No explanation is needed to explain that what you are looking at here is the internationally recognized stunning skyline of beautiful downtown Fort Worth, as seen from the old wagon trail that heads west from the top of Mount Tandy to where the west supposedly began.
This morning whilst listening to The Bert Show on the radio Bert out of the blue said something about some international survey had picked the Dallas skyline as the best in the world.
Bert seemed a bit bum puzzled by this, naming off some other cities one might think would be more recognized, like New York City or Paris. Actually I think Bert only mentioned Paris, because I recollect thinking to myself does Paris have an internationally recognized skyline other than that big tower that towers high above all that surrounds it.
Soon after learning from Bert that Dallas has the world's Best Skyline I Googled "Dallas skyline" to quickly learn that this skyline survey happened a year ago, some joint operation between USA TODAY and something called 10Best picking the Best International Skyline.
If this was a USA TODAY operation would that not tend to skew the results to being American skylines, I thought to myself. Then I clicked the link to the 10Best article about the
Best International Skylines to see the entire Top Ten.
- Dallas
- Chicago
- Rio de Janeiro
- Toronto
- New York
- Washington, D.C.
- St. Louis
- Hong Kong
- San Francisco
- Seattle
What about Tokyo? Vancouver? Sydney? Kuala Lumpur? And no town in Europe has an internationally recognized skyline?
And what about Fort Worth? How can Fort Worth not be on this list? Show a photo of the stunning skyline of beautiful downtown Fort Worth to just about anyone in the world and they are going to instantly be able to tell you what town they are looking at, what with its iconic tower and skyscrapers.
From the USA TODAY 10Best article let's look at the skyline photos used for Dallas and Seattle and the accompanying explanatory blurb.
"Dallas became initially identifiable by the opening credits of an infamous '80s TV show," says expert Preston Kissman. "The contemporary Dallas skyline tells a story of big banking, big oil, big money, and the occasional big bust." James Adams add, "Dallas has continued to stay flashy. Controversially, it has done this not with the height or style of its newest architecture, but rather through an internal race to adorn its existing and new icons with colorful interactive lighting that cannot be ignored."
Where is this view of the skyline of Dallas looking across what looks like a big lake? Or is that the Trinity River? That is not the iconic view of the Dallas skyline as seen on the infamous soap opera's opening credits. You need to shift the view to the left for that, so as to get a more straight on look at the Reunion Tower.
And now the #10 Best International Skyline.
Mt. Rainier appears in the distance, looming behind the cosmopolitan Seattle skyline, giving this city a connection with the outdoors that's as refreshing as a cool breeze," says our expert Preston Kissman. The Space Needle adds to the list of reasons this USA skyline is beloved and identifiable.
Visit downtown Dallas and you really do not see much water, certainly not the view you see in the Dallas skyline photo above.
Visit downtown Seattle and you are surrounded by water. Elliot Bay and Puget Sound to the right, in the photo, Lake Union to the left, Lake Washington further to the left. Yet we see no water in this photo of the Seattle skyline. If you visit Seattle you also will not see the Space Needle towering over the skyline like you see above, because the Space Needle does not tower above the skyline. I think you have to be on Queen Anne Hill and use a telephoto lens to create what is known as the
Frasier view of downtown Seattle. The structure to the far right of the Space Needle is now known as Key Arena. During the World's Fair it was the Washington State Pavilion.
I think it was likely the Seattle World's Fair that amped up Seattle's world wide recognition. At that point in time, 1962, the Smith Tower and the Space Needle were the tallest structures in town. There were no skyscrapers. A few years after the World's Fair ended what was then known as the Seafirst Tower became Seattle's first modern skyscraper. It looked a bit ridiculous, standing all alone. It was quickly referred to as the Box the Needle came in.
The Seafirst Tower was not alone for long. By the end of the 1960s Seattle had a skyline of skyscrapers.
Maybe Fort Worth could host a World's Fair. Wouldn't that be something? Maybe to celebrate the completion of the Trinity River Central City Uptown Panther Island Vision, also known as America's Biggest Boondoggle, if that much needed economic and flood control development is ever completed.
Then again, a World's Fair does not always bring about earth shaking changes to the town it takes place in. San Antonio had a World's Fair a few years after Seattle's, with the San Antonio World's Fair also featuring a tower with a rotating restaurant, I think, at the top. I don't think many people world-wide recognize the Tower of the Americas and associate it with San Antonio.
Vancouver had the last successful World's Fair in North America, way back in 1986. Vancouver was left with some remarkable structures, one of which is now a cruise ship terminal, but nothing that has become an iconic symbol of Vancouver. Vancouver is on the world's radar though, maybe not so much for its recognized skyline, but for hosting the aforementioned successful World's Fair, that and hosting a successful Winter Olympics.
Maybe Fort Worth could make a bid to host a Winter Olympics, have a successful hosting, and thus gain itself some international recognition. Yes, I can really see that happening. Just like I can really see America's Biggest Boondoggle coming to any sort of fruitful fruition....
