DUBAI (AlArabiya.net)
Oprah Winfrey, Robert De Niro, Denzel Washington and Lindsay Lohan are just a few of the celebrities attending what has been hailed as the 'world's biggest party' in the buzzing Arabian city of Dubai.
The $20 million party on the world's only man-made island is to launch Atlantis—a giant hotel and water park owned by South African hotelier and casino boss Sol Kerzner—and will host an array of A-listers from across the world.
"Nobody has ever done anything like this — except me, when I opened the Cove in the Bahamas last year…I’m going to upstage myself,” the UK's Times Online quoted Kerzner as saying.
Kerzner reportedly calls the project his billion-dollar baby and has spared no expense on "the world's biggest party," the paper added.
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Gltiz and Glam Some 2,500 people—mainly celebrities, royal guests and UAE VIPs—will be welcomed with a fireworks show said to be three times bigger than the one put on at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and a special performance by Australian singer Kylie Minogue, who was paid $3 million, the UAE's Gulf News reported.
The star-studded guest list includes Charlize Theron and her husband Stuart Townsend, British singer Lily Allen, U.S. actresses Mary Kate Olson and Misha Barton. Tom Cruise and David and Victoria Beckham are rumored to be attending.
Bollywood star Priyanka Chopra and Arab singer Nawal Al Zoughbi along with Janet Jackson and her beau Jermaine Dupri, basketball superstar Michael Jordon and model Petra Nemcova are also among those expected to attend the exclusive lavish party.
Guests will be treated to dishes prepared by world famous chef Nobu Matsuhisa before heading to the Royal Afterglow party where Samantha Ronson, also known as Lohan's girlfriend, will be spinning some famous tracks. |
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Death and destruction Despite all the glitz and glamour the opening of Atlantis has not been as smooth as some would have liked.
Just three days before the resort officially opens a man who was helping with the preparations of the big day was killed in the resort's car park after heavy winds caused a palm tree to fall on 44-year-old, Harjeet Lal, UAE daily 7Days reported.
Three weeks before the hotel opened to guests on Sept 24, a major fire almost destroyed the lobby and required its dome roof to be replaced.
Other teething problems include hours of no water and protests from activists to free the whale shark that is the main attraction at the hotel’s aquarium.
(Written by Mona Moussly) |
