Help me give a gift, not reduce closet space

November 5, 2008 10:48 AM

I need a gift idea for my late 20's brother living in Japan, but going to be receiving the gift in Toronto. ~$50. MUST be something 'useful'. I refuse to give gifts where the receiver will say 'great, what am I supposed to do with this thing now'.

Anything consumable qualifies. Gifts that I consider a burden on the receiver: clothes, decorations, media (ie. books, movies), etc. Unless I happen to know they specifically would have purchased that item for themselves.

posted by dino terror to Shopping (9 answers total)

Consumables are definitely the way to go. There is not one gadget or doodad that I've ever needed in Japan that I couldn't find sooner or later. Dental floss is expensive, though.

Gourmet nuts are expensive in and hard to find. They also pack and ship well and are easy to share.
posted by Alison at 11:32 AM on November 5, 2008

Take him out to dinner, someplace fancy and totally un-Japanese.

Surely there must be a good French restaurant somewhere in Toronto, for instance.
posted by Class Goat at 11:34 AM on November 5, 2008

English-language books are relatively expensive in Japan, and the selections are limited. And they are widely passed around once read. So you'd be making many people happy with books.

Any kind of local food that transports well is good.

A weird idea for a gift, but when you're in Japan, it's hard to find recognizable OTC pharmaceuticals and (to a lesser extent) toiletries, and those are the kinds of things where you really want to know what you're getting.
posted by adamrice at 11:55 AM on November 5, 2008

Ms. Vegetable recently gave her early-30s brother a gift of odd soap (beer soap, lizard soap, etc.):

etsy.com, search for seller "lilybay".
posted by a robot made out of meat at 4:50 PM on November 5, 2008

Since he's going to be in Toronto anyway, I assume he can pick up the things himself that he can't find in Japan. When I go home to the states, I stock up on candy I can't find here in Tokyo, anti-persperant (which can't be found easily in Japan), books, magazines, etc. Just make sure it's something lightweight/non-bulky so he can take it on the plane easily.

A good book or two (or ten) is a good bet--they're pretty expensive in Japan and the selection isn't great outside the big cities.
posted by zardoz at 7:47 PM on November 5, 2008

Coffee Crisp - it's only available in Canada.
Maple Syrup - its' much much cheaper in Canada.
Pirate cookies - if he likes pirate cookies.
Condoms - Japanese condoms may be too small.
Licorice allsorts - I think they're gross, but a friend asks me to send them all the time.
Edge shaving gel - the same friend asks for this too.

Can't say anything more without knowing your brother. If he's in a large city he'll have access to lots of foreign foods or anything else he'd get in Toronto (except maybe books, hard/expensive to come by English books in Japan). Does he have big feet? Shoe selection gets quite restricted if your size is 11+.
posted by any portmanteau in a storm at 8:15 PM on November 5, 2008

if he likes food: dried fruits, olives, beef jerkey, and dried beans are all really expensive in japan. i always require an offering of peanut butter m&ms when people visit me.
posted by Infernarl at 1:17 AM on November 6, 2008

Response by poster: Thanks for the suggestions, I've decided to go with... I can't tell you! Maybe after xmas.
posted by dino terror at 6:36 AM on November 6, 2008

Response by poster: So, I went with an Audible.com gift certificate.
posted by dino terror at 5:02 PM on January 31, 2009