’s Ambassador Veselko Grubisic, his wife, Marta, and their three children live on Sussex Drive, or the capital’s Mile of History, as it is known. Their heritage condominium is a stone’s throw away from the National Gallery, across the street from the U.S. embassy and strategically located on the edge of the vibrant ByWard Market. […]

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A home full of Chilean charm

| July 5, 2013 | 0 Comments
A home full of Chilean charm

Looking from the street at the Rockcliffe home of Chile’s ambassador, it’s hard to reconcile what you see with the flamboyant atmosphere that greets you inside. The rather severe two-storey redwood and yellow brick exterior hides a warm joie-de-vivre inside. Built by Ottawa land developer Harold Shenkman and his wife, Belle, a well-known arts philanthropist, […]

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A little Frank Lloyd Wright in Rockcliffe

| April 5, 2013 | 0 Comments
A little Frank Lloyd Wright in Rockcliffe

Although their house wasn’t built to be their official residence, the feeling that they are home in Finland permeates the atmosphere for Ambassador Charles Murto and his wife, Ritva. They are completely comfortable in the California redwood house overlooking McKay Lake in Rockcliffe, a house actually built in 1953, but as modern-looking today as it […]

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A welcoming Korean residence

| January 4, 2013 | 0 Comments
A welcoming Korean residence

Two large, fierce haetae guard the entrance to the stunning stone residence of Korean Ambassador Cho Hee-yong and his wife, Yang Lee. The strange creatures sitting on their plinths in front of the large circular driveway serve a purpose. In traditional Korean mythology, they are said to discern good and evil, prevent natural disasters and […]

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