Before ordering these I read several reviews for Keen "La Paz" strappy sandals and they were all very positive. What I didn't realize was there are several different versions of the La Paz sandal - some good, some not so good. These fall into the "not so good" category.

First, check out the heel part in the picture. In this version, there is a weirdly heavy and stiff backstop of a heel piece that comes out of the footbed and stands stiffly upright. This piece is actually rounded on the top - not meant to cradle the tendon at the back of your ankle, but to poke into it with each step. Now look at the ankle strap that threads through this stiff heel piece - the ankle strap is this really thin, cheap, skinny, limp little nothing of a strap with some weak velcro on it. You can't easily open the latch of this skinny strap - at first I actually thought you couldn't open it at all, and had to dangle your entire foot through it and let the sandal swing from your ankle by the strap as you tried to stick your foot into the toe part. Awkward! Then I realized the strap WAS meant to be open and it is just incredibly hard to do, and even harder to stuff the end back through the flimsy plastic clasp once it's on. Who designed that?

You know how when you walk in a flip flop, the weight of the sole will 'flop' the heel away from your foot, and that's how it's supposed to work, and that's why flip flops sometimes slap-slap-slap as people walk? In this sandal the weight of the sole (which is very sturdy, so pretty heavy) tries to flop away at the heel, scraping the stiff heel piece along the back of your ankle, only to get caught by the flimsy, loose ankle strap catching on the front of your ankle. That skinny, cheap strap is the only thing supporting the sole of the shoe as you walk! And it isn't up to the task, so the heel piece slides, the strap digs in and the sole still flops away from your foot a few inches. It's like the worst of both worlds of a heeled shoe and a flip flop. I don't know how this design ever really flew with the designers.

Unfortunately I was dumb and wore the sandals out the door to go grocery shopping and so they weren't technically "new" so I couldn't send them back. Climbing into the car, as I turned on the ball of my foot, the heel piece actually swung around and wedged itself against the outside of my foot & had to be twisted back. Once that happened once, it kept happening. So frustrating! As I was walking down the aisle at the store I did get a compliment on my sandals from an old lady. So they do have that going for them.

Anyway, Keen usually makes great shoes, so this is a rare miss in my opinion. If you see a great price for La Paz sandles, make sure they are not this particular version with the big heel piece. The other ones seem to have a more sensible design.