TOURIST ATTRACTIONS

The safety harness was a condition for being granted permission to climb the landmark, which has been his ambition long before the building was completed at the start of last year. Hundreds of onlookers watched in absolute admiration from the Dubai Fountain adjacent to the Burj Khalifa.

The Burj Khalifa may have set another record yesterday when Afif Hanna, a five-day-old boy, visited the 124th floor. Afif’s parents, Amjad Hanna and Maram Haddad, said they took him to visit the observation deck of the world’s tallest building because it represented the sky-high ambitions they had for their first child. “If he can achieve the highest point in the world in five days, hopefully he can achieve much more,” said Mr Hanna. “I want him to be a big man.”

The world's tallest skyscraper, the 2,717-foot Burj Khalifa, can be pretty hard to miss. What other reason would somebody have for wanting to wrap it in a massive sheet of reflective fabric?

Several world-renowned authors who are in Dubai to take part in the city’s prestigious literary event, the Emirates Airline Festival of Literature, toured At the Top, Burj Khalifa, the world’s highest observatory deck with an outdoor terrace, located on Level 124 of Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building.

Ara Gallery in Burj Plaza, Downtown Dubai, has announced the five finalists of its Art At The Top competition, a search for an artist to display their work in At The Top on the pinnacle floor of the Burj Khalifa. Hamad Al Falasi, Hamdan Buti Al Shamisi, Nashwa Zakariya, Nasir Nasrallah and Zeinab Alhashemi have all got to the final round after submitting their portfolios in an open call announced on June 18.

Organizers of the Dubai Marathon say a new route will take runners past Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building, as well as the Middle East’s largest shopping mall. The Jan. 27 race will have runners start in the shadow of Birj Khalifa before heading past the Dubai Mall. The route then takes runners past the Dubai World Trade Center and along the coast.

World Cup fans are in for a treat as “One”, a luxurious Marquee built especially for the occasion of 2010 FIFA World Cup, is set to open its doors today to receive spectators of the upcoming global event running from 11th June to 11th July.

Armani is credited with pioneering the concept of the lifestyle brand, and today his empire encompasses a couture line, several ready-to-wear lines, underwear, perfume, cosmetics, cafés and homeware. But the latest must-have in an Italian designer's portfolio is a hotel or two; Missoni and Versace have their own and Moschino unveiled one here in Milan this week. Not to be outdone, Armani will open his first hotel in April in the Burj Tower in Dubai.

It has been reported that following an elevator break down which left visitors trapped over 120 stories above the land and forced it to shut, on Sunday, the observation deck of the world’s tallest tower reopened in Dubai. It is said that there were dozens of visitors lined up to buy tickets for the 124 floor of the half-mile-high Burj Khalifa. The deck was closed in February.

The city has, of course, changed beyond recognition. The narrow creek has been widened and the population grown to a million permanent residents – a high proportion of whom are expatriates. The city is also full of parks and, although it is on the edge of a desert, they are green and full of fountains filled with desalinated sea water.