Not long ago, Abu Dhabi was a very horizontal city. The typical downtown building was about six stories high. The typical building away from downtown and the beach was about three stories.

The tallest building in the city, when it was completed in 2006, was the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority Tower, on the Corniche, at 185 meters — or 606 feet.

Nine years later, that building is not in Abu Dhabi’s top 10 skyscrapers.

We have been here for five-plus years, and even in that time we have seen the horizon change dramatically, as The National noted for editions of tomorrow.

The story lacks a bit of focus; a box of the 10 tallest buildings would have been handy.

So we will do one for you.

1. Burj Mohammed bin Rashid, 382 meters (1,253 feet, which is a serious tower, even by New York or Dubai standards).

2. Landmark Tower, 324 meters (1,063 feet).

3. Sky Tower, 310 meters (1,017 feet).

4. Etihad Tower 2, 305 meters (1,001 feet).

5. Etihad Tower 1, 278 meters (912 feet).

6. Nations Tower Residential, 268 meters (879 feet).

7. Etihad Tower 3, 260 (853 feet).

8-9-10. The Gate Towers, each of which are 230 meters (754 feet).

Now that you have the list, the linked story is worth reading because it notes that several of the towers are also architectural triumphs. Including two towers that did not make the top 10 but are very distinctive and easily spotted from a distance — the Al Bahr Towers, at 145 meters, which is plenty high, but they are notable for their pineapple-like external coverings, which open and shut, depending on the direction of the sun, to warm or mostly) cool the buildings.

I mentioned a few weeks ago that things seem to be heating up here, and the skyline is an easy to see example of that.

Actually, we will have a new No. 2 on the “tallest” list when the Adnoc Headquarters tower, at 342 meters, is completed in a few months.