The Burj (Burj Khalifa nee Burj Dubai) - "Burj" means "Tower" in Arabic
Dubai celebrated the opening of the world’s tallest building on January 4th, 2010 - - - a rocket-shaped edifice that has views that reach 60 miles.
Click on image to enlarge
With its mix of nightclubs, mosques, luxury suites and boardrooms, the Burj is a representation of Dubai’s complexities and contradictions. It will have the world’s first Armani hotel; the world’s highest swimming pool on the 76th floor; the highest observation deck on the 124th floor; and the highest mosque on the 158th floor.
The lowest floors contain a hotel. Above that are residences, some of which get hotel-style amenities such as maid service. And above that, in the most slender portion, are the offices that were sold, not rented.
More than 12,000 people will eventually occupy the Burj Khalifa's six million square feet, zooming up and down in 54 elevators that can reach speeds of up to 40 miles an hour.
A view of Dubai from the 124th floor of Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building
At an estimated cost of $1.5 billion, the "Burj" took five years to build, is more than 160 stories high at 2,717 feet, and and has comfortably surpassed the previous record holder in Taiwan, the "Taipei 101" (101 stories tall at 1,671 feet).
* In the United States, the "Willis Tower" (formerly named the "Sears Tower") in Chicago is 108 stories tall at 1,450 feet.
The World's Tallest building compared to the United States' tallest building
The Burj was designed by Skidmore, Owings & Merrill in Chicago...where the Willis Tower sits.
The Burj compared to other tall buildings
The slender, sculpted skyscraper was built for a free-spending and status-conscious class that no longer exists. Debt is crashing down all around Dubai, so the tower could become a monument, though not to national success, but to irrational excess...
...much like MGM Mirage's City Center in Las Vegas, which partnered with Dubai to build and opened last month.
See related posts:
MGM Mirage - City Center is Doomed in 2010 to Cannibalism
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog2.php/2009/12/31/mgm-mirage-city-center-is-doomed-to-cann
James "Jimmy" Murren - CEO MGM Mirage, Has A Magic Dream
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog2.php/2009/12/29/james-jimmy-murren-ceo-mgm-mirage-has-a
MGM's Kirk Kerkorian's CEO (Jim Murren) - A Con Artist?
http://tobuds.com/blogs/blog2.php/2009/12/21/james-j-murren-chairman-of-the-board-and
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