If you made aliyah...

amother

Tue, Dec 29 2009, 2:17 am

what did you take with you?

My husband and I are in the early stages of planning our move. It wont happen for a year and a half probably. But I am trying to have in mind when I buy something... am I going to have this a long time or only until we move? Like, my son needs a bed. Do I spend good money on a nice bed? Not if I wont take it with us. Do people commonly take their furnishings along? What's the cost of moving furniture vs. buying new? Or even pots and pans and dishes... I was going to buy a new All-Clad pot the other day, but then changed my mind since I didn't know how long I'd have it.

So, really, I am curious, aside from clothes and obviously sentimental items (like photo albums for example)... what do people take with them?

mummy-bh

Tue, Dec 29 2009, 2:30 am

we made aliya in the summer. we came with the Jewish Agency and were allowed 100kg per person on the flight. There are 10 of us k'h so that totals 1 ton (!). majority of clothing and kitchenware came with us.

additionally, we sent a 20 ft container with the majority of our belongings - beds, tables & chairs, bookshelves, basically a houseful of stuff that we'd managed to accumulate over 13+ years of marriage. we had a huge clear out and got rid of loads of junk, and a couple of things we put into storage at mil's house, but mostly everything came with.

hila

Tue, Dec 29 2009, 2:37 am

Furniture - If you have pieces you love - bring it, but not if it is too large as most Israeli houses/flats are smaller than American.

Do not being large electrical appliances as we use 220v and the 100v stuff does badly even with transformers. Actually that goes for most electrical stuff. If you can and want to buy - get dual voltage electrical equipment (most laptops have dual voltage, and phone chargers and battery chargers)

If you are handy and can buy new flatpack American good quality furniture - then send it.

Pots - definitely send - usually the American ones are better lasting, also flatwarre and plates and other kitchen stuff.

BTW - I cannot stress this enough - if you want some unasked for advice... spend time learning the language ! it will make your klita so much easier. And prepare your kids for aliya by talking about it all teh time. Do not drag unwilling kids here. I see so much unhappiness caused by kids who were not prepared for aliya.

Marion

Tue, Dec 29 2009, 2:39 am

Re: furniture. Keep in mind that in most Israeli apartments/homes the rooms are proportionately smaller. There's a reason the "standard" bed is 90cm wide and not 100cm...if you bring "oversized" furniture your room will look and feel smaller and more crowded.

I was still single when I made aliyah so I didn't have so much to bring anyway. My IKEA bookcases came (and when I married we were able to get more to match). I had a couple of sets of pots & pans that came, and dishes. Otherwise it was clothes, books, and assorted other personal belongings.

mummy-bh

Tue, Dec 29 2009, 2:44 am

re: furniture.

one of the things we left behind is my bed! it's 4'6" and I had to leave it behind. (sob, I love(d) my bed. all my babies slept in that bed)

we came from the UK so electrical items are not a problem but if youre coming from the US then it might not be worthwhile to bring.

oh, and Hila's right about your kids. Make aliya as a FAMILY, not as a couple with kids.

RachelEve14

Tue, Dec 29 2009, 3:28 am

If you are bringing a container anyway, IMO it's worth it to bring dining tables, computer tables, chairs, etc. Living room furniture I wouldn't bring unless you are in love with it or it's small. As others have mentioned, an oversized 3 seater sofa is going to make your LR / DR (they will probably be one room together) look very small.

Children's furniture the reason I would lean towards buying it here is because there are many good companies that can outfit a whole room. If you buy your DS a good bed, and 3 years later you have another DS, you might not have another choice besides a plain single bed (which might make the shared room very small). Here they have lots of creative arrangements with half loft beds, bunk beds, closet or desk fitting in the spare area, etc. that you can't possibly plan for until you know exactly what the layout of the room is.

I would bring pots & pans and plates. Also dishes (we bought 2 sets of 12 corelle and I wish I had bought 16). Messed stuff is also good to bring (bookcases, desks).

Toys are very worthwhile to bring. I bought duplo for the kids even though they were only 5 months old. I wish I would have bought more lego there. We also have a nice play kitchen and a sand / water table my mother was able to send on a lift a few years later. Trikes, strollers, carseats (if they are being currently used and won't expire soon) are all worthwhile to bring. I also have friends who brought all the clothing for next year for their kids. Not only was it cheaper (they shopped end of season), but they didn't have to figure out where the heck to buy a winter coat 6 weeks after they stepped off the plane.

mominisrael2

Sun, Jan 03 2010, 2:26 am

Marion wrote:

I second that -- I only brought a few pieces with me, but ended up getting rid of the kids' American trundle bed to get an Israeli bunk bed (we still have American beds in the guest room and my and DH's room, but they take up tons of space!) and am now trying to sell an American armoire and my huge sukkah -- but at the same time am glad I brought my dining room table and a dresser I loved even though they're too big. Remember that there will probably be no built-in closets in your new place, but those need to be bought here -- we also brought some closet organizers, like this:

http://www.samsclub.com/shoppi.....=6715

No closets to put 'em in, but they work great Smile

shabbatiscoming

Tue, Feb 11 2014, 4:04 am

ChanaParnes wrote:

Great suggestions!
Israeli appartments are smaller, and you have to use a lot of creativity and ingenuity to make 'more out of less' space. It's very rewarding when you manage to accomplish that!
A great Israeli website for second-hand EVERYTHING is: yad2.co.il
Good luck!

Welcome to imamother. Please, please look at the starting date of a thread before you answer it. This thread is from 2009.