Last time I was in New York it rained when I didn’t want it to – I’d just had my shoes polished. Last month, I wanted it to rain to see if I could spot any galoshes.

With it being November, I was sure I would be lucky. But all the raindancing in the world wasn’t going to help as I strolled around Central Park. The city was having a delayed Indian summer. Families were playing in the sunshine and I even walked past a group of sunbathers. I repeat, it was November.

Galoshes (or rubber overshoes) have always been a fascination of mine. I remember regularly reading about Dennis the Menace’s partner-in-crime Gnasher chewing up his Dad’s pair. I also recall asking my Dad what galoshes were. I couldn’t understand why anyone would wear ugly rubber things over their leather shoes.

Now that I am older and (a little bit) wiser, I can see the appeal. In a city where it rains or snows a lot, you want to make sure that your shoes look immaculate when you turn up for that all important business meeting. In the long term, galoshes will also protect your shoes from water damage.

Yet I have never seen rubber overshoes in London. Ever. But my friends regularly complain about holes in their shoes. Only the other day my friend discovered the hole in his sole when he stepped in a puddle. (The hole was exactly where the front of the sole touches the floor when the shoe is being stored. Another reminder of the merits of drying your shoes on their sides. http://www.gentlemanscorner.com/2009/09/dry-shoes-on-their-side.html)

This is why I was so keen to see New York in the rain. I was sure that the galosh ratio would be higher in a city with such a high amount of snowfall. My trip wasn’t to be a complete disappointment on the galosh front though – Century 21 made sure of that.

Century 21 is a department store full of bargains that was recommended to me a couple of years ago. It overlooks the site of the World Trade Center and is best described as “a massive kinda TK Maxx thing but with better stuff in it” (the words of a particularly eloquent friend).

Upon entering the shoe section of the store I immediately saw a reasonably priced pair of rubber overshoes. So I bought a pair and I look forward to testing them in a howling storm. Once again I find myself praying for bad weather. What a strange person I have become…