Before the natural beauty of the Grand Canyon, a little man-made beauty...

I took an afternoon ride on the Chicago River to see the architectural high-rises that are along the river.  The guide on the boat was an eighth grader teacher who was returning to his classroom next week.  This was one of his last weekday tours for the sightseeing company.

I learned one interesting fact about the origin of the name “Chicago.”  The name comes from the French version of the Native American word for “stinky onion.”  The Miami-Illinois tribe used the word shikaakwa (translates to “stinky onion”) for the garlic plant (allium tricoccum) common along the stinky river.  So, the name of Chicago came into being.

Here are a few of my photos of the remarkable skyline of Chicago from the river. 

Not only does New York have a Trump Tower so do the folks of Chicago! :-(

The Sears (or Willis Tower) is the symbol of Chicago.  It was once the tallest in the world, but the Burj Khalifa now has that honor.  I visited the Burj Khalifa in 2015 (click here).

The Marina City Condos have a parking garage for its residents below the apartments.  Note the brave folks who backed into the parking space.

This unusual shaped apartment building was coined the "gigantic fidget spinner" by one of the guide's students on a fieldtrip.  A creative and accurate description.

Our guide says they lower this bridge once each year to prove it still works.

It was cool that the glass on the skyscraper reflected the buildings from across the river.

Our guide teaches 8th grade.  He loves it, but uses his summer and weekends for this side gig.

Waterfront apartments are very expensive, but at one time no one wanted to live downtown.

This guy seemed to have a keen interest in the construction of a new apartment building.  A future resident?

You are here!  This is a map of the river and canals.  The red spot indicates the location of this building on the river.

Again, a cool view of the buildings from the other side of the river in the reflection of these buildings.

An interesting building that is cantilevers out.  You also see the famous Chicago El or elevated train.

All kinds of boats were in the river including kyaks.  The Chicago river is green based on the type algae found in the river.  It's Kelly Green on St. Patrick's day with a little help of city leaders.

The tour started from the Chicago Naval Yard, and this is the first view of the skyline as we sailed toward the Chicago River.

Dubai, Day 2: Over-the-Top

Today was about an over-the-top kind of experience.  I took part in a tea at the Burj Al Arab which was truly a great way to spend a Tuesday morning.  Here are my shots from today's tour in Dubai. 

The Burj Al Arab Resort only has 200 suites for guests, and they go for as little as $17,000 a night.  There are lots of amenities that go with that price tag.



A synchronized water fountain is the first thing you see.  You can also see what the hotel's interior looks like in shades of gold, blue, and green.

The guests see reception desks on each side of the lobby.

However, you're actually greeted at the door by a lovely staff member ... she beats the Wal-mart greeter back home!

A view of the lobby and suite interior balconies.  Note the variation in shades of blue and green.  It's also supposed to be real gold in areas of the hotel.

Another synchronized water fountain is on the second level as you make your way into the hotel.

This is a shot from the second floor looking down the fountain to the hotel entrance.

The tea was on the 27th floor of the hotel.

The current ruler of Dubai, Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, has his picture everywhere.  Here he is in the lobby of the hotel.  He greets you as you drive down the roads from billboards, too.

Flowers are everywhere.

This is the wall clock that is over the doorway to the shops.  Note the maker of this time piece.

If you are a guest of the hotel, they provide a driver as one of the amenities. 

They also have a stable of cars.  Here are two Rolls Royce vehicles that are available (along with a few sports cars, too).

The group traveled to the "man-made" marina.  I thought the "twisted building" was cool.  It's actually called the Cayan Tower.

The final stop today was to see the water show at the Burj Khalifa.



I got this shot of this Burj Khalifa during the water show. 

 Everything in Dubai is truly over-the-top. 

We're actually spending another night here, and our ship will leave tomorrow morning at 6am.  That was the request of our captain to Holland America in order to travel more swiftly to our next stop in Oman. 

Dubai's Architectural Marvels

Dubai is an amazing city.  It is kind of hard to do justice to this modern city in only a few photographs, but I'll try.  Here are my shots from my tour of the architectural marvels of the city:

 

• Burj Al Arab
• Mall of the Emirates
• Burj Khalifa
• The Dubai Mall
• Jumeirah Beach
• Atlantis Palm Resort

 

A photo from the 124th floor of the Burj Khalifa.

The world's tallest building, Burj Khalifa, is easy to point out in the skyline of Dubai. 

Another shot from the world's tallest building.

High rise buildings popped up in the desert from off shore oil profits, but this area has been hurting financially since 2008.

Oil money has resulted in a roadway system that is among the best in the world.

This young man came up to me in the mall.  His Dad picked him to  give me a "high five."

Everything is over the top in Dubai  Here's the indoor ski resort in the desert.  It is in the Mall of the Emirates.

This is the Burj Al Arab, which is a sail shaped 7-star hotel.  Note the round helicopter landing pad for the rich and famous.

I am standing on the Jumeirah Beach.  This is as close as I can get today to the sail shaped hotel which is on its own island. However, I am scheduled for tea at the hotel tomorrow which is one of the few ways to get to the island.



This is the largest hotel in Dubai.  It's the Atlantis Resort, and Michael Jackson lived in the part that connects the two towers.

There are nighttime fountain shows that occur every 30 minutes outside the Burg Khalifa.

Arriving in Dubai, UAE

Well, as I write this we are moving toward our place on the docks in Dubai.  The skyline of Dubai is impressive even in the early morning haze from the sea.

The skyline of Dubai is impressive in the early morning haze.  That's the world's tallest building, Burj Khalifa, at 2176 feet which towers over all the other high rise buildings.

The local pilot has boarded the ship and will guide us in to our docking location.

The proper flags have been hoisted as we enter the waters of the United Arab Emirates.

Next Stops on the Around the World Cruise (March 21 - 28)

“All Aboard” time is 8:30pm tonight.  We’ll then be leaving Mumbai, India, for the Arabian Peninsula.  The next three stops will be two days in Dubai (one of the seven United Arab Emirates) and two stops in Oman.
 

I’m looking forward to my tours in Dubai which concentrate on modern architectural engineering accomplishments.  One tour will take me to the top of Burj Khalifa which, at 2716 feet, is the world’s tallest building.  I’m supposed to go to the 124^th floor observation for photos.

 

Next stops on the 2015 Grand Voyage of the ms Amsterdam

I will be visiting the world's tallest building's observation deck for pictures in Dubai!