What do you find rare or too expensive in Taiwan? I heard salad dressing is rare, is it true?
Where are you from, cyf1155? People might be able to tell you what you’ll miss when they know where you’re from.
salad dressing is not rare, i even bought “wishbone” salad dressing (an american brand) at Welcome (a grocery store/convenience store).
Candy. We’ve got Snickers, Riesen, Toblerone, M&M’s, Twix, Skittles, Hershey’s. If your favorite is not on the list you may want to bring a large supply.
I’ve yet to see Instant mashed potatoes, but I heard that you can get it in Costco in Taipei. Last time to the States I brought back a 6 month supply.
Most other “essentials” you can get here in special stores, but it may require a special trip if you don’t live near one. I have to make pilgrimages (just about 1.5 hours) to Jason’s Market in Taipei for some things— Miracle Whip, Macaraoni & Cheese, Hamburger Helper for example.
The local grocery stores aren’t all that bad, though, and it’s only the special item that you can’t live without that makes you long for home.
As someone else asked, where do you live and what do you ike?
Proper western deoderant is often heard to be difficult to attain here. Particularly Old Spice. Now, for an entrepreneur… it’s an opportunity 
Decent Italian food is rare.
Thanks for all your responses. How about books, tools, and other daily things?
I heard oatmeal is hard to find. Is that true?
depends on what u mean by oatmeal. I’ve heard this rumour, but I’ve bought what I think is oatmeal that is made by Quaker Oats here in Taipei. Maybe this rumour just means the kind of oatmeal that one is used to elsewhere isnt available in Taiwan.
if you have “special needs” hair, you may need to bring your own stuff.
No. Every Wellcome supermarket carries Australian oats, and organic oats are available at City Super, Jasons, and Cottonfields.
Page One in the Taipei 101 mall has one of the biggest selections of English books in Asia. Also, don’t forget Amazon. It really doesn’t matter where you live anymore.
Everything is here in Taipei. Ten years ago, no. These days, yes.
Bring your own damn clean air if you want any here.
Bring your own damn clean air if you want any here.
Plenty up here:
[quote=“cyf1155”]Thanks for all your responses. How about books, tools, and other daily things?
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Yeah, everybody needs practical transportation suitable to their environment. Hard to find here, so plan ahead:
It really does help if you get specific about what you are looking for and exactly where you will be. While a number of things I wanted were available in Taipei, I was out in the boonies and had problems with a lot of items. The folks here on Forumosa are a great resource for resolving almost any
Is basmati rice easily available in Taipei or should I bring a supply?
Tools are in supply and quite cheap here
Yes you can buy basmati and other rices here
Thanks for your reply.
Suesol, depending on where you’re coming from, you can get just about everything you need in Taipei. Other parts of the island are not as well catered for, but catching-up fast. My advice would be not to worry about ‘things’ per se, so much as health insurance… If you have any kind of medical condition, make sure you’re adequately covered. Depending on the lifestyle you’ve had back home, the adjustment process can involve a fair bit of ill-health. This can get expensive, and it’s nice to not have to cover it all out-of-pocket.
And a decent shovel. I’d recommend you bring a one of those big-arse shovels that dad used to use to dig a trench for sewer lines in the back yard. Whatever you do, don’t bring a ‘spade.’ You can’t move jack-shit with a spade. I think other posters will concur with this.
Seeker4 - everyone here knows a pick-up truck with a machine gun on the back is insufficient for even the lightest of Taipei traffic. Anything less than a SAM launcher is asking for trouble. Shame on you - it’s this kind of inaccurate information that gives forumosa a bad name.