What to get some one who is going to China for a year?

jwthoms1

My sister is graduating college next weekend.  Then she's moving to China for a year.  She's been several times before but just for summers.  She will be there for a whole year this time.  She will only be able to take what she can carry.  She's working for a school/camp teaching English.

I have no idea what to get her.  I think we will mostly be communicating through Skype while she's gone, even though we haven't used it before. 

allibally

Does she have a Kindle or bringing a laptop. Amazon gift card to buy books off amazon to read. If she has a laptop an iTunes card might be nice. As long as the account is hooked up to a US card you can download from wherever you are. So she could get a movie or something occasionally. I can't chime in on how well those two websites work when your dealing with the Chinese censorship.

wise_rita

Can you buy Skype credit for others?

I wouldn't get her a physical thing unless she's told you she needs it.  She'll have tons of crap to carry/store/get rid of the way it is.  She doesn't need a knick knack on top of it.

This might be anti-climactic but you could also wait until she's back, setting up an apartment after her time abroad.  She probably doesn't need stuff right now, but when she's back home she will. 

gblake

New luggage?

tifvolley

allibally:

Does she have a Kindle or bringing a laptop. Amazon gift card to buy books off amazon to read. If she has a laptop an iTunes card might be nice. As long as the account is hooked up to a US card you can download from wherever you are. So she could get a movie or something occasionally. I can't chime in on how well those two websites work when your dealing with the Chinese censorship.

This is an awesome idea if she is a reader.  I missed being able to read english books, and there isn't a lot of room to pack regular books.  I would pre-load some books for her though.  When we were there, internet was very spotty and some websites were blocked.  We even had a point where internet was out for two months, because of lines being repaired.

I would imagine she's pretty set, but sending periodic care packages would be wonderful.  It was like Christmas when we got something.  I loved getting American snacks so I had a little taste of home and could share with my students.  Just make sure it can hold up well, we once had a package take over a month to get to us.  What age group is she teaching?

allibally

Also teaching wise. I made friends with a women at my college who was from Malawi and here for an education program. They stayed for three years and then went back to Malwai to train teachers. They already had packed tons of clothes and books to bring with them. I knew I wanted to help some other way along with driving them to the airport. So I went to Target and the Dollar Store and packed as many stickers as I could into an envelope. Stickers are always a favorite to young kids and the gift was small.

JalapenoMel

Money. Don?t get her anything that she has to lug over there unless it is super small like a picture frame. 

GilliC

Deodorant & Cheesy snacks (Cheetos, Goldfish crackers, Doritos, etc)

Those were the two things I most wanted people to bring me in Beijing.

Tofumonkey

I love the Kindle idea. Also, deodorant, dental floss, a couple of boxes of mac and cheese and some easy to pack cooking spices that she likes to use for those days that she just doesn't want chinese food.