Want a rush of adrenaline with your morning swim? Ballymore developers have unveiled an amazing transparent "sky pool" that'll make swimmers feel like they're floating through the air in London. Described as the "first of its kind in the world," the daring sky pool will be suspended 10-stories high between two apartment buildings in the Embassy Gardens development. The 25-meters-long swimming pool will be enclosed with 20 santimeter thick glass to give swimmers an unrivaled view of the streets of London 35 meters down below. Despite the sky pool's daredevil appearance, Ballymore says the pool has been granted planning permission and, like its renderings, will be entirely transparent and structure-free. The pool was designed by engineering firm Arup Associates with specialist advice from marine design engineers Eckersley O' Callaghan and aquarium designers Reynolds. The amazing structure will be developed as part of the HAL-designed 2,000-home Embassy Gardens in the new Nine Elms quarter that's currently under construction. The swimming pool will allow residents to swim between the two luxuries apartment buildings, which are both topped by sky decks with a bar, spa, orangery, and dramatic views of the Palace of Westminster. Residents who prefer not to swim can also get across via a footbridge. The proposed structure is 25 meters long, 5 meters wide, and nearly 3 meters deep, and was modeled after an aquarium. Sadly, not everyone will have the opportunity to swim through the air-units in the Embassy Gardens cost upwards of USD$ 944 thousand. The Embassy Gardens development is slated for completion in 2017.

Koen Olthuis and Dutch Docklands have announced a new project: a five-star floating hotel off the coast of Norway named the Krystall. Reminiscent of their Maldives development the Greenstar, this cold-climate sister project will take the form of a six-pointed ice crystal. As with Dutch Docklands' other floating structures the development will be low-impact, and it's designed to "blend in with the "winter environment" between the most beautiful fjords." The Krystall will float offshore from the northern city of Tromso, located within the Arctic Circle. Designed to be completely self-supporting and self-sustainable, the hotel will have a diameter of 120 meters, and facilities will include 86 guest rooms, conference rooms, and spa and wellness facilities. It's also billed as a perfect spot for viewing the Northern Lights due to its glass roof. The five-star luxury and spectacular nature of the project is aimed at attracting wealthy visitors from Japan, Russia and Europe. As Olthuis told CNN, "In the hotel, you'll float through hallways lined with cool, futuristic blue shapes, recline by a fireplace faced in transparent bricks resembling ice blocks and sleep in rooms tricked out in minimalist, winter-themed designs." But true to Olthuis's green principles, the design is not just about the aesthetics. To be built in dry dock and then positioned in place, the hotel will not leave a lasting footprint on its location. "That's the only way to bring a hotel to such a precious and beautiful marine environment," he says. Floating structures are a pragmatic design concern for the development company, as they ameliorate the risks to coastal properties associated with rising sea levels. As Olthuis explains, "We live in a dynamic world where static buildings do not bring us the needed flexibility. Building on water brings us new space for expansion, safety against floods and flexibility to adjust developments without demolition whenever needed." The hotel is set to open in December 2016.

The Dancing House, designed by Croatian-born Czech architect Vlado Milunic and American Frank Gehry, one of the most original and highly acclaimed post-communist buildings in Prague, has been sold for US$ 18 million. Its new owner is the Prague Real Estate Administration company of businessman Vaclav Skala. Some ten investors, mostly from the Czech Republic, were interested in this iconic building. The Dancing House, dubbed also Ginger and Fred (after the famous dancers Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers) as it is shaped like a dancing couple, was completed on the embankment in the city center in 1996. It was awarded the Design of the year 1996 prize of the American Time magazine. The previous owner was the CBRE Global Investors Company, which acquired the building in 2011 after taking over the European and Asian assets of the ING Real Estate Investment Management firm. The modern house was built on an empty plot after a block of flats that was damaged by the U.S bombing of Prague at the end of World War II. The interiors of the offices in the nine-stores Dancing House were partially designed by Czech architect Eva Jiricna, living in Britain. Each floor is different thanks to the irregular shape of the building. The Dancing House offers 2965 square meters of offices on six floors, a restaurant (679 square meters) on the top floor and a conference center (400 square meters) on the ground floor and in the basement.