NEWS

Dubai’s economy passed important milestones yesterday as the Dubai World conglomerate presented its final debt restructuring plan to bankers while the emirate’s largest developer posted a big rise in quarterly profits. After more than a year of subdued property sales, Emaar Properties posted a net profit of Dh802 million (US$218.3m) for the second quarter after a loss of Dh1.2 billion in the same period last year. Profits also rose 6 per cent from the first quarter this year as homes were delivered in Burj Khalifa, the tallest tower in the world.

The Lounge - Burj Khalifa Dubai

French hospitality giant AccorHotels has announced the signing of a management agreement with Acropole Holdings Limited for the Novotel Downtown Dubai. Construction work on the hotel will start in February...

You've heard of Dubai's record breaking Burj Khalifa, the tallest free-standing structure in the world at 828 metres tall. Well, it appears Dubai is about to shatter the record book's tallest category once again. Hard Rock Café says it is building the world's tallest guitar at 118 feet (approximately 36 metres) high to mark the café's re-opening at its new location in Dubai Festival City (DFC) this coming October.

Not many people from Danville can say they work in Dubai, rode a camel in Egypt, visited the Dead Sea, and attended the grand opening of the tallest building in the world — the Burj Khalifa (located in Dubai). But Kevin Melton, who graduated from Schlarman High School and attended Danville Area Community College, has done all this in the Middle East, and more.

FROM the tallest building in the world, the Burj Khalifa, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum should be master of all he surveys. But there are a few problems for the ruler of Dubai: the murk of dust and exhaust that lays heavy on the desert metropolis makes it very hard to see to the bottom, while the lifts of the newly opened building are not working, making it impossible to get to the top.

Located in the Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world, the 160-room hotel is clad from bedhead to bar with Giorgio Armani-designed furnishings from the label's home collection. A total of four resorts and 10 Armani hotels are planned for the world's fashion capitals, including Milan (2010), London, Paris, New York and Tokyo.

Skyview Bar Hotel: Burj Al Arab, Dubai, 5* Spending the night at the Burj Al Arab may be out of reach for many, but experiencing the extravagance is still possible by visiting the Skyview Bar. Suspended 200 meters above sea level on the 27th floor of the Burj Al Arab, many say the spectacular views make the pricey drinks worth every penny.

"From January 2011, it will be a requirement for all food businesses to have a Person in Charge (PIC) trained and certified in Food Safety," said Khalid Mohammed Sharif, Director of Food Control Department in Dubai Municipality, while addressing a press conference held at Armani Hotel, Burj Khalifa. "The PIC can be the owner of the business or a designated person, such as a shift leader, chef, kitchen manager or similar individual who is always present and involved in the work site and has direct authority, control or supervision over employees who engage in the storage, preparation, display, or service of foods," he said.

As part of Dubai's final preparations to host the shoot of the latest instalment of 'Mission: Impossible', His Excellency Ahmed Abdullah Al Sheikh, Director General of the Dubai Government Media Office met this week with movie star Tom Cruise, director Brad Bird and senior cast, crew, and officials from Paramount in the Czech capital, Prague. Dubai's landscape features beautiful natural beaches and deserts, as well as some of the most impressive man-made attractions and mega projects like Burj Khalifa, the tallest building in the world, the Burj Al Arab hotel, the world's only seven star hotel, and Meydan the largest horse racing track in the world.