When you’re going abroad for a long period of time, even if it’s just a year, you want to make sure you’re prepared ahead of time. There are some things I wish I knew about before I came over to this side of the pond. Over here in Thailand they do have plenty of stuff you need back in your country but some things can be hard to find here or if you do, it’s not like back in your country.
…. and that’s why I came up with…….
THE TOP 10 THINGS YOU NEED TO HAVE WITH YOU WHEN YOU COME OVER HERE TO THAILAND TO TEACH OR BE A DIGITAL NOMAD!
1 Underwear and socks
Socks: Over here they’re usually sold in one or two pairs, that’s it. It’s not like back in America where we can get a 6 or an 8 pack for $xxx. Here a 2 pack of socks would be between 100 and 200 baht which at the current exchange rate is about $3 to $6.
Underwear: I’m a tighty whitey wearing kind of dude. They don’t have those here. They do have plenty of boxers but I never liked those because even when I was athletic, my legs were still big and I would wear them out quick. The whitey underwear they do have is sold in singles if you are lucky to find them. The one’s I did find were singles and thongs. Even an effeminate friend of mine over here in Thailand would have looked at those and said, “Wow, those are really GAY.”
2 A good pair of shoes
If you’re in Bangkok, the sidewalks are going to tear the hell out of the souls of your feet. You want to have some shoes that will last. At the very least sneakers. If you bring ones from American that have a month before replacing, be prepared to pay for some sneakers. There are some places like MBK where you can get them at a decent price but be prepared to pay around 2000 baht for some okay ones which is $60. The first shoes I bought over here were 5000 baht, $150, but worth it because I bought some cheapos and damn I regretted it. My feet hurt pretty bad for a few days.
3 A good quality backpack
This is understated. I use my backpack every day and I don’t want to risk using something cheap that’s going to fall apart. Here is my backpack. I really do like it because of the storage and how it can fit my laptop very comfortably and it has plenty of cushion so it doesn’t feel like the computer or battery are poking me in the back. It’s also comfortable enough to wear all day and it won’t kick my butt.
4 For the ladies: Bring extra sets of what you usually use for makeup.
I know that is a strange suggestion to take because there is a metric ton of cosmetics here in Thailand with skin whitener. FYI, it’s VERY IMPORTANT to KNOW. The skin whitener isn’t like tanner back in the states. It’s bleach and it’s permanent. It’s in the soaps, creamers and all that fun stuff. You can get stuff that isn’t whitener. It’s not hard to find, but I am talking about soap. I don’t use the creamers for obvious reasons since, well you know, I’m a dude. Some really take it a bit to far. I am not joking, some women have been pale enough to be the joker or the ghost from the movie The Grudge.
Sexy Sexy! haha
5 Razors
Okay this is very important the western razors they do have here aren’t sold in big packs. I forgot my razors back home when I left for Indonesia. All I found was horrible stuff. I really lucked out when the Man of Steel movie came out and the Gillette Sensor Excel sponsored the movie because they finally got some good stuff there. Thanks HENRY CAVEL!
Here in Bangkok I can buy them but they are expensive. Four razors cost about $17. Screw that when you can easily get and bring them over. A 12 pack will last you a year here. If you haven’t used the razor, try it, it’s AWESOME. Disposable razors peel the epidermis off of my face like a cheese slicer so these are the way to go.
Do you want more? Well I will shamelessly ask you to go to my main blog site and give it some love and see the rest of the list here at my website.
Thanks for reading and more will come soon.
Karawacimatt signing off SEE-YA!