Tag: Residences

La pièce de résistance

| October 4, 2012 | 0 Comments
La pièce de résistance

French Ambassador Phillipe Zeller and his wife, Odile, live in one of the most opulent and beautifully situated embassies in the nation’s capital — a granite edifice built on an escarpment above the Ottawa River. The French government bought the property from Arthur Blackburn in 1931 for $80,000 and in 1936, prime minister William Lyon […]

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A little country in the city for Taiwan envoys

| June 28, 2012 | 0 Comments
A little country in the city for Taiwan envoys

Up a long shaded driveway, hidden from view on the eastern shore of McKay Lake, there’s the home where David Tawei Lee, representative of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office, and his wife, Lin Chih, a former banker and now an IT consultant, have lived for the past five years. The residence is a lavish […]

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An elegant Egyptian renovation

| April 12, 2012 | 0 Comments
An elegant Egyptian renovation

The Egyptian embassy residence is a treat for the eye. But it’s tucked away up a lane off Acacia Avenue so it’s a treat that casual passers-by might well miss. Attractive wrought-iron gates lead up the long driveway to the front entrance of a house built in 1913 by Allan Keefer, the architect for Stornoway […]

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The Irish residence: A home and a harp

| October 26, 2011 | 0 Comments
The Irish residence: A home and a harp

Cars slow down at the busy intersection in the heart of Rockcliffe and people stop and stare. The object of their attention is the newly-renovated Irish embassy. Once a modest but stately home, it’s been renovated into a stunning 12,000-square-foot stone and brick behemoth. The residence has had quite a journey to get where it […]

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A Victorian mansion fit for a prime minister

| June 27, 2011 | 0 Comments
A Victorian mansion fit for a prime minister

Settled comfortably into gracious gardens, Earnscliffe, the elegant grey limestone residence of British High Commissioner Andrew Pocock and his wife, Julie, looks much the same as when it housed Canada’s first prime minister, Sir John A. Macdonald. The stone is mellow with age and the bright, white gingerbread trim reflects the Victorian Gothic style of […]

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Icelandic home full of light and art

| December 1, 2010 | 0 Comments
Icelandic home full of light and art

Iceland Ambassador Sigridur Anna Thordardottir sometimes answers the phone herself in her small embassy office. With a staff of only two, her driver acts as the receptionist in between driving her to official functions. And this same relaxed atmosphere permeates her residence in the heart of the old village of Rockcliffe. This modern stone house’s […]

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An Italian castle in the woods

| September 2, 2010 | 0 Comments
An Italian castle in the woods

The phrase “It was a dark and stormy night” might echo the thoughts of the new Italian ambassador when he arrived at his home on the Aylmer Road on a dark, frigid January night this year. But when he woke up, he found he was in one of the most beautiful diplomatic residences in the […]

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