It's been a couple of years since the start of the construction of the award-winning Shimao Wonderland Intercontinental, the world's first luxury hotel built in an 80m deep, water-filled quarry next to the Tianma Mountain in Songjiang district of Shanghai.

Currently under construction, this five-star luxury hotel has 19-storeys in which seventeen are below the ground level with two underwater floors, while the remaining two upper floors are above the quarry.

SHAREDA and its SHAREDA Youth members had the privilege to visit the site yesterday, 19 April. The developer, Shanghai Shimao Group has appointed one of China's largest contractors, China State Construction Engineering Company (CSCEC) to develop this hotel. The company introduced 38 new technologies, 8 of which were invented and globally patented for the construction of this development.

CSCEC has been appointed by several developers in Kota Kinabalu to build and tackle development projects. The company has brought in some of these technologies and experiences to the local Sabah developers. Jesselton Twin Towers, by Jesselton Waterfront Holdings has appointed this conglomerate to develop their residential towers.

Once complete, it will have around 380-400 rooms, large conference rooms, a ballroom, restaurants, swimming pool and a big swimming pool. There are two underwater floors, from which the lower floor offers water-sports facilities and houses a restaurant, facing an aquarium with a depth of ten meters. Prominent technologies have also been implemented for sustainability and for the use of renewable energy, making it an eco-friendly building.

Chinese architecture has always been the strangest and very elaborate, such as the giant crab-shaped building being constructed, the Olympic birds nest stadium to name a few but this innovative concept is one of its kind in the world of underground architecture and design.