Part 1: In Our Mother-Daughter Era

                       

In early December Anya and I finally embarked on a year long anticipated trip to see Taylor Swift in Vancouver, Canada.  Anya had received the trip as gift one year in Dec. 2023 and we had been dreaming and planning for well over a year.  Our bags were finally packed, our outfits safely in our carry-on, and friendship bracelets made.  We headed out of Saskatoon vibrating with excitement and anticipation.  Today's post is completely going to be dedicated to our Swifty experience and next weeks post will be dedicated to the rest of our Vancouver/Victoria trip.  

The best thing about this trip for me was having the privilege to be there to witness Anya's joy and first experience of this magnitude.  Watching Anya connecting with people, exchanging bracelets, and her watching her as Gracie Abrams stepped on the stage realize that this was actually happening.  And then when the countdown happened and Taylor walked out and she just couldn't believe this was her real life.  Seeing her tears of joy is the greatest gift I could ask for.  Let's jump in!

Travel Outfits were T.Swift merch of course.  We choose not to stand in the long line-ups for merch, instead we hit up the Taylor Swift website and our hoodies came in time and in the size we wanted.  This was the way to do it rather than standing in lines for hours and then you might or not get what you want, in the size you want.  Anya opted for the ERAs cream colored hoodie and I went rogue and bought the Cruel Summer crew neck that I absolutely love, and its one of my top five favorite T.Swift songs.  People, these are very good quality, super soft, well structured and well made and worth the $75-98.  We wear them all the time.

From the minute we landed there was a buzz in the city in anticipation of the last three concert of the ERAS tour.  The city was SWIFTY-fied at every corner and turn.  The hotels went the extra mile to decorate the lobbies  with photo-opps, customized drinks, bracelet making opportunities and the city had so many places to get your SWIFTY pictures taken.  

The best thing about the city was the FRIENDLINESS and sense of COMMODARIE amongst the people.  If strangers noticed your bracelets or your merch, people immediately started chatting, exchanging stories, favorite songs, the journey to get tickets and the absolute joy of it all.  People hugged.  People smiled.  People wished you well.  It's completely opposite of most things we see now in our society.  Taylor Swift has brought a sense of community to people and that's beautiful.  My sister, who isn't in the least a Swifty, said she was floored by the kindness of total strangers,  connected by their love for Taylor Swift, and she said she was thankful to witness it even though she wasn't at the concert.  Everywhere we went we met people and were taking in all the T. Swift magic.

Anya created her REPUTATION outfit 100% independently, recycling old dance costumes, hitting up the dollar store and she used an old pair of combat boots.  Although she doesn't love me taking her picture, she did pose for a few but they truly don't do justice to the outfit she recreated, down to the glittery snake drawn with glitter glue, to the bejeweled combat boots that took hours and hours to create.  She also got some gold snake accessories to round out her outfit.

I on the other hand found my dress for $25 on Marketplace!  It had me at fringe, gold, silver and all the sparkle.  I borrowed a pair of silver sparkly boots from a co-worker and I was FEARLESS.  Sidenote, upon returning the boots I was devastated and it became my mission to find a pair of silver sparkly boots because they are awesome and every girl should have a pair.  I am happy to report I finally found some mere days before Christmas.  

Everyone at the concert had fabulous outfits, many which were homemade and AMAZING.  Everyone looked like a million bucks.  

THE CONCERT!

You guys, I've been to a lot of  really good live shows.  I give credit to any artist that can pull off a connection with a crowd and make people feel like they truly know them.  This concert was NEXT LEVEL and BEYOND.  There are absolutely no words that I know that can combine together to express the feeling of awe, joy, admiration, captivation and the mesmerizing feeling we felt for 3 hours and 13 minutes.  That's how long Taylor was on that stage, taking a total of maybe 8 minutes between costume changes.  She was present, in character, in step with her audience and her crew for each and every single note.  We were captivated the whole time, singing, dancing, connecting with thousands of other people.  It began with a stadium countdown to a massive ERAS clock, then the  melody from Miss Americana & the Heartbreak Prince and beautiful fans that are larger than life, floating over the stage, and a voice of an angle saying "It's been a long time coming...." and BAM she appears.  From that moment we were on our feet, never missing a beat.  Each ERA brought new favorite songs, a new set, new outfits  and it just kept on. When it ended after 3 hours and 13 minutes, we were felt both drunk on happiness and an immediate sadness that it was over.  Even right in this moment, 1.5 months after I am chocked up thinking about it all.  

It was the greatest show I have ever seen, probably the greatest show I will ever see.  It's like Disneyland for T. Swift fans.  A ride that you are so lucky to have had an opportunity to go on and it will live in your heart for a lifetime.  

We know how lucky we are to have scored these tickets the legit way and for anyone curious our tickets were in the lower bowl, approximately $450/each.  Next week we will dive into part 2 of this mother-daughter adventure so be sure to return.  

Are you a Swift fan?  Did you end up going to the ERAS?  What's the best experience you've had with your own child?  Share your own stories in the comments below.