clothing for kids & adults is a good tip, as things are generally expensive. English books would be good. (DVD's may not work on TV's here unless you have a multiregional player)

small kitchen appliances depending on if electrical will not work, unless you bring a voltage converter.

If the children have specific likings for certain food like (i.e. aunt jamimas syrup, cereals, etc) that they're used to, might want to pack a few, but eventually you will find something equivalent or better. (p.s. there's no duncan donut here.. so couple of DD coffee grounds if that's one of your regular morning runs:rolleyes:)

Unless you're restricted on how much you can bring, makes sense to bring most of the basic things with you apart from electrical goods. 

You can always go to the french boarder for better deals. ;)

Good luck with the move! 
YouMeCo, Jun 16, 2008 @ 19:17

Hi



Clothing, shoes, sporting goods, musical instruments are expensive. Mainly anything which is manifactured in the us is probably twice as much here or even more. Food will cost a lot, but you can't change that. You may wan't a small supply of your ususal medications.

Electronical stuff will be grilled when you plug it in unless you have a 110-220 converter which is hard to get.

Get yourself informed what insurances you need when you come over. It depends on the lenght of your stay.

Bring friends along. Hard to get anyway...



Good luck



Andrej
and70, Jun 16, 2008 @ 19:32

I would second the idea that you do not bring any small appliances with you. It can be a real pain to work with transformers. Depending on the specific item, it might not like the 50hz either (USA is 60hz).



Kids books, clothes, sports stuff are all good to bring if you have the space. Favorite foods are good without going overboard. Be careful of best before dates. Normally movers will not let you pack any fluids. Check first.



Just to clarify the question about DVDs. North America is Region 1. Europe is Region 2. Normally you can not read Region 1 DVDs in a Region 2 DVD player. From memory Amazon.com will not ship DVDs outside of North America for this reason.



The exception to this rule seems to be Switzerland where 99% of the DVD players they sell have been "de-zoned" so you can play Region 1 DVDs without a problem. An inexpensive DVD player here will cost $50-70. If you can bring cheap DVDs for the kids, why not.



Good luck with your move.
Verbier, Jun 16, 2008 @ 19:42

[quote]

Just to clarify the question about DVDs. North America is Region 1. Europe is Region 2. Normally you can not read Region 1 DVDs in a Region 2 DVD player. From memory Amazon.com will not ship DVDs outside of North America for this reason.

[/quote]



I have never had a problem with amazon.com shipping dvds here. I usually check coin-op.ch and amazon.com to see what's available where and occasionally amazon.uk (it's bizarre what gets released where when. West Wing was often available in the UK before the US). Amazon.com warns you that you've added region 1 dvds to your order, but they ship them right out. You may get charged VAT on them when they arrive, but otherwise, it's up to you to make sure that your dvd player is multi-region.
misskate, Jun 16, 2008 @ 19:56

Thanks for all the suggestions, particularly the warning re: electronics.

We've already scheduled a trip to a kids' clothing store. 

Fortunately, my wife's employer will make arrangements for the insurnace, etc.

While I'm at it, any ideas as to the job market for US-trained attorneys?  I will be allowed a work permit (a "Ci" I believe) due to my wife's employment with the UN. 

Many thanks again.

Cheers, Minh
MXD_NYC, Jun 16, 2008 @ 21:40

Hi Misskate.



Sorry about the confusion on the DVDs. I was going by memory. I was thinking about the software shipping restriction from Amazon.ca. In looking at the Amazon.com site, they are willing to ship just about anything to CH.



Like you I sometimes get some stuff out of the UK that is months ahead of the NA release date.



Hi Minh.



Here is a list of the Geneva law firms. A lot depends on your area of specialization. From the list (2 pages) you can google each of the firm's website for more info and the partner(s) that you should contact. The permit status is really important to have clear before contacting them as you need to cover this in your cover letter. By this I mean if you have a permit they will probably talk to you. Without a permit it is a much more difficult process.



Good luck.



http://www.hierosgamos.org/hg/db_lawfirms.asp?action=search&city=Geneva&country=Switzerland
Verbier, Jun 16, 2008 @ 22:23

"Bring friends along. Hard to get anyway..."

My advice, leave your friends at home.  Plenty cool ones out here to keep you plenty busy!  :D


YouMeCo, Jun 17, 2008 @ 00:55

oh... and we could use some of that sunny warm NY weather if you could bring some over plea---se.  :cool:
YouMeCo, Jun 17, 2008 @ 12:34

Actually, since you only get charged a 7.5% vat on orders over a certain threshold (maybe chf50), it can be extremely cost-effective to buy dvds elsewhere; play.com, amazon.com/uk.  Yes, I always check with www.coin-op.ch first (and they send popcorn, too!)  But they don't tend to carry older films/non sci-fi/adventure.  I mean, you try to find a copy of Norma Rae in this country.  (Thank God for Powell's)  And when I can buy it for seven bucks on-line, pay four dollars to ship it, that eleven dollars is still cheaper than FNAC where it isn't available at any price.  It's about effective use of my finite resources. 

I firmly believe in buying local, and I do.  I order plenty through Off the Shelf and local Swiss web retailers, but I really appreciate being able to get what I want even if it's not available locally. 
misskate, Jun 17, 2008 @ 16:52

Tinkie's right I actually took a DVD player with built in screen with me to the US at easter to give to my aunt so she could watch home movies and photos that I had created. I had tried on my last visit to her two years ago to buy something in the US that would play both region 1 & 2 ,most of the large stores didn't know what I was talking about and ended in a specialist shop buying one for 300 dollars. Sadly although it worked in the store her TV wasn't compatible, hence the reason of bringing one with it's own screen this time.



So unless you have a new Blue Ray I wouldn't bother with electrical items , even the TV can be an issue, take this as a chance to upgrade. We have almost identical models here and at least you will have a warranty during your stay.
britabroad, Jun 17, 2008 @ 17:26

Hi,

Check out Knowitall.ch and pick up a copy of Know-it-All Passport as soon as you get here, it really has everything you need to know about Geneva in it. Have a safe move :)

Lannah
Lannah, Jun 19, 2008 @ 03:32

These sites were interesting to me... (they have english language option)

http://www.newtogeneva.com/

http://www.expatexchange.com/net.cfm?networkid=104

http://www.dews.com/

http://www.geneva.ch/

http://www.comparis.ch/comparis/default.aspx

http://switzerland.isyours.com/e/guide/index.html

http://www.homegate.ch/

http://map.search.ch/

Good luck with your move.
colorado, Jun 19, 2008 @ 05:50

Amazon.de ships to Switzerland for free, and with a reduction of 7% VAT for books (good English selection, too) and 19% for other stuff, as long as you stay below the treshold of about 45 EUR. You can always split your order, as it's free. They don't ship electronics to Switzerland, though. And they offer their site in German only, but it works like the other Amazons.
thomas11, Jun 19, 2008 @ 10:56

I'm flying to NY early September so if you realize once you're in Geneva that you forgot to bring something very important, I might be able to help you! (and I can tell you I'm really looking forward to going to the big Apple :w00t:)

Isa
zezette, Jun 19, 2008 @ 12:00

Thank you again to everyone for the responses.  Very helpful. 

And apologies if we sounded as if we wanted to bring a slice of NY with us to Geneva.  Just our efforts to save some money when we realized we were well below our shipping allowance of 2,100 kgs.  Already feeling like a local by using the metric. 

We've ordered Living and Working in Switzerland, cited in newtogeneva.com, as well as the Xenophobe's Guide to Switzerland.  Unfortunately delivery is taking longer than expected. 

Isa, Enjoy NY in September.  Time permitting, go have a bowl of noodles at Momofuku -- 171 First Ave, b/t 10th and 11th.

Cheers and see everyone soon.    MX
MXD_NYC, Jun 19, 2008 @ 17:41

oh my god, Tinkie, I love the jeans you can find in NY... :w00t:

MX - thank you for the tip! Wouldn't you have an address for the best steak house in town??? or maybe not, otherwise I won't fit in the brand new pair of jeans :P

Isa
zezette, Jun 20, 2008 @ 11:35

Another offer if someone needs something, I will be flying to Geneva just after Christmas and can bring someone some 2009 gifts or something if they want, as long as it will fit in luggage allowance.
StephenSQL, Jun 21, 2008 @ 10:40

[quote]Hello everyone,



We are moving from NYC to Geneva in late July. We've searched this site, among others, and received tips from friends about things we should buy in the U.S. and bring with us to Geneva because of the cost or availability. Our list is pretty short: kids' shoes, small kitchen appliances, measuring cups (metric & US).



We would appreciate any further recommendations.



Cheers, MX[/quote]

Good luck with the move. It is hard to tell what you will miss. There are some things that I feel we should have brought more with us. Medicines.Tea. Coffee.Bed and mattress. Swiss road atlas. Kid's videos or dvds. Generally just ship as much as you can
Tincrowdor, Jun 21, 2008 @ 13:00