Singita (‘place of miracles’) is world-renowned for providing ‘the best safari experience in Africa’ and has notched up virtually every hotel and travel award since its inception in the mid-90s.
South Africa
There are five lodges in two equally special parts of South Africa, both famous for their exquisite beauty and abundance of the ‘Big 5’. The founding lodges, Singita Ebony and Boulders Lodges and Castleton Camp are located within the Sabi Sand Reserve – the world’s best leopard viewing area. Singita Lebombo and Singita Sweni Lodges are found along the far eastern reaches of the Kruger National Park – a remote wilderness area known for its concentration of lions.
Sabi Sand Reserve
Singita Sabi Sand offers rare solitude and the ultimate in safari luxury on 18 000 hectares of prime game viewing land.Ebony and Boulders, overlooking the Sand River, offer lavish surroundings that have earned Singita the highest international accolades.
Singita Kruger National Park is situated where two rivers meet, in an exclusive game-rich 15 000 hectares concession in the world-renowned Kruger National Park.Singita Lebombo Lodge has been designed around the theme of a luxury eagle’s nest with 15 loft-style suites perched high above the Nwanetsi River.Nestled low on the Sweni River, the more intimate Singita Sweni Lodge boasts six exclusive suites on the water’s edge.
The tour, a first of its kind, is being touted as the biggest to ever be. It is going to be a huge show showcasing the Magic that is Indian Cinema. A lot of song- and-dance routines have been planned.
The leading stars who are part of the Tour
Lot of Bollywood stars have been asked by th Bachchans to join this tour. So along with Amitabh Bachchan, Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai, the other stars are Akshay Kumar, Preity Zinta, Saif Ali Khan and Riteish Deshmukh. The other stars that were part of the bandwagon were Lara Dutta and Bipasha Basu who have pulled out from the show. Madhuri Dixit .
The Tour to be held in 10 cities around the world.
The unforgettable tour has been scheduled to perform around 10 exotic cities around the world. It will start at Toronto . starting from there the tour will take the members to Los Angeles, San Francisco, Trinidad & Tobago, Houston, Atlantic City, New York, Vancouver, London and Amsterdam.
World Trade Center, or the Freedom Tower, is the main building of the new WorldTrade Center complex currently under construction in Lower Manhattan in New York City. The tower will be located in the northwest corner of the 16-acre (65,000 m²) World Trade Center site, bound by Vesey, West, Washington and Fulton streets. Construction on below-ground utility relocations, footings, and foundations for the 1,776-foot (541 m) Freedom Tower began on April 27, 2006. On December 19, 2006, the first steel columns were installed in the building’s foundation. Three other high-rise office buildings plus a residential tower are planned for the site along Greenwich Street, and they will surround the World Trade Center Memorial, which is currently under construction. The area will also be home to a museum, highlighting many of the different aspects of the past and future World Trade Centers. The Freedom Tower is expected to be completed in 2013.When completed it will be the second tallest building in the United States, after the Chicago Spire.
The house (called Antilla) is being valued at Rupees 4000 crores and will be 173 metre
Reliance Industries head Mukesh Ambani, will stand 27 stories high and is expected to cost $2 billion. Ambani, the fifth richest man in the world, his wife and three children currently live in a 22-story Mumbai tower .
Some other absurd facts about this ‘house’..
1. 3 helipads on top. Mumbai corporation has not given permission for making this operational yet.
2. Hanging gardens within the structure
3. Swimming pool within the structure
4. A two storey Health centre
5. Parking space for 168 cars (6 floors). I initially thought that meant there will be a mini office in the building but apparently that is not the case. All these cars will belong to Mukesh Ambani! Just in case you are interested, he drives a 5 crore Maybach now.
6. A floor exclusively for servicing these automobiles within the building.
7. A floor for Home theatre – sitting capacity of 5
Lobby
Nine elevators dot the lobby floor: Two are designated for parking areas, three for guest quarters, two for the Ambani family residences and two for service.
Ballroom
The most striking features of the Antilla ballroom are the crystal chandeliers that will take up approximately 80% of the ceiling. There is also a stage for entertainment or speeches, with a projection screen behind it. A kitchen, about the same size as the ballroom itself, can service hundreds of guests.
BathroomBathroom
One of Antilla’s key design themes is the mix of lavish features seen in worldwide homes and elements that are distinctly Indian.
Traditional Lounge
Ambani’s home features countless lounges, offering Reliance Industries guests a quiet escape. Chandeliers and mirrors are a common feature of these rooms, as are finely woven Indian area rugs.
Modern Lounge
Each space and floor uses materials not seen anywhere else. The idea is that spaces will blend into one another, giving the impression of consistency and flow
Entertainment Level
The Ambani’s theater is more like those seen in George Lucas’ Skywalker Ranch or Frank Pritt’s Portabello Estate–a full-fledged theater, indistinguishable from a cinema. A wine room, snack bar and entertaining space, including couches and tables, fill out the room.
Health Level
The indoor/outdoor health level features a lap pool and Jacuzzi that take in views of the city skyline, as well as lounge chairs shaded by trees. Yoga and dance studios, changing rooms for men and women, gyms and a solarium with a juice bar fill out the interior space.
Garage
The first six floors of the residence will be dedicated to parking for the Ambani family, guests and employees. Hanging vertical gardens dot the exterior . The hydroponic plants, grown in liquid nutrient solutions instead of soil, lower the energy footprint of the home by absorbing heat and sunlight and providing shade that helps keep it cool.
Roof
The top floor features a covered, outdoor entertaining space with panoramic views of the Mumbai skyline as well as the Arabian Sea.
Shahrukh Khan was born 2 November 1965, is a highly acclaimed Indian actor who works in Bollywood films, as well as film producer and television host .Khan started out his career appearing in several television serials in the late 1980s. He made his film debut with the commercially successful Deewana (1992). Since then, he has been part of numerous commercial successes, as well as having delivered a variety of critically acclaimed performances. During his years in the Indian film industry, he has won seven Filmfare Best Actor Awards and has had significant box office success. While films such as Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge (1995), Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998), Chak De India (2007), and Om Shanti Om (2007), remain some of Bollywood’s biggest hits, Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham (2001), Kal Ho Naa Ho (2003), Veer-Zaara (2004) and Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna (2006) have been hits in the overseas market. Since 2000, Khan branched out into film production and television presenting as well.
Mukesh Ambani, India’s richest man, with his daughter, Isha, at a cricket match of the Mumbai Indians, which he owns.
An employee fills the tank of a motorbike at a Reliance filling station.
Mukesh Ambani, center left, and his younger brother, Anil, center right, at the funeral of their father in 2002.
Mukesh Ambani, far right, in a 2006 family photograph, with his wife, Nita, foreground, and their children, from left, Isha, Anant and Akash.
The tenement where Mukesh Ambani spent his early childhood. In the late 1960s, the family moved to one of Mumbai’s fanciest neighborhoods.
The high-rise house being built in Mumbai for the Ambanis, with lots of parking and a helipad. A Reliance spokesman said it would ultimately cost $50 million to $70 million.
The Eiffel Tower is an iron tower built on the Champ de Mars beside the Seine River in Paris. The tower has become a global icon of France and is one of the most recognizable structures in the world.
Named after its designer, engineer Gustave Eiffel, the Eiffel Tower is the tallest building in Paris and one of the most recognized structures in the world. More than 200,000,000 have visited the tower since its construction in 1889,including 6,719,200in 2006,making it the most visited paid monument in the world.Including the 24 m (79 ft) antenna, the structure is 325 m (1,063 ft) high (since 2000), which is equivalent to about 81 levels in a conventional building.
When the tower was completed in 1889 it was the world’s tallest tower — a title it retained until 1930 when New York City’s Chrysler Building (319 m — 1,047 ft tall) was completed. The tower is now the fifth-tallest structure in France and the tallest structure in Paris, with the second-tallest being the Tour Montparnasse (210 m — 689 ft), although that will soon be surpassed by Tour AXA (225.11 m — 738.36 ft).
Key figures
• Initial height: 312 m (to the top of the flagpole)
• Current height (including antennas): 324 m
• The deepest foundations: (North and West) lie 15 meters
underground. In each of these foundations, four pillars of masonry
are built, which bear the four uprights of each leg of the Tower,
A general view of the exterior of the National Aquatic Centre, also known as the Water Cube, lit up at night during the opening of the Good Luck Beijing 2008 Swimming China Open in Beijing, China, 31 January 2008. The National Aquatic Centre, located next to the National Stadium, is one of the main venues for the 2008 Olympics
The Water Cube was initially designed by PTW Architects , CSCEC International Design and Arup with structural Engineers Arup conceiving the structure. The structure was built by CSCEC (China State Construction Engineering Corporation). Comprising a steel space frame, it is the largest ETFE clad structure in the world with over 100,000 m² of ETFE pillows that are only eight one-thousandths of an inch in total thickness, The ETFE cladding allows more light and heat penetration than traditional glass, resulting in a 30% decrease in energy costs.The outer wall is based on the Weaire-Phelan structure, a foam (structure formed by soap bubbles).The pattern is formed by taking a slice through the foam, and it was chosen in preference to the Kelvin foam because the more complex Weaire-Phelan structure results in more irregular, organic patterns than slices through the regular Kelvin foam.The structure will have a capacity of 17,000during the games that will be reduced to 6,000 afterwards. It also has a total land surface of 65,000 square metres and will cover a total of 7.8 acres.
CCTV’s new 550,000 square meter headquarters, to be completed for the Beijing Olympics in 2008, will be among the first of 300 towers to be constructed in Beijing’s new Central Business District. On the 10-hectare site in the new Central Business District in Beijing, the OMA proposal consolidates the program in an iconic configuration of two high-rise buildings.The design of the new Central Chinese Television (CCTV) headquarters defies the popular conception of a skyscraper and it broke Beijing’s building codes and required approval by a special review panel. The standard systems for engineering gravity and lateral loads in buildings didn’t apply to the CCTV building, which is formed by two leaning towers, each bent 90 degrees at the top and bottom to form a continuous loop.
The total development is 5 813 000ft² (540 000m²) consisting of two main buildings: the CCTV building and the Television Cultural Centre (TVCC).The new centre combines administration with news, broadcasting, studios and programme production – the entire TV process – in a sequence of interconnected activities.This first building is not a traditional tower, but a continuous loop of horizontal and vertical sections that establish an urban site rather than point to the sky. The irregular grid on the building’s facades is an expression of the forces travelling throughout its structure.It would be a significant structural challenge anywhere in the world, but is especially so as Beijing is in a highly seismic zone. Arup carried out a huge amount of work to demonstrate structural stability in order to satisfy local planning needs.A Media Park forms a landscape of public entertainment, outdoor filming areas and production studios as an extension of the central green axis of the CBD.Rem Koolhaas and Ole Scheeren will be partners-in-charge. The OMA design team will consist of Shohei Shigematsu, Adrianne Fisher, Hiromasa Shirai, Anu Leinonen, Charles Berman and many others. Qingyun Ma from Shanghai will be advisor to the project.
The CCTV Headquarters will be realized in collaboration with ECADI, the East China Architecture & Design Institute from Shanghai.Cecil Balmond and his team of Ove Arup & Partners will be responsible for the structural and mechanical engineering.OMA will collaborate with its media and research branch AMO.
The Beach House at Manafaru Maldives is located in the Haa Alifu Atoll in the Northern Maldives and is surrounded by coral reef lagoons. Upon arrival at Malé International Airport, guests will be met by a representative from The Beach House who will transport them to the 45 minute domestic flight. This allows guests the chance to fly over some of the most beautiful Maldivian islands. The Beach House not only benefits from having some absolutely stunning natural beaches but it also has a wealth of vegetation which is very rare in the Maldives.The Manafaru Retreat encompasses of a selection of beach villas, water villas and grand water suites. Each villa is totally private surrounded by lush tropical vegetation with a private pool and sala. Villas offer intimate luxury and are designed in a contemporary style with sleek lines and chic minimalism, as the spectacular views of the surrounding beauty are the main focal point. This is complemented with rich dark woods, crisp white linens and natural fabrics. Each of the villas also come fully equipped with a range of state of the art amenities which include a flat screen LCD TV, CD and DVD players, high speed internet access, coffee making machine, Egyptian cotton linens and pillow menu, terrace sun bed, double bathroom and dressing area, oversized terrazzo bath, hairdryer, personal safe and mood enhancing lighting. Seven nights at The Beach House start at from £1,779 per person.