Things I should bring to China from the US?

[Lindsay]

Hi!

I am going to Beijing for 2 months to study mandarin at one of the Beijing language universities this coming Feburary. It has been 7 years since I've visited Beijing and I know a lot has changed. I know there are tons of supermarkets and huge dept stores that sell just about anything. However, do you feel that there are some things that are not as popularly stocked in china?

My grandma tells me that chocolate is quite expensive and she insisted that I bring truck loads of it with me to share with everyone in my extended family. Also, she wants peanut butter? I'm wondering how much to bring and what other "essentials" I should bring over. Any info would be much appreciated. Thanks!

[xuechengfeng]

It all depends. There is probably most everything in Beijing, but certain products are, for some reason, more expensive. I pay about $1.50 for a box of Pop Tarts in the US, but in Qingdao, they were around $6.00. There seemed to be a lot of peanut butter in Qingdao for a reasonable price, but I swear I could not find a knife for the life of me, nor could I find bread that didn't go moldy the next day.

[pandaxiongmao]

There is a wide variety of chocolate available at Metro (Costco is the most similar thing in the USA). Membership is free. The prices may seem expensive because a lot of other food in China is cheaper, but the cost of good chocolate in mainland China is about the same as it is in other countries. It might be because your extended family shops at Wal-Mart, and they have some locally-produced knockoff chocolates which are truly horrible (but a third of the cost of international brands).

"Peanut butter" can be found in Carrefour. However, it is Skippy. If you want organic peanut butter that only consists of crushed peanuts, you will need to bring that with you.

If you want to make Mexican food, you should bring all the ingredients with you. Not sure about Beijing, but it can be very hard to find refried beans. Real guacamole is impossible to find. Avocados are not available in many places, at least year-round, so you can't make it yourself either.

[Lindsay]

Thanks for the heads up on the poptarts! They're a true essential for college students like me. I supposed I should bring along a couple boxes of the s'mores variety for late night study sessions.

Do they have whole-wheat bread? It is all the rage in the US and I'm hoping I won't have to bake my own once there. Also, my grandma said to bring Betty Crocker cake-mix? Is that not readily available? I don't want to have to go through customs with a suitcase full of chocolate/peanut butter/candy and have them be confiscated for whatever reason.

[Long Zhiren]

Bring a hair stylist along who knows how to cut non-Chinese hair. See related discussion under Grammar and Vocabulary.

[Jamoldo]

You can get most things in Beijing nowadays if you look hard enough... things like Betty Crocker are definitely available (Jenny Lou's, Parkson, sometimes Carrefour). The question is, will you have/find a proper oven? Those seem to be quite scarce unless you are living in a very nice apartment. At least that's been my experience from what I've seen here...

I brought clothes mostly (though you can buy that too), Carmex Lip Balm, and some medicines like NyQuill, Pepto etc. But nothing foodwise really. Indian and Mexican and a bunch of other stuff might be tough to get but will you really cook that often?

Just remember you'll probably buy lots of stuff here so leave some space in your suitcase unless you want to buy fake ones at the silk market, like I did...

[flameproof]

Do they have whole-wheat bread? It is all the rage in the US and I'm hoping I won't have to bake my own once there. Also, my grandma said to bring Betty Crocker cake-mix?

I THINK I saw bread mixes in Metro. Expensive though. But remember that most place in China have no oven! (or microwave with convection, which works great too!)

I think for 2 month I wouldn't bring anything (foodwise). The food situation is also not that bad anymore. You can get all sort of international food in BJ.

Bring a good quality skin cream for the dry BJ air.

What I would NOT bring if I were USAses: any electrical appliance. China has 220V and 110V appliances will not work, or blow.

[Lindsay]

Speaking of electronics....

I plan on bringing my laptop to the university with me.. so I can stay in contact with my college friends and etc. I have this universal adapter thingiemagig... like you can plug in one type of plug and you can change it into another type of plug.. will that work or will it just blow the fuse? I know absolutely nothing about electricity but my uncle is an electrical engineer so he should know how to get around this problem right? I hope? I can't imagine not having a computer around to surf the net and stuff..

[flameproof]

I plan on bringing my laptop to the university with me.. so I can stay in contact with my college friends and etc. I have this universal adapter thingiemagig... like you can plug in one type of plug and you can change it into another type of plug.. will that work or will it just blow the fuse?

What does it say on the power adapter? Look for "AC Input", if it says "100-240V" then it's perfectly fine.

In case you need a plug adapter, wait till you are in BJ. They are easy to buy in China. There is even a large chance that it will fit into one of the usually various sockets.

[xuechengfeng]

I'm pretty sure with regards to a plug for a laptop, you only need to have the special plug that is shaped to fit into a Chinese outlet. Other than that, I'm pretty sure (at least with my laptop), the battery pack or whatever was compatible with Chinese voltage. However, most other electrical appliances are not.

[Luobot]

The most critical item to me that hasn't been mentioned is your favorite brand of dental floss. For some reason, I can never find my brand. It doesn't appear to be a very popular item in China.

Along those lines, you need all your own personal items that you really care about, like your favorite deodorant. Just don't assume you'll find all your brands or real equivalents of them.

I think even the Tylenol and bottled water are fake.

[adrianlondon]

I find it better to bring nothing special (unless you really depend on it, such as a regular medicine) and simply substitute for something local. That's why you're coming, right? For the experience? Baking your own bread indeed. Just eat something else for a while, then go crazy on that bread one you return home.

[mr.stinky]

only two months? what can you not survive without, other than prescription meds - and

even those you can usually find locally (although may be knock-offs).

dental floss and whole wheat bread are available at c4/metro, and a few other stores

in kunming, must be available in bj.

name brand chocolate is readily available, and is not that expensive.

only thing i might add to bring would be a spare set of glasses or contacts.

[johnd]

only thing i might add to bring would be a spare set of glasses or contacts

I'd say get a few pairs of glasses made in China, for about $30 a pop.

[Lindsay]

Hi everyone,

thanks for all your great advice. i surely won't waste my time cooking especially when there are those lamb kabobs everywhere. i've spent many golden summers in beijing when i was young and they were my favorite, along with peking duck of course.

i have a question about prescription medicine.. i currently have to take prescription antibiotics that i can refill once a month, but how do i refill it once i'm in china? is there some prescription transfer service where i can transfer to refill my script at any pharmacy? do they have a CVS or Duane Reade?

also, one more question regarding US electronic plugs. i've estimated that i will need to plug in at least 4-5 electronic devices(laptop, ipod, cell phone charger, etc), can i bring/buy one of those large extension cords that have 6-8 plugs in them and connect that to my universal plug changer thingie so i'll be able to plug in everything at once if needed? I have no idea about voltages and circuits so i guess my question is, will plugging in so many american electronic equipments be possible? if all of the electricity is being used through only one of the wall plugs? i hope someone can understand what i'm asking? this is confusing..

[pandaxiongmao]

If your things are multi-voltage, you can just plug them into the outlets here. Mainland China has the same two-prong plugs the USA does. The three-prong plugs are different. If you have equipment with three prongs, you can buy a power strip/surge protector at Wal-Mart that will allow you to use those as well. You can also use a power strip if you need to connect several devices to one outlet.

China's electricity is 220V (though often more), while the USA is 110-120V. If you have items that will not work at 220V, you will need to by a voltage converter (expensive). Additionally, even if you have a voltage converter, people I've known with them still ended up burning up their electronics. It would be best simply to buy/borrow the equivalent item here if it is not too expensive.

No CVS here. Additionally, you might want to find out the Chinese name of whatever medicine you have. I'd advise you to go to a international hospital to fill a prescription if you don't know the Chinese name.

[Lindsay]

From what I can remember, the two-prongs in china are round whereas they're flat in the US. So isn't there a simple geometrical compatibility issue? The adapter on my laptop says 120-240V but I would still need some kind of device to solve the prong problem right?

[gougou]

From what I can remember, the two-prongs in china are round whereas they're flat in the US.

China uses both systems, round ones as well as flat ones.

[johnd]

You don't need to worry about your prongs. It's easy to buy a power strip that accepts all shapes of plug at any supermarket in China. Your Grandma probably already has one. If you are staying in a hotel or at a coffee shop they'll most likely have one of these power strips to lend you.

[Crivens200]

As for anti-biotics - probably won't need a prescription other than to let the pharmacist know the name - almost everything can be bought over the counter