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Happy Valentine`s Day, everyone. I`m Carl Azuz. Welcome to another lovely edition of
CNN STUDENT NEWS.
Time for "The Shoutout." Acrophobia is the fear of what? If you think you know it, shout
it out! Is it ice, spiders, dancing or heights? You`ve got three seconds, go!
If you dread heights, you might just be acrophobic and you wouldn`t want the job we`re about
to describe. That`s your answer and that`s your shoutout.
And that`s because it`s at the world`s tallest building. Not near the bottom of it, not indoors.
The Burj Khalifa stands more than half a mile high. It`s located in Dubai, United Arab Emirates,
a place that`s no stranger to sand storms. How do they keep it clean?
When they built the world`s tallest building, Dubai`s Burj Khalifa, it was covered in 24,000
separate panels of glass. Dipak Ghal`s job is keeping them clean.
"The work is interesting, and the view is beautiful," he tells me. Dipak is one of around
60 migrant workers, mostly from Nepal, India and the Philippines who clean windows here.
And in this dusty desert climate, there is plenty of work for them.
They start at the very tip top.
We`re standing on the 159th floor of the Burj Khalifa. That`s about 35 stories higher than
most tourists get to go. It doesn`t sound that high, perhaps. But if you come over here,
take a look over the edge, I think you might change your mind.
It`s more than 2700 feet, or nearly a kilometer straight down, certainly not a job for the
faint of heart, especially when you`re repelling.
Dipak had never seen a building even half this height before, let alone climbed one.
But his brother said he should leave Katmandu and give it a try. Safety comes first. And
while they trust their equipment, harnesses and ropes are checked and double checked.
Wind speed is also measured. Because up here, one big gust could be dangerous.
"The wind can toss you around the building, from right to left, "He says. "If it`s too
strong, we don`t work that day."
When the inspections are done, they step out over the edge and deep down to business.
It will take those three months to clean each and every window and then they start all over
again. The building`s contractor, though, says, rope access is still the most efficient
way to get the job done. For Dipak, it`s also a decent living. As a new recruit, he can
make over $600 a month, much more than he`d earned as a construction worker building skyscrapers
like this one.
"My mom always asks me why I do this. And says it looks dangerous," he tells me. She
wants me to come back to Nepal and get a regular job, but I tell them no, no, no. I like it.
And this is a good living.
And he says, just another day at the office.
Jon Jensen, CNN, Dubai.