The Burj Dubai Opening Ceremony – Amazing!

The start of year 2010 for Dubai is awesome. Yesterday, January 4, 2010, the tallest building on Earth (as of now) has been unveiled. The Burj Dubai (now Burj Khalifa) has 160 floors, measures 828 m or 2,717 ft and costs $1.5 billion. It is indeed one of the most ambitious projects of mankind and fortunately turned in to a great success.

Here’s a video of the Burj Dubai Opening Ceremony:

The opening ceremony held in front of the tallest building in the whole world is so amazing. The fireworks, the lights, the fountains. I wish I was there.

As of now, the Burj Dubai or Burj Khalifa is used in different purposes. And this great structures grabbed different world records like tallest skycraper, fastest elevator, and more. Here’s a full list of records awarded to Burj Dubai.

Current records of Burj Dubai:

• Tallest skyscraper to top of spire: 828 m (2,717 ft) (previously Taipei 101 – 509.2 m (1,671 ft))
• Tallest structure ever built: 828 m (2,717 ft) (previously Warsaw radio mast – 646.38 m (2,121 ft))
• Tallest extant structure: 828 m (2,717 ft) (previously KVLY-TV mast – 628.8 m (2,063 ft))
• Tallest freestanding structure: 828 m (2,717 ft) (previously CN Tower – 553.3 m (1,815 ft))
• Building with most floors: 160 (previously both 1 and 2 World Trade Center – 110)
• World’s highest elevator installation
• World’s fastest elevators at speed of 64 km/h (40 mph) or 18 m/s (59 ft/s) (previously Taipei 101 – 16.83 m/s)
• Highest vertical concrete pumping (for a building): 606 m (1,988 ft) (previously Taipei 101 – 449.2 m (1,474 ft))
• Highest vertical concrete pumping (for any construction): 606 m (1,988 ft) (previously Riva del Garda Hydroelectric Power Plant – 532 m (1,745 ft))
• The first world’s tallest structure in history to include residential space
• Highest outdoor observation deck in the world
• World’s highest mosque (located on the 158th floor)
• Elevator with the longest travel distance in the world
• Tallest service elevator in the world
• World’s highest installation of an aluminium and glass façade, at a height of 512 m (1,680 ft)

from Wikipedia.org

The Burj Dubai or Burj Khalifa is indeed one of the newest and greatest work of mankind. Dubai just proved again that, even they are in the middle of sand, and recently hit by an economic crisis, they can still be the center of attraction in the world.

I hope that someday, this happens to our beloved Philippines, too. I hope that someday, we will be more proud of our country.

cool stuffs, Dubai