My family always knows that summer is coming when the boxes and packages of items I’ve purchased online start to pile up, waiting for me to retrieve them. Shelley Munro had a Thursday Thirteen post this past weekend about shopping. And it got me to thinking that I need to start on my summertime shopping list for when I’m back in the US.
I do my best to make do with what is available locally where ever it is that I am living. And depending on where I’m living that can work better and worse. It was easier in Dubai than it is in Egypt by far! Making do with local products was what prompted me to learn to bake cakes from scratch when mixes were outrageously expensive or just not available and had me trying food I might not otherwise ever have eaten. But there are certain products that I just need on hand and when a large can of Bush’s baked beans costs $10 and a bottle of McCormick’s Pure Vanilla extract and a canister of Hershey’s cocoa go for $20 each (when you can find them at all!), you can see why I max out my luggage allowance on the way home.
I have a friend who says she goes to the Omaha Steak store and packs coolers with frozen meat to bring back with her. Another friend admits to bringing back bags full of bacon. I’m not quite that ambitious and try to restrict my groceries to specialty / long-lived / dry goods, but I do have a growing shopping list.
My shopping list, in no particular order, so far:
Quilting supplies – good cotton fabric is hard to find and that goes for thread as well. Ironically, Egypt exports most of its cotton to other countries for processing. I bought a piece of white cotton on my last trip to Dubai that was marked “Egyptian Cotton, Made in Japan”. There is no batting available locally at all. I usually have one very large, very light bag packed full of batting! I weight the bottom of the bag down with the next item on my list…
Kids shoes – because the shoes in Egypt are either 1) crap or 2) $$$ . My children are both very sporty and it’s getting to the point where one pair of cross trainers isn’t good enough. They need to specialize! I’ll have to look for all purpose sport shoes for school, soccer cleats, and a smoother bottom shoe for playing tennis on a clay court. (I am hoping for athletic scholarships but I may have spent as much on their shoes and equipment as I would have on tuition at the end of the day!)
Mom’s shoes – because a girl can never have too many pretty shoes 
Baking powder – it’s available locally but is sold in teaspoon sized packets!
Baking soda – again, available locally in tiny cans for about $1.50 each. I can buy a detergent sized box in the US for not much more!
Vanilla extract- see above
Ground flaxseed – a wonderful way to pack a few extra vitamins into banana bread, pancakes, etc. Not so easy to find hippy freak food in Cairo.
Cookie sheets and baking trays – $20 is more than I want to pay for a cake pan so I’m holding out for a trip to Walmart!
Food coloring, cake decorating supplies – generally hard to find!
(There seems to be a definite baking theme emerging here!)
Wild rice – so yummy and since I’ll be in Minnesota anyway…
Canned pumpkin – $5/can in Cairo and only available around the holidays
Spices – certain spices are hard to find or aren’t exactly what you expect. “Chili powder” here is actually pure red pepper!
Duct tape – you know, I never really used it when I was living in the US, but it was sort of comforting to know I could get it if I wanted it. I imagine I could practically trade it on the black market here, land where things are repaired and repaired and repaired again.
Christmas presents - if I can leave the children with my mother for an hour or so, I’ll buy a few things for their Christmas stockings that I would NEVER find in Egypt.
That’s what I’ve come up with so far but I’m sure there will be more in my bags at the end of my stay. There are no doubt many wonderful little gadgets in the baking / cooking aisles at Walmart that I’ve not dreamed of. The quantity and variety of items available in the US can be a little overwhelming when you’ve been away from it for a time!
I’m looking forward to being overwhelmed 
A person can never have enough baking supplies and duct tape.
Seriously though, it must be difficult and a bit frustrating at times. I guess it’s one of the joys of living abroad.
Are flights to Dubai expensive? It might just about be worth while saving for a Christmas trip and taking minimal clothes???
by Shelley Munro June 18th, 2008 at 5:24 amShelley – It’s funny because I really can’t think of many times I’ve every personally used duct tape, but it’s comforting to know it’s there when you want it!
My list is growing by the day…
by Jenyfer June 18th, 2008 at 6:20 am