Burj Khalifa- The Tallest Building in the World

Burj Khalifa- The Tallest Building in the World

Dubai, United Arab Emirates

March 12, 2018                                                                                          Dubai, United Arab Emirates

Today we went to the 148th floor of the tallest building in the world—the Burj Khalifa.  Although the building has 200 stories, the 148th floor is as high as you can go, and it is amazing!  It is somewhat exclusive up here and we were treated superbly.  Most people only go to the 125th of this building, but since we don’t know if we will ever come back and hating regrets, we went as high as we could.  Was it cheap?  Not by any means.  But was it worth it?  By all means!  

As you travel, you will face dilemmas.  Should I go there, should I buy this or that, should I eat this, should I speak to this stranger, should I do this or should I do that?  It seems that you are constantly caught in a Catch-22 situation, not just when you travel, but in everyday life as well.  What I have found, and I am sure that a lot of people have discovered, is that the pain of regret far outweighs the decision not to do something.  To me anyway, there is nothing worse than to look back at something that I didn’t do or didn’t buy.  Especially when I don’t know if I will ever be back there again or have that opportunity again.  In the case of Dubai, although I would go back in a heartbeat, I am uncertain when I will ever get that chance again.

Like a mirage rising for the Dubai desert- the Burj Khalifa

When we ordered the tickets, we received a date and time when we would be allowed to visit the Burj Khalifa so naturally, we arrived early to gain the most of this experience.  We were treated to cookies and Turkish coffee in a plush waiting room on the ground floor level as we waited for more people in our small group to arrive  When it was the appointed time, our guide, a man sporting traditional white Arabic clothing entered the room and began telling us about the building in which one of its highest floors we would soon be ascending to.  He presented numerous facts that I soon forgot in anticipation of reaching heights that I have never experienced in a building.  The elevator was quite fast, in fact, it reached the 125th floor in under a minute!   (I would lament in coming days that the elevator in our Hotel in Athens, a six-floor building, was much, much slower!)

The view from the top is amazing!

Upon reaching the top we immediately began taking photos of the buildings below, massive as they were they seemed miniature in comparison.   The light brown micro-haze caused by airborne particles of fine desert sand somewhat clouded the view below, but the view was still amazing albeit somewhat obstructed on the distant horizon.  

Above, the open-air floor where you can feel the strong desert wind

We wandered around the 148th floor many times while sipping drinks that we were provided and with each passing we seemed to observe something new below or in the distance.  We sat near a window and simply admired our view and never once felt as if we had overpaid for this experience.  

Above, the view from below

We were in no hurry to leave this fine vantage point, and the staff made no effort to rush our experience, in fact, they encouraged us to linger as long as we wanted.  However, lunchtime was fast approaching and we had a scheduled date with our niece and nephew in the Dubai Mall below.  

On the way down, we stopped at the 125 floor and had a few souvenir photos taken, great souvenirs that I am sure some will find to be very tacky.  But hey, the regret had we not done this would have been felt for a lifetime.

All photographs are the copyright of Jim Jackson Photography