What items do you find impossible to locate in Kunming? Things you wish you'd brought with you from home - wherever that is.
My list includes: CheezWhiz

Blu-Tak

Neilson's chocolate bars

worthwhile deodorant

Top of my list is... my American family and friends.

I would also add:

-decent deodorant (second that one!)
-an affordable electronic English/Chinese two-way dictionary with both pinyin and character input

There was a thread not that long ago about blu-tak. I believe it is available at Metro under a different name and colour. There are cheap translation apps. available to download to apple iphone or itouch ipods.

I'm having trouble finding the following in Kunming:

1. MILO
2. BREAKAWAY - CADBURY CHOCOLATE

1. American cereals sold at *near* American prices
2. Good Milk

I had cereal every morning growing up, and throughout college. Any time I think of picking up a box of cereal, I realize it's either rubbish produced in Asia or it's sold at Paul's Shop for exorbitant prices - until it goes past it's sell-by date, that is!

I miss cereal as well, but carrefour sells 500g cereal for about 32rmb+. You can also by the museli cereal for quite cheap and I can tell you where to find Italian cereal (bran flakes, corn flakes) for 375g for 26rmb. Where's the Krispy Kremes and cheap Mexican food?

Watson's below Nan Ping Jie Carrefour has Rexona antiperspirants for men. I think it's 25 kuai a piece, same as in Europe and it's good. It doesn't scent much but you can always douse yourself in cheap Chinese aftershave, garlic or whatever smell you are going for. You can get fresh milk in the 2 supermarkets around my place so I guess you can get it anywhere. 7 day expiration date so they didn't stuff too many chemicals in it I assume,, it's a bit on the fatty side but I like that.

China is a great place to kick chocolate habits. It's crap and expensive, what more do you want? I miss dark bread (rye with kernels) as we eat it in Northern Europe,, good salami without the 80 percent fei rou that they prefer here.

How about affordable cheese and butter for grilled cheese sandwiches?? Next time I go to Metro I am getting one of those 3 kilo emmenthalers,, I might eat it all on the way home though.

I simply go by, "If I can't find it...I don't need it".

There is nothing I miss from the US. Period. I went back last year only to count the days until I returned to Kunming.

If I want something special, a simple trip to HK or Bangkok will suffice nicely.

Danmairen has a point, in some ways China is doing us a favour. As the list of wanted items attests, we are, like all westerners sugar junkies.

You can buy rye bread at a store called Bread Top, probably not as good as back home but definitely bread unlike a lot of others they sell here, which have a cake like consistency. They sell them unsliced, but will put them through the slicing machine at no extra cost. They don't always have it in store as they have to get the flour from Shanghai. I usually buy a couple loaves at a time and put them in the freezer.

Here's an an idea, how about we longtermers get together and help each other out. I have a friend coming over from Australia in a few weeks who could probably bring a few much wanted items for some of the other forum members, (a tube of deodorant for NinaC for example). Whilst others could bring me over some chocolate when my stash gets low.

To NinaC: I have one of those dictionaries but dont use it anymore. If you want to have a look at if, you know where to find me :-)

For bread: I started baking bread at our restaurant and according to our customers its pretty good. German style. I also get my flour from Shanghai and the result is pretty good. Right now we only have 2 kinds, but doing experiments with new ones.

I am also almost out of deodorant.....

Suggestions on where to buy plants / trees inexpensively?