Also known as the Taipei Financial Center, Taipei 101 is a landmark skyscraper located in Xinyi District of Taipei. This 101 storied building( till date recorded the tallest in the world) has been designed by C.Y. Lee & Partners and constructed primarily by KTRT Joint Venture and Samsung Engineering & Construction.
Uniquely named Taipei 101
Taipei 101 is a unique structure for many reasons. The work on this building began in 1999 and it was the first tallest building of world to be constructed in the new millennium. When this iconic tower was completed in 2004, it was the first building in the world that broke the half-kilometer mark in height.
The building has been named so because it contains 101 floors above the ground (there are 5 underground floors too). The thought behind 101 floors symbolizes the renewal of time (as it was built on the arrival of a new century). The number 100 is also believed to be a traditional number of perfection that evokes the binary numeral system used in digital technology.
The building has been thoroughly designed keeping all the Chinese beliefs in mind like number eight that symbolizes abundance, prosperity and good fortune. So the main tower of Taipei 101 features a series of eight segments of eight floors each. Combined with Asian and international modern and traditional elements, Taipei 101 is designed to withstand the natural calamities like earthquakes and typhoons which are quite common in its area of Asia-Pacific. In fact with total weight of 700,000 tonnes, Taipei 101 itself could possibly make an earthquake. This tower also has the fastest elevators of the world (they can get as fast as 63 km / h).
Options to entertain
Visiting a tower like itself is a while day activity. To entertain the visitors further, there is a multi-level shopping mall adjoining the tower that has hundreds of fashionable stores, restaurants and clubs. The 85th floor of the building has two restaurants namely Diamond Tony offering European-style seafood and steak; and Shin Yeh that offers Taiwanese-style cuisines while the 86th floor is occupied by XEX, a Japanese restaurant.
Awards won by Taipei 101
The skyscraper has been proud to be awarded with the Emporis Skyscraper Award in the year 2004. According to the Newsweek magazine 2006, the Taipei 101 has also been hailed as one of the Seven New Wonders of the World. Discovery Channel has even voted the building among Seven Wonders of Engineering. The building has however been overtaken in height by the Burj Dubai, UAE that has completed 141 floors. But the title of the “World’s tallest building” is still resting with Taipei 101.
Since Taipei 101 is a landmark of Taiwan, you must include this icon in you list while visiting Taiwan. Once you see the building, only then you can realize what makes it an icon and what architectural excellence lies there!