People travel the world over to see beautiful places and great monuments. They love watching the wonders of architecture that are scattered all over the world. Be it the Taj Mahal in India, the great Pyramids of Egypt or the Eiffel Tower in Paris; each of these monuments have great architectural stories to tell. But do you think the science of architecture that can create some of the most beautiful monuments in the world, can also create some of the world’s worst architectural disasters? Given below are the top 10 worst architectural disasters of the world.
1. The Lotus Riverside Complex, Shanghai:
This complex is made up of many buildings. In 2009 one of the blocks of this complex was crushed to dust. Poor constructions and no proper planning were considered as some of the factors that led to the fall. The construction of this block had just been rounded up and many of the flats were already sold. Naturally many of the tenants demanded their money back. Many officials were also detained and brought up for questioning regarding the fall of the building.
2. Chelsea Waterside Park, New York City:
This Park was renovated in the year 2000. After renovation the people were astonished to find some crazy or phallic shapes and structures used in creating the water park. This was objected and many people have asked for the park to be remodeled. Although the park might not favor the tastes of parents, children love it.
3. Experience Music Project- Seattle:
This piece of architecture was founded by the co – founder of Microsoft, Paul Allen. The structure was created using pictures of Stratocasters and guitar bodies. It was designed by the famous Frank Gehry who had also designed buildings like the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao. But this construction received mixed reviews and was not appreciated much by the Seattle public. Forbes magazine even called it one of the world’s 10 ugliest buildings.
4. The Dubai Aquarium:
This aquarium is located in the Dubai Mall. It is home to almost 33000 fishes that also include sharks and stingrays. It is the largest suspended aquarium in the world. But despite everything in the year 2010, there was a leak found in the aquarium. Shops had to close down and people were evacuated. Six divers worked throughout the day to stop the leak. Although it reopened again after a day, the incident did leave a black spot on the beautiful city of Dubai.
5. The Millenium Dome, London:
This dome is built on the Greenwich Peninsula in South East London. It was built to mark the beginning of the new century. It took 1.25 billion dollars to create this dome. However it was not very successful in attracting the tourists to it, looking at all the hype that had been created. In fact the response was so bad that the dome had to be shut within a span of one year. In the year 2007 it was reopened and now is used for the purpose of hosting entertainment events only.
The Burj Kalifa is the tallest sky scraper in the world and is found in Dubai. The construction started in 2004 and ended in 2009. The building stands at an awe-inspiring height of 2,717 feet.
This building was considered to be the tallest in the world at one point. It was built in 1931 and stands at 1250 feet. Unlike most buildings, this magnificent sky scraper took a little less than 2 years to build. It goes without saying that the Empire State Building is the pride of those who reside in New York City.
This sky scraper is found in Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia and stands at 1483 feet. It was built in 1998 and is said to be a symbol of Asia’s power and aspirations. The infrastructure and architecture is breath-taking and can be seen in popular Hollywood films like “Entrapment”.
The Woolworth Building is found in New York City and was built in 1913. An interesting fact is that Woolworth financed the construction of this sky scraper only with cash. It stands 792 feet tall and will undoubtedly mesmerize you every time you lay your eyes on it.
The Sears Tower stands at 1454 feet in Chicago and was built in 1974. After selling 9 billion dollars worth of merchandise, Sears decided to shift all operations under a single roof in Chicago. The Sears Tower is the tallest of its kind in North America and one can clearly see at least four states if one stands on the terrace of this building.
This temple is located in Thailand and is completely white in color. It is adorned with mosaic mirrors which makes the temple shine. This beautiful temple is still getting constructed and it is said that in another 90 years, it will feature in the List of the Wonders of the World.
This temple is located in Mynamar and is also known as the Golden Temple. The structure is all gold and Buddhists use their savings to purchase gold leafs which they then attach to the walls of the temple. The dome holds 2,000 rubies and 5,000 diamonds.
This temple is located in Bhutan, at the edge of a cliff. It is said that Guru Rinpoche landed on the cliff while he was riding a tigress after which he went on to meditate for years in a cave. This cave can be found in the monastery.
This Hindu Temple is situated in Indonesia. It holds 8 large shrines and over 200 other small ones. The walls are covered with writings about Vishnu and Hanuman. These stories also talk about the Ramayana as well as other legends.
This Taoist temple is located in Beijing. Every part of this temple is circular in shape which is said to represent Heaven. However, the ground is square and represents Earth.
