Essentials to live in Guatemala

Hi,

As an expat living in Guatemala, what would you advise the ones about to pack to bring along?

What are the items you can easily find in Guatemala? On the other hand, what is less common or quite expensive?

Share with us what you would recommend to bring in one's suitcase or container when moving to Guatemala.

Thank you in advance,

Christine

It depends on where you are going. If you are in the city or Antigua you can likely find most things.And you'll find you can live with less. If you going to be living elsewhere shopping in the city is not that fun. Vitamins and prescriptions. Drugs such as antibiotics and pain relievers are easy to get here without prescription. Any specialty item..extra batteries that are unusual. Definitely  surge protectors. Im on lake Atitlan and its difficult to get good silverware/knives/ but that can be bought in Guatemala City Electronics are expensive here. Anything western. But rent and fresh food and labor is very inexpensive.
I always bring my favorite herb seeds and different lettuces as they dont exist here...but this is a wonderful place to live

I live in the capital city and I used to import a couple big boxes every year with all my favorite shampoos and conditioners, spices, etc. However, in the last 5 years I have found you can get almost any product in the supermarkets, big stores (Pricesmart, Walmart, etc.), and even specialty stores.  Cooking is an adventure here if you are a foodie (I am) because of the great produce and local condiments. However, I still bring from the US some of the stuff i cannot find here, like seeds for okra. I'm from New Orleans, so I want okra!  I created my own veggie garden at home for stuff like that, such as okra, kale, etc.  Medication is cheaper here and less cumbersome to get, so is private medical care, medical insurance, good quality shoes--leather stuff in general is good here--and just about anything else, including sugar free and gluten free foods.  Except electronics.  I just bought a yogurt maker from Amazon and got it delivered here, because I could not get a yogurt maker locally. But those are small things, really. If you cannot get a yogurt maker, you can always buy the little worms to make yogurt at a vegetarian store such as Rey Sol. So, I don't know. I have a friend who buys his pants in the U.S. because he cannot get his favorite brand and size here, but again, nowadays you can send for anything you want to Amazon, Overstock.com, and many other stores.