Shoe Shopping

Earlier this week, I picked up my dress I had bought to wear at the Catholic wedding we are attending in Goa this weekend. (Though it is not a Hindu wedding, they are still expecting 800 people)! As I left the store I realized I needed some shoes that are a little more dressy than my Chacos to go with my outfit. (Most women will be wearing western style clothes, but I went with a more modern Indian outfit that I can wear without the leggings. It's going to be very hot). My friend, Daya, had just purchased some very cute kicks, so I headed to Metro shoes, where she bought them. The doorman opened the door for me and I stepped into the wonderful, A/C store...did I mention that it's hot here right now?

As I started to look, immediately someone came to my assistance. I held him at bay for a few minutes while I browsed. Then I showed him the dress I needed to match and let him know I needed flat sandals due to my pesky foot issues. The first pair I tried on brought me back to my childhood. I remember when you would go to a shoe store and the salesperson would take your foot, put the shoe on your foot and tie or buckle the shoe for you. This is what happens in India. Even these slip on sandals we carefully placed on my feet. The first ones were very comfortable but VERY intense blue. I mean, don't get me wrong, I love blue, but these were over the top. I don't want people staring at my feet all weekend. We picked out a few more and I sat down to wait. I didn't realize where the first pair had come from. There was a hole in the ceiling and the salesmen would hold the shoes up and say what size he needed. A few minutes later a box was tossed down through the hole and caught by the salesman. Ha! India! They are just amazing with use of space, since there isn't a lot and I can't imagine the for renting a space here in Mumbai.

Now, I have larger feet for the US, but for India, I'm big foot. When the salesman asked what size I wore, I looked at my feet and said, "Big." He laughed and said they would have my size. Later on, the sales man found out that the guy in the ceiling had a hard time finding some of the sandals I wanted to look at, so just told the salesman they were out of my size. "I checked on the computer and they have your size!" he proclaimed. He just shook his head in disgust. I thought it was funny and typical India.

While I was deciding which shoes to buy, the salesman told me (after we had chatted about why I was in India and what Greg does), "Now, if you haven't worn these outside and you get home, show your husband and if he doesn't like them, you can bring them back and we'll find you a different pair." I almost laughed out loud! My though, "Buddy, first off Greg wouldn't even notice them until I wore them three times and frankly, I don't care if he likes them or not. I like them." Cultural exchanges can be so wonderful!

I did walk out of there with two pairs instead of just one...:) Back into the sweltering heat.