"I wonder if..."- Lots O' Questions

[gardawg9]

My family will possibly be moving to Singapore (Wife, 21 month old son, and myself).  We were hoping to get some of our initial "I wonder if...." questions

1) I wonder if... they have Huggies #5 diapers available?  Same sizes as U.S.?  Expensive?

2) I wonder if... they have king size beds?

3) I wonder if...we should bring our personal computer from the U.S.?  (240 volt, 50Hz....are their adapters)

4) I wonder if...the furnished apartments are nice?  Would you recommend furnished, partially, or not at all?

5) I wonder if...we should bring our big screen t.v.?

6) I wonder if...anyone can recommend what district to live in (where my wife and son can have lots of playmates)?

Thank you very much for any insight that you can offer!  We don't know if we are moving for sure so we have this excited/nervous/going insane feeling....

[here goes]

1. Huggies, yes.  I think a bit different.  Sizes no idea.  Lots of good brands of nappies avaliable.  My fav is Mamma Pokko

2. Yes

3. They do have adaptors

4. Depends what you are after and your budget.  In short yes there are good furnished apartments.  I prefer partially furnished.  Depends on how long you will be here and your moving budget etc.

5. if you want, can buy here or a flash/expensive apartment may have one

6. Depends on your budget...there are lots of good places to live though, for every budget.

[expat mom]

If your tv is a multi region system then it will work in Singapore.  Otherwise it only good as a dvd or vcr machine player.  

You can lease nice furniture for an apartment, but it does add up after a while.  

If I was moving light to Singapore I would bring mattresses, linens, and towels(US style mattresses are very expensive in Singapore) as most asian mattresses are very hard and nice linens are hard to find and expensive.  Nice sofas are pretty expensive so I probably would bring those.  You can get IKEA products in Singapore and lots of laminated stuff cheaply, so if those are OK then you could buy them in Sing.  Most everything else I would buy in Singapore.  After you get to Singapore you can find lots of second hand stuff that is quite nice since there are always lots of people moving.  Then when you leave just sell it again!

Often furnished apt furniture is pretty rough.

[Caligirl]

Hi there -- We moved here from the US when our daughter was 6 weeks old -- she is now 18 months old. All in all, it's been a nice play to have a little kid.

1) Yes, you can get a range of Huggies here...but I have to agree with the above -- Mamy Poko diapers (a Japanese brand) are the best we've ever used. Cheap, durable...I think they blow Huggies away!

2)  Yes, but an Asian king is smaller than a US king. You CAN find US kings here, but they are expensive. If you/your company can afford to ship stuff from the States, I would advise bringing yours.

3) Yes, there are adaptors, but computers are also well priced here if you want to buy a new one.

4) Depends on how long you intend to be here. There is some gorgeous furniture you can buy here (interesting regional pieces), as well as affordable "filler" pieces.

5) Up to you! They are plentiful here at all of the electronics shops.

6) We live in a central location (Districts 09 10) -- not far from the CBD & within walking distance of Orchard Road/many of the many attractions. Our place is lovely but not prohibitively expensive. I would advise looking at places on the weekends or late afternoons -- check out how many kids and parents are down by the pool/playground. Our complex is filled with kids under the age of 4 -- it is absolutely fantastic to have ready-made friends a few feet away. I am so glad that we live in a vibrant, kid-centric area.

Best of luck with your decision!

[Caligirl]

In defense of the OP, when you are contemplating a large, international move with a young child, all sorts of questions -- both the major and the mundane -- swirl through your head.

No need to mock the OP, especially with a poorly punctuated jab.

There are some American appliances that do not lend themselves well to adaptors.

OP, keep those questions coming. There are plenty of people here who would be happy to provide some insights without the snark.

[ReduseReuseRecycle]

Where can one buy Mamy Poko diapers?

[Caligirl]

You can find Mamy Poko at Fair Price, and I imagine that Meidi-Ya (the Japanese grocery store chain) would also carry them.  They really are excellent diapers.

[This message has been edited by Caligirl (edited 12-03-2007).]

[CA Expat]

OP, please ignore this swerty person.  Apparently they have a big chip on their shoulder.  Sheesh.  

I'm with Caligirl, bring on the questions.  I remember how confused I was with all the new things I was faced with when moving, so don't feel like any question is dumb.  And who cares anyway, not like anyone knows you!  

Seriously, great suggestions already offered.  Definitely ditto the recommendations on bringing your own mattresses and you'll need to bring all your own linens as the ones here don't fit US sized mattresses.  Plus there aren't as many choices for designs and the ones of any quality can be really expensive.  

I left most of my kitchen appliances in storage in the States and I'm glad I did.  Kitchens here are small and I really don't cook here like I did at home, just too hot and there's also so many choices for eating out.  

Plan on buying new lamps, clock radios, blow dryers, etc.  Any electronics you own that have a brick should be fine over here (computer, camcorder/camera chargers etc).   We bought a transformer so we could bring our own home stereo system but bought new TV and DVD.

Hmm, that's all I can think of at the moment but holler out with any more questions.  Hope this opp works out for you, it truly is a chance of a lifetime and a lot of fun.

[usa furniture]

hi,

i agree, ignore rude replies...........im orginally from usa but have lived in switzerland, england and singapore.i always ship my big very comfortable sofa with me world wide!also pictures, etc.  when moving abroad, you always feel a bit more at home when your surrounded by your favorite things. our move out of singapore, ill be shipping my sofa again....so glad i have til now. my type of  sofa would cost an arm and leg here or in europe.but,im also lucky my husbands company pays our shipping cost.for electicail things, im not really attached too so can easily buy new. we got a new computer here, blender, other kitchen appliances and a nice tv here. but when it comes to furniture you love or ordaments, decorations, pictures, etc. although you can buy everything here, you wouldnt want to regret selling things you love.

[usa furniture]

i think the mattresses are a smaller size here? we bought a king size here and my husbands feet go a bit over the edge(the lengths a bit short for his tallness) we never had that problem with king sizes from other countrys.

huggies and other diapers are available here. if theres something you cant find, you can always order things from usa online and have them shipped here.

theres a few different nice areas with children and schools. holland village is nice, novena is also very nice, lots of great areas around to choose from.

a partically furnished apartment usually comes with your big appliances like washer, dryer, fridge, lights, maybe curtains. thats what we have. no actual furiture came in ours but its good to have the big appliances here so we wont have the issue of selling or moving them when we leave.but i guess it really depends on how long your staying here?

happy moving

[Kiwi 2]

Hi there, Some really good suggestions. Only a couple of things to add- do bring our lamps with you as they will work fine without an adapter. You will just need to change the plugs. You can get plugs at Do It Yourself shops for a couple of bucks.

Think twice about bringing any really precious pictures or art work. There is a reasonable chance they will get damaged by the humidity here. I bought a few pieces of embroidery (framed) and they have been fine so far but photos in frames only seem to last a month or so before they perish.

Most places that come fully furnished here are outfitted from Ikea. Some people do rent better quality funiture though. If you google leased furniture I'm sure you will find a few options. Then you can factor the cost into your deliberations. Sometimes you can negotiate with the landlord that he takes out the furniture lease on your behalf and then it is built into the rental cost of the apartment.

I suggest that you bring a few packets of your favourite nappies with you. You will eventually find a brand here that you like but they are different in every country. If you bring some then its one less thing you need to do straight away. Also Singapore doesn't have its logistics very well sorted. Sometimes supermarkets run out of a size in every brand all that the same time!! You don't want that to be the case when you first get here.

We found it much easier moving here than we thought we would. The realsity is that almost everything is available here is you know where to look. Sometimes is quite a bit more pricey though- like the American sized beds.

All the best for the move.

[usa furniture]

very good point made about the pictures and the climate... in my case we are always moving different countrys and always ship all our things we have no storage in one place to leave things.no choice but to bring our pictures. i hope they are okay but must say id still bring them anyways.they add a personal touch and make our apartment feel more like home.these things can get ruined in any country, enjoy them while you can.dont mean to start flames here. i think the climate on your valuable is something to consider but if you just furnish your place with cheap things, you may never really settle here and enjoy it.it will all feel very temporary.

[furnishings]

<<if you just furnish your place with cheap things, you may never really settle here and enjoy it.it will all feel very temporary>>

good point and something we did!  We bought cheap Ikea stuff thinking we wouldn't be here long and the stuff was OK for a few years, but we've been here twice as long than we originally thought and the furniture isn't looking so good.  But if we're here a few more we will have learnt our lesson and we will start buying some better things which will last longer.

[electronics]

Computers from the US will work here, you'll just need a plug adaptor which you can pick up at any hardward/DIY shop here. It's likely your TV won't work here - the signal is PAL here and in the US it is NTSC (or something close to that   ) and unless your TV can be switched - meaning unless it is multi-region, it's not going to work. Plus, you'd have to be sure the electrical would be compatible with a plug adaptor. Same is true for your DVD player - in the US they are region 1 and here you will want a multi-region player because you will come across both region 1 and region 3 DVDs. Multi-region players are pretty cheaply priced here, so no worries.

We shipped most of our personal stuff over -- not sure I'd really want a fully furnished apartment, mostly because you'd be at the landlord's mercy as far as taste goes --- could be scary  

There are Huggies diapers here - I think the sizing is different and the diapers themselves might be a bit different from what you are used to, but I've used Huggies here and found them to be just fine. Price for around 25 diapers tends to be S$18-S$22.

The question of where to live will get you about as many answers as there are expats here. It's a rather subjective question. Best suggestion is to live in a serviced apartment for about a month and have a good look around at a variety of areas once you are here. It's always good to keep in mind things like where your kids will be in school, where your office is located, whether or not you plan on having a car - because if you don't, you'll want easy access to public transit.

[fully furnished]

No, I don't think I'd want fully furnished either.  I can't imagine that most landlords would shop anywhere too expensive for a fully furnished place, it'd be more like v-hive furniture.......and you'll see what that's like when you get here  

Try and stay in a serviced apt for a month or so, as suggested by the previous poster and you will be able to look around for a place to live at a more leisurely pace.