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Foster Designs The Biggest Building on Earth

The world's biggest structure will soon erect in Moscow with the design from Foster + Partners. Crystal Island,a “city inside a building” costs $4B (USD), standing 27 million square foot, reaching almost 1,500ft into the sky and housing up to 30,000 residents.
Lord Foster, 72, said: "Crystal Island is one of the world's most ambitious building projects and it represents a milestone in the 40 year history of the practice.

"It is the largest single building in the world, creating a year-round destination for Moscow and a sustainable, dynamic new urban quarter.

"It is a paradigm of compact, mixed-use, sustainable city planning, with an innovative energy strategy and 'smart' skin which buffers against climate extremes."

However, some observers have likened the new Moscow skyscraper to a “Christmas tree” and dismissed it as “brash” and “vulgar”. But seeing these gorgeous designs, one just cannot help marveling at its magnificent beauty.

World's Largest Barbecue Sandwich

What does it mean to be Southern in America? This says it just about as well as anything I can think of.

On July 4, 2009, The State Bistro and State Theater in Starkville, Mississippi celebrated America's Independence by building the "Largest Barbecue Sandwich in the History of the World". The previous record was 175 pounds. They weren't happy just to break the record, they shattered it with this 482 pound behemoth (pending certification by Guinness). I thought the hog's head and apple made a nice garnish.

Standing with the sandwich is one of Starkville's newest aldermen, Jeremiah Dumas. Jeremiah was one of the people who spent 45 minutes constructing the sandwich on stage . The barbecue was excellent, and proceeds of the event went to the Starkville Police Department.

This was taken with a Canon S5 IS and a Speedlite 580EXII flash mounted on a Trek-Tech monopod held over my head using my DIY USB remote shutter trigger and CHDK firmware modification. Jeremiah and the sandwich were on a stage, I was standing on the floor below him in front of the stage with the camera about six feet over my head.

The World's Most Expensive Hotels

The Atlantis
Atlantis Bridge Suite
$25,000 per night

The Atlantis Bridge Suite has the distinction of being the most expensive hotel suite in the world---it's $25,000 a night. So what do you get for that kind of money? For starters, location, location, location. The Bridge Suite is located on top of a bridge that connects the two Royal Towers buildings, so it overlooks the entire resort
and marina.

The ten-room suite is decorated in red, black and gold (lots of gold) and comes with its own butler, bar lounge and entertainment center as well as 12-foot ceilings. The master bedroom has a sitting area, his-and-hers closets, and hand-painted linens. The bathrooms have chaise lounges, marble baths, and dolphin fixtures. For those who are picky about their personal space, there are two separate master bathrooms. The kitchen also has its own entrance so the butler or cook neverbothers you.
How will you sleep after spending $25,000?

President Wilson Hotel
The Imperial Suite
$23,000 per night

At the sleek, modern President Wilson Hotel in Geneva, security takes as much precedence as luxury. Faster than you can say "Frette linens," the hotel's staff reassures guests that the security in the Imperial Suite is among the best in the world, ideal for celebrities or traveling heads of states who visit the United Nations headquarters next door at the Palais Wilson. (Considering how tight-lipped the hotel management was about the suite, guests can be assured of total secrecy.)

The Imperial Suite, which takes up the entire top floor of the hotel, is reached via a private elevator and has four bedrooms, all of which overlook Lake Geneva. The suite is decorated in a contemporary style, with marble and hardwood floors, and the bay windows overlook Lake Geneva and Mont Blanc. Off of the master bedroom is a dressing room as well as a study, and the suite has five bathrooms, all with mosaic marble floor, and a Jacuzzi and steam bath in the main bath. The living room has a billiards table, a library and a cocktail lounge with a view of the water fountain, and can accommodate 40 people. The dining room seats 26 people around an oval mahogany table. For the security-conscious or merely the paranoid, the Imperial Suite is also equipped with bulletproof windows and doors. The price of the hotel is 40,000 Swiss francs (approximately $23,600)

New York

The Plaza Hotel
Presidential Suite
$15,000 per night

Twenty years ago, the Presidential Suite at the Plaza was often used as Gourmet magazine's test kitchen. Today, you won't see editors scurrying around the French- chateaux-style suite but wealthy businessmen (the suite is rarely used by celebrities) or families who need a pied-à-terre as their home is being remodeled. The 7,802-square-foot suite covers nearly the entire 18th floor of the Plaza, with views overlooking Central Park. The walls are covered in silk, the reception area has a 10-foot-wide stained glass window and the hand-painted piano depicts scenes from the French countryside.

The suite has five bedrooms, five and a half bathrooms, two living rooms, a dining room, powder room and sauna. There are also three marble fireplaces, a terrace and a 2,000-bottle wine cellar (guests are charged extra for indulging). The Presidential Suite also comes with the use of a secretary/butler (who get their own office), and the Plaza's chefs are at your disposable. Of course, many who stay there prefer to bring their own personal chef with them, so feel free.

United Arab Emirates

Burj Al Arab
Royal Suites
$6,850 per night

If Elton John and Donatella Versace teamed up to create a hotel, it would probably look a lot like Dubai's Burj Al Arab, which describes itself as "tremendously bold." The hotel's two Royal Suites are a gleeful explosion of all things gold, glittery and marble. Then again, what would you expect from a hotel that is shaped like a billowing sail and is the tallest hotel in the world (1,053 feet high, only slightly smaller than the Empire State Building)?

To put the Royal Suites in context, the Burj Al Arab also has its own submarine ride to an underwater restaurant complete with shark-infested aquarium, and it is built on top of a manmade island (merely crossing the bridge will cost you $55). Guests are met at the airport in a Rolls-Royce Silver Seraph. The two Royal Suites, located on the 25th floor, are split-level rooms joined by a private elevator. The rooms feature a private cinema, whirlpool baths and rotating beds. Each room also has a meeting room, dining room, dressing room and butler's room with a separate entrance. The décor is a mix of Greek, Arabic and over-the-top Italian as interpreted by Versace (some of the bed linens are indeed Versace).

Statue of Liberty

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Photo of the Statue of Liberty with clouds in the sky. Shot was taken from the base of the statue looking up.