Here are your hints:
Over 828 meters tall, it is more than twice the height of the Empire State Building (381 meters.)
Location: Arabian Desert, near the shores of the Arabian Gulf
It holds the following world records:
Did you guess it?
How about a photo:
If you guessed the Burj Khalifa, you’re much more knowledgeable than I was.
On our recent layover in Dubai (in the United Arab Emirates) we spent a few days exploring, and were rarely out of eyesight of this landmark.
If UAE’s Dubai is the new Egypt (for both positive and negative reasons) then the Burj Khalifa is the new Great Pyramid of Giza, at least in the sense of iconography and potential historical impact.
The architectural achievement was built “…layer by layer, like a wedding cake.”
“Higher” said the Sheik, according to the already growing local lore surrounding the Burj Khalifa. The story goes that when he was given the plans for the world’s tallest building, the architect first suggested a building only nominally taller than the tallest building in the world.
The Sheik simply looked at the plans and said, “Higher.”
Responding to the Sheik’s request, the architect came back with a significantly taller building. But the Sheik looked over the plans and again said, “Higher.”
This continued for a few sessions, and after some argument among the design team about how and if it could be accomplished, they came up with a suitable way to create it, and the plans for Burj Khalifa were approved.
Stories told in taxi cabs and bars around Dubai are the most interesting way to learn the lore associated with a city, or building, and I much prefer these tales to the dry architectural facts on all the websites I’ve found.
But if you get your geek on by understanding the mechanics behind the art, here are a couple pages dedicated to the engineering marvel that is the Burj Khalifa:
And if you want to go up in the world’s tallest building on your next visit to Dubai, be sure to book early, especially if it’s the holidays. We waited until the last minute to book and couldn’t get tickets. I guess that just means we’ll have to make another trip someday…
Love, Marla
Love, Marla
