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Amazon.co.uk will be your friend in this case. And we've been using credit cards in the UK for decades - we've certainly been using debit cards long before the US.
Your TV-watching options will be a bit less even with cable or satellite but at least it will give you good insight into the Brit character . And you'll be in a really lovely part of the country.
Another company popular with the expats is American Sweets. If you look at the prices, you'll see why I recommend bringing your favourite snackfoods (snackfoods seem to be something that people really miss) Buy American Cereal In the UK! Fantastic Range & Prices! I order salsa off there occassionally, and also these babies!
This may be obvious and you've probably already checked but have a look to see if the Base has a Facebook page or it's own site with a family forum. They'd probably have plenty of information for you.
I know British Forces Bases overseas have sites like the ones above to help new postings and i don't see why US ones would be any different.
Hope that's been of some help and good luck and "Welcome to our fair land!"
Buy voltage converter and adapter from walmart in USA as plugs will be different here (sockets) as well as voltage.
Dont just rely on credit cards as in UK credit cards also run on pins and many places have difficulty in processing US credit cards. once you come to UK, you will open bank account and you will get debit card-so use that. also I beleive checking account is called current account in UK. regarding food, what type of food items you are buying in US I guess you can find everything in UK as far as food is concerned.
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Originally Posted by HIgirl
An open mind huh - thats an interesting comment. We are really excited about the move; however, we are aware that it is not the US and things will be different. So I guess we can say we are coming over with an open mind.
Re: electronics, we have been looking at our items to see if they would be okay, but about half are not. We figure we would just buy run-of-the-mill items when we get there. No need for them to be fancy. So I guess we will have to bring some $$$. Do most stores deal with credit cards - or do they deal more in terms of currency?
Interesting about the dental floss - I guess we will stock up on those. Although at time pricier to buy things via amazon or ebay while in the states, I was thinking we could use those avenues to buy certain foods and items and just have them shipped. Does anyone buy via amazon.com or ebay? Any problems with customs, etc.?
Thanks again everyone for your comments. RedJacket - sorry but Snookie will have to stay here
Some really good tips above. Definitely buy a converter that will allow you to plug some US electronic items in at the UK power source. You can pick them up on Amazon for cheap. You cannot use a US television in the UK but you can use most other electronic items. If you have a laptop, iPad etc then these will all work fine with a standard converter (I used to buy most of my electronic stuff in the US as it was cheaper).
I wouldnt worry too much about food items etc. you don't need it and you will run out anyway. The UK has everything you could need and more, the supermarkets have a great selection, and it's moved on from the days when everything closed at 5pm (well, somewhat anyway!).
If you need a cell phone you can buy 'pay as you go' phones for as little as £5 with no contract.. It's a good way to get started. Checking accounts are called 'current accounts' in the UK - you will want to open one ASAP.
Don't worry about food--the food over there is excellent. Wait til you see their beautiful grocery stores. They have EVERYTHING. It's much easier to find organic food and foods that don't have a lot of obnoxious additives. Even their frozen foods are better than what we have available here.
But DO take clothing with you. Their clothing selection is on the pathetic side and it's expensive even for things that aren't very good quality. On the other hand, they don't need clothes for really cold winters or for really hot summers so you don't need clothing for the extreme temperatures that we have over here.
Take shirts, mostly long sleeved, sweaters, jackets, trousers, dresses and skirts. Take shoes. Find styles that are classic and will last. Just don't try to buy clothing over there or you'll get sticker shock really bad.
As a Brit living in the US and about to move back to Europe I would suggest going outlet shopping and buying Nike running shoes (if you exercise and need them), R Lauren/Hilfiger is really cheap in the US compared to the UK. However the lingerie selection even in department stores is better in the UK if you are not a standard 34B....
generally though I agree that clothing in the UK is not great quality but its more fashion led so people buy that seasons colors/styles wear them wash them and give them to charity after couple of months because they aren't 'in fashion' anymore.... I would visit Top Shop/H&M every week and throw one outfit for every one I bought.... classics/staples are a different story.
We have bought mountain bikes and BBQ and are shipping them because our shipment is paid by the company.
Keep your Apple iTunes US acct and load money on it if there are US TV shows you can't live without - you can download them. Just don't tell them you have moved !! If you run out of credit and have registered your cards in the UK then get someone to buy iTunes US gift cards for you and this should work..
food wise I'm not sure there really is anything you won't be able to get in the UK. You might have to pay a little more but its a cost balance between shipping/ storing stuff and paying a few extra $$$ she you realize you can't I've without it...
if you have any specific medicines I would buy them as there are differences in what can be sold over the counter... however in the UK you can actually ask the pharmacist about small problems and they are qualified to help if its not something that needs medical attention.... If I had a skin rash or similar I would just ask the pharmacist what he thought before going to see a doctor. Here in the US you get a spotty teenager in CVS who doesn't know acne from measles...... IME !! and I would also do a price compare using price runner . co . uk for other things you think you might want....
Tesco.co.uk and sainsburys.co.uk have online shopping (and they deliver !!) so you can see the product range and check the prices.
One last one is that no one ( apart from maybe my 75 year old mother) uses a check book.... everything is debit / credit card.
I use cheques all the time as well - I was amazed by how many people and companies take them! Such a change from North America. Everyone from the plumber to the osteopath to the fruit and veg man will take a cheque! And I'm not 75!
Swisswife mentioned BBQs - I really wish I had brought mine over. Gas BBQs here are extortionist in price! (And MANY people prefer charcoal, which is perhaps why the gas ones are so pricey?) I had an excellent BBQ that I got for a great price in Canada - and I suspect they are even less expensive in the USA, but didn't bring it and once I got here, I couldn't afford to buy a comparable one. I have settled for a very basic one. If you use your BBQ a lot and have a nice one, bring it (don't bring your tank) - you can just change the end connector here to fit the tanks they use here.
Last edited by sunshineleith; 05-31-2012 at 01:49 AM..
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