Cinderella is Italian; I’m sure of it! What other woman would wear, much less run in, glass slippers?

The glittering high-heels that grace the feet of Italian women are just as delicate and, arguably, more precarious to walk in.  Their shoes may not be made of glass, but these women walk up and down the steep, Roman cobblestone streets of Urbino each day. It is no surprise that they have the well-defined calves of an 800-meter Olympic Medalist.

Being as obsessed with shoes as I am and a runner, I shamefully had failed to notice this Italian phenomenon. I even went shoe shopping and purchased a pair I had lusted over, as soon as they went on sale. However, all in all, I think they are still a logical and comfortable pair of leather sandals. I sent my boyfriend, Seth, a photo and he described them as “aggressively cute.” I’m not sure if that is good or bad, what do you think?

My "logical" Italian shoe purchase.

Then this past week, I was walking down Via Battisti, one of the steepest streets in Urbino, with our interpreter, Luca, and we ran into his mom. With youthful, glowing olive skin and an attractive, thin figure, she had a carefree laugh. She could have been his sister. I would tell you what she was wearing, but to be honest, all I remember is that it was a tank top of some sort with fitted jeans; I was too fixated on her shoes. The brown high heels sloped down and her narrow, small feet were delicately kept in place by two leather straps, studded with purple rhinestones. After we said goodbye, she continued up the hill and under the Roman archway, walking as gracefully as a ballerina sashaying offstage.

A whole new world of shoes opened up to me.  Since then, I have been noticing these pedi-gems everywhere in Urbino. Even the owner of a local cheese shop that I interviewed wore shoes exquisite enough to make Cinderella’s Fairy Godmother think twice about her choice of footwear.

Italian Cinderella Slippers