Part of it all is that this is not [your place of origin]. Things are different and you cannot expect to have the same pancakes, but you can get good at either immersing yourself in your new [interim] home or learn how to do things more basically - from scratch.
There is plenty of culture shock that goes along with living here, and in the current economy it's even more confusing. You may curse the day you set foot off the plane or embrace it for what it is. I think that your packing list should contain things that are primarily health and/or safety oriented, then really consider what you cannot live without comfort-wise. I certainly would not sacrifice luggage space for pancake mix, but that just me (sorry mmoon). Either way, as the box gets closer to being empty - you will have to deal with you're outlook on what IS and what you WISH for.
There's no Ikea, no Cosco, Best Buy or Home Hardware; the local variant is sadly lacking and getting 'similar to' or imported items is really expensive even with dollars. Try to think "GENERIC" and you get a feel for what it's like to be here. Even Coke by Cocacola will taste different here.
There is coffee here, and machines to make it with. It all depends on how well you can adapt to change. Perhaps you'll like the local stuff better or find something that you can live with. One thing is for sure: your luggage space is finite so search the forum archives and take to heart all the bits of experiences you can glean from us (especially us lifers).
Somehow people have been able to live here without pancake mix. Every other Sunday I make them with what's available... go figure.
OR you can stay plastered the whole time and not care one iota. great idea mc kenna!
