Confessions of a US Shop-a-holic

My mom mentioned back when we were home that it would be fun to post a list of some of the things that we buy when we’re back home.  It’s amazing how many things we are able to get here in the UAE considering how far away we are and the fact that most of the “expat” items seem to be tailored for Britts, but there are still some things that we can’t get and we really don’t want to have to live without for a few years :)    I figured this might be a fun list to have and look back on in 20 years and remember some of the random things that we wanted/needed.  It might also help those of you who are planning to move to the region soon in case you have similar affinities for these items—stock up now and send them over in your shipping allowance!

Goodies my mom sent out with Paul when he mobilized to the UAE

It seems like literally within a few weeks of getting back from the US, I have already started my wish list for family that will be visiting in the not too distant future…  we’re so lucky to not only have family that wants to come visit us here, but that are also willing to indulge our cravings and give up precious room in their suitcase to bring us some things.  Each time we’ve gone back to the US, I’ve packed an empty duffle to ensure that I had room to bring back lots of goodies :)

US Shopping List from 2011

Some things I’ll order online through amazon and have them sent to families for us to pick up or them to bring out, others come from massive Target shopping sprees, and the fabric/craft supplies came from a day long shopping extravaganza while I was in Charleston this summer.

2012 Target Run

Food

   - Vanilla extract (the UAE stuff can’t have alcohol so something with the way they process it makes it just not taste the same)
   - Dark chocolate (now there's plenty of chocolate here, but it’s mainly all milk chocolate…  very subpar especially compared to the Ghirardelli and
     See’s candies that our families bring us!!!)   - Beef jerky
   - Crystal light (there are not many powder drink mixes available here…  unless you like tang!)
   - McCormick’s White bean chili mix (we really like it, easy meal to make, delicious—and it’s easy to transport overseas)
   - Dried mango (they have some in their bulk spice/dried fruit sections, but they’re super, super sugary)
   - Luna energy bars (I prefer the chocolate mint and a new favorite chocolate dipped coconut—thanks R&D!)
   - Decaf tea (they have just a bland decaf tea that is terrible, but nothing that is “flavored” like Earl Grey)
   - Lady Grey tea (if you haven’t tried it and you like tea, buy some now!  it’s my favorite.. like earl grey with a hint of lemon… yum!)
   - Chocolate covered coffee beans
   - Triscuits (I haven’t actually broken down and brought these back yet, but I sure do miss them!)
   - We used to stock up on the 5 Brand gum, but they have it here now!  yay for no more bland-in-10-seconds chicklet gum! (I remember that I couldn’t
     find good gum when I studied in Paris either… I guess it must be an American thing???)

 

Toiletries/Medication

  - Face wash (if you’re picky about this… definitely bring some extra bottles of your own)
  - Face lotion (same as above)
  - Qtips with “paper sticks” (I have looked ALL OVER for these, they only have the plastic stick kinds here.  Silly, maybe.  But it does affect my every day
     life... don’t judge)
  - Hair rubber bands (I’m sure they have them somewhere… just haven’t found that place yet)
  - Non-drowsy Dramamine (you can get a generic brand of Dramamine super cheap at the pharmacies, but they only have the drowsy kind)
  - Vitamins (Paul is a particular fan of the kid’s gummy vitamins which I have trouble finding over here)

Clothes

I don’t really have anything in particular for this, but clothing and shoes are just more expensive here.  Also, since I’m not a big shopper, I think I just get overwhelmed by the massive malls and not knowing where to go if I am looking for something specific.

Craft/Sewing Supplies

If you have any particular projects you want to do… buy all the supplies while you’re at home!  (except for maybe thread and zippers which are SUPER cheap… a spool of thread will set you back 25 fils which is 7 cents and you can get zippers for 1 dirham or 25 cents.)
I have to say that this was one thing that disappointed me most about moving over here.  I was hoping to find some lovely, exotic looking fabrics to make some really pretty local flavored items.  That has not happened.  Unless you love pink and purple florals mixed with odd dashes of animal print and shiny sequins, buy your fabric back at home.
Same goes for yarn… the Magrudy’s bookstore has some nice yarns, but their selection is fairly limited and their needles are overpriced.  The other place that I’ve found yard in at the Green Branch on 7th which has a few (maybe 12?) nice yarns, but the rest are bold colors and coarse and remind me of craft projects when I was 6.

Charleston yarn shopping

Misc

   - Don’t forget to download Skype while you’re in the US… you can’t do it (or download updates) once you get here unless you have a VPN
   - I think that goes for VPNs too… if you want one, get it set-up while you’re in the US, or find a friend that has one here that will let you use their VPN
     in order to download and get yours set up
   - I haven’t really looked, but I haven’t found a way to buy used books here, so I usually stock up on some books ordered from Amazon whenever I go
     home
   - Electronics are much cheaper back home than they are here… that’s why I was so thankful when I had a coworker that offered to pack an empty
     suitcase and let me ship all of my new camera accessories to his place in the US and then bring them back for me
   - Insulated cold drink cups (looked all over for these, then ordered 2 of them from amazon and R&D brought them out.  Then Paul took one to work,
     forgot it, and it got thrown away…I was not impressed.  But R&D gave me 2 more for my bday while we were back this summer!)
   - You will miss being able to just go online and order whatever your heart desires and have it show up at your door in less than a week with free
     shipping…  take advantage of it while you’re home!


And I already have a few items lined up in my Amazon cart for our next visitors if they can find room in their suitcases…  :)