Look who’s back! Impostor!!!
For those of you who do not know IMP – it is a life sized cardboard cut-out of Darcy that Mum had made to take with her whenever she couldn’t take her along.
So when Mum decided not to take me on her trip to Cairo, she took Impostor instead.
Mum bought IMP a pendant that has Darcy’s name in hieroglyphics!
May’s comment: This is the first time I have travelled abroad for more than one night without George and the first time I have not been with Lulu the month she’s been with me. It brings me back to when I first had Darcy and the immensity of separation anxiety. The reality was that Darcy might not like being left but she never demonstrated her anxiety. I, on the other hand, would run home from the movies as soon as credits rolled or I would refuse dinner invites if I couldn’t take her. That was how our adventures began – I had to find all the places where I could take her.
She was the perfect travel companion and she read situations really well. Because of her size, I was limited on how we got around – oh the many, many miles of train journeys across the continent. We crossed oceans and seas on ships and ferries. She did fly a few times as an ESA but because she was 8.5kg, it wasn’t easy – and 11 years ago, it was not all that common that pets went everywhere.
The trip to Cairo was originally planned with George but when I found out that I could not take him to the pyramids, it defeated the purpose. I wasn’t going to leave him in the hotel room for half a day. And now with Lulu, I thought it might be better to leave them both behind – but they stayed separately with different friends as it is difficult to leave two dogs with anyone who have their own dog. That added to the worry – if only they had each other. But George had Stanley and Lulu had Bailey – and they were both fine. And I project too much of my worry onto them.
It however, reminded me why I always took my dogs when I travelled. That feeling of guilt, the hollow feeling of sadness when I am preparing their food for they stay. Or thinking that it’s the last night we are altogether and thought about how we should go somewhere special for our last meal, our last walk. That journey to drop them off is heart wrenching. I know they were both a bit anxious as they watched me prepare their food, putting them into bags. I do try hard not to pass on the separation anxiety to them. Whenever the luggage came out, Darcy and George would eye me like an eagle, my every step, every move. They were thinking – are we going with her or not? And how excited they were when I took their leashes and said, “Come on then, let’s go!”
There were times when it was impractical and impossible to take them. And life has to go on.
Cairo was a bucket list trip and I wanted so much to have them in my memories.
On reflection, it would have been the wrong place to bring George. Luxor might be a better alternative for the future. 🙂
So I took Impostor instead! It’s not Darcy, it’s just a cardboard cutout and we have been to quite a few places together – with some funny stories!
This might be IMP’s last outing as it is time to let it go. We’ll see, but it has been fun.
As for Cairo … at most a two day stay. Visit the incredible National Museum of Egyptian Civilisation. Seeing the Royal Mummies and reading about the incredible stories of the Pharaohs made me think we have regressed since then. Women played an important role in the ruling of their civilisation.
And we rushed in and out of the Museum of Egyptian Antiquities just to see Tutankhamun. The queue to see it was incredibly long, the place was packed and badly ventilated. However, it will soon be moved to the new Grand Egyptian Museum near the pyramids which is scheduled to open in November 2023. It promises to be the biggest archaeological museum in the world.
So that was a bucket list tick.
