I’m adding a few more Tai Tai descriptions to my list;

Tradeoff Tai Tai-has found the shopping and the mahjong’s boring and took up a part time job.  She’s earning a nice little income and enjoys the work.  It’s only part time but fulfilling.  She mixes with locals and has a different slant on living in Asia.  She maybe doing something related to her career but chances it is something completely different like relocation work, teaching English or selling over priced products to her fellow expatriate. 

Trying it On Tai Tai – she has had a maid – frustrated by the experience and has gone out on her own.  She is trying to do it all, the shopping, ironing, picking up the kids, homework, entertainment, laundry and after 4 months she’s out there looking for another maid.  Trying it On Tai Tai’s don’t last – they come to the conclusion it’s too hard to do ‘it’ without a maid be it part time or full time – most Tai Tai’s need a maid.

Tai Tai in Training – you always recognize these ones.  They have a stunned rabbit look and headlights for eyes.  Everything is new, exciting and wonderful.  One of my friends called them “fresh meat” because that’s how they were still oozing with enthusiasm – or as she said ‘blood’. Lasts about 2 months then they hit the wall and realize the maids a headache, the husband’s never around to talk to and their newest buddy just got notice they are being relocated to a new place.  They have plans to learn the language, go to the gym regularly, buy new furniture, and learn to play mahjong and definitely mix with the locals.  Wrong … most of it wears off and they put on weight, get frustrated with the language, hate mahjong, and quickly learn that locals will never ask them over.  

Master Tai Tai – she’s probably lived somewhere else in Asia – done this before and is married to an Expert Expat.  By now she knows which maid will be a valuable member of the family, have extensive Asian furniture and doesn’t need another piece but will still buy some.  She has the cooking mastered and can teach you a thing or two from a city she once lived in.  Plus she’s got connection is every other Asian town, so you need to talk to her before you travel.  She’s a good Tai Tai to get to know, but she may not warm to your initially because by now she has hardened and knows that most of her fellow Tai Tai expats do not stay around too long.  They move on, just like she will one day.

Following on from my previous Tai Tai blog here are my thoughts on being a Temporary and Turnabout Tai Tai;

Temporary Tai Tai - probably has been in the work force for a number of years.  She now no longer is employed.  She is a mom, and takes the children to the bus for the first few months and then realize they can leave it to the maid.  After all that’s why you have a maid. 

Temporary Tai Tai’s definitely enjoy tennis, lunches and shopping sprees in Shenzen or Bangkok.  She will be a member of expatriate women’s organization and has a husband that travels a lot.  That’s why he encourages her to enjoy the lifestyle and not work. 

Guilt runs along the belly of this wife. These are her sins: she is guilty of having the maid to look after the kids, guilty of no longer bringing in extra income, and guilty of spending husbands COLA (cost of living adjustment) …. And any other guilt you can think of. 

She will eventually have to give up this lifestyle and return to washing, ironing and cooking but for the moment she will ENJOY the guilt.

Turnabout Tai Tai – it’s just her and her husband here. She refuses to have a full time maid but still has the part time maid who does the basics and frees up her life. The part time maid probably cleans house, and prepares at least one meal for reheating later in the day. 

This Tai Tai travels more, plays bridge on Tuesdays, Mahjong on Friday, eats out Saturday night, takes up Golf in the winter and goes home in the summer to visit the grandchildren.

She continuously buys furniture and considers her life perfect and easier than the Temporary Expat because she doesn’t really have the same worries on her return home.  After all when she goes home, she can still have a cleaner come once a week, and buy pre-made meals at her favorite store Costco!

Sometime ago I wrote about the different expats that do the stint overseas.  I talked about the loco expat, the professional expat and the list goes on.  I have tried to explain to them the different types of expats that live overseas and you will find links here at my blog as well.  What I have come to realize is that there is a whole range of expat women often refereed to in Hong Kong  as ”Tai Tai”.

Tai Tai in Chinese means “woman” with it a connotation, so I need to explain this first.  A Tai Tai tends to have the means and where all to do nothing all day except spend money and shop.  They don’t cook, clean or work.  Their main object in life s to be happy.  They usually are a wife but they could also, effectively, be a ‘girlfriend’ or ‘lover’.

Super Tai Tai  (STT) – (this is a term a friend of mine used recently)

The Super Tai Tai – has loads of cash to spend and she never accounts for why she bought another original Channel Outfit when she already has 3 she has never worn.  Most Super Tai Tai’s are probably in the social pages, go to charity events that requires them to dress nicely and look expensive.  She would have a driver to take her places. No doubt she doesn’t know how to drive or has forgotten because her job is not to drive but to simply be a Tai Tai.

Super Tai Tai probably has a couple maids one to look after the children and one to take care of the house.  If she is lucky she also has a maid to take care of her clothes.  One year when we were looking for a new apartment we saw an apartment that had it’s own ’shoe room’ – talk about a Super Tai Tai luxury.  Even I had to say I was thrilled with the idea of my own shoe closet!

It is suggested that these women don’t necessarily have further education but I cannot vouch for that.  They are seen shopping in small groups – I guess they value moral support.  It is possible that the husband has another ‘wife’ and as such ensures the Super Tai Tai is rewarded accordingly i.e. nice cars, diamonds, vacations.  The joke during the 97 recession was that these Tai Tai’s shopped across the border buying ‘fake’ products and boasting about it.  I believe this activity has died down, one too many convictions have probably turned them off this shopping spree.  (Please note Super Tai Tai’s are often not expatriates)

It is not true that I dream of being a super Tai Tai or aspire to be one.  In fact I’m probably now in trouble for sharing the secrets of being a Tai Tai.