Saturday, November 23, 2013

The Petronas Twin Towers, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

Hi and welcome! A short profile of the Petronas Towers. I was there very recently for work so took the opportunity to take some night shots. The towers are amazing! Hope you enjoy them.  Second posting on Morocco that is overdue will be next
They were the tallest buildings in the world from 1998 to 2004 until surpassed by Taipei 101, but they remain the tallest twin buildings in the world

The building was officially opened by the Prime Minister of Malaysia's Tun Dr. Mahathir bin Mohamad on 1 August 1999

It took 7 years to complete

The 88-floor towers are constructed largely of reinforced concrete, with a steel and glass facade designed to resemble motifs found in Islamic art, a reflection of Malaysia's Muslim religion

The climax of the 1999 film Entrapment was filmed at the skybridge

Thousands of people were evacuated on 12 September 2001 after a bomb threat was phoned the day after the September 11 attacks destroyed the World Trade Center towers in New York City. Bomb Disposal squads found no bomb in the Petronas towers but they evacuated everyone. Workers and shoppers were allowed to return three hours later, around noon. No one was hurt during the evacuation

On 15 April 1999, Felix Baumgartner set the world record for BASE jumping (since broken) by jumping off a window cleaning crane on the Petronas Towers

The towers feature a double decker skybridge connecting the two towers on the 41st and 42nd floors. It is the highest 2-story bridge in the world

It is not attached to the main structure, but is instead designed to slide in and out of the towers to prevent it from breaking, as the towers sway several feet towards and away from each other during high winds
The skybridge also acts as a safety device, so that in the event of a fire or other emergency in one tower, tenants can evacuate by crossing the skybridge to the other tower

On the morning of 1 September 2009, French urban climber Alain "Spiderman" Robert, using only his bare hands and feet and with no safety devices, scaled to the top of Tower Two in just under 2 hours after two previous efforts had ended in arrest

Twin-reflections

Sunday, November 03, 2013

दिवाली की शुभकामनाएं, Diwali ki Shubhkamnayein!

दिवाली की शुभकामनाएं, Diwali ki Shubhkamnayein!

Deepavali Singapore 2013

Taken in Little India

Deepavali is a five-day Hindu festival

The name "Diwali" or "Divali" is a contraction of deepavali which translates into "row of lamps". Diwali involves the lighting of small clay lamps filled with oil to signify the triumph of good over evil

These lamps are kept on during the night and one's house is cleaned, both done in order to make the goddess Lakshmi feel welcome. Firecrackers are burst because it is believed that it drives away evil spirits. During Diwali, all the celebrants wear new clothes and share sweets and snacks with family members and friends

For Hindus, Diwali is one of the most important festivals of the year and is celebrated in families by performing traditional activities together in their homes

One of the many restaurants

Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple

The building is constructed in the style of South Indian Tamil temples common in Tamil Nadu

The Sri Veeramakaliamman Temple is dedicated to the Hindu goddess Kali, fierce embodiment of Shakti and the god Shiva's wife, Parvati

It is the centre of Hindi worship in Little India

Shopping carries on!

The lights draw many people

Lord Ganesha and a gecko!

Hope you enjoyed the photos

And if you are celebrating, have a wonderful time