迪拜塔:高處可勝寒?
【英文原文】
Burj Dubai, the World's Tallest Skyscraper, Provides a View 'At the Top'
From 'At the Top,' the name given to the observatory on the Burj Dubai, you can see the faint outline of the Middle East's pariah-state Iran on the other side of the Persian Gulf. At the media opening of the skydeck close to the top of the world's tallest skyscraper Monday, you could also just make out the undeveloped islands that make up the offshore Dubai World project that is synonymous with the sheikdom's collapsing real estate industry.
After taking the brief ride to the 124th floor in one of the smoothest elevators I've ever traveled in, visitors are met with a bird's eye view of the sprawling city - patches of desert, skyscrapers that appear tiny from such a height, unfinished buildings, the city's Sheik Zayed road and interchanges - and perhaps the most impressive view of all - the Burj's own shadow stretching out to the sea. 'It's like a huge sundial,' I heard one reporter say.
Even though you're almost 2600 feet in the air, it surprisingly doesn't feel that high. Despite my own fear of heights, I felt more grounded than I have on other vertical tourist attractions such as the Eiffel Tower or the Empire State Building. Perhaps the dirty windows helped. I was told that they had been cleaned just days before but that given their height they are prone to attracting dirt. I was also told that it takes six months to clean the tower's windows from top to bottom so I couldn't complain too much.
Inside the skydeck, there isn't much to see. There is the obligatory souvenir shop and some trick viewing binoculars which allow you to see the view by day or by night, but little else. Some information on what you can actually see from the viewing platform may be welcomed by the untrained eye, but like most things in Dubai, I put the lack of information down to the fact that the building is being opened when it's not 100% complete.
【中文譯文】
從設在迪拜塔頂部名爲“At the Top”（巔峯之上）的觀景臺望去，你可以隱約看到地處波斯灣另一端的伊朗。站上距離頂層不遠的天台媒體開放區，你還能看到海岸線旁若干尚未開發的小島，它們是迪拜世界(Dubai World)瑰麗藍圖的一部分，而今則成了迪拜地產市場潰敗的象徵。
一座能給人帶來前所未有的流暢之感的高速電梯將我很快送到了這座世界最高建築的第124層，參觀者可以從此俯瞰迪拜的全貌──一塊一塊沙漠、在迪拜塔面前相形見絀的摩天大樓、未完工的建築、謝赫扎伊德大道及交通樞紐，而最令人印象深刻的或許就是迪拜塔投射的巨大陰影直刺入海的景象。“它就像一個巨型日晷。”一位記者如是說。
雖然置身2600英尺的高空，但令人奇怪的是我並不覺得特別地高。雖然我本人有些恐高，但我覺得倒是比站在艾菲爾鐵塔或帝國大廈等高聳的景觀建築上感覺踏實，或許是灰濛濛的窗戶幫了我。人們告訴我就在揭幕前一天還清洗過窗戶，但是迪拜塔的高度使得它特別容易落灰。我還被告知要花上六個月時間才能把迪拜塔的窗戶從底到頂清洗一遍，所以我也不好抱怨太多了。
天台內部景觀乏善可陳。旅遊紀念品商店是必不可少的，還有用於日用或夜用的觀景雙眼望遠鏡。其他就沒什麼了。對於那些對迪拜知之甚少的遊客，如果觀景臺能提供有關周邊景觀的相關信息也許就更好了，但是就像迪拜的大多數事情一樣，我認爲這種少了些什麼的感覺正是因爲迪拜塔在還沒有百分之百完工的情況下就匆匆對外揭開了面紗
