Moving to the Philippines solo

What is a good packing list and best way to carry them for my upcoming solo move in a couple of months?  I am thinking a large size backpack and two hard cover medium sized suit cases. The first suit case will have all my clothes, as much as I can fit under 50 pounds for the airline requirement. The second suit case will be my gadgets and personal items. I am thinking anything more I should arrange a balikbayan box to be sent out to me whenever I finally settle on a location to live longer term.
Or.
Should I get by with just a large backpack and squeeze everything into one 50 pound suitcase. For the folks that have made the move already, how many of your original clothes that you initially brought with you do you still own and use now? I'm not sure if the ukay ukay will have much for a six footer guy.

I'll be packing:

1) Documents
2) Gadgets
3) Hobbies
4)  Selected clothes and shoes
5)  A few appliances

I'll be selling prior to move -- car, furniture (beds, tables/chairs, office desk, drawers/cabinets) and  left over appliances.

Give/throw away rest.

Re question on 6-footer clothes on ukay2 -- I would suggest bringing some clothing as they may be hard finding, especially on pants and shoes.

Gardo Fuentes wrote:

I'll be packing:

1) Documents
2) Gadgets
3) Hobbies
4)  Selected clothes and shoes
5)  A few appliances

I'll be selling prior to move -- car, furniture (beds, tables/chairs, office desk, drawers/cabinets) and  left over appliances.

Give/throw away rest.

Re question on 6-footer clothes on ukay2 -- I would suggest bringing some clothing as they may be hard finding, especially on pants and shoes.

YES, YES, YES Buy extra clothes.  A xxx large in the Philippines is the same as a small in the states. Clothes and shoes to fit Americans is hard to find in the Philippines. I ended up having to buy my size online in the states and FedEx'd to the Philippines.

Allow extra time to sell your car, it's hard to find a buyer with the cash. I had to sell my car below market price just in time before my move.

I was not able to sell all my furniture, so I called various charities, believe it or not, most of them could not schedule a pickup within a reasonable time. I had to hire a hauler to cart the stuff away, some good stuff ended up in a landfill.

Months and weeks prior to the move my wife sent 18 Balikbayan Boxes. We sent over our kitchen appliances (120 Volt USA) and had 120 V outlets wired in our kitchen and bedroom, along side of our 220 V outlets. Marked so no mix up.

If you are renting schedule your move when you lease expires. We completed everything two days before our flight and ended up staying in a hotel. Living in Las Vegas I rented a car one way and drove to LA (LAX) to catch our flight.

First off, don't bring electric appliances that are not rated for 220v. Question whether you NEED something beforehand to limit your weight to pay to send later.

Regarding clothing, the culture here is very casual. Think seriously on clothing to bring in your luggage. Tee shirts, and pull overs with a few buttons are common, as are cargo shorts. Jeans are worn by some  but can be pretty hot much of the year. Dress pants for church, if you attend, are not a bad choice, so 1 or 2 pairs will get you by if your not a hard core fashion buff. Many Western "rules of dress" don't apply in city areas, and are almost non-existent in the provinces.

Remember that clothes stored in boxes, etc will take on a musty smell after a while. Consider if you desire to do SE Asian traveling (ie  warm weather) or if you want to travel to cooler climates later when choosing.

I am 6' 4" and have a little probl3m getting clothes. I live in metro Manila, so lots of malls to choose from. My biggest issue is shoes. I wear a US size 13 and find that they are almost impossible to find & buy.

Ukay ukays get many boxes of clothes from "Goodwill" or other western charity centers and since the clothes are probably not sorted have clothes for us tall guys. Some are in a suitable condition with little apparent wear. It is definitely a hit or miss situation.

Hi I had some of my dress Uniforms made in Angeles in the late 80's when I made 0-4.  What is the status of Tailors?  Also one of the bloggers said he brought 2 pair of long pants and had not worn them. I guess it depends on where you live and what you social situation is. Thanks

lcdrski wrote:

Hi I had some of my dress Uniforms made in Angeles in the late 80's when I made 0-4.  What is the status of Tailors?  Also one of the bloggers said he brought 2 pair of long pants and had not worn them. I guess it depends on where you live and what you social situation is. Thanks

Several years ago, I went to a Tailor and had three pairs of pants  and alteration to another pair that didn't fit well. All I can remember about him he was not located in a mall but had a stand
alone shop. So the 3 plus 1 pairs cost me under $100 USD and I provided the material. Manila area

He advised me to go to the mall and buy the material, which I did at a very reasonable price, it was so reasonable I couldn't believe how inexpensive it was.

The pants fit really good, making me look good. Even in the states going to the "Big, Tall and Fat Mans Store" I could never get a good fit and the cost was $100 USD six years ago.

I should have ordered some shorts because I hardly ever wear the pants.