Things to bring to England, vs things to buy in England

[heathermac]

Hi everyone,

I'll be moving to England in the middle of August to teach for a year, and I have no idea what to pack. I was wondering if anyone had any advice on things to bring with me, vs things to leave behind and just buy in England. For example, I've heard that I shouldn't bring a hair dryer/straightner because of the voltage difference.

As well - what sort of things did you miss when you were in England that you wish you would have brought, or perhaps brought back with you when you went home for a visit?

Any help will be greatly appreciated!

Heather

[heymikey]

I haven't left yet but I'm thinking of buying a laptop here just because it's cheaper.

Aside from that, I don't know. I hope more people reply back.

[Sarah1983]

hi heather,
i'm moving mid-august as well.

good question, i hope people who've gone before us can answer.

[Steven]

There's threads on here already about it. Basically nothing electric or electronic unless it says on it that it accepts a 240V input which usually limits you to laptops and cellphones. No bulky furniture, think Ikea-sized stuff. Definitely no TVs, Canada is NTSC, the UK is PAL. Phones powered by the phone cable sometimes work but the sockets are different so you have to buy a new cable, as they use the BT plug rather than RJ-45.

Not only the voltage is different but so is the frequency so it can be quite tricky to get 110V stuff to work on 240V stuff. The other way around is actually quite easy if you know what you're doing, i.e. 240V stuff on a 110V socket but the frequency is still off. As you will notice if you have a fan or a sewing machine.

[heymikey]

Hey Steve, now that you've brought up cellphones, I am assuming I can just bring my cellphone with me and just change the sim card. Is this correct? I am with fido so we use the GSM network, which I assume is similar to the one in the UK.

[Steven]

Provided the phone is unlocked.

[Slipper]

I relocated to the UK over a year ago and brought (or will ship) over some expensive appliances that are electric but not electronic such as a sewing machine or electric toothbrush- these appliances can be used with an adapter and transformer. I bought a laptop, mobile, telephone, TV and digital radio here and will probably buy a car over here although public transport, even outside of London, is pretty good. (Get used to turning appliances, etc on and off at the wall over here, by the way.)

Things I miss...decent salad dressing (Rene's garlicky Caesar mmm), shake and bake, tylenol extra strength, neo citron. You can probably get a version of most everything (except for shake and bake) but it won't be as tasty or as effective. I haven't had a decent pizza or sushi (if you can find it) in months. Don't know what to advise about the pizza- I think that you can get good pizza if you spend a heartbreaking £20. Maybe, load up before you leave Canada. As for the sushi, I am thinking of cutting out the middleman and getting one of my relatives to send over some sushi making supplies. I haven't looked for peanut butter so can't report on that.

The have donairs here (called donner, presumably after Santa's reindeer). They are a bit dodgey- avoid them. If you are moving to London, make your way over to the Edgeware Road for some shwarma (Helen's) and you'll never contemplate a 'donner' again. Get used to fish and chips. It will take sometime to find a chippy (north) or fish bar (south) that uses good fresh fish and doesn't keep everything under a heat lamp. You'll get used to mushy peas, too. Sandwiches are called cobs in the midlands, baps in the south (I think) and rolls in the north and Scotland). Your pants are your trousers and your underwear is your pants. Your purse is your handbag and your (woman's) wallet is your purse.

I am way off topic but I hope that this has been helpful.

[heymikey]

I guess all legit phones in Canada are locked, so how do I unlock it? Of course since I will be staying in a hostel until I find a place, I would like to travel light.