Job Discussion Forums

[watingfortomorrow]

Hi Ladies,

Some questions for you about what I will and will not be able to get in Taiwan.

Birth Control Pills
Feminine Hygene Products
Bras (Lager sizes)
Moisturizer with Sunscreen

If anyone else can let me know about any items that I might not be able to find over there please do so.

Thanks Ladies.

[773]

Hi there,

Birth control pills can be purchased over the counter in drugstores.

Some feminine hygiene products are available, but hard to find and a little pricey.

Bras over a "B" cup are rare, hard to find, and when I have found them they have been heavily embroidered and looked like something my great grannie would have worn. However, I don't live in Taipei, so maybe there is more selection there. I would suggest stocking up on these, though.

Moisturizer: Most are whitening creams, so finding a moisturizer that isn't whitening and contains sunscreen may be difficult. Options are limited here, and I have never seen such a moisturizer. But, I am sure they exist, as sunscreen is used widely by the locals.

[twinkletoes]

Bring moisturizer with sunscreen. Also, if you like self-tanning cream, bring that too.

Bras over a B cup do exist here but you will go into 9 or 10 stores (in Taipei) until you find one you can deal with. Bras here are just plain weird. "support" seems to be the last consideration. A lot of them seem designed for maximum projection and will smash you into an ice cream cone shape, than have extra padding around the sides to compensate for that. I have faith that bras without padding are available here, because mothers of fifteen year old girls certainly must want to buy their kid a non-padded bra, but really, they are awfully hard to come by. I usually try on bras inside-out, and than cut out the padding when I get home.

Moral of the story: BRING BRAS.

Tampons here are about 20 years behind back home. Larger than they need to be and made out of stiff uncomfortable materials that don't really absorb well, like trying to mop up a spill with a book. Bring as many as fits in your suitcase.

[Girl Scout]

Moisturizer and sunscreen were easy to find. I lived in Hsinchu. No bras. They have plenty of maxi-pads, but most feel like your wearing an adult diaper. I did manage to find regular Tampons in Watsons. However, there were no there every time went.

[773]

All of the above advice is great, except for the advice to bring tampons. OB is readily available at Watson's stores and at many 7-11's. Tampons aren't generally used by a majority of Taiwanese women for some reason, which makes them more difficult to find.