What do you wish you brought with you?

Taiwan Living in Taiwan
1

I’m coming into Taipei on August 1st. Look out! :smiley:

As I’m packing up my whole life… I’m curious if there are any things that I would consider normal amenities in the US that I won’t be able to get in Taiwan. Is there anything I shouldn’t forget? Or perhaps something I haven’t even considered that won’t be available when I get there?

Here are some thoughts:

Are multi-vitamins readily available?
Benadryl and other over-the-counter allergy meds?
How about Tylenol PM or Excedrin PM?
I have abnormally large thighs, and I’m thinking of bringing over a few extra sets of men’s underwear, as my body physique doesn’t adhere to Asian norms. Is this a good idea?

And on a related note… I’m coming from the States, so if there’s anything that anybody wants me to bring over for them, I would be happy to do so (as long as it’s not too big!). I’ve been a part of other international forums before and I know that importing necessities for people is a great way to start up new friendships.

:slight_smile:
Russell D.

2

Take over shitloads of underwear. You can never bring enough. Lots of foreigners tell me they find the underwear here uncomfortable/not what they’re used to.

That’s basically it. Can’t think of anything else.

3

of course you coming from the states… why else would you need so much medication… :astonished:

4

Welcome Diomedes. Dont worry we are a fiendly bunch here on forumosa ! And on Taiwan. Cannibalism was banned quite some time ago !

That said. you can just bout find anything here. Multivitamins are more expensive on the rock then the USA tho.

def bring undies and pants if you are larger then size 38. Its real hard to find pants bigger then 38 last i looked (inches on waist).

shoes can be good too.

polo shirts and the like . Taiwan L is the same as USA S bear in mind.

bring ur meds. some are harder to find on taiwan

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forumosa.com/taiwan/viewtopic.ph … &start=280

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Thank you for the link!

@milkalex - My allergy to shrimp is a good reason too. The Excedrin PM’s are just to help me sleep off the jet lag in the first few days.

@bumclouds - Thank you! Will do!

@tommy - Thank you as well! I’ll definitely pick up about a 2 year’s supply before I come.

7

Levi’s jeans are 2-3 times more expensive in Taiwan than in the US.
Also if you have thick thighs, it is not always easy to find the size you need.

Calcium carbonate antacids like Tums or Rolaids are non-existent.

You might also want to bring an Apple TV since Apple has yet to sell that in Taiwan.

Prepare to have many online tv channels geo-blocked while you are in Taiwan like WatchESPN or CBS Sports.
You might want to get a Slingbox setup with a US tv or set up a proxy server.

8

[quote=“PapaAzucar”]

Prepare to have many tv channels geo-blocked while you are in Taiwan like WatchESPN or CBS Sports.
You might want to get a Slingbox setup with a US tv.[/quote]

Sounds like you want to start looking into a proxy server, which should run you about $3/month USD. A proxy server is a location that your can route your internet connection through so that the end client thinks you’re in a different location from where you are. My buddy was just telling me that he uses one out of Denver, Colorado to get around the geo-block on the local New York teams. He says it works well for streaming video for him, so the bandwidth must be decent.

getfoxyproxy.org/proxyservice/i … 4Aod3EsAsQ

This is just the first link I grabbed off of Google, and its $8/month. My buddy is a pretty savvy shopper and he was saying he got one for $2.95.

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Yes, proxy server will allow online streaming access.
But I really wish I had a Slingbox remote to a US tv, or satellite tv.

10

:unamused: [quote=“milkalex”]of course you coming from the states… why else would you need so much medication… :astonished:[/quote] :unamused:

I’m American and I don’t even take aspirin. And yet my Taiwanese friends are always telling me to go to the doctor, who will inevitably give me 7 pills to take 3 times a day for a cold (by the way, there’s still no cure for that) and I’ve got students who’ve gone to the hospital and gotten an IV because they feel “uncomfortable”…
but yes, oh please, bring on the stereotypes about Americans!

OP if you like Reeses, bring those. Ask us about any other specific brand of something that you love.
Pretty much everything else is readily available.

Edit: The benedryl is a good idea. I haven’t searched much but I haven’t found anything similar to benedryl here. What I wouldn’t have given for a box of benedryl when a jellyfish stung the crap out of me.

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Yes, proxy server will allow online streaming access. But I really wish I had a Slingbox remote to a US tv, or satellite tv.[/quote]

I asked about satellite TV on here for the Tour De France but only one woman knew of anything and she didn’t have any contact for me to get satellite.

I know DishHD Asia from the USA has as service here but’s its just less of the same channels on MOD when it comes to decent sports then not many good events are on there. Maybe just get NFL.com if you want NFL.

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[quote]Are multi-vitamins readily available? Yes, but they cost an arm and a leg, bring some. Anything else you can order -we have Puritan’s Pride delivered, no problem.

Benadryl and other over-the-counter allergy meds? Yes, a lot. You can find some here, and cheap, but you would kike to stick to what you know for a while.

How about Tylenol PM or Excedrin PM? It is mostly psychological, aspirin or acetaminofen are supposed to be the same, but I do feel they work better than local Panadol. So, yes, pain medications, the stronger , the better.

I have abnormally large thighs, and I’m thinking of bringing over a few extra sets of men’s underwear, as my body physique doesn’t adhere to Asian norms. Is this a good idea? Yes, it is a good idea. Do bring lots of underwear -size and style are a problem for all of us Westeners. Pants are also tricky, so yes. Aim for fabric that does well in terms of sweat absorbtion. Remember that dryers are not widely used -or are small crappy inefficient stuff- so choose clothes accordingly. Warm water washing machines are also unheard of. Heads up. Mostly, we put our clothes on a clothesline and even office workers do not normally iron. [/quote]

[quote]OP if you like Reeses, bring those. Ask us about any other specific brand of something that you love.
Pretty much everything else is readily available.

[/quote]
It makes for a nice treat for the children of the family to bring chocolates -like Sees’s, dunno why so popular here- or others not found here -we have Snickers, Twix, M&Ms, and others, but no Musketeers or Life Savers, for example. Little Coach trinkets, maybe even a purse for the mother in law, will put you in their good graces fast.

13

@PapaAzucar - They have slingbox services for a moderate fee. I’ve looked into them and I know for a fact that the expat community out of Mexico relies on them heavily. Have you tried Utorrent or Bittorrent to just download everything you’re looking for?

iptvforums.net/thread/5471.aspx

[quote]
Aim for fabric that does well in terms of sweat absorbtion. Remember that dryers are not widely used -or are small crappy inefficient stuff- so choose clothes accordingly. Warm water washing machines are also unheard of. Heads up. Mostly, we put our clothes on a clothesline and even office workers do not normally iron. [/quote] :doh: Didn’t even think of that! What fabrics specifically do you recommend? I’m guessing less cottons, more nylons?

I’m all-good on that front. I brought a big 'ol jug of Johnny Blue to the future-father-in-law and we hit it right off. I’m very lucky because she has extremely progressive parents who realllllllly like me despite the language barriers. I’ll have to find out what the Mom wants though… good call.

14

Diomedes, note that there are also threads here on where to find larger shoes and clothing locally (just check the search function), e.g. see [url=http://tw.forumosa.com/t/larger-size-mens-clothing-big-bigger-large-clothes/10401/21 thread, and this post in particular[/url]for stretchy knit boxers suitable for men up to about 100 kg max (the 3XL size).

15

I wish I brought a kind of hybrid mind of the best bits of ex-girlfriends, with plenty of blank space for new stuff, which I could implant in girls I see around here…
So don’t forget your hybrid mind.

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Depending on how long you plan on staying here, bring an appropriately sized bottle of your favorite painkiller. They don’t sell them here in sizeable bottles: you can only buy them in blister-packs of ten, and at about ten times the price per pill than you can get at your local Walgreen’s or CVS in the States.

17

L1 interference on their part… in this context, what they mean by 不舒服 (bushufu, or “uncomfortable”) is best translated as “sick”.

But still, an IV for a minor problem that doesn’t actually require one is silly.

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[quote=“Diomedes”]@PapaAzucar - They have slingbox services for a moderate fee. I’ve looked into them and I know for a fact that the expat community out of Mexico relies on them heavily. Have you tried Utorrent or Bittorrent to just download everything you’re looking for?

iptvforums.net/thread/5471.aspx
[/quote]
These are interesting.
Has anyone ever tried one of the slingbox service like the following?
http://liveamerican.tv
http://www.americantv2go.com

They seem to be all about 49-50US/month.
Anyone have any experience where they would recommend a particular service?

19

deodorant…it doesnt exist here…old spice can be a life saver!

20

Ban Roll-on and a few other brands are available at Watsons, but only the small size.