CreativeProblemSolving: Moving overseas in stages

June 14, 2007 11:10 AM

CreativeProblemSolvingAdventureFilter: If you were moving overseas for a period of 2 years via 4 air trips, spaced 1.5-2 months apart, what stuff would you bring when?

I'm moving overseas (Austria) for a 2-year masters program, starting in September. I have lots of stuff, much of which doesn't need to come with me (Assume storage is free), but I'm planning on making a home for myself while I'm there, so I'd like to move more than the bare necessities. My logic question for you, O Hivemind, is how would you group your stuff in the following buckets:

#1 - Bonus: Late June Bucket: ~140 lbs (2 checked, 2 carryon) **PRE-MOVE IN**
-Stuff I need once I move in, but can live without right now
-->Stuff that will get apartment set up to ease September move and allow for livable conditions for our summer subletter. Will be bringing foam mattress (~45 lbs), sheets, shower curtain..

#2 - Essentials: September Bucket: ~140 lbs (2 checked, 2 carryon) **MOVE IN DATE**
-Stuff I need immediately upon moving in

#3 - Later: November Bucket: ~70 lbs (1 checked, 1 carryon)
-Stuff I need in Austria, but don't need until November
-->Clever suggestion so far has been bringing Winter Clothes, since the weather will be just beginning to get very cold

#4 - Much Later: December Bucket: ~140 lbs (2 checked, 2 carryon)
-Stuff I need in Austria, but don't need until January
-->Definitely need ideas on this front; what can you live without for 4-5 months but not for 2 years?

NOTE: Books can be shipped via USPS MBag for $1/lb, and will therefore not be involved in these buckets, for the most part



Items to sort:
*2 laptops and associated things with them (Including small printer, small scanner, label printer (maybe), extra batteries and chargers and things)
*Cell phones and ipods and things
*Clothes and linens of all flavors
*Kitchen items worth bringing despite their weight [Will be cooking alot] (Knives, thermometers and timers, utensils/spatulas/etc, Jury's out on: a big All-Clad saute pan [possibly], cups and tableware [probably not])
*Desk stuff (Stationary, staplers, 3-hole punchers, writing utensils, etc)
*Bathroom stuff (Toiletries, etc)
*Probably some other categories I'm missing that one needs for life and all that.

posted by sdis to travel & transportation (8 comments total)

Don't bring mattress, towels, sheets, toiletries, desk stuff etc. with you - buy them over there. As for kitchen stuff, if it costs more than $100 (All-Clad pan), bring it with you, leave everything else behind.
posted by matildaben at 11:50 AM on June 14, 2007

Your question is quite complicated, and I have to say, I think you've done a great job on the planning so far.

I'll just address the last lot of stuff to arrive. It seems like the December bucket should be things you would regard as extra bonuses to have in Austria, not things you really need. In my opinion, the heaviest and bulkiest of these items would be excess kitchenware. As a fellow cooking-lover, I know my equipment piles up fast and takes up a good bit of space. So take a skeleton set of kitchen stuff with you when you go, and grin and bear it until December to get the rest of it. So the thermometers and timers, saute pan, along with the tableware that you list as a "maybe" could go then, but when you get to Austria you need to have maybe just a pot you can cook with on the stove and that can go in the oven, a frying pan and a baking tray, 2 cups, 2 glasses, 2 plates, 2 bowls, 2 sets of silverwear, that kind of thing.

Do you need a scanner right away? That would be another "nice-to-have" for me, and you could use a copy shop or your school facilities for scanning emergencies that arose in the meantime. Do you need two laptops or is one enough?

Another category of stuff to put in the last shipment - US products you can't get in Austria, or that are much more expensive there. It's hard to speculate on this category since I don't know your habits, but any toiletries from companies that sell mostly in the US (Kiehls, Aveda, Bath and BodyWorks or whatever you're into) will be much more expensive over there, as will clothes and shoes, due to VAT and less of an economy of scale. Also, things like brown sugar, black beans, cornmeal, that you might use in cooking will be hard to find and pricey. Basically, if I were you I'd set up a care package to receive in December - a present for yourself for making it to Austria and starting your studies successfully.

Finally, don't stress it too much. You can get any of the little things you forget when you arrive in Austria, and like I say, you seem to be thinking it all through very well and I'm sure you'll do great. Good luck.
posted by hazyjane at 11:53 AM on June 14, 2007

Having moved back and forth between countries, I can tell you - take your fave clothes, a laptop, tolietries for the first month and buy the rest there. Even with the exchange rate, it is just such a pain in the ass to move stuff.

Specifics:
Euro sheets are different sizes than American sheets. I LOVED my Euro sheets so much that I brought them home with me to America and they totally don't fit.

Don't bring your 3 hole puncher. They use different size paper there and the hole puchers are either 2 or 4. Just buy all that stuff there.

Don't bring your kitchen stuff. A lot of Euro rentals have a fully stocked kitchen. Also, you may have a housemate who already has this stuff. OR make your housemate buy that stuff.

Don't bring books. Use the library's books and don't buy a lot when you're there.

Bring 1 dressy winter coat and 1 sporty winter coat. Wear one of them on the plane, even if it is summen when you leave. It might even be easier just to buy them there. Seriously. In Europe there are so many cheap great stores that we just don't have in America.
posted by k8t at 12:05 PM on June 14, 2007

Also, printers are kind of funky - they don't move well or do well with power in other countries. Just buy a cheap one there, if you even need one. Your university will have printers and scanners for you. Truly. And do you REALLY need a label printer?
posted by k8t at 12:08 PM on June 14, 2007

Forget bringing your US cell phone; it's unlikely to work in Europe (unless it's a quad-band GSM phone that's unlocked..). Cheap phones & plans or pay-as-you-go are widespread.

Do not assume your favourite toiletries will be readily available.

I suspect that most of the things in bucket #4 ("can live without for 4-5 months but not 2 years") are the more-expensive, yet shippable, occasional-activity-related items. Sports stuff? Bicycle? Skies? Backpacking gear?

Consider bringing a small set of basic tools (screwdrivers, hex nuts, adjustable wrench, hacksaw, file, hammer.. perhaps in some bucket including a lightweight power drill/screwdriver). 2 years is long enough that you may well want to make some minor adjustments to your living space, or deal with something without waiting for the landlord.
posted by kanuck at 12:13 PM on June 14, 2007

Just because you can bring 140 lbs of stuff each trip it doesn't mean you have to bring 140 lbs of stuff with you each trip. I do understand where you're coming from - if you've already got the stuff and you have room in your luggage, why wouldn't you bring it instead of buying new in Austria? That being said, as a student who has now moved overseas to study three times, I'd quite strongly recommend bringing as little with you as possible for the very simple fact that it will be expensive as all hell to get it back. If you're faced with decisions about what to bring back, it'll certainly be easier to abandon the crappy yet serviceable stuff you've bought in Austria than stuff you've carefully selected and carried over from the US.

But, when it comes to planning all of this, I'd definitely wait to bring winter clothes as well as some of the heavier tech stuff. Try living without things for a while and, if you find that you miss them, you can bring them over later. To that end, I'd swap your weight allocations for September and November around. Bring the bare minimum when you move over and two months later fill in the gaps.
posted by lumiere at 2:11 PM on June 14, 2007

I've got some experience with this, having a couple of transatlantic moves under my belt. I'm with k8t on this one - laptop, clothes, few toiletries. That's what I took with me for my current 18-month stint overseas.

I think your plan seems fine if you really feel you need all your stuff with you. However, I've found it's easier and cheaper (sadly) to ditch stuff and purchase new/used at my destination. It feels terribly wasteful, but using Freecycle and Craigslist has helped easy my guilt. Will moving back also necessitate four round trips? If you factor in that cost too, other options may appear more affordable, including surface shipping.

Don't forget to use friends as mules - I've had people bring items when they visit, but generally, I've not missed many things - even much-loved books and cooking utensils.

Good luck with the move!
posted by poissonrouge at 2:39 PM on June 14, 2007

All this planning is fun, but do you have an exit strategy? How are you going to get it all home? It would be heartbreaking to send it all over, then not be able to bring it back.

Personally, I wouldn't take anything that isn't either:

a. Disposable. Most clothes, linen, toiletries will be ready to toss after 2 years, so sure, take them. If you wanted, you could also put stationary and shower curtains (?) in this catagory, but many of these things will be incompatable with stuff in Europe - plus Germany at least has brilliant stationary, and who wouldn't want an excuse to buy new stationary. This catagory also includes any food or consumables you can't get there - and this'd be the stuff I'd be getting brought over in Nov, Dec.

b. Expensive/hard to replace and required for daily life. This would included laptop, winter coat, some electrical equipment (assuming it'll work in Austria).

Anyway, maybe I should have given you more benefit of the doubt, but having moved a few times, my general approach is: permanent move - everything you can afford, temporary move - only what you need.
posted by kjs4 at 9:02 PM on June 14, 2007