[FranTastic]

I have read that it is appropriate to give gifts to your driver, translator, attorney, hotel staff... (not money)

I live in central California and we have many wonderful wines but I am not sure that would be an appropriate gift. It also might be difficult to pack.

I would love to know, what kind of gifts have you brought and for whom?

Thank you,
Shonda

[Sumerce]

We did not have a driver, translator or hotel staff as we stayed with family, borrowed their car, and both speak Spanish. However, we did bring a small ceramic statue of two parents holding a baby to give to our attorney. Wine is impractical from a customs point of view also. Try ghirhardelli chocolate.

[FranTastic]

Ghirhadelli Chocolate is a great suggestion!
Thank you!

[NashvilleGirl]

I tried to think of things that were small, light, and easy to pack. For the women I packed some silky scarfs, small costume jewlery, and stationary, and I just got chocolate for the men!

[sak9645]

Be careful of carrying chocolates in hot weather, as they can melt. Otherwise, however, chocolates are good gifts. Look for ones that are produced in the U.S. and that are wrapped attractively -- I found some wrapped to look like flowers on stems, and some wrapped in red/white/blue foil.

Items celebrating children and adoption are always good, to remind the recipients of you and your child. Your adoption agency may sell items like tote bags with a phrase like "Celebrate Adoption" on them, and that would be one place to look.

In my case, I found that a local department store was selling lovely, inexpensive sterling silver pins, suitable for wearing on a woman's suit, showing stick figures of multicultural children. The pins were packaged in lovely yellow boxes decorated with color versions of the stick figure children. A statement on the back indicated that a portion of the proceeds of the sale would go to Save the Children, a child welfare organization.

Anything that is a specialty of, or well known to be associated with, your hometown or state might also be nice. Some examples might be a local product, such as Vermont maple syrup; a cap with the logo of your winning hometown baseball team; a tee shirt from a prestigious university; etc. Some people also bring picture books focused on scenic attractions in their area, such as the Monuments in DC, the Colorado mountains, etc.

We had a couple in our adoption travel group who brought U.S. Marine Corps tee shirts, as they lived in Annapolis, MD and had military connections; they were a huge hit in China, especially with our guide/translators.

A lot of people do bring more "generic" gifts, especially if they are made in the U.S. As an example, a picture frame, suitable for placing on an office desk, and presented with a copy of your referral picture in it, might be nice for an orphanage director or attorney, male or female.

It is true that, in some countries, it is hard or expensive to acquire American-made liquors/wines and cigarettes, and there are people who bring such gifts -- even if just the little bottles of alcoholic beverages sold on airplanes. However, I just don't like the notion of connecting alcohol and tobacco with an event related to children and adoption, and I am particularly negative about American marketing of cigarettes overseas. Use your judgment.

Some people, such as a favorite nanny, might appreciate a photo album showing your home, your family, your neighborhood, your city, etc., so that they can understand where your child will be living and how he/she will be raised. Making such an album isn't expensive, but it is time-consuming, and a true labor of love.

In general, think of the generic gift as similar to the "hostess gift" you would bring the first time you dined at someone's home or stayed overnight with the person's family. It should not be excessively expensive, lest it look like a bribe, and it should be designed to allow your hosts in the country to remember you and your adoption.

It's a good idea to check with your agency, especially about food products, to see if there are things that might be viewed as disgusting or as disparaging the recipient. As an example, cheese is viewed as disgusting in some parts of China. And although Americans often give fancy bath products, such as guest soaps, as hostess gifts, people in some countries might think that you don't feel that they bathe often enough or are too poor to afford soap, if they receive such products as gifts.

Also, be sensitive to local laws and moral values. If you give books, make sure that they do not promote a particular religion or political position. As an example, proselytising is forbidden in China, so while it's OK to show an occasional picture of an architecturally beautiful church in your city, in a book full of pictures of other beautiful sites in your city, a book that focuses on Catholicism in America would not be acceptable.

Likewise, if you live in a beach community and some of the pictures in a book show people enjoying the beaches, that's OK, but you should avoid pictures with a lot of very scantily clad people, if you are dealing with a very conservative country or part of a country.

Sharon

[FranTastic]

Thank you for all the great suggestions. I really like the idea of scarves, pins or stationary for the women.
Something else I am considering is the “Lone Cypress”. It is a beautiful cypress tree over 275 years old. It grows out of a rocky landscape along the Pacific Ocean and is indigenous/famous to this area. Do you think a little framed 5x7 of the Lone Cypress would be good gifts? I do like Sharon’s suggestion of something related to adoption too.

Also, when adopting from the ICBF, who do you need to consider when gift giving?

Attorney
Translator
Driver

We are planning on staying in an apartment so I will not have hotel staff to consider.
I am thinking about buying gifts now since there are a lot of great deals out there!

[NashvilleGirl]

Make sure to get something for your in-country agency reps because they do SO much for you while you are there. Also you might want to find out if your apartment comes with any type of maid service, because most do. We rented an apartment for our 2nd adoption and had the most wonderful maid, Milena, who came 6 days a week and did ALL of the cooking and cleaning. It was fabulous and we made sure to get a special gift for her because she was sooooo helpful! If you know if your child has had a foster family, you might bring gifts for the foster parents as well. We adopted through a Casa and brought gifts for the foster parents, as we met them the day we received our children. Not sure how that works with ICBF, so you might want to ask. I think the "Lone Cypress" idea is beautiful!

[firebela]

I truly liked the many suggestions of gifts to the possible different types of people or groups. I especially loved the family and or kids pin idea.Thank you.