Standing tall

Talk about rising quickly in the world. In 62 seconds — a little more than the proverbial blink of an eyelid — I found myself shooting to the top of the world’s newly built tallest building. The elevator ride is called From the Earth to the Sky and one moment I was stepping into the lift at ground level and the next moment, I was walking out to an entirely new worldview on the 124th floor of Dubai’s spectacular Burj Khalifa.

The first feeling when you reach 124th floor (which is the observation deck) of the 2,716.5-ft tall tower is trepidation. You need a few seconds to come to terms with the extraordinary height. I don’t know what happens to people with vertigo but I composed myself after the first few moments and headed to one of the binoculars from where you can get an aerial view of the entire city lying below and the waters of the Persian Gulf beyond.

From the 124th floor, Dubai is a concrete jungle with sleek vertical structures all pointing to the sky. And one of the first things tourists look out for from this height is the outline of the man-made World Island. You can just about make out the outline of this vast project.

Some people have dubbed Burj Khalifa an exercise in folly. But, whichever way you look at it, its statistics are awesome. The Burj Khalifa has a total built-up area of about 6 millionsq ft. That includes about 2 millionsq ft of residential space and over 300,000sq ft of prime office space. Then, there’s also the space reserved for the Armani Hotel Dubai and the Armani Residences which are high-end service apartments, set to launch in March. There are also modern lifestyle amenities like clubs, health and fitness facilities and gourmet restaurants.

The construction too was on a gargantuan scale. More than 60 of the world’s leading consultants were called in to build the tower. And a record-breaking 330,000 cubic metres of concrete, 39,000 metric tonnes of steel and 142,000 square metres of glass. Putting it all together took 22 million man hours.

The Burj Khalifa is Dubai’s newest attraction but it’s not the only one. I must confess that I didn’t instantly fall in love with the city that has risen out of the desert. My first feeling was that Dubai doesn’t have its own distinct character. With all the sleek infrastructure, you could be almost anywhere in the world.

But on second thoughts, you realise that Dubai is quite a testimony to modern architecture and engineering. Also, the city does have much more on offer.

You can go on desert safaris over the sand dunes. Or, you could visit the Wild Wadi, an amusement water park or even the amazing Snow Park in the city. If all that fails to attract you, there’s always the shopping.

I managed to have an entirely different experience because I was staying at another sparkling Dubai landmark, Atlantis The Palm. The resort is an hour away from the airport and it’s a destination in itself — some guests don’t even bother to leave its premises to see the rest of the city.

The Atlantis is an architectural marvel built on an artificial island. Spread across 46 hectares with 1,539 stunning rooms, the highlight of the resort is the 17-hectare water themed amusement park at Aquaventure.

Then, there are pools, lagoon exhibits, an open-air marine habitat, a stretch of beach and luxury boutiques. Add to that great dining options, a lively nightclub, a spa and fitness club, an aquarium touted as the largest in the world and the kids club with novelty games.

It’s easy to get lost in this giant complex that’s divided into two wings: the East and West wings. The staff advise you to always carry your room key in the white sling bag that’s provided.

With the room card, you can visit all the amusement centres except the Dolphin Bay where you have to pay extra to enter. The smart thing to do is to plan an itinerary on arrival. I promptly made mine and headed off to the Lost Chamber where I wandered through dark passages to gaze at sharks, giant catfish and many others that I couldn’t even recognise.

Atlantis also has something for water sports lovers in the form of Aquaventure. This is set on 42 fun-filled acres and has speed slides, mini rivers and rapids, a children’s play area, lush tropical landscapes and a private beach.

If you aren’t scared of heights, try the Leap of Faith. I only had the courage to watch some bravehearts come down from a long raised platform at a height of 27.5m at lightning speed into a shallow lagoon.

I settled for the safer looking Shark Attack. In this I glided through dark, scary and twisting tunnels before I slowly landed in a lagoon — at a leisurely pace.

In the four-and-a-half hectare Dolphin Bay, you can play with dolphins. And if you want to indulge yourself gastronomically, this is a great place to be with over 17 eateries including restaurants, bars and lounges run by world-renowned chefs. What did I not try here? From Spanish to Mexican to Italian to Moroccan, it all comes on a platter.

And don’t forget the sushi at Nobu, a cutting-edge Japanese eatery and the first Nobu in West Asia. Then, I even tried rajma chawal during an Indian food festival — it was nostalgic experience that’s sometimes welcome during a holiday.

Ready reckoner

Getting there: Emirates has daily flights to Dubai from Chennai, Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Mumbai, New Delhi and Kolkata. Air India, Kingfisher, Cathay Pacific, Jet Airways also have flights to Dubai from India.


The Personal Telegraph