When I first came to Cambodia, it was most common to see the monks making their rounds barefoot. Only four or five streets were paved then, but still it must have been tedious going barefoot.
Today most of the monks I see on the street are wearing sandals or flipflops.
The Buddhist protocol, though, seems to be that when begging, the monks must be barefoot so when they stop at a house or business they must have their shoes off. That is easy for those who still go barefoot along the streets
The monks who are wearing sandals have developed a workaround. They wear their footware to the house, and then when someone comes out to meet them, they step out of their sandals and stand on them.
