Thursday night I made my first trip ever to the Dodger Stadium. I can’t believe that after 18 years of living in LA, my first trip to Dodger Stadium wasn’t for a baseball game but for my idol, Madonna. My love for Madonna is the only reason I didn’t explode in road rage or turn back the car and head back home. Traffic to Dodger Stadium was the most horrendous traffic I have ever dealt with. Under normal circumstances, the trip between my apartment in Hollywood and Dodger Stadium would have taken about 15 minutes. The concert was supposed to start at 7:30, so I figured if I leave my house at 7:30 I’ll get to there by 8:30 (with traffic) and get there after the opening act but before Madonna gets on stage.

My traffic math had never been so wrong. Just before I was about to turn left on Sunset from Hillhurst, I could see that the traffic was already pretty bad. So I decided to take some side streets. Hour and a half later, I’m still stuck on Sunset, have not even reached Alvarado. I know of a secret route to Dodger Stadium but I had to get to a certain street, which would lead me to this secret street, which would lead me to Dodger Stadium. So after about 90 minutes of going nowhere, I bust a U turn, go towards who knows where, take a whole bunch of turns in and around Echo Park, and finally find my way to the secret street. At this point, we decide it’s better to just park the car and start walking. My friend Joanna, also headed to Madonna, had given up after 3 hours of traffic and had parked her car and started walking. So I park the car, get out and start hiking up the hill towards Stadium Way with Caro & Mariana, my dates for the night. It’s already 9:30pm, 2 hours since we left my place.

As we’re walking, a black SUV with tinted windows pulls up and the driver asks if we’re headed to the concert, offering a ride. Now I know that my mom always told me not to get into a car with strangers, but this was an exception. And just for Madge, I was willing to take my chances. I quickly look inside the car, there’s no one else, but there are VIP parking permits for the stadium and a siren light on the dashboard, so Mari, Caro and I get in. The driver takes us through the secret route, towards the Dodger Stadium, towards some sort of VIP entrance. As we’re headed to the Stadium, we come to a stop at a stop sign. I look to my left, at the car next to us which for a brief second had rolled the window down. And I realize it’s Ryan Seacrest in the backseat of the car. The window goes up again, but not before I see him powdering his nose. I guess he didn’t want to be seen in public with a shiny nose. I completely understand.

So we keep driving, and the nice driver takes us past all the security and within 5 minutes we’re at the entrance. This probably would have taken us at least 30 minutes to walk and we would have missed Madonna’s opening. And she was wonderful. Despite the technical difficulties with the set, she still gave an awesome performance. I honestly can’t believe that at the age of 50, she looks 20 years younger and can perform for 2 hours wearing 6-inch platforms. But one of my favorite moments of the night, was when Britney made an appearance. She looked like Britney pre K-Fed and 2 kids. Too bad Britney and Justin did not perform together on stage. I’m hoping they saw each other back stage, and had a nice sweet reunion. (And if in 9 months, another baby arrives, we’ll know that they did).

So those are the highlights of my sticky and sweet night. Madonna was great. Britney and Justin were fabulous. The traffic was a nightmare. And Ryan Seacrest is just plain dumb. (And I don’t care about his powdered sugar habit, but he needs to be a little more discreet about his carbs.)