somerset street prototype

761 Somerset Street

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Christ the Saviour Orthodox Church is at 721 Somerset Street west

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This church changed hands - the present congregation moved in here in 2003. There are many churches on this neighbourhood, two on the oppposite side of the street and immediately north on Empress Avenue is a Dominican monastery . The "Nanny Goat Hill " area on the escarpment above the old Lebreton Flats between Booth and Cambridge street has many other church properties too.

The Wa Kiu Foods at 713 Somerset at Arthur street

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Wa Kiu Foods has a barbeque service - an important attraction for a large grocery store to have.

On the left side of the photograph the dome of Christ the Saviour Orthodox Church is just visible, on the right side a cross can be seen on the old  Holy Trinity Orthodox Bukowinian Cathedral hall.

709 Somerset Street west is the Golden River

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Many of these pictures are taken when the light is soft (twilight or during the " magic hour" so beloved of architectural shooters.) I am not doing this to dramatize the subject so much as to find a  balance between the available light and the illuminated signs. A photographer and teacher named Gabor Szilasi made some wonderful images of unique illuminated signage in Montreal using this strategy and his pictures have definitely been a lesson to me in this regard.

Ping Fat Lee apothecary is at 719 Somerset

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There is some good graf at 651 and 882 Somerset

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The left image is at 651 Somerset on the east wall of the Shanghai restaurant. This  place is very supportive of artists and is very popular with young people and students. The right image is a wonderful dragon on the east wall of 882 somerset.

Sushi 88 at 690

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Sushi 88 is new, and it is the only Japanese restaurant on the street. Nearly all of the grocery stores have Japanese food sections however. A  grocery store dedicated to Japanese food and kitchen supplies  existed for many years further east on the street but it  closed about ten or fifteen years ago.

700 Somerset is the Yangtze restaurant

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The Yangtze restaurant is large, architecturally distinctive and located in a very high traffic area. It has designated parking meters outside the front door which are only for the use of buses.

718 Somerset Street was the site of a temporary shrine commemorating the young victims of a double murder,

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These candles and flowers constituted a temporary public memorial placed on the street to the 20 year old Algonquin College students and best friends Tailang Liu and Linhai Tian. These Chinese citizens were shot to death inside the Fullhouse Karaoke and Bubble Tea on Somerset Street West shortly after 2:30 a.m. on Dec. 6, 2005.

"Jackie" Fu Kwok Wei, a 27-year-old Vancouver man is being sought by police as a suspect in the murders. A link tothe Ottawa Citizen article about this is  here. An image and description of the wanted man is available from the CBC here.

The karaoke club is still closed. An artificial Christmas stands inside the door.

the garden at 755 Somerset street

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This garden on the north side of the street is affiliated with the Dalhousie Community Centre. This wildflower garden blooms from spring till late in the fall . During high summer it presents a spectacular display of life and colour on the street that is unique and a joy to behold. I  never see the gardener(s) who maintain this patch which suggests to me that they really know what they are doing.