My second pair of shoes in Japan

...is another pair of Vans!

Not sure what the heck is going on here. May be it's the gingham I kept falling for? Actually, I took a chance with this pair on 2 counts, the color yellow and the sizing. I was iffy about getting yellow because the last pair of Vans in yellow gingham had this greenish tint when I went to check it out in person at the store. This pair the store didn't have, so I crossed my fingers and bought it from Amazon Japan.

Size wise, the last pair of Vans I bought was a size 23.5 Japan, which according to online sources it's comparable to a US 6. When I tried it on, it fits, but when I walk, every now and then my heels would fall out O.o So with this pair, I took a risk and went with size 23 Japan, half a size smaller. I was fretting whether I had made a stupid decision this is, well, a different pair of shoes after all and even though it's also Vans, sizing inconsistency within the same brand is unfortunately common.

This is a size 23 Japan, and if it's any consistent it should have been comparable to a US 5.5, but the flap actually says US 6!

And the fit? Umm...loose -.-' It actually feels even larger than the 23.5 and I could have gone half a size smaller! The strange thing is that upon lacing up, my feet felt comfortable instead of swimming in roomy shoes. I am guessing this is due to the more fitting toe area (my toes are thicker than most people?) and you can sort of see how the front of the shoes narrows a little bit. We'll see if this comfort keeps up with some wear. At least I'm pretty certain my heels won't be falling out with this pair!