Update: We have been living in Guangzhou now for almost 4 months and I promised an update on my Top 10 things to take to China list. All writing in red, was written in April.
During the past week or so there seems to be a twist in my perception of things around me. For example, usually when I buy milk, I like to check the expiration dates. For some reason, it's quite satisfying for me to know that the milk I choose will stay fresh a whole 2 days longer than the other ones, thereby saving my family from the traumatic sour milk experience. Lately, however, the expiration date has taken on a whole new meaning. Now when I look at the date -- it's kind of like a slow-motion scene in a movie where the camera zooms in -- the date takes up all the space on the screen, "Exp Jan 02 11" and all I think is. . . "by the time this milk expires, I will have been in Guangzhou for two days." It's not about the milk anymore, it's mostly about how everything relates to our "big move."
Ah yes, the "big move." I'm currently trying to figure out what we can live without for 3 years, and what we can't live without for the next 3 months. Here is a list of items we can't live without. It's based on suggestions from people currently living in China and what I found on the Web. By the way, this list has been modified to fit my family's needs and should not be used as a comprehensive list of what a person should take with them:
(This is a picture of our current stockpile in our living room)
TOP 10 THINGS TO TAKE
1. Deodorant - a must! I'm not sure how this item made the list, considering we are moving to a warm and humid climate, but apparently people there must not have stinky underarms.
They have deodorant here -- all kinds, even the ultra organic kind that I use. You just need to go to an import store to buy it and you might pay a little more.
2. Specialty Spices (especially things like cloves and vanilla): Just bought some more today. This is a good one. You can find vanilla here, but I have not seen small amounts of bay leaves, and some other spices. So bring your favorites. You will, however be able to find most common spices like black pepper, garlic salt, parsley, etc.
3. California King Size Bed -- hard to find, but a must when a certain person is excessive in their height. My husband says he can make do on a queen size--but for 3 years? I don't think so. Not true. The bed we were provided with was actually larger than our California King size. My husband prefers the beds here because they are firmer and his back feels better. I would agree with him. However, if you want a really soft mattress, bring your own and also if you are particular about high thread counts, bring your own linen too. I haven't been able to figure out how to ask about the thread count and I don't know if it really matters here.
4. Paper towels and Toilet paper -- I'm not even asking, I'm just taking some.
Don't worry about these -- you can find them here at Metro and most import stores. Not hard to find. Limited variety though.
5. Shampoo - they have it, but I understand that it can be difficult sorting through the different brands. And one person told me that they used the shampoo there and it made their head itchy so now they are using Head and Shoulders. I'm taking some U.S. brands, but I'm open to the idea of using the shampoo I find there too. I'm living on the edge baby. Still haven't tried their brands and I am still using my U.S. products. However, I've seen tons of shampoos and conditioners even at our local grocery store (with names like Loreal, etc.)
6. Toothpaste. Rumor has it the flavors are different. I have at least10 tubes ready to go. I'm picky about my toothpaste even here in the U.S. You can find organic toothpaste here at the import stores, but if you like a certain brand, it's probably best to bring it. But you definitely can find toothpaste if you are not too picky.
7. Medications, vitamins -- hard to find and probably hard to explain what you need if you don't know the language. I'm taking what I can, including ibuprofin, cough meds, etc. Bring it. It's way too difficult to try to translate the packaging. Just bring whatever you need.
8. Kleenex with lotion. Lotion being the key word here. If you really like the lotion in the kleenex then bring some, if you don't care, they have lots of tissue here.
9. Dryer sheets: Hard to find, if not impossible. I've also been reading and hearing that regular terry cloth towels there are stiff. Some reports I've heard state that soft towels are hard to find there. This is one item I can't wait to find out for myself. It could just be the way they are dried? Who knows -- I don't yet, but I will soon. Very hard to find, and if you do find it, very expensive. I would bring these. The towels they gave us to use at our complex were nice. I have no complaints about them, but I also did not buy them. I can't really say where to buy them yet.
10. Chocolate! I am not even going to take a risk on this item. I already have about 8 bags of chocolate chips that I plan to take in my carry on's and I plan to buy about 12 candy bars, which will be rationed at about 2 per month. They have a lot of chocolate here now, not too common yet, but I can see that it is becoming increasingly popular. Still sort of expensive, so to save some money -- you can bring your own. Also, the variety is still limited -- you won't find something like "mint-chocolate chips." Also -- we already used up all our chocolate!!! This would make a lovely gift if anyone plans to visit Guangzhou soon -- hint, hint :)
There are more items, but I'm not going to list them all. My more logical half (yes, I'm referring to my husband), can't understand my compulsion to gather these things. He says we are fine with the medications alone, and he can't wait to just dive into whatever is there. I love him for that :) But he will thank me later. . .oh yes, . . .he will thank me later.
NOTE****I plan to follow this up with a Top 10 Things to Bring to China, once I've been there and actually know what I'm talking about.
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