Genkan rule exceptions PSA

A custom I took to right away when I first came to Japan was 玄関, genkan, a traditional Japanese entryway. In my first lodgings, I stepped onto a tiled floor from the sliding front doors. It was level with the floor, as the rooms were on the second floor of a house.

Later, I discovered real estate companies that introduced me to apartments with tight but adequate living space. Eventually I found older housing stock, worn bu well loved and charming. All of those housing options had low genkan that required stepping up into the living space. A common feature of the genkan is 下駄箱, getabako, or shoe cabinets.

At public, institutional, and commercial establishments, you'll see genkan and an assortment of shoe standards and slipper placements. Look around when you enter, and you'll get the idea. And mind your manners. Your toes ought to point out towards the door for elegant egress.

Courtesy outdoor slippers at the Tokyo Budokan genkan

This week the Guardian reports on an exception to the rule. I've observed this a few times myself. Don't move emergency responders' footwear! In a crisis, or after one, police, firefighters, and emergency workers' needs take precedence and don't mess with their shoes. 

I learned this myself when participating in disaster cleanup of damaged houses. I must admit that, on a clean-up crew after a flood, my first instinct when entering a target house was to remove my shoes. But the crew captains shouted at me, "Shoes on!" Another time, when emptying a hoarder house, the volunteer leader told me, "Shoes on, as you never know what you're stepping into." For the faint of heart, stop reading here. You could step in toxic waste, feces, dead vermin, etc.

So I was not the least surprised by a recent Guardian article cautioning against rearranging emergency responders' shoes. Japan's first responders are methodical and logical, right down to their footwear. This protocol confounded Japanese "common sense" about tidying shoes in entrances.

Do you experience situations that run up against Japanese "common sense"?