Gift ideas for people back home

[ChTTay]

I know there are a few old threads that touch on this but thought it would be better to get a 2018 edition. 

 

I’ve been buying (or thinking about buying) stuff for when I go back at Xmas. It can be hard to think of things when you don’t just want tourist crap from Houhai. Some of that stuff can be good though! 

 

Some ideas i’ve had:

Kids practice chopsticks - Disney edition

Beijing brewery t-shirt

“中国” track top in red

Tea selection - boxed, tea bags

 Revolutionary Chinese picture poker cards

Bai Jiu - decorative bottle

Photo book of the time relatives have visited here

Chinese hats for kids. Eg it has fake hair 

feiyue or hui Li Chinese sneakers 

 

In the past I’ve got traditional looking fans quite reasonably too. 

 

Any other suggestions? 

[Lu]

Calligraphy scroll

Tea cups

Something nice from the Shard Box shop

 

The trick, to me, is to find something that is Chineesy (because that's what they expect) but not too tacky (because I don't like that) and not requiring knowledge of Chinese and/or Beijing. There is (was?) this shop selling nostalgic things and books with pictures of old-ish things like 2002 metro tickets. This is the kind of thing that is nice to give as a going away present, but not as a souvenir.

[ChTTay]

I got my Dad a Chinese newspaper from the day he was born. It wasn’t that good a gift as there was only really one photo on the main page then loads of Chinese text. 

 

It did come witb a revolutionary songs CD that was a good listen! 

[DavyJonesLocker]

i am bringing a box of 稻香村点心 for my brothers family. Traditional Chinese pastries which should appeal to western people as they are mainly fruit type ones and nothing strange like meat or seaweed that wouldn't find in a western pastry (generally speaking). You can get them on taobao but be sure to use the actual flagship stores

 

Tea selections are good but I think a top with a 中国 logo might not be appealing to many. Individual taste of course.

 

I bought myself a hip flask which I really liked and my friends though it was pretty cool. 798 has all sorts of nicknacks like that but might be a bit far.

 

I think sets of chopsticks are a good present as its " from China" so gets added kudos

 

Some framed calligraphy might be ideal, but I noticed in my brothers house they hung it upside down and had the frames in wrong order (a 成语) haha

[Shelley]

I would like to just add a note of caution about taking food to other countries, there are many rules but generally raw fruit and veg, or meat is out, any of the really Chinese foodstuffs such as chicken feet are out and so on. So just check what you can take to where you are going. and remember to declare food even if its teabags, most of the time they don't care but if they find it and you haven't declared it you could loose it or get a fine. It all depends on the rules of the country you are going to, so just check.

 

Another point please remember allergies, product labelling in Chinese is fraught with problems for suffers.

 

 

[ChTTay]

7 hours ago, DavyJonesLocker said:

Tea selections are good but I think a top with a 中国 logo might not be appealing to many.

 

My 3 year old niece and nephew will enjoy it! 

 

Besides this, why not appealing? I remember when Soviet era track tops were a fashion item in the U.K. in high school. 

 

Another idea would be your local football (soccer) team’s shirt or other stuff. My friend has brought Beijing Guo’an stuff back for friends and relatives before. I actually tried to find kids versions but didn’t seem to have anything good. 

[mungouk]

6 minutes ago, ChTTay said:

I actually tried to find kids versions but didn’t seem to have anything good. 

 

Airports sometimes have stuff in kids' sizes, but of course you're paying a premium and it's your "last chance" before heading home.

 

[DavyJonesLocker]

16 minutes ago, ChTTay said:

 

My 3 year old niece and nephew will enjoy it! 

 

Besides this, why not appealing? I remember when Soviet era track tops were a fashion item in the U.K. in high school. 

 

Another idea would be your local football (soccer) team’s shirt or other stuff. My friend has brought Beijing Guo’an stuff back for friends and relatives before. I actually tried to find kids versions but didn’t seem to have anything good. 

 

 

Sure, you know your relatives best of course. Another countries top is not  really for me to be honest but each to their own! You certainly see plenty of NYC items of clothes around!

[Shelley]

I think t shirts/ clothing/hats with characters on are popular judging by how many kids I see wearing them and I bet most don't know what it says:)

[889]

Take an empty backpack with you and spend a Sunday morning at Panjiayuan. You're sure to come across things none us would think of.

[Baby Charlie]

I think these are all good ideas but my family and friends, want unlocked phones!!! Not on my budget!! Have a safe trip!

[ChTTay]

I think some people do just like to bring back fake stuff for the novelty but it’s not a good gift in the long run. I avoid those kinds of markets for this reason. 

 

My friend gave his mum Mum a designer bag from here in Beijing. The handle snapped after one use! 

 

Better to find some Chinese stuff like I started to list above. 

 

Also, if you didn’t wanna wear “中国” you can get 北京 or whatever city instead! 

 

I have one one friend who finds the badly worded English hilarious so I usually look out for t-shirts with that kinda thing on. 

[roddy]

Panjiayuan was always good for a wander, anyway. Revolutionary memorabilia, that kind of thing. One trip in... late 90s?... I came across a book published in 1990 or so educating the public on what had happened on June 4th. Always regretted not buying that.

 

Plastered might be worth a look, although they don't seem to have the low key Beijing stuff I remember - they used to have a T-shirt which was just an old-style paper subway ticket, and I think the rate card from a 1.20Y taxi. Perhaps, for some reason, nobody wanted to wear those things.

 

I also got good results just filling a bag with random snacks from the supermarket. "Oh, cool, is this chocolate... oh my god, what is... is that beef?"

[Lu]

8 hours ago, roddy said:

Panjiayuan ...

Plastered ...

Those are the kind of place where I find all kinds of wannahaves for myself (which I then don't buy, because I can see myself never using them) but never really something for the China novices back home. Same for Liulichang. They are absolutely fun places to browse though.

[ChTTay]

Plastered can be good. I got a nice purse for my Mum there a few years back. 

[abcdefg]

I bought these as a gift for an American friend last year. Ten small bottles of Maotai baijiu 茅台白酒, 50 percent alcohol  (100 proof), 125 ml in each bottle. Cost a little under ￥100. One bottle provides enough for two people to taste and toast, see whether they like it or not. Drawback to carrying these overseas is that they are a little heavy. I'm guessing about a kilogram (don't know the precise weight.) The individual small bottles are made from a thick-walled ceramic, not thin glass. Could be used later as candle-holders I suppose. 

 

  

 

 

[大块头]

The Propaganda Poster Art Centre in Shanghai has a shop where they sell antique posters and knick nacks (and presumably no fake antiques like Panjiayuan, I suppose). It's an interesting visit even if you don't find a good gift to buy. 

[889]

"I came across a book published in 1990 or so educating the public on what had happened on June 4th. Always regretted not buying that."

 

If you remember enough of the title you can probably find it on Taobao. Which is another place the OP can spend hours searching.

 

[Lu]

8 hours ago, 889 said:

you can probably find it on Taobao

I'm pretty sure, without having searched, that June 4th-related things cannot be found on Taobao.

[yueni]

Depending on who you're buying them for, sometimes loose leaf tea is fine too. My family does, so green tea, 龙井茶, that kind of thing. Since they're fresher from the source. Two years back I bought my mother and my sister the water bottles with built in tea strainers in them that's really popular among Chinese students, and that was a hit too.