Kapag namin unang inilipat sa Canada, one of the things that surprised me was that very few people wear their shoes in the house. Go into someone’s home, at ikaw iwanan ang iyong mga sapatos ng pinto.

I’ve tried to find the origin of this custom, ngunit hindi mukhang upang malaman para sigurado kung paano ito nagsimula. One factor is undoubtedly the panahon — when it’s wet, maputik, or snowy outside, you don’t want to be tracking all that muck into your house.

Some people suggest that Canada’s large Asian population may also have influenced this custom. In many Asian countries, it’s considered good manners to take off your shoes before entering someone’s home.

One unexpected side effect of the “shoes off” policy is that you need to find a place to put your shoes. If you don’t want to be tripping over a big pile of shoes by your front door, consider getting a shoe rack, tulad ng isa sa mga ito mula sa IKEA o Canadian Tire.

At kung gusto mong read more about the Canadian shoes-off custom, check out these sites:

How to Spot a Canadian

Let’s Talk Languages

Yelp Toronto

Larawan ni Daveybot (Flickr)