What attracted me most to the Dubai and the UAE is the Burj
Khalifa which has now become the symbol of Dubai and a symbol for the
progression of the Middle East. It is
currently, the tallest building in the world! It stands at about 2,717 feet with 124 floors! If you watched Mission: Impossible-Ghost Protocol you would understand that the scale
of the building if you see Tom Cruise going across 11 floors and looking down.
There is an entire website, www.burjkhalifa.ae,
dedicated to this project that was completed in 2010 and they provide the
following facts:
·
Tallest building in the world
·
Tallest free-standing structure in the world
·
Highest number of stories in the world
·
Highest occupied floor in the world
·
Highest outdoor observation deck in the world
·
Elevator with the longest travel distance in the world
·
Tallest service elevator in the world
If you noticed, they seem to prove point that it is tall.
However, the Burj Khalifa is not just a symbol it is a residence and thankfully
the 124th floor is not occupied by residents, it is only an
observation deck. The inside of the tower does contain residents though. The
tower has a restaurant on level 122 called
At.mosphere, 900 residences, 160 guestroom/suites, 144 private Armani
residences, something called the park which contains 300 underground parking
spaces, 37 corporate suites, and a club.
The structure of the tower is quite interesting because it
is built in a “Y” to tackle high miles of wind. The video I have given below
shows a brief demonstration about how the wind travels around the tower to
decrease its speed and prevent the tower from essentially falling over. That is
a scary thought about what would happen to such a building if it actually fell
over. Something not to think about and if you are a tourist it’s a great place to
visit!
("Y" Shape)
