Most of the houses in India* (I'm from Gujarat, have friends from Delhi, have relatives living in Mumbai.) If you find people wearing slippers inside, they are a separate pair of slippers only meant to be worn inside the house. We were taught that not removing your shoes/sandals when you visit someone's place is a sign of disrespect.
My family is from Gujarat. Even though neither my parents (born in Uganda) nor I (born in London) have ever lived in India, I still feel strange when I visit a home where shoes are not removed at the door.
Yeah I moved to Canada in uni and it is still so weird when I go to a random place where they don't remove footwear. I'll usually remove my shoes even if there are other people who still have their shoes on.
I'll also ask anyone and everyone who visit my apartment to remove their footwear at the door.
> We were taught that not removing your shoes/sandals when you visit someone's place is a sign of disrespect.
This can be said about central/east europe as well, and our western european friends seem to behave like that too. And I don't mean just removing dirty heavy winter boots, I mean any boots/shoes/sandals/etc used outside.
I am English, and was brought up this way, but many of my English friends evidently were not, because they keep their shoes on when coming in unless i ask them to take them off.
But you know what, we don't take our shoes off in the office, do we? Why is that different?
I had an Indian colleague years ago, and she did take her shoes off at work. We'd sit down at a computer to pair on something, and she'd slip her shoes off as she sat down. I must have found that unusual, because i remember it clearly.
I have started taking my shoes off at work, but only a year or two ago. I think it's because i got a pair of heavy boots, and my feet can get too warm wearing them. I will walk to the printer in socks, but i have a pair of smart office slippers for going to the kitchen or bathroom.
In Sweden it is not uncommon to remove shoes at work, especially when it's a wooden floor. I know we do it in my company. On the other hand in France it is very uncommon, but it is pretty usual to switch shoes when entering the office. Especially for those who have fancy shoes in Paris and don't want to get them ruined in the metro. So you take sneakers from home to work and switch to nice shining leather shoes at work.
> But you know what, we don't take our shoes off in the office, do we? Why is that different?
In the US, because it makes people uncomfortable, and I have the right to do what makes me comfortable in my house, but not necessarily to do in the office what makes my co-workers uncomfortable. I do often take off my shoes when I'm in my office.
