VISITING OUE SKYSPACE – TOO MUCH FOR MY NERVES?
Remember that time I talked about my girlfriends from Germany visiting me? Yes, I know, it’s been a while, and I don’t want to leave you hanging any longer. So today I am back and ready to share another fun LA adventure with you that you might want to try yourself one day, if you haven’t already.
You might have heard about OUE Skyspace, which Google describes as an “Open-air observation deck providing 360-degree views of the city & a unique glass slide.” I was quite intrigued when my friends told me they wanted to check out this sightseeing hotspot. I had seen reports about the slide before on national television, but I had never gotten close in real life.
I knew that it was going to be a challenge for me, as I am afraid of heights, but I still wanted to keep an open mind. That morning of our day trip to LA, we were all in a good mood. I still debated on going up there or not, but I didn’t want to come to any conclusions before actually seeing the space.
Once we arrived in Downtown Los Angeles, I got to catch a closer look at the US Bank building in which Skyspace is located. It was TALL! The slide looked so tiny, and what completely freaked me out was the fact that it was completely translucent, from the top, to the sides, to the bottom. The thought of being able to look down on the busy streets of Downtown from the 70th floor of the building made me cringe.
We entered the building and went straight to the ticket counter. That was the point where I actually had to make the decision: to slide or not to slide. Since I was the first one in line, I just went ahead and gave into what my gut was telling me that morning: don’t do it. My friends were much braver and all decided to at least give it a try while I just purchased a ticket for the observation deck.
Speaking of tickets, the prices to visit Skyspace differ depending on where you buy them (online might be a bit cheaper) and if you do both the observation deck and slide or not. I ended up paying $25, while my friends had to pay an additional $8 for using the slide (you can only use it once for that price, or you have to purchase additional tickets).
Once all of us had received our tickets, we made our way up the first elevator to go up to a different floor, which served as an entertaining educational space with facts about the city of Los Angeles plastered along its walls. From there, we took another elevator to go all the way up to the observation deck. Once we stepped foot out of that elevator and walked onto the deck, I was blown away.
The view I witnessed from up there was mesmerizing. I can’t describe it, you have to see it. The concrete jungle that is Downtown Los Angeles seemed so quiet and peaceful from that 69th floor. It was amazing! Luckily, we decided to visit this attraction first thing in the morning when it opened, so it wasn’t too crowded yet.
After our first encounter with the breathtaking views onto the city, we embarked our way via stairs up to check out the slide close-up. When I saw it, I felt relieved to have taken the decision of sitting this one out. I was more than happy to play photographer for my friends instead, capturing the moments they came sliding down, joy and fun displayed in their faces.
Once each and every one of them had their turn going down, we explored the observation deck more. On the glass wall was a pair of Collette Miller’s angel wings, which is a very popular photo prop that a ton of people post on Instagram. Of course we had to take pictures with them as well before we went back inside to walk around to the other side of the floor.
On the opposite side of the popular observation deck we discovered another outside space, which was much smaller but had another pair of angel wings painted on its glass wall. Since there were barely any other people on that side of the Skyspace, we each took our time taking more pictures and enjoying the view from there.
OUE Skyspace is definitely worth a visit, even if you don’t want to go on the slide. You will still be rewarded with amazing views and a pretty cool atmosphere. Only downfall, in my opinion, is the price, but other than that, I am glad I got to see Los Angeles from a different perspective.
Images: Anne-Kathrin Schulte
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Anne-Kathrin Schulte is a contributor for CaliforniaGermans.com. She writes about her personal experience of the American Dream as well as about working as an au pair in CA. She was born and grew up in Düsseldorf, Germany, where she completed her degree as a state-approved Kindergarten teacher. After her au pair engagement in the US and a quick return to Germany, she decided to attend university in California and moved back to the United States. She has been living in Southern California since 2011.
If you would like to contact Anne-Kathrin, please send an email to californiagermans(at)gmail.com and place her name in the subject line.
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