Job Discussion Forums

[mgafunnell]

a list of things you should bring before your move to china:

1. deodorant. it's a bit hard to find and rather expensive.

2. your usual medicines from back home. from my experience, the chinese OTC's are so-so at best.

3. shaving cream. again, a bit hard to find and expensive.

4. small gifts for your colleagues. a good ice breaker.

5. sweets from your homeland. the students go crazy for them.

6. shoes, if your feet are a plus size. larger shoes are hard to find here.

7. enough cash for a deposit on a flat and spending cash to get you through your 1st month. i suggest about 2500 dollars (U.S)

8. if you're a chick with bigger boobs, extra bras.

9. extra teaching aids. trust me, they help.

[kev7161]

1. Deodorant is actually becoming easier and easier to find. Nivea brand has offerings as does Fa brand - - for men and women. Your local Watson's sometimes carries Gillette brands - - but yes, it is a bit more expensive, but salaries here are so generous . . . right?

2. I have found Bayer brand aspirin and antacids, Claritin for allergies, some weight loss aids (not endorsing any mind you, just telling you what I'm finding), Dr. Scholl's products, Centrum vitamins along with local brands, nutritional supplements, and several Chinese brands that seem to do the trick, but if you have a favorite, please heed the advice. By the way, for you health nuts, there is a health food/supplement place out of Beijing that stocks all sorts of imported goods (for a price of course) but they'll ship it to you for around 30 rmb and it gets here about 2 days after your payment through PayPal goes through. I've been VERY pleased with their service. If you are interested, PM me and I'll send you the link.

3. Shaving cream is expensive as well but there is a brand called "Apache" which is about 1/2 the cost of Gillette or Nivea (but I really love the Nivea stuff!). Gillette also has a shaving gel that goes a long way and the cost is less than their foam. I see this most anywhere.

7. Or, you can let your school pay for your apartment or give you a stipend. But yes of course, extra money is always good.

As an addition - - I'm a diabetic so I find it hard to find "sugar free" stuff. Of course there is diet Coke and Pepsi and you can find Sweet 'N Low or Equal, but if you want any kind of drink mix or sugar free chocolates or jello or so on, then you'll want to pack a bunch of that (if you are in the same boat as I that is). There ARE diabetics here in China - - one of my former student's mother is one - - and you can find the supplies such as testing strips and insulin and needles and what-not, but sugar free foods? Not so much. Keep that in mind.

[xiao51]

[donb2222]

4) Chinese shoe size 45 is only a US 10 1/2, not very big compared to
many western feet.

[fitzgud]

Should you need all that is mentioned by Kev in 2.

Then I would add.

Your personal physician.

A wet nurse.

A coroner.

And of course your favourite family undertaker.

[Sugar Magnolia]

I would like to know where the 1 dollar shaving cream is in Shanghai?

Turn It Up.

[kev7161]

The OP wasn't specific when referring to "over the counter" products so I was just trying to be thorough. Sorry for the offense.

[Hansen]

Razors here are very dull. I did bring a bunch of my own. Gone now.

[Sugar Magnolia]

Kevin,

Don't give in to them.

Paco

[Itsme]

1) Earplugs
2) Magnum Condoms
3) Good pear of jeans

[nickpellatt]

I would suggest bringing an unlocked mobile phone from home to pop your new chinese sim card in.

An extra adaptor plug or two....never hurts to have an extra one.

If you like tea, and I do....bring teabags. Despite the common phrase '....tea in china', I never really saw any good tea that was affordable. (English Tea)

Id agree with the deodorant, shoes and other comments too. If you are off the beaten track these things are hard to find.

[Peter Wales]

[kev7161]

I guess to make a list like this (which is done periodically at Dave's) is almost futile as everyone will have their own needs and desires. As to the comment about bagged teas: I guess the British are a bit more selective about their teas than most anyone, but Lipton brand does offer regular black tea, green tea, mint tea, and probably a couple other things (all bagged). Plus at Tesco, Carrefour, and Metro, I've seen all sorts of British teas for sale. So if you are going out to the sticks where there are not any major foreign grocery chains, then bringing your own tea (or whatever) could be a good idea. However, as a previous poster said, today's China in the major metropolises has almost everything an average consumer needs.

Lugging over that heavy suitcase when you first arrive is possible, but what happens when you start to run out of things? Shipping costs alone (plus the possible snags at customs) will eat up any potential savings of these items that are generally cheaper back home should you decide to have a loved one send them to you.

[xiao51]

[xiao51]