How to make an expats day

Recently a 23-year old, naive, American girl sent the following email to a Bombay Expat email listserv that I belong to.

  

“I am writing with a novel question- what are some items that are difficult to find in Bombay, but which you relied on back in your country or origin- particularly if you come from the states. In other words, what should I "stock up" on before my arrival? What's really hard to find in Bombay?”

 

Expats are a feisty bunch and suggested the following as worth packing and lugging to India:

 

• Oxygen
• Sanity
• Containers that suck up humidity and prevent mold
• REAL coffee 
• Better than Bouillon flavoring 
• Tuna packets
• Comet Cleanser
• Lysol
• LYCRA leggings (with room for a butt)
• Athletic shoes
• An old growth forest
• A thousand pairs of ear plugs, seriously
• More bars
• A few Thai, Lebanese, and French restaurants 
• Some bookshops
• A live music scene
• 4 million tons of road surfacing
• Traffic lights
• A fleet of taxis that was built after 1945 
• A billion dollars worth of water infrastructure
• An airport
• An entire metro system
• Ham
• Tampons
• The ability to wear shorts freely as a woman

  

Amen. Especially to the REAL coffee. WHERE ARE YOU STARBUCKS?!!!!???????? WHERE ARE YOU?????

  

 
P.S.  I didn't send the girl any suggestions.  I've honestly found I need in India, except for those awesomely delicious south beach protein peanut butter bars, alumnium-free deoderant, greek yogurt, and blueberries.  Fucking blueberries.