The sole mate

They say the first two things a girl notices about a guy are his eyes and his shoes!! When such importance is given to shoes, we guys can't afford to give it a miss, can we?

There are different types and varieties of shoes - casuals for all those parties and Friday dressings at the office, formals for the regular mundane days, boots to give the cowboy look, sneakers and the sporty look for running and the athlete in you. There are also the wedding shoes, the rain boots and the uniform type shoes for school/ university.

The popular choices for casuals are Adidas and Nike; there are designer shoes by various brands

In most parts of the world (Asia, Eastern Europe, parts of the Middle East and Africa, much of Northern Europe and Canada, as well as Alaska) it is customary to remove shoes when entering a house. In some areas of the United States, especially the Midwest, it is expected that visitors remove their shoes unless a host specifically invites them to leave their shoes on. People do this to avoid bringing dirt, mud or snow into the house. For some societies, including those in Asia, indoor footwear may be provided for guests.

In the Middle East, parts of Africa, Korea and Thailand, it is considered rude to show the soles of the feet to others (even accidentally, such as by crossing the legs). Shoe throwing is a great insult in some areas in the Middle East and in India, as was seen in the recently and more famous incident with former US president George W Bush.

Units for shoe sizes vary widely around the world. European sizes are measured in Paris Points, which are worth two-thirds of a centimetre. The UK and American units are approximately one-quarter of an inch, starting at 8¼ inches. Men's and women's shoe sizes often have different scales.

Why so much importance to shoes - you still ask? Saving the best for last - the common thing about us and shoes - we both have souls (soles)... so go find your sole mate...