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What Every Expatriate Needs In The Kitchen

Every year sees more and more Americans choosing to live abroad. When the move is made, some will elect to move everything from one place to the next. They’ll send their household goods on a ‘slow boat to china’ and wait for some months for them to arrive. However, most will actually opt to leave their old things behind and refurnish at the new location. A lot of expatriates are currently relocating to the Philippines, and for good reason.

One key factor drawing retired Americans to the Philippines is the low cost of living. A Social Security or disability check that can hardly make ends meet in the U. S. Can afford a comfortable living standard in the islands. How about a nice, 2-bedroom, 2-story house in a gated residential subdivision for about a hundred fifty dollars a month? Or a ten dollar a month water bill, $20 electric bill and less than $30 a month for high-speed internet and premium cable TV combination?

If you want to buy that same property in the Philippines you can get it for less than $30 thousand U. S. The only problem is that Filipino law forbids the owning of land by foreigners. You can marry a citizen and she can buy the house with your money, but you’ll NEVER own it, probably not even if she passes away.

Consequently, homes rentals, especially furnished units are common to expatriates. This allows them to step in and set up house with a minimum of your own ‘stuff’. You may need to buy a few things, though. For example, a tiger rice cooker, found in nearly every household in the country (Filipinos eat rice three times a day), is a must have.

A countertop microwave is something that, even if you brought one with you, it’s probably 110 and you need one that’s 220. You COULD get a converter, but not a really great idea for a microwave and almost as expensive as buying a new oven.

Tropical fresh fruits and fruit juices are abundant in the islands and a necessity in any well-equipped kitchen is a hand blender for use in whipping up smoothies and other liquid concoctions. They’re handy for lots of mixing jobs besides drinks, too. Available models are simple to use and easy to maintain.

Most appliances bought in the U. S. Won’t work where the voltage is 220 (unless a voltage converter is used). The exception is electronic devices like computers, cell phones and MP3 players. Most of these will either automatically adjust to the voltage or there will be a switch on the unit for toggling between 110 and 220. Consider this when you’re packing your stuff for the big move!