THE HOUSE ON THE HILL

If you were Rapunzel, would you let down your hair?

For Labour Day 2011, Vince and I, along with a couple of friends from New York, went to Casa Loma.  Although I lived in Toronto for more than five years, yesterday was my first time to visit the majestic house on the hill.

Casa Loma is the former home of Sir Henry Pellatt, a well-known Canadian financier and soldier.  Construction of the castle began in 1911 and it took three years and 300 men to complete it at a cost of $3.5M at that time.

The entire complex included a castle, stables, a greenhouse nearly half-an-acre in size, workman's cottages, and extensive gardens five-acre in size. The castle's pompous plan called for 98 rooms, 5000 electric lights, an electrically operated elevator, a wine cellar, and a marble swimming pool, just to name a few, and of course, towers, secret tunnels and passages! Unfortunately, due to financial misfortune which plagued Sir Pellatt later on, numerous parts of the home were not completed. Sir Pellatt enjoyed this luxurious abode for less than 10 years before he was forced to abandon the castle. 

Sir Pellatt's Drawing Room

One of the many pianos inside the castle

Another piano!

English royalty-inspired guest room

China-inspired guest room

Sir Henry Pellatt's bedroom

A different view of the English royalty-inspired guest room

One of the fountains

A small piece of the extensive gardens

The Fab Four :D

I would love to post more pictures but I don't want to consume all my free Picasa space.  So, anyway, I think what I posted above are enough to give you the idea of Casa Loma's elegance and grandeur.  Just imagine if you actually lived in such place at the time of its stardom.  Must be splendid indeed!

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