“I held my baby for eight hours to see Taylor Swift – these are the three things I wish I knew”

Seeing Taylor Swift at the weekend for the second show of her UK Eras Tour in Edinburgh was one of the most memorable nights ever. Witnessing such an icon in her prime, taking the stage a few feet away from me was a dream come true.

But as incredible as the show itself was—from Taylor’s stage presence and stunning vocals, to the talented dancers and overall production—there were three things I struggled with. None of them have anything to do with Taylor or her tour, but rather my own judgment.

If you’re going to see her live in the coming weeks, whether it’s in Liverpool, Cardiff or London, these are the three things I wish I knew before I went. The main thing is wanting to go to the bathroom much earlier than I did – as for the other two points, they depend a lot on the type of tickets you bought.

1. I wish I accepted my fate sooner

For my first point, I would like to accept my fate sooner. For context, my friends and I arrived at Edinburgh’s Murrayfield Stadium around 1.30pm on Saturday (June 8) – Taylor wasn’t due to take the stage until around 8pm.

So we thinking we arrived early so our chances of getting a good view of taylor were pretty good. We had General Admission Standing tickets, which meant we had to follow the “pink route” around the stadium.

After our tickets were checked and our bags were searched, it became clear that we hadn’t arrived early enough. There were already a lot of Swifties in line, many of them sitting on picnic blankets or lounging on lounge chairs.

Most of these fans had arrived hours before, and a good number were VIP ticket holders, which meant they were able to enter the stadium an hour before general admission ticket holders. From that point on, I’d like to accept that we probably couldn’t secure a perfect view of Taylor.

When we were let into the stadium a little after 4:00pm, my friends and I jumped out to grab food or go to the bathroom in hopes of securing a good seat near the stage. We were wrong.

We got as close as we physically could. But the sea of ​​people already standing on the floor clamoring for space seemed to go on forever.

So my advice would be to go seriously early if you want a really good view of Taylor up close. Or, just accept that you might not be as close as you’d like and that you might not always be able to see her or have a completely clear view of the screen.

But whatever, being lucky enough to even have tickets to witness Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour in person should be enough. You’ll have an incredible time regardless.

2. I would like to go to the toilet

The health conscious part of me screams at the second point. For eight whole hours, I didn’t go to the bathroom. I shouldn’t have allowed myself to not go that long and I sure as hell don’t recommend anyone do what I did.

Looking back, I should have left as soon as I entered the stadium. I went before we got a taxi to the stadium, but once we got there, we stood in line for two hours.

Once we were let in, we were too bothered to find a good seat to risk everything going to the bathroom. After settling into where we would probably be staying for the next few hours, we took turns getting food.

We told each other we’d go to the bathroom after Paramore (Taylor Swift’s support act) so we wouldn’t miss any of their or Taylor’s set. After Paramore finished, one of my friends went to the toilet – we tried our best to save her space, but everyone squeezed into it – even though she was coming back.

She was gone for half an hour. The queue for the toilet was so long.

When she managed to slip through the small gaps between the crowds of people, back to her original space next to us, it was my turn to go to the bathroom.

But suddenly they started playing Applause by Lady Gaga. Any Taylor Swift fan will know that when this song comes on, she takes the stage right after.

And indeed she did. I panicked and felt I had no choice but to go another three hours without going to the toilet – even though I needed to.

I somehow managed to hold on until the end of her show, don’t ask me how, it’s something I’ll never do again. But I really wish I had left much earlier when I should have and not had to worry about getting a good view.

Nothing is worth getting sick to your stomach in the middle of a three-hour concert because you need the bathroom. The concert is so long that you’ll only miss a small part of it anyway.

3. I wish I didn’t underestimate my fellow Swiss

This last point is debated. But from my personal experience on Saturday, I really wish I didn’t underestimate how desperate we fans are to even see Taylor. Taller people will stand in front of you, accidentally elbow you, and you’ll get irritated sometimes.

After waiting almost a year to see her in person, and after there’s been an insane amount of hype over the last few months, I should have known we’d forget all manners when it came to being in the stadium. As my friends and I stood, to describe six hours at Murrayfield Stadium as training is an understatement.

I never again had to use parts of my body at once—I had to stand with my legs apart, my feet pointing outwards, in the two small gaps I had left to stand in.

I had to lean back a bit as the girl in front of me was inches away from my face. I also had to try my hardest not to fall over the girl sitting directly behind me.

As soon as a slip of space was made, whether it was from someone leaving to go to the bathroom or just to quickly buy a drink, everyone instantly jumped into that spot. But when the person turned around, it meant we were all packed in like sardines, with no room to dance or use our phones to take photos and videos.

But, there were times when you would have a better view watching the concert on your phone than with your own eyes. Also, don’t be afraid to ask your fellow Swiss to take off their cowboy hats if they block your view – I had no choice and the girl was very polite about it.