Jollygoodfellow Posted June 28, 2011 Posted June 28, 2011 A question for those who have packed up and made the move to the Philippines.I have been looking through all the draws,cupboards and places that over the years I have accumulated things,you know all the gadgets and all those bits and pieces that one might use one day but when is any ones guess.When you moved did you take them with you or sell,giveaway or stored just in case you decide to come back?Is the cost of shipping everything worth it?Is it better to start a new life fresh with out the things one has held onto for years?What happens to all those food items you have in the pantry,give them away, throw them out?To me a lot of my things I would hate to part with but are they worth taking,to sell as second hand items makes them almost worthless but to buy again would be a small fortune.For those who have not made a big move yet,look around you and think about what your going to do with your possessions when the time comes to move. All of the above a genuine questions as I plan my move so input from all would be appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Forum Support Old55 Posted June 28, 2011 Forum Support Posted June 28, 2011 A question for those who have packed up and made the move to the Philippines.I have been looking through all the draws,cupboards and places that over the years I have accumulated things,you know all the gadgets and all those bits and pieces that one might use one day but when is any ones guess.When you moved did you take them with you or sell,giveaway or stored just in case you decide to come back?Is the cost of shipping everything worth it?Is it better to start a new life fresh with out the things one has held onto for years?What happens to all those food items you have in the pantry,give them away, throw them out?To me a lot of my things I would hate to part with but are they worth taking,to sell as second hand items makes them almost worthless but to buy again would be a small fortune.For those who have not made a big move yet,look around you and think about what your going to do with your possessions when the time comes to move. All of the above a genuine questions as I plan my move so input from all would be appreciated. It could be a chance to re-evaluate your life and down-size. Most of us seem to accumulate a lot of “stuff” over the years. How much of it is actually important? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeB Posted June 28, 2011 Posted June 28, 2011 A question for those who have packed up and made the move to the Philippines. I have been looking through all the draws,cupboards and places that over the years I have accumulated things,you know all the gadgets and all those bits and pieces that one might use one day but when is any ones guess.When you moved did you take them with you or sell,giveaway or stored just in case you decide to come back? Is the cost of shipping everything worth it?Is it better to start a new life fresh with out the things one has held onto for years?What happens to all those food items you have in the pantry,give them away, throw them out? To me a lot of my things I would hate to part with but are they worth taking,to sell as second hand items makes them almost worthless but to buy again would be a small fortune. For those who have not made a big move yet,look around you and think about what your going to do with your possessions when the time comes to move. All of the above a genuine questions as I plan my move so input from all would be appreciated. As you know I made the move here May 18th. Everything I owned was either shipped, sold, donated, or discarded. I gave and threw away many things that I wish I had just tossed in the boxes that I shipped. Many of those same things I'm having to repurchase here, mostly at higher prices then were originally bought. Don't know about Australia but the main issue is the electrical difference between the US and here so I've bought a couple of transformers. The laptops and HDTV are dual voltage but a lot of other things aren't (eg. printer, telephone). Like the previous post mentioned, any move is a good time to get rid of unnecessary stuff but, when in doubt, throw it in the box. The relative inexpensive of BB shipping is well worth it, imo. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Lee Posted June 28, 2011 Posted June 28, 2011 I know that every time we are in our condo in Cebu, we find other items that we have in Florida and wish we had in Cebu, so my thought would be to bring as much as you would normally use during the course of a year, but those items that you find that you have not used in a year, then most of those you probably do not need, yet there will be a few of those that will make your life in the Philippines easier, and you should know which of those they are when you pick them up and think about when you used them last. I do not know if they have garage sales in Australia, but if they do, then that is a good way to sell off some of those items you hardly ever use, some cash IMO is better than throwing items away. Now as for those food items you find in the closet, now has never been a better time to start eating them all and saving the money that other meals might cost you, so to put away more cash for your new life. In your last sentence you answered your own question, yes they cost a fortune to replace and possibly even more important, would be hard to get some as good in the Philippines, so IMO ship those that you, and also remember, that your wife will be able to use. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RetiredNavyGuy Posted June 28, 2011 Posted June 28, 2011 I moved her September 30, 2010. I brought 2 suitcases and shipped 3 Balikbyan Boxes. The boxes were opened by US customs, and improperly repacked. As a result, NONE of my electronic items survived the trip, and I could have left the electronics, shipped two BB (books, some CDs and some unopened non-perishable food items) and ended up with the same result. Oh well. Anyway, I disposed of everything else before I moved. It was a conscious decision to downsize and stay light so if I decided to do so, it would be relatively cheap and easy to move to another country. (Keep in mind, I am single and didn't have a gf, so your mileage may vary significantly.) The only thing I missed enough to replace it after I had been here a few months was my keyboard, and I now have a better keyboard than I had in the states.Haven't been here a full year yet, but I would make the same decision again. Yeah, some kitchen tools and stuff I had to buy again, but hey, those have to be replaced every so often anyway. I enjoy the fact that moving, even to another house, another city, or another island, will not be a major hassle.Just my two cents worth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HAPPY Posted June 28, 2011 Posted June 28, 2011 A question for those who have packed up and made the move to the Philippines.I have been looking through all the draws,cupboards and places that over the years I have accumulated things,you know all the gadgets and all those bits and pieces that one might use one day but when is any ones guess.When you moved did you take them with you or sell,giveaway or stored just in case you decide to come back?Is the cost of shipping everything worth it?Is it better to start a new life fresh with out the things one has held onto for years?What happens to all those food items you have in the pantry,give them away, throw them out?To me a lot of my things I would hate to part with but are they worth taking,to sell as second hand items makes them almost worthless but to buy again would be a small fortune.For those who have not made a big move yet,look around you and think about what your going to do with your possessions when the time comes to move. All of the above a genuine questions as I plan my move so input from all would be appreciated. Hey Bossman,how are you? I was talking to my brother in Atlanta tonight and told him that I was coming to Atlanta in OCT. to sell all of my things. I did some research and it is SO EXPENSIVE to ship things to the Philippines. Good luck on your decision and take care. I Really love living here in Cebu.Everett Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Art2ro Posted June 28, 2011 Posted June 28, 2011 Yeah, just get rid as much as possible that you can part with without getting all sentimental and teary eyed, but if you must, then ship it over! We only shipped 11 boxes here to the Philippines at my sister-in-law's home from California way back in 1998! Back in those days it only cost around $45 per box to ship, we wouldn't do that again at today's prices and now with the hassle with Customs where they do 100% open box inspections! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gapotwo Posted June 28, 2011 Posted June 28, 2011 The things that will be missed the most are my bikes. ang my guns. i have thinned out my household items to 5 balikbayan boxes,of gotta have but will never use items. and one backpack of necessary things. everything els that i collected over the last 35 years in alaska and hawaii got donated to the goodwill store. i figure ,new country new life new things, including new women, heck im the only one that wont be new. it was hard to part with all that stuff but keep on going and dont look back ,helped me thru it. goodbye WEST hello EAST. TANKS EJ.:emostrongbow: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lordblacknail Posted June 28, 2011 Posted June 28, 2011 When we moved here permanently in March of this year, we had shipped 60 LBC boxes at $55 to $65, depending on when they were shipped, and one box for $250. We carried our two desk top computers in our suitcases. I think we had to pay $30 for over weight. We also carried our 40" LCD tv as luggage, that cost $150 from Seattle to Manila, and then $150 from Manila to Cebu. That was a very very good decision. We had plastered fragile stickers all over it and it arrived here in perfect condition in the original carton.I didn't bring the 12 thousand paper books that I had acculated over a lifetime, instead gave those away. I did bring a Kindle 3 with over 100 thousand ebooks on my computer. I brought the foods that I like, I am a vegetarian, like La Victoria salsa, blackeyed peas, and about thirty pounds of tilamook cheese, which yes, made it here just fine, since it was in our luggage. I also brought lots of spices that we bought cheap at costco. Wish I had brought more spices.One spice we haven't been able to find here is anise seed. I like it on my pizza and my wife makes excelent pizza.I also wish I had brought 30 boxes of stuff instead of 60. I would have been just as happy, as long as I had packed the right things. The things I brought that I didn't need were things like my M&M collectables, twenty pairs of sandals, I am 66 and I only wear shoes, or clothes for that matter, if I go out. I do wear underwear before you get too excited, but no shirts, shorts or socks, unless we are going to a mall, which I do maybe twice a month. In other words, at my age I brought ten lifetimes worth of new shoes. I also have over 400 custom made shirts that I got here on various trips. About a 20 lifetime supply. Tons of kitchen things. We brought six new sets of non stick skillets from Costco. I doubt that we will use the old ones that we brought until they are no good.I of course brought as much of the prescription medicine that I could talk the VA out of, all our homemade jam, any books that I didn't have as an eBook, all my DVD's and music cd's. Toiletry items that we didn't think we could find here, but now we have an S&R, so have found most of them here. Two new sets of corele dishes and glassware, all of our kitchen pots and pans, bowls, utensils etc.I wish I had scoured the garage sales for more electric hand tools. The in-laws could have used a good circular saw earlier when they were making all the book cases for the house. Don't have much use for the hand tools and socket wrenches we brought, don't have or plan on having a car. Sure the usual pliers and screwdrivers and a few vise grips and crescents, but not the bulk of stuff that I brought.I of course brought all of my computer cables and pieces that I had. Three of my five printers did not make the trip in LBC boxes successfully, though none of them had been opened. Brought all of my blank cd's and my data cd's and extra keyboards and mice. Upgraded my computers with all the latest stuff just before we left.Brought six coffee makers and five bread makers and two sets of good knives, my good cutting board.Brought a lot of things that I could get here without an issue. But the things that I am soooo glad I brought, are my computers and monitors in the luggage, the TV as carry on, my office chair built for pleasantly plump people, that was why the $250 box, because it wouldn't fit in a regular one, several good 110v power strips, my microwave, and my bread makers, all the garage sale board games that we found the year before we left, and my Kindle 3. I couldn't live without that, and I haven't seen any for sale here.When we arrived, we were very lucky to find a great four bedroom two bath house for P7500 per month, in a very nice area, quite and with good neighbors. We bought a 22cf side by side refrigerator, a stove with oven, a couch with recliners on each end, two bamboo double beds, a used round office table to use as a dining room table with three used office chairs, and a split air conditioner. The brothers in law built a computer table and 12 bookcases. We are all set with everything we need. Now that we are set up, the next phase is to go thru the boxes that are under the bed and get rid of 80% of it, and put the rest on the book cases. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lordblacknail Posted June 28, 2011 Posted June 28, 2011 By the way, I called everybody including his brother before we left, verifying that I could bring my high end air gun rifle. No problem sir!!. Of course I carried it in my luggage so my boxes wouldn't be held if the box was xrayed. And equally of course, it was confiscated in Manila where it still sits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts