For the new volunteers/trainees coming!

What I think you really need and don't need, my experience and my opinion. This is also useful information for those of you planning on coming to visit.


What I think is hard to find or does not exist here:

Nalgene bottles I haven't seen.
You can use plastic bottles over and over but it's not nalgene. Let me just tell you a short story about this: Chloroform (the chemical) can dissolve your eyeballs, your skin, and dissolve polycarbonate containers, such as normal plastic water bottles. However, Chloroform does not dissolve nalgene bottles.
I would know, I've worked with Chloroform.
p.s. If you bring a few extra bottles I know some PCV's who will be willing to buy them from you, and some Romanians too.

Vanilla extract is really hard to find.
They have essence of vanilla here, but if you like to cook stuff like cookies and cakes and you want the real stuff, bring your own.

Toilet paper is different here.
If you're here for a long time, just get over here and start getting used to it. However, if you're visiting you may consider bringing a roll or two of your own.

(guys will not care about this next paragraph)
Feminine products are definitely available, but....
They have the same brands such as always, tampax, etc.. Pads are the same, but the more commonly used tampons are hard to find.

Ziplock bags I've seen, but are harder to find.
There are lots of regular plastic bags.

Vitamins and suppliments are readily available by the medical team here in RO.
If you are a PCV or PCT (peace corps trainee) these things are easily gotten, but if you are traveling it's also very easy to get these items. Romania has a pharmacy (farmacie) about every block or two blocks. Prescription stuff....I don't know how easy it is to get, but non-prescribed stuff is pretty accessible.

Umbrellas are cheap here, and just get it here.
They are the most sturdy things, but they're here and they work fine enough.

Anything really spicy, like salsa or chili isn't available.
You can't find it or buy it. I haven't seen any anywhere. Romanians aren't used to the really spicy. Sarah made a very mild chili for a potluck and they thought it was strong! BRing salsa! Mmmmm. They have avocados, a little pricey, but think about the guacamole. Mmmm.

More:
Cell phones, bring your own it's better and worth the weight!
We've been advised to just buy ones here, but they're cheap and still pretty pricey for what we earn in Romania. Just make sure to get your phone "unlocked" first. You can do it yourself with instructions from the cell phone company or go to the store and have them help you do it. That way you can use different sim cards in your phone.

Bring your bible if you want it because they won't in English here, or it's hard to find at least.
If you're really really abitious you can try to read it in Romania....but....yeah.
I don't read the bible personally, but this is advice from other volunteers right now.

Clothing: bring jeans and a good jacket and summer clothes (for the new volunteers).
Everyone wears jeans here, and they have them but they're more expensive here than in the states. They are heavy to carry, so I mean, you can buy them here too if you don't want to carry the extra weight. Everyone wears a dark or bland colored jacket, even when it's hot...
Summer clothes, I thought Romania was always cold! Due to global warning, or who knows what, I heard that it got to 46 *C or 115 *F last summer!!! I didn't bring any summer clothes really, but it is easy enough to buy t-shirts here and skirts. So I mean you can get clothes here and they're affordable, but for the new volunteers you're coming to Ploiesti in the summer so be ready for hot/really warm.
p.s. Romania can be snowing to 115 *F depending on where you go: flat lands or mountain tops.