If, with its recession, 2009 is the year we already hope to forget, then 2008 will be one to bundle up and hold tight. It could well mark a halt to the construction of innovative new eye-catching buildings, at least for a while.

So as Paul Goldberger of the New Yorker puts it in his architectural top 10: "For now, let's take pleasure in those projects that were started in that ancient era when the Dow was at twelve thousand, and we thought the fun would go on forever."

1. Beijing National Stadium (Bird's Nest) 

Hip hop mogul Jay-Z's dreams of adding hotelier to his lengthy resume have been killed off by the credit crunch.

Mr Beyonce had planned to build a luxury hotel on a piece of land purchased by his company J Hotels in New York City's Chelsea area.

But because of the economic crisis, construction has been iced as developer Charles Blaichmanof struggles to raise finance from banks.

Jay-Z won't be crying into his Dom Perignon for long - he has his New York club 40/40 and a club in Las Vegas' Venetian hotel to keep him happy.

Oh, and he just sold his Rocawear line to Iconix Brand Group for US$204m.

Next month engineers will battle with St Mark's Square's famous pigeons to prop up Venice's own leaning tower.

The great Campanile has shifted several millimetres in the past 50 years and could eventually collapse, like it did unexpectedly in 1902.

Engineers blame corrosion of the 98m medievel tower's wooden foundations for the slant, saying Venice's high tides are the cause - not pigeon poo.

The team has been on the job since February 2007 but have taken a break over the past two months to negotiate bringing heavy machinery into the popular St Mark's Square.

While the tower will remain open during the works - which are expected to take two years - the square will probably won't be as pleasant a place as usual.

A beachside tower originally intended to look like a flower has bloomed in Vietnam after four years of drawn-out construction.

Construction of the Tram Huong (aloe wood) Tower in Nha Trang, a popular tourist area, was started by the government in 2004, in the hopes to make it a symbol of the city.

But it all ground to a halt in October 2005 when people started complaining it looked "weird" and wasn't right for the area.

Earlier this year private firm Vinpearl took over construction, handing it back to the area's tourism authority.

Could you imagine how many half-finished buildings the UK would have if the government listened to people complaining of "weirdness"?

A Bovis Lend Lease site manager has been charged along with two others and a subcontracting firm over the death of firefighters killed in a blaze at New York's Ground Zero.

Robert Beddia, 53, and Joseph Graffagnino, 33, both died battling a fire on 18 August 2007 at the former Deutsche Bank building, which was scheduled for demolition after being damaged in the September 11 terrorist attacks.

Indicted on manslaughter charges are demolition subcontractor John Galt Corporation, Bovis site safety supervisor Jeffrey Melofchik, Galt executive Mitchell Alvo and Galt foreman Salvatore DePaola.

All defendents have pleaded not guilty but could face jail sentences of 15 years if convicted.

Main contractor Bovis escaped any charges.

Announcing the charges this week, Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau said regulations had been overhauled: "It's amazing the number of mistakes made. That's why we made a special effort to change the whole environment."

Civilian inspectors will be added to the Fire Department to monitor buildings being built and demolished, while Bovis promised to add staff and train workers in fire safety and establish a US$10m fund for the firefighters' families.

The deadly blaze was started by a discarded cigarette on the building's 17th floor and raged out of control quicky.

Firefighters in attendance had trouble with water supply as they did not realise a key water pipe supplying the building had been cut.

The pipe, originally held in place by hangers attached to rods hanging from the ceiling, was hard to clean so supervisors sawed off the rods, letting part of the pipe break away.

"As a result, firefighters rushed into the building with no idea of the obstacles they would face in fighting the fire," Morgenthau said.

Morgenthau also blasted the city building department for failing to enforce contractors' compliance with rules. Inspectors never went to the basement and looked at the break in the water pipe and didn't make sure stairwells were cleared.

This year I've taken a hammer and some nails to my usual Christmas stocking in the hopes that Santa delivers this hefty tome.

The Phaidon Atlas of 21st Century World Architecture is a monumental altar at which one may worship modern architecture.

The 800-page bible shows off 1,000 of the most outstanding projects built since the year 2000, putting paid to the notion that the present is inferior to the past.

It not only shows off the creativity of today's architects but also the cutting-edge construction processes and materials used in these iconic buildings.

One great project highlighted is the Sussex East Beach Cafe (left), which manages to look like a piece of driftwood washed up on the beach.

Design practice Heatherwick Studio used a pre-fabricated mild steel shell for the exterior of the building, which will rust and gain character as it ages.

There are some football teams that, after a bad game, probably wish the ground would just open up and swallow them.

Well, last week in Indianapolis, the former home of the Indianapolis Colts did just that - imploding in just 25 seconds.

Demolition crews used 875 charges to blow the 24-year-old RCA Dome (pictured in its heyday) up to make way for an expanded convention centre.

Lucky for us, one of the locals caught all the action on camera. This is a particularly brilliant piece of cinematography. Oscars for the girl screaming "Oh my Gawd!" and the music towards the end.

Sweltering under the summer sun will be sooo 2009 when Dubai's Palazzo Versace opens its own refrigerated beach in 2010.

The luxury hotel is planning a refrigerated swimming pool and a beach with artificially cool sand to protect its guests from 50°C temperatures.

A system of coolant-filled pipes buried under the sand will absorb the heat, while wind machines will provide a gentle breeze.

Soheil Abedian, founder and president of the luxury hotel brand, says the sand will be cool enough to lie on which "is the kind of luxury top people want".

While the refrigerated sand might cool high-end hoofs, environmentalists are seeing red.

Robin Oakley, head of climate and energy at Greenpeace UK has accused Dubai of being stuck in a time warp: "While Abu Dhabi, like Barack Obama, is betting on green technology as the engine for growth the century and even building a zero-emissions city, Dubai is apparently still stuck in the 1980s".

Hyder Consulting, the British firm behind the cooling project, has apparently signed a confidentiality agreement not to reveal the energy required by the project.

This interesting article claims there is a lack of outspoken environmentalists in Dubai to keep a check on some of the emirates more audacious schemes.

There are some places you just want to work, and top of that list is this proposed Madrid bank designed by Beijing Bird's Nest stars Herzog & de Meuron.

Looking a bit like a pull top on a submerged can, this super-sustainable head office promises all employees a room with a view.

The main structure is just three storeys high and is broken up by alleys that play host to lost of lush plants and trees.

Each desk has a view of these greeneries, which form a bit of a microclimate.

Rising from the ocean of green, is the main tower.

What is particularly great about this office block is that it could flip office rules on its head - it seems the lower you are in the building, the better the view!

Anything Europe can do, the UAE can do better - or so wacky construction plans in the Middle East suggest.

The latest scheme generating plenty of buzz is Abu Dhabi's Capital Gate development, which will be four times as crooked as the Leaning Tower of Pisa.

Developed by Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Company in conjunction with RMJM, the tower leans westwards a mammoth 18 degrees - mammoth when compared to the Leaning Tower, which leans less than 4 degrees.

The tower's giant lean has made construction and design a challenge - it is being built on top of an incredible dense mesh of reinforced steel that sits above 490 piles drilled 30m underground to minimise gravitational pressures.

The UAE has taken on Europe's best-loved landmarks before - with Dubai building a replica Eiffel Tower at its Falconcity of Wonders development.

Could this be one of the most eye-catching, if not ambitious and creative schemes of the year?

Designed by MVRDV, this is a concept for a new town south of Seoul, South Korea that would be completely self-sustaining for its 77,000 residents (more pics).

Envisaged as a city built in tall, staligmite, hill-like rings; Gwanggyo is presently being reviewed for development and feasibility.

As part of the concept, the city would be built in terraces lined with lush box hedges that improve ventilation while reducing energy and water usage.

The terraces would be fed by a floor-to-floor circulation system that stores water for irrigation.

MVRDV told Inhabit.com: "This diverse programme has different needs for phasing, positioning and size.

"To facilitate this all elements are designed as rings. By pushing these rings outwards, every part of the programme receives a terrace for outdoor life."

Hopefully this incredible city will go ahead. Development is said to be expected to be finished in 2011, with construction to start shortly after.

Despite what Asia is describing as a "financial tsunami", work is well underway on the construction of the tallest tower in China's Shenzen.

The 439m skyscraper will dubiously be named Kingkey Financial Centre (try saying that quickly) and soar above the city's financial district when finished in 2010.

Designed by Terry Farrell and Partners, the un-kinky design features a slim-line, luminous glass tower that tapers to an arched peak.

It will feature the usual shops and offices we always see but the top four floors will feature a sky garden for visitors.

Work on the buildings foundations have started and next year should see the tower start to rise from the ground - provided Asia's credit-crunch tsunami doesn't take the city with it.

A Bangladeshi film-maker lacking in originality has come up with a novel solution to his country's lack of tourism landmarks - copy someone else's.

Ahsanulla Moni is overseeing the construction of a replica of India's Taj Mahal in Sonargaon, outside of Dhaka.

While the original Taj Mahal took 20 years to build, the film-maker's version has taken about five years and has cost about £39m.

Part of a giant movie set, the copycat landmark was built using 160kg of bronze, marble and granite from Italy and diamonds from Belgium.

Dismissing claims he has no imagination, Moni said Bangladeshis could not "afford to go to Agra to see the Taj, so I am bringing the Taj to them".

Finishing touches are being put on the building, while work is yet to be completed on surrounding ponds and gardens.

Not interested in making friends in the playground, Japan has decided to build a free-standing tower to rival France's Eiffel Tower and Canada's CN Tower.

The Asian nation has started construction of a 611m telecommunications tower that will stand 57m higher than the CN Tower and will have a design that some hope could become as iconic as the Eiffel Tower.

Named the Tokyo Sky Tree, the tower is being built in Sumida, Tokyo and was designed by Tadao Ando.

The base of the tower is shaped as a triangle and moves to circular as it progresses upwards. There will be observation decks at 350m and 450m.

Its supporters hope this varied appearance will give the tower iconic status.

Its location was under dispute for many years, as local politicians argued where the most earthquake-safe place to build it would be. Let's hope they got it right.

The Batman movie, Barack Obama and plans for a new skyscraper have seen Chicago named City of the Year.

The US city was awarded the mantle by that serious, analytical magazine GQ, which in the past has also named gun-toting rapper 50 Cent as man of the year.

GQ cites Barack Obama's election victory and the city's role as the backdrop in the latest Batman movie The Dark Night for reasons why it rocks.

The magazine also tips its hat to the proposed Chicago Spire - even though construction has ground to a halt, like many tall building projects in the city.

California's governator Arnold Schwarzenegger is right now penning an irate letter to the mag, listing the 4,398 movies filmed in Los Angeles this week and containing blueprints for a 100m statue of Brangelina.

Turkmenistan isn't known for much. In fact, it isn't even easy to find on a map.

But the Central Asian nation has embarked on the construction of an eye-catching building that could just bump up its ranking in Lonely Planet.

Work has started on a 211m TV Tower in the country's capital of Ashgabat that will resemble an eight pointed star atop a 24-storey building.

The construction site is 1020m above sea level on the crest of a mountain and will easily become the region's biggest landmark.

Once completed in three years, most digital transmission facilities will be moved to the TV Tower, which will also feature an observation deck, revolving restaurant and a mall.

In what is probably best described as blind optimism, Liverpool midfielder Steven Gerrard has signed a deal that will see a Dubai development named in his honour.

Azizi Investments will name its £150m luxury development the Steven Gerrard Tower and give the footballer a £1m penthouse apartment for letting them.

No word when the project will be completed. But Gerrard's Merseyside neighbours must be hoping he relocates permanently to Dubai after he built a massive £350,000 gym in his backyard.

Let's just hope the building isn't delayed five years during Dubai's downturn - the locals might end up asking "Steven who?"

For what started out as simple as a fallen log across a river, bridges have come a long way.

They're the superstars of the engineering world, sometimes the biggest celebrity in a city's skyline and push forward incredible economic and social development.

Because we've all drooled over the Golden Gate Bridge, the Brooklyn Bridge and that engineering masterpiece the Millau Viaduct - this is a list of some of the world's more unusual bridges.

Check out 18 others here.

5. Erasmusbrug Bridge, Rotterdam, Netherlands

Nicknamed "the swan", this cable stayed bridge crosses the Nieuwe Maas river in Rotterdam and was designed by Ben van Berkel.

Completed in 1996, the 808m long bridge has a 139m high asymmetrical pylon.

Its southern span also has an 89m long bascule bridge for ships that cannot fit underneath the bridge - and this bascule is the largest and heaviest in western Europe.

4. Hangzhou Bay Bridge, Zhejiang, China

At more than 36km long, the Hangzhou Bay Bridge is the longest trans-oceanic bridge in the world and is 'S' shaped to stop drivers from falling asleep.

The bridge has two spans - one 448m and another at 318m and will last more than 100 years thanks to the use of an orthotropic steel deck on its main spans and ramps.

Its 'S' shape and flashing lights not only keeps bored drivers alert, but is also supposed to protect the bridge from an annual tidal wave that affects the area.

3. Leonardo's Bridge, Norway

Conceived by Italian master Leonardo da Vinci, this striking bridge took almost 500 years to be realised.

The 100m long bridge is the first of the master's civil engineering designs to be built and stands in the small town of As in southern Norway.

It was considered impossible to build in da Vinci's time but was made a reality in 2001 by Norwegian painter and public art creator Vebjørn Sand who was struck by its simplicity.

2. Magdeburg Water Bridge, Magdeburg, Germany

First conceived in 1919, the construction of this navigable aqueduct water bridge was derailed by World War II and then then splitting of Germany into two.

But in 2003 the vision of connecting two important shipping canals through a bridge over the River Elbe was finally realised.

The canal spans 690m over land and 228m over water and links the Elbe-Havel Canal and the Midland Canal.

1. Henderson Waves, Singapore

While you actually cannot drive over this shapely pedestrian bridge, it is worth battling Singapore's traffic to get close enough to hike it.

The Henderson Wave bridge is the highest pedestrian bridge in Singapore at 36m high and links up the parks at Mount Feber and Telok Blangah Hill.

It opened in May 2008 and is already the talk of the town with its great views and stunning curves.

This is the latest building materminded by that World Trade Centre genius Daniel Libeskind - a sustainable tower that wears its "green" heart on its sleeve.

The 54-storey tower is proposed at 1 Madison Avenue, New York, next to the Met Life building and would feature sky gardens dripping from an otherwise steel and glass facade.

Revealed in Libeskind's book Counterpoint, the designs show a glass-curtained tube with cutaways spiralling up and around the facade to reveal garden terraces.

The terraces will be part of the apartments, allowing residents to enjoy the greenery as much as passersby.

"It is as if nature has come back into the city," NY Magazine quotes Libeskind as saying.

While the project could have exciting implications for construction, architecture and sustainability - it hasn't been approved yet.

"The assumption is that by the time construction starts, we're going to be looking at a different economy," Lloyd Kaplan, an Elad spokesman, said.

It isn't turning out to be the best year for mega-rich, hair-challenged celebrity property tycoon Donald Trump.

When he isn't rubbing $100 bills into his hair or pondering the state of the world on his gold toilet, he's watching the property market plummet faster than his skyscrapers can go up.

His latest venture - the Trump Tower and International Hotel in Dubai - has been delayed as developer Nakheel reigns in its spending.

The tower was to be the centrepiece of Palm Jumeriah and ultra-posh. One buyer offered US$3,000 per square foot for a penthouse in the building.

But it seems Nakheel is feeling the impact of the economic downturn and will also delay work on projects including Frond N villas, Gateway Towers and schemes at the Waterfront and the Palm Jebel Ali.

It isn't the first Trump project hit by the downturn in recent times. Trump is also in trouble in Chicago where he is building another super-tall building.

Keeping with the theme of things going boom, a conman has been jailed after persuading a government to blow up its own police headquarters.

Ultra-slick Zheng Ze - with his cigars, eight sunglass-clad body guards and limousine - seemed like the perfect Hong Kong entrepreneur to officials in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia.

So much so they demolished a four-year-old building and another after he promised to build western China's tallest skyscraper - the 169m Golden Eagle International CBD Centre.

Unfortunately Ze was actually humble carpenter Wang Xiniu with six identities, six wives and six companies.

It wasn't until the demolition dust settled that the city learned the conman had earned £180m in development loans by pulling similar stunts elsewhere.

They also found his company Golden Eagle Developments, registered in Hong Kong, had less than £7,000 in assets and no staff.

He's since been sentenced to life in jail, explaining his philosophy: "Get in good with big leaders, hold up big banners, and make big money.

"My law is this: find out a leader's weak point, and I can unsettle a city."

Having a bad day? Then just imagine being a demolition worker on this job.

Chinese engineers used 190 tonnes of explosives to blow up a temporary barrier used during construction of the Three Gorges Dam.

The massive blast created more than 170,000 cubic metres of concrete fragments and unleashed the full force of the Yangtze River upon the world's largest hydroelectric project.

And here's betting it made any workers frustrated with the fillings in their sandwiches or angry at their low pay - feel instantly better.

While the detonate button was pushed way back in 2006, the blast still rates as the world's toughest demolition job.

I just wonder, as a worker, how do you ever top the job where you blasted a 500m long dam sky-high?