Chateau de Holland Rd

A VISIT to Michael Lim's home is much like visiting a chateau in France but without having to endure a 12-hour long flight. The European experience starts right at the compound gate, where a pair of larger than life centurion statues stand guard.

Like with most chateaus, this one, off Holland Road, comes with an immensely long driveway, before a two-storey mansion with elaborate columns, a steeply-pitched roof, and a water fountain right up front, comes into view.

"When you look at the house, you think you are somewhere in Europe rather than in Singapore," quips Dr Lim, medical director at the Singapore Heart, Stroke & Cancer Centre, who drew up the design of his home after visiting several French chateaus and the Palace of Versailles for inspiration. "I am someone who loves art, and wanted my home to have the same European architecture."