MG, if you were in Canada, you'd carry a pair of shoes for inside your host's home. Some Canadians even keep knitted slippers or the such for guests. And what a shame you are unable to go barefoot due to health.

I had a job where I visited people inside their homes. I carried a pair of easy to slip on slippers, as I needed to go into their basement and garage, as well as the living and sleeping areas.

On giving this more thought, I guess I'd say it depends on what is taking place in the house I am visiting. Perhaps if it's more of a formal party and I've gotten dressed up, with shoes as part of the outfit, then I might keep on them, walk into the dining room with them, have them on while eating, etc. But on an everyday basis, if I am just hanging out at a friend's house and we're sitting on the couch watching tv, definitely a shoes-off situation Having comfortable indoor shoes or slippers isn't uncommon though, for people who do want something on their feet. The custom, I think, is really of not wearing the shoes you were just wearing outside inside someone's home. My mom is very particular about her clean floor. I get scolded for walking to the kitchen to put down something I've carried in from outside if I don't take my shoes off at the rug at the front door.

Knitted slippers aren't adequate - for medical problems, you need shoes with arch support and thick soles.

Agreed, gg, on wearing shoes for a formal party. Usually we'd wear our street shoes to the party, then put on our dress shoes there, yes? It's quite a sight to see a mountain of shoes by the front door at a large party.

In that case MG, you'd be forgiven for wearing your shoes inside a Canadian home.

Hmm, I wonder if that's why my grandparents always wear some kind of shoe/sandal in the house, they are both diabetic and have a slew of other medical problems as well.

My grandma's latest favourite is Mary Janes-style crocs. I dislike crocs, but they do seem like a good choice for comfy indoor shoes

I'm not sure what they usually do here, but I'm still Canadian all the way - shoes off at the door. I remember when I was little that men used to have these removable rubber bottoms on their boots which they especially wore when it was rainy or wet out (but my grandpa wore them at other times) and took off when they came in. I haven't seen those for many many years. I think that meant he didn't have to take off his regular shoes, but I was little and don't really recall...

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It's true overshoes are not as popular anymore ysmay, and yes, your grandpa could then keep his shoes on inside the house. The bottom line in Canadian culture is not to wear shoes that have touched the ground outside, inside.

Oh goodness, it is certainly is a trial to look for one's shows at the end of a big house party! Not entirely uncommon within my group of friends to have a shoe go missing, usually from an honest mistake of someone putting on the wrong shoes in an inebriated state, or someone "borrowing" them to go outside for a cigarette because they couldn't find their own shoes..

Shoes off coming into my house too - being on a farm god only knows what will get walked in .. burrs, dirt and so on.

A friend once brought a Canadian girl to see a real outback station and she actually noted the pile of boots at the back door and said that it was just like home .. and then she walked in without taking hers off. LOL I was so confused.

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.. and then she walked in without taking hers off

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Everyone here takes their shoes off at the door. We all have nice clean tiled floors which are washed daily. There are slippers provided at the entrance. Like Mark I am nearly always barefoot indoors.
Dippo, I had never even thought of things other than food being passed by hand. Thanks for that and I will remember.

This is a very interesting discussion.

Forks--did anyone see this video link on the Metafilter site Jabberwok posted on page 2? It shows how to eat off the back of your fork. Too bad the lady does it without food. We've just had a set of English guests from Ireland, and a set of Scottish guests from Australia, and did not notice how they used their forks!

In Colombia, when you've finished eating you rest your fork and knife on the plate with the handles on the rim at 7:00 and 5:00 o'clock and the tines/blade crossed in the center.

Kisses--boy, do I know the South American greeting...but I'm astonished to hear of Brits doing it! French and Spanish and Italians, yes! But the reserved British? I thought New Englanders got their stiff reserve from the Old Englanders.

Shoes--when I've traveled through Canada, everyone took their shoes off to enter a house, whether they lived in the city or a rural area, and whether their shoes were clean or dirty. Here in Alaska, city people usually wear their shoes inside but in rural areas you nearly always take them off. If you have snow or mud or sand or gravel all over them, that's only logical. To avoid unlacing and relacing his boots, if my husband needs to dash in for a moment he slips plastic grocery bags over his boots and shuffles across the floor. I greatly appreciate his care.

Oh, did you mean only on Jersey?

So I can keep up my image of the stiff British reserve!

Thanks for setting me straight.

This is such an interesting thread!

Let's see, in Argentina people hold the fork with the left hand, the tines facing up, and the knife with the right hand. And it is considered very bad manners to put your elbows on the table.

The kissing thing... when people meet their relatives and friends they'll give them a kiss on the cheek. The same goes when we say 'goodbye'. And when meeting someone for the first time, I'd say that almost always people kiss them on the cheek when saying 'hello' and when saying 'goodbye'. Kissing strangers is something that I've never been really comfortable with, despite having been born here!

And the shoes - nobody takes their shoes off when going inside their house/apartment. But I do take my shoes off, and then put slippers on. I'm like ClaraSue, I think about the things that are there on the ground when we walk and it's just gross! But I don't know of anyone over here that takes their shoes off inside their house.

We have friends who came here from France about 25 Years ago. As far as I can remember they use their eating utensils the same as we do. I must check next time. It's strange that I've never noticed, so it must not be "noticeable", as in different. They have embraced the Aussie way of life but retain many of the French ways, of course, and are the loveliest people one could ever meet.

I am going to France in a few weeks time so might remember to look when we have lunch.

Shoes off in the house is definitely the Canadian way. I'm sure it has a lot to do with snow - just wiping your feet won't cut it. I do find American and British books and movies jarring because everyone walks around in the house with their shoes on.

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Did you not have a set of Irish guests from Ireland???

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These people are proudly (not arrogantly) and decidedly English; they just happen to live in Ireland, where they feel like foreigners.

It's really interesting hearing about etiquette across the globe. I was having pizza tonight and wondering how people eat it - for those who have pizza. Or is pizza not common? That would be interesting too.

Here in New York it's everywhere - especially the thin crust type. People here fold their pizza vertically (not horizontally) and eat it with their hands. Sometimes while they're walking! It's really fast food. Growing up in Western Canada, thick-crusted pizza could be picked up in the hand, but never folded, and any pizza could be eaten with a knife and fork. Thin crust (sloppy-type) pizza was always eaten with knife and fork. But my friends here are still teasing me about the first time I tried that here .

Just curious...

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My mom is horrified when I don't eat my pizza with a knife and fork at a restaurant. I will if it's really sloppy and falling apart and a knife and work makes it easier, or if I'm in a super nice place, but on a normal basis, just at a pizza place, I use my hands. Pizza is a finger food to me.