Matching Spartan (the Greek Sandals)

Spartan was one of the most common slippers used when I was a kid. I remember that it’s my papa’s footwear of choice when he’s out on the garden to attend to his beloved shrubs. I think that the reason we Filipinos loved our Spartan is because of their affordability and durability. In my recent vacation back in Manila though, a new brand is taking the spotlight, Havaianas. It seems to me that this footwear is the same as the good old Spartan, the only difference is the variety in colors and the marketing strategy that turned havaianas into a fashionable and hip footwear, with the corresponding mark-up of course. Little did I know that I would find our very own unique “Spartan” sandals from a famous maker in Athens.


Before we went on our trip to Athens, I browsed through the internet for tips on which places we shouldn’t miss while we’re there. I chanced upon this entry from Marketmanila referring to a famous sandal maker in Athens, Stavros Melissinos. I got curious and listed the spot into our must go places. We decided to look for this shop before we continued our stroll in the Plaka.

We landed on a quaint shop that has been there for almost 50 years, nothing too fancy, nothing extra ordinary but when we entered, there were several clients trying on several pairs of footwear. Upon entering, I couldn’t help but notice the handmade sandals hanging on the ceiling that are all so pretty.


Honey grabbed one of their fliers which were stacked up on one corner and from there we looked through all the designs available. Each design on the flier is named after the famous person for whom the design was originally made for. They had a sandal named after Jackie Onassis, Aristotle Onassis, John Lennon and so much more. Honey couldn’t be anymore thrilled to find out that they have the strappy sandal that he has been looking for, for ages. And what do you know, it’s called Spartan. The thing that I noticed about the sandal maker (from what I heard he is the son of the original proprietor) is his meticulousness, he gives attention to each client, and every sandal that he sells is measured into a custom fit to the buyer. He would readjust the straps, cut the excess strings and recheck the nails so that he can assure that each sandal gives a snug fit to the feet of the buyer. His assistant was the one who helped us with what we were buying and since the sandal that we bought are the strappy kind, it needed fewer adjustments so I thought that “main man” wouldn’t have to help us. But as we were almost out the door, he called us back and said “let me just take a look at the sandals before you go, you see I always make sure that they are in the best condition and the straps and nails are perfect”. I was really impressed. No wonder this store is well-known, the sandal maker has passion and a certain degree of attention to detail that makes your visit truly worthwhile.

Oh and by the way, honey and I ended up buying the same kind of sandals so we have our very own matching Spartans.