Moving to India with two tons of fun

Looks Mrs Shaktipalooza's company will deliver up to 2 tons of personal items to India as part of an international job transfer package.

Never really thought about that. I know we'll bring a bunch of books. And a whole lot of hand tools & kitchen stuff. Can't really think of much beyond that.

What would you bring?

I also thought it would be nice to take our fancy schmancy washer and dryer. Let's face it. Hand washed clothes are kind of nifty but it sure wears them out fast. Every use a bath towel that's been beat against a rock about 50,000 times? Like sandpaper it is.

We have lots of electrical appliances but they all run on 110v. I guess it wouldn't be too much of a hassle to use transformers for them.

I have a crotch rocket that would help me attain rock star status in India. Unfortunately as soon as I need a spare part or some minor repairs I'm totally screwed.

Anything I should purchase new and bring over?

As little as possible. Only two kinds of things would make my list

a) Things that are too personal - objects that I'm extremely fond of and can't part with, for sentimental reasons.

b) Things that can't be bought in India. You'd be surprised at what can be.

I'd put everything else on eBay.

It really makes little sense to pay huge shipping bills to lug furniture and utensils across half the world. You know, ordering stuff to India from Amazon.com would probably be cheaper than shipping household items by sea. Besides, it'd be kind of exciting to start over and buy everything new.

Why not just buy a washer and dryer there? The do have them, you know.

The spare can be mailed to your address in India when you need it. I recently ordered a report online from a company based in Chicago. I usually order books I don't find here through friends in US but this time I needed it urgently so ordered it to my address. I didn't expect it to arrive before 10-12 days and was shocked when it landed on my desk in about 50 hours! Shipping cost - less than $6.

soulfood - we're not paying for the shipping. it's part of the relocation package. that detail makes the situation very different. good to know about spare parts. however these bikes are very finicky, it's hard to even trust specialty repair shops in the US. Besides, I don't think a 165mph motorcycle is a good idea for Indian roads. Might be worth it if there is an accessible racetrack nearby...

dzibead - uh, yes they do have washers and dryers in india. we have a really nice set here in the US that is practically brand new. we'd end up selling them for 1/5 the price we paid. these items generally last a long time so it might be worth packing them up.

are we getting into a 'better traveler than thou' debate here?

the kitchen stuff that i spoke of are top of the line items that we've spent years collecting. The quality would be expensive to replace no matter what part of the world we live in.

That detail does alter the situation. Everything you said makes sense Shakti. You seem all set. Good luck!

since the company is paying for it, take as much as you can. also, you may be eligible for reduced customs duty under "Transfer of Residence" rules.

The crotch rocket can probably be solfd for a tidy profit. Anything electrical will probably conk out due to voltage fluctuations in India. good quality kitchen stuff is hard to find in india -- kinves, utensils etc. But then, servants might steal it.

washers are dryers need to be hooked up to water (hot & cold - under pressure) and gas(?) for the dryer. Will the indian infrastructure support the needs of these beasts?

books can be bought for cheap in india.

I'm not an expert on this, but bringing a bunch of 120v appliances to India doesn't sound like a great idea to me. American washers typically use a lot of water, and dryers a lot of electricity so a simpler Indian model with an efficient spin-dry cycle would seem to be a much more reasonable solution and you wouldn't have to be concerned with parts and service. Perhaps someone else can comment on long-term use of converters.

As for the bike, it will pretty useless as a transportation device whereas a 150-200cc Indian made bike is ideal -- reliable, economical, easy to service/repair, and inconspicuous. The CBR would be a nice toy to have, of course, but not very useful or practical, in my opinion.

Probably a good idea to check into the Customs angle as well -- it seems to me there was some discussion about this in one of the old ex-pat threads.

crvlvr - i'm guessing water pressure for the washer won't be a problem. gas however might be a huge problem. the dryer uses natural gas but i have no idea if there's any difference to what's used in India.

-m2- The washer and dryer i have are high efficiency. low water consumption front loader and high speed spin cycle dryer. That's why we bought them.

After reading how infosys lost 6 employees in 8 months in bangalore I think I'll be passing on any motorcycle as a daily transport. The cbr is only a toy in the US, totally impractical and useless here too, but damn fun! If I were to stay in the US I'd probably keep the motorcycle strictly on the track. Too many people getting squashed these days. If there is a track near Bangalore I might bring an older bike that's easier to fix.

I am very interested to know how long term use of transformers can affect equipment life. I have an uncle who lived in Germany for over twenty years. He used the transformers for many of his appliances and never seemed to have an issue, voltage fluctuation was a non issue there. It was a pin in the ass hauling a vacuum cleaner between floors with tha 20lb transformer in tow.

As far as electrical appliances go for the kitchen. I'm thinking just a kitchen-aid mixer and food processor, perhaps our blender. It's the power tools that I could really use in India. We have a big project coming up so I'd love to bring my arsenal of tools. As someone already mentioned I think it will be important to do everything to deter theft.

I'll have to check and see if the company takes care of customs issues for us.

I sympathize with your desire to take your fancy W&D with you. I bought a Maytag Neptune washer & dryer about a year and a half ago and I lu-u-u-rve them. But I'm not sure I'd take them to India. Sounds like you should at least consult with somebody from the gas and electric utility in the city where you'll be living to make sure you can get an adequate transformer and that the infrastructure is otherwise suitable. And there might not be a gas hook-up in the place you'll be living in. I don't have one in my house, so even though I sort of wanted a gas dryer instead of an electric one, I wasn't about to have a gas line installed. If you do end up having to sell the W&D, you might try listing them on "craigslist.com" (which I think does listings in Oregon ...) - you might get a better price.

dzibead - thanks for the info.

we do have craigslist, i've bought quite a few things off there in the last year. did you know there's a craigslist bangalore? i saw six 25ft coconut trees for 3000rps the other day.

the transformer issue probably isn't a big deal. it's the gas i'd be concerned about. the question is whether or not their mixture is compatible with regulators.

i think i'd have to rig up the dryer to use one of the lp canisters that are so common over there. don't think they have the underground lines like they do here in the US. i'd have to do that anyway since at some point we'd be moving to the countryside.

LPG is used instead of CNG in India. Apparrantly it has more "oomph" and may end up frying your clothes. A stepm down transformer can be used for most appliances. But appliamnces that are continuosly on, need to be designed for indian voltage conditions -- voltage fluctuations and low voltage, or else they will get fried too.

crvlvr - Thanks for the info. I checked a few other links and it looks like i would definitely need to make a conversion to LPG. I think I'll probably go ahead and do that.

As far as my power tools go, they're all professional grade tools. I'd be pretty surprised If they can't handle a little voltage fluctuation.

I hear they're making a DHOOM II. I could have my bike there just in time to be the greatest thing since sliced bread.

Gas for a clothes dryer? Wow... that's a new one on me, in UK we have tumble driers and they are all electric: are you talking about the same sort of thing?

In India the sunshine dries my clothes in a fraction of the time that any drier would take and with much less hassle.

I wish I could get a share of your two tons! it is going to cost me lots to take my stuff from UK ---and before everyine starts with the good advice (just like I'd tell someone else; buy there) I'm taking stuff because I want it! I'm taking stuff because I'm not prepared to part with the books and records and CDs and a couple of bits of furniture ---and once you get beyond a couple of boxes, heck, might as well make it a container !

But all that electricalk stuff, especially the tools: sounds like customs will have fun with you!

A couple of friends of mine recently did this for a diplomatic posting, they ended up packing a supply of asian groceries into their container - good sweet chili sauce, oyster sauce, soy sauces etc plus vegemite and good chocolate. They also brought over a lot of books.

Are you planning to move back to the states afterwards or is this a permanent move? If it's only for a couple of years and you get freight on the way back too, you might want to leave some space - then you can pick up some of the amazing (but heavy/bulky) souvenirs you could never take back as a normal tourist..