Tammy Camp

Dubai Unveils the World’s Tallest Tower – Burj Khalifa

Posted on 05. Jan, 2010 by Tammy Camp.

It’s official, Burj Dubai is now “Burj Khalifa”, the world’s tallest tower. The height of the tower, kept top secret until now, was announced as 828 meters (2,716.5 ft).

The Burj Khalifa, developed by Emaar Properties, was unveiled on the evening of January 4th, 2010. Thousands of people present, and viewers around the world, were treated to an extravagant show of fireworks, lasers, and fountain displays.

Burj Khalifa is now the tallest building in the world, according to the three main criteria of the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH). The CTBUH ranks the world’s tallest buildings based on ‘Height to Architectural Top,’ ‘Height to Highest Occupied Floor’ and ‘Height to Tip.’

At 828 metres (2,716.5ft), Burj Khalifa is 320 metres taller than Taipei 101, which stands at 508 metres (1,667 ft). Taipei 101 had held the record for the world’s tallest building measured to the architectural top since 2004, the year the project was announced.

Burj Khalifa also achieved the distinction of being the world’s tallest structure – surpassing the KVLY-TV mast (628.8 metres; 2,063 ft) in North Dakota, USA – 1,325 days after excavation work started in January 2004.

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Stop the Hate, It’s safe in Kuwait

Posted on 29. May, 2009 by Tammy Camp.

As soon as I announced I would be traveling to Kuwait, the calls of concern came rushing in from all corners of the United States and other westernized cultures. Controversial issues such as safety in the region, women’s rights and cultural/language conflicts were the most popular topics of concern. What is it with most Americans and their need to believe everything the media tells them?

Safety in the Middle East

Concerned American #1
“Be careful, a war is over there!”

My reply
“Last I checked, there was a war in the country north of Kuwait — Iraq. It technically ended a few years ago.”

Concerned American #2 (My Favorite)
“Watch out for those Kuwaitis, they invaded Iraq a few years back.”

My dumbfounded reply, “Excuse me? You can’t be serious? Kuwait was invaded by Iraq in 1990 and was occupied by Iraqi Republican Guard for seven months.”

Come on people! Let’s try to educate ourselves on what is happening in the world. Most safety issues people were talking to me about were based on the lack of education in history and current international affairs. Only certain areas in the region are potentially dangerous much like the ghettos and projects in the United States. About 95% of the region is completely safe just like any other place in the world.

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Economic Crisis in Dubai

Posted on 15. Apr, 2009 by Tammy Camp.

It took a recent trip to Dubai for me to get my first true, honest glimpse of the current economic crisis that is so profoundly hitting every corner of the world. As I roamed the grand streets of Dubai, they lay empty, rendering the city a mere ghost town of what I had imagined it would be. As I chatted with locals, they gave me a glimpse into a much different Dubai. They informed me that previously it had been impossible to get a dinner reservation without at least two weeks’ notice. A wait for a requested taxi being less than a few hours was also a thing of the past.

Horror stories of thousands getting laid off and having to flee the country because they could no longer afford their mortgages escaped their lips as if they had been waiting for an opportunity to get these eye-witnessed nightmares off their chest. Unlike in the United States and the United Kingdom, if you default on your mortgage or loans in Dubai, you are thrown in prison. This severe punishment has caused many laid-off workers to flee the country in an effort to avoid jail time. These escapees literally abandon everything they have acquired during there stay in Dubai. With only two suitcases in hand, they then drive to the airport, where they leave their keys and a note that says, “Return to Dealership” in their leased cars.

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