Street Shoes, House Shoes, Sports Hall Shoes

Ludwig with his three pairs of shoes. From left, house shoes, sports hall shoes and street shoes.

When Enzian and Ludwig first started their new school here, it took some getting used to. I find it weird, why the schools here require each child to equip themselves with a pair of house shoes (seen on the left, in picture), shoes that they must change into when they arrive at school every morning, shoes that they have to change out of when they are going outdoors to play, shoes that they have to change back into again, when they return to the indoor school grounds. When they were not seen in their house shoes in the first few days of school (as we had to place our orders online and wait for the delivery), their class teachers would nag and nag everyday at them, telling them they must have house shoes already! Why so strict?!

Then, they were told to also get themselves another pair of shoes. Sports shoes (middle, in picture). I mean, they have on sports shoes (right, in picture), excuse me? They come to school in their sports shoes, why the need to buy yet another pair? So the difference between what they have on and what they must put on is the sole of the shoes. I had never known the purpose of black or dark-coloured soles versus beige or light-coloured ones. Their sports shoes belong to the former category, while the shoes that are allowed in their sports hall, are the ones with light-coloured soles. So, without their Sports Hall Shoes (direct translation from the German term "Turnhalle Schuhe"), they are forbidden to enter the hall for their sports lessons and other indoor sports activities, shoes which are said to leave dark marks on the clean and squeaky floor of the hall.

So now, I no longer call their sports shoes sports shoes. I call them street shoes.

The reasons to have several pairs of shoes in school seem valid. The apparent ones being keeping the children comfortable and maintaining a clean school environment to the benefit of everyone. There is indeed a price to pay to live in a country where hygiene and cleanliness standards are extremely stringent. A small price to pay for an advantageous health return!

P.S. Bart doesn't need house shoes in his school, but he sure has to put on his Sports Hall Shoes too when he does sports in the hall.