If you are the traveling adventurer or would like to be, then you quickly (need to) learn that “things” mean less and it’s the experiences you value.  I believe this personally to be a true statement but if you decide to live in a country for a few months or a year then there are a few “things” that will make your stay more pleasant and livable. I found this quote recently, “The more we own the more ensalved we become.” Make smart purchases and take the opportunity of living overseas as a means to living with less= FREEDOM.

Things to Buy When Living in

China/Overseas

to Make Living Better

Transportation:

A couple months into living in Qingdao, China my husband, Denny bought a road bike. I on-the-other-hand stuck to the other forms of transportation. It was in our tenth month in China that Denny traded his road bike for a Chinese motorcycle and I life became a lot easier. This was one of the better investments we have made in China. In China, as a traveling foreigner, you can commute by walking, bus, taxi or (sometimes, depending on the city) a metro. You can purchase a small Chinese motorcycle for about 2000RMB ($300) and if you do you will make back every cent by not having to ride the (sometimes stressful public bus) or (adding up) taxi rides. Gas is really cheap for the motorcycle, about 30RMB ($5) for a whole tank that last for about a week.

Foam mattress: 

When you live in a foreign country you desire to live like them. Denny and I roughed it out sleeping on the traditional 2 inch thin hard mattress for about 7months. Sleeping on a hard mattress definitely motivates you to wake up early. Traditionally the Chinese have their elders make a homemade mattress. The Chinese also believe that these hard mattresses are healthier than the typical 1 foot thick fluffy cloud stuff mattresses in Western cultures. We bought a tamperedic mattress from Taobao (a Chinese Amazon website). We are happy with our purchase and wish we had bought it sooner. 

Oven:

I am so happy I bought an oven. YES, the picture below is deceiving, it’s not a microwave. Chinese kitchens do not typically come with an oven, you need to purchase a small one. I discovered and have made many batches of my homemade Gluten-free Oatmeal Pumpkin Chunk Cookies in this oven.

Blender:

I bought this Chinese knock-off of a Blendtex at Mission Coffee in the beginning of our one year adventure in China and I don’t regret it. I love veggie-fruit smoothies! I use it as a mixer, like for our Thanksgiving mash-potatoes. Denny made homemade hot sauce in it. I on a weekly basis use it to make homemade spaghetti sauce. If you are a homestyle cooker or health-nut a blender will save you the big bucks. 

Mop:

In China the typical bathroom doesn’t have shower walls or a tub. It’s wide open spaces in the water closet (WC). When I first saw this arrangement I didn’t think I could survive a whole year with this layout. I remember making grand ideas with Denny of him building a wall structure around the shower so the whole bathroom didn’t get wet. HA….well, I survived and just miss the occasional bath. A positive aspect of having no defined shower walls means your bathroom floor is cleaner than the average Western bathroom floor. The Chinese bathroom is designed to have drainage for the shower and after each shower experience you are to mop up the water so it doesn’t stay wet all day. Meaning, buy a mop, it’s a necessity for living in China. Who knew a mop could bring so much joy.

House slippers:

Most Chinese homes don’t have carpet flooring, they have other flooring: tile, plastic and wood.  While this flooring is excellent for allergy prevention it means even if it’s cleaned and you walk, you will somehow come up with looking like your feet played in the dirt. Whether you want to personally wear slippers as a preface, it’s hospitable to have house slippers for your guest. Not having slippers for your guest in China is like not offering your guest in America water. Have house slippers for your guest and you (optional). Below are the house slippers I splurged on in the fall at a Chinese store called Hotwind.

Water dispenser:

Depending on where you are going to be an expat, look into what the locals do for clean drinking water. In China it’s a taboo to drink the tap water because it’s so dirty. In every Chinese home there is a water dispenser of some sort. When Denny and I got to China we thought we would need to buy the electric water dispenser that gives you hot and cold water. We looked at all our options and bought this cheap 25RMB ( $4) water pump for our filtered water. It’s great, I feel old fashion, like I am pumping water from a well from a countryside spring.  Besides it being a cheap up front cost, the water never gets trapped like it does in the electric water filter.  If you are concerned about wanting hot water accessible, you can buy a cheap electric water kettle.

A Filter Shower head:

The Chinese water is not trustworthy. When you look at the facets there is this white hard residue on it. There are a lot of chemicals in the water. The reason we bought the shower filter head was because I was having some hair loss and rashes. (My mother-in-law kindly shipped it from the U.S.. I recommend that you buy this before you come to China. Maybe you could buy it off of Taobao, but we couldn’t find a filtering shower head. 

Our apartment came furnished but these are the essentials our work bought for us: chopsticks, 2 sets of silverware, pan, knife, (stirrer) spoon, cutting board, electric kettle, comforter and pillows

If you are an expat living in China/overseas, is there anything you would suggest to others to buy if they live in a foreign country a short time? 

10,000 Smiles

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