I recently got a comment on another post asking me the following:
"1 thing I would love for you to post is, things you wish you HAD moved, what you used most in the
first few months that you brought and things you wish you HAD LEFT
BEHIND and did not end up being useful. I am looking to move in the
first week of April with 4 kids ages 11-8 months"
"1 thing I would love for you to post is, things you wish you HAD moved, what you used most in the
first few months that you brought and things you wish you HAD LEFT
BEHIND and did not end up being useful. I am looking to move in the
first week of April with 4 kids ages 11-8 months"
This person is moving from the USA to Finland...
Alright, let's see.
When we moved here in August 2009, I was 26-weeks pregnant and we brought with us 2 carry-on luggage (back-packs with our laptops in them), 5 pieces of luggage and our 2 dogs plus their kennels and dog beds.
We ended up leaving their kennels and dog beds at a train stop because we were beyond exhausted (delayed and re-routed flights etc.) with breaking down the kennels and carrying EVERYTHING on our own...as we sort of got on the wrong train a couple times.
They were mandatory items however - for the dogs to travel in SOME comfort on the plane. And seeing as you didn't mention any pets - I'm guessing you aren't planning to bring any.
What we left in storage in Canada:
- Movies...SO many movies...DVDs in North America are Region 1 based and EU DVDs are Region 2. It's entirely possible to alter your DVD player (once you get one) to change the Regions back and forth as you like (depending on the model - just look it up online). You cannot do this with a laptop or computer because after so many switches - it'll permanently stay on your last changed region.
- Play offers free shipping within EU...but not everything is available for shipping to Finland.
- Amazon has online shops in Germany, France and the UK (and Italy too I think) - but shipping can be pricey. Also, you cannot order a Kindle E-Reader from these sites. It has to be from the US one (.com) because they have an international version (slightly more expensive too).
- Kindle Fire tablets do not work here - in terms of downloading things. You need an American credit card and address to do so...or find some way to side-download things...major pain in the butt. You can download E-Books onto a regular Kindle then it will transfer wirelessly (if you have access to WI-FI) to your Kindle Fire...that and Amazon won't ship them at all to Finland for some reason. (We got ours second hand from Finns who have bought them in the USA).
- Furniture - nothing that we'd bring here due to size and cost. And nothing that we couldn't find here! So that's fine.
- Books - books here tend to be quite expensive, especially the English variety. HOWEVER! I go to the library to look through books (if not borrow them) and for the reference-type books (craft or cooking/baking) - if they're available in Finnish, I look through them and if I really need them or want to buy them - I do so online.
- Adlibris offers free shipping within Finland (and possibly Sweden).
- Book Depository does too - well, international "free shipping" (shipping is secretly calculated in the prices that you see online).
- Clothing - we packed as much variety as we could. Winter, rain gear, a pair of winter/rubber boots each, everyday clothing, loads of socks and underwear and some dressier outfits. The good thing is that there are tonnes of second-hand shops scattered throughout Finland - so you'll be sure to find something in case you've forgotten your "thickest sweater to battle the ice on your bike lock in -29*C".
- Tori is available throughout all of Finland. You can find anything and everything to be sold here.
- Huuto is the Finnish equivalent of Ebay.
- Of course there are a wide variety of "Kirpputori" Facebook pages as well - which are very handy!
- Craft Supplies - when I left NS, I was chin-deep into scrapbooking. I also had loads of time to do it after work and no kids to rip or hide my stuff...but there are plenty of online shops and most of my scrap-friends order from the UK because it's cheaper (even including shipping) than Sinelli or other craft stores in Finland.
We've discussed several times what we would do if we could save up enough money and consider getting our parents to ship our stuff for us...however, we've gone 4.5 years without those boxes of clothing, the furniture and the craft supplies...so those wouldn't be a huge loss if they were donated or sold.
But we would love to have the DVDs and books because for my husband - many of the books are academic-related. And we have a pretty solid DVD collection started so far!
Any DVD we've purchased here has not been a duplicate of what we already have in Canada. So now our collection is pretty big....
Of course we started out with borrowing DVDs from friends and watching them from the library....and eventually once we saw stuff on sale at the department stores or bigger grocery stores - then we started buying slowly...and at the second hand shops too....
Watching movies for us really helped to beat the dark winter nights and with a new baby in the home and not a lot of friends - it was a way for us to just chill...and do something identical to what we'd do in Canada (now with Finnish subtitles as an option!). :)
So everything we brought with us - we have used and still have, for the most part.
We tried to be cautious about not packing "the extras"...the stuff we can totally live without.
I'm digging deep into my memory bank and I think the big "extras" I personally brought with me were:
- A huge skein of cotton yarn (still have it - still no idea what to make with it)
- A couple crochet hooks and knitting needle sets...
- Some cross-stitching stuff...
- A book about pregnancy
- A digital camera, couple memory cards and my laptop (which has since bit the dust).
- Some children books and few baby items I got as baby shower gifts. The guests were awesome and had set up a piggy-bank instead because they knew we would be flying and not able to bring so much with us.
- A Gameboy Advance...and yes, we had a plug converter with us. Pack as many as you can - we live in a smaller city - so you can't easily find these plug adapters...we've had to order them online. We were told it was because it gives local electricians a way to be guaranteed income- by converting your plugs for you.
- Cell phone with charger and was SIM card compatible. Then you don't have to buy a new phone when you get here...just the SIM card and perhaps a phone plan or contract.
The yarn, GBA and pregnancy book was more to help me with the flight times...
I think my husband packed his rock climbing shoes and has used them once since being here. There IS a rock-climbing indoor facility in JKL - but he didn't know anyone else that climbed and finding time to do it is even trickier.
Since visiting Canada twice - I've loaded up on some things.
- Measuring Cups and Spoons - I still don't get the whole dl and weight-measuring of ingredients...and my recipe books usually consist of "cups/spoons".
- I miss the dollar stores in Canada...they have pretty much everything for a fraction of the cost in Finland. (Especially in kitchen utensils!)
- Buckley's Complete Cough Syrup - it's a Canadian brand..."tastes bad but it works" (actually it just tastes super strongly of menthol) and covers a wide variety of symptoms - where as Finnish meds seem to only cover one thing or another. Thankfully I have a couple friends who are able to ship me a nice big bottle of it for Christmas.... :)
- Intuition Razor Blades - they don't sell the razors or the blades here for that specific model. (Intuition razor blades come with a soap bar around the blade so you don't need to use shaving cream too. You CAN buy disposable and re-usable razors here for both men and women...but Intuition's my favourite...)
- Aveeno Body Lotion - it's oatmeal-based cream, non-scented and not greasy. YES there are Body Shops in Finland - but they can be pricey and I hate their body butters...I hate that greasy feeling.
- Underwear and socks - it's pretty pricey here...although I lucked out the other day and got a bunch of bras at Sokos for 5� each! The concept of 6 or 10-packs of ANYTHING here is rare...I kind of DO miss Walmart.
- Gripe water - this is some sort of dill flavoured water (and other stuff) to help settle baby's tummies and helps to break down gas when burping won't do.
- Teething gel for babies - I once showed my nurse friend what was in Orajel (?) and she said the medicine was the same time of pain relief used for a minor surgery for example on someone's shoulder. The medicine regulations are quite strict here in Finland and the EU.
- Supposedly there is some light version of teething gel being sold at the pharmacy now - but I haven't looked - nor do I need it anymore...I have managed to get by with Panadol and Burana (liquid tylenol and ibuprofen).
- Homeopathic medicines for babies - some say they work, some disagree. For us - they did...then again, our (now 4-years old) son was such a screecher with teething - that NOTHING worked. He didn't take a soother or bottle, but that homepathic stuff was a blessing in disguise for us. I also have never seen any of those fancy "amber teething necklaces" for babies here...not sure if THOSE work - but anyway.
I haven't been back to Canada in awhile but I suppose if I won the lottery and was leaving next week - things I would buy and bring back would be the same as above and:
- Light-weight craft supplies - craft supplies here can be ridiculously expensive!
- Vanilla extract - it's almost 3� for a tiny bottle here.
- Yes you can use the vanilla sugar here and supposedly there is no difference - I have yet to try it... maybe some day!
- Stick deoderant /anti-perspirant - it IS possible to get it here...but roll-on (liquid) deoderant is cheaper and more common.
- Liquid flea and tick treatments for dogs - the vet stuff here is very expensive and there's no such thing as Walmart or cheaper brands here for that kind of product....we've gotten lucky last year and invested into flea/tick collars from the pharmacy (pet shops stopped selling the cheaper dark green ones) and while it was 22� a piece...it was also good for 5 or 6 months and we didn't see a single tick at all. I have a friend from Manchester who also stocks up when he goes home because you can get it at the local Pound Shop.
- Craft Magazines - they're really expensive here (at least 9� each) and the variety is limited. I hesitate to get an E-Subscription of any kind because I might run out of space on a computer or iPod thing or just not like the patterns...where as with magazine - you can usually look through them quickly to determine if it's worth buying or not.
- My Black and Decker Food Processor - I probably wouldn't because it's so huge and I love it so much...and knowing my luck - the plug converter wouldn't work and the thing would explode and die.
- A small slow-cooker - they're not common here and if you do find them - they're really expensive I've been told.
- Our 4 cats - they're staying with my in-laws currently and they are horrible at car rides...so realistically, I may never be able to bring them to Finland...but I really would love to.
Anything else I've forgotten must not be overly important because I've survived this long without!!
Of course at first, it's difficult - trying to get all of your necessities (we didn't even pack towels...) at the lowest price possible so you're not super broke within the first month of moving from one country to another. But it IS possible...and I went a year and a half without visiting a second hand store because I didn't know they existed here!!
Of course at first, it's difficult - trying to get all of your necessities (we didn't even pack towels...) at the lowest price possible so you're not super broke within the first month of moving from one country to another. But it IS possible...and I went a year and a half without visiting a second hand store because I didn't know they existed here!!
Things we cannot live without in Finland (the really necessary stuff):
- Winter gear - wool socks, snow pants, good coat, mittens and so on.
- Rain gear - summers tend to be quite wet in central Finland...and muddy in the woods. We had packed 1 pair of winter boots (we're the same size believe it or not and my boots were men ones anyway) and then just picked up a pair of lined-winter boots and made do with those for a few years!
- A pocket-sized Finnish/English dictionary - bought it here when I started lessons but when we first moved here - we invested into the regular sized one...which was a pain to drag around! Of course if you have a smart phone or tablet - then it's easier to use online dictionaries....
- Baby carrier - bought it here - very handy for hikes, shopping, stairs and so on.
- Food, toilet paper, passports etc. - of course.
I suppose the lucky thing for you Reader, is that you have kids who are older than 2-years old...so they can help bring some stuff in their luggage.
And if it doesn't bother you to shop second-hand - then you can find a TONNE of stuff at your local second hand stores and online too.
Pretty much all of our clothing has been second-hand and in excellent condition - same with bigger items like kitchen utensils (i.e. blenders, pots and pans), movies, books and strollers for the kids...we've managed to save a lot of money this way!! But perhaps not a lot of space ;)
I hope this helps you and anyone else looking to move to Finland with pets or kids or by themselves!
