Rideau Hall

Doors Open Ottawa celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2022 and took place in June. This was an opportunity to visit a wide variety of venues that often have limited or no access to the public. After being online only due to the pandemic, the in-person format was resumed for many of the 2022 venues. I visited three venues, either with a friend or on my own. The first venue, which is the subject of this journal entry, was Rideau Hall (officially, Government House). The other two were Cumberland Heritage Village and Beechwood Cemetary. Rideau Hall is the official residence of the Governor General of Canada. It sits on a 36-hectare (88-acre) estate, with groomed lawns and beautiful trees. The main building has over 175 rooms (approx 100,000 sq ft). The private living quarters are a tiny fraction of this; most of the building is used for state functions. There are also 27 outbuildings, including a spectacular greenhouse. During Doors Open, we had access to most of the grounds, part of the ground floor of the main building, and the greenhouse. I mainly used my infrared-converted camera. I processed my shots in both black & white and colour, but tend to prefer the colour treatment.