In the sky
Critics of Toronto Mayor Rob Ford pooh-poohed his vision for a giant Ferris wheel and megamall on the city’s waterfront. But that hasn’t deterred developers from announcing plans for the world’s tallest Ferris wheel in New York. To open in 2015 on Staten Island, the New York Wheel will be taller than Singapore’s Flyer and the planned High Roller in Las Vegas. It will be anchored by a 100-store fashion mall and it will operate through the winter months, something many Torontonians thought impossible.
On the seas
Norwegian Cruise Line is promising a range of innovative fitness options when it launches the 4,000-passenger Norwegian Breakaway next May. Boxing fans will be able to spar with an avatar or take lessons at the Freestyle Fight Klub. Cyclists can pedal spinning bikes to throbbing music in a room lit by black lights and neon. There will also be fitness classes developed by the Rockettes, New York’s famed precision dance group. The city will be the ship’s home port.
At the museum
Norway’s just-opened contemporary art museum is a stunning addition to Oslo’s new waterfront district of Tjuvholmen. Designed by Renzo Piano, who worked on the Pompidou Museum in Paris and the new Shard tower in London, it sits on the edge of a fjord. The Astrup Fearnley Museum is built of wood, has a curved glass roof and consists of two halves separated by water. It comes with its own beach, sculpture park and a tower with views over the city.
Source: Reuters, Norwegian Caribbean Line, Astrup Fearnley Museum
