This started out as a comment on Life in Flip-Flops , a blog by Cheryl Linn Martin that my sister introduced me to recently. As you can see, once I got started, it was hard to decide when to finish...so please read on!
It's the custom in Japan to take off your shoes at the front door....2 reasons I can think of:
1. Up until very recently, indoor floors were made out of thick straw mats called 'tatami'...shoes or any kind of outdoor footwear would ruin these beautiful mats in no time.
2. Cleanliness...it really is amazing the difference this makes.
Most Japanese homes do not have central heating, so your feet would get rather cold without warm slippers in the winter. Nowadays, many people I know (myself included) wear slippers with sheepskin inners...soft as well as warm. And in the summer, an indoor pair of flip flops is also handy...especially during the humid weather when even wood floors feel sticky.
However, if your home still has 'tatami' rooms, you must remember to take off your slippers or other indoor wear before entering those rooms...warm socks are helpful here. Or, if it's a traditional household, there's a low table with a comforter placed under the table top and an electric heating unit attached to the bottom of the table. This is called a 'kotatsu', and on a cold night, it is the ideal place to be...so much so that you almost have to force yourself to get up and out of it!
May I make a suggestion? Get a pair of cheap sheepskin boots (ankle length would probably be best) for indoor wear in cold climates.
When you enter a home in Japan, there is an area just for taking off your shoes with a handy cabinet of some sort (usually built into the wall) for the family to store their shoes. This prevents a shoe pileup for people to trip over. (Unless you are having a party...then it can turn into a free-for-all!) You then step up one step into the house proper...this also prevents dust and dirt from blowing in on a windy day.
There is even etiquette for removing your shoes...once you step up, you turn around, bend down at the knees so as not to have your rear end sticking up in the air and turn your shoes around to face the door so that all you have to do is step into them when you leave. Trust me, it takes practice to do this gracefully....!
One problem with sneakers and other shoes with laces is having to put them back on. The solution? A good shoe horn...you can buy a long one for a few dollars so you don't have to bend over or sit down on the step all the time. A real time saver as you don't have to untie and retie the laces...^-^
An inroduction into this custom here in Japan. Comments welcome...
