Leaky Faucets

I am a little confused about how to dress for a business meeting this afternoon. In the Philippines, business dress is decidedly more casual than in the U.S., which pleases me as I hated wearing a button-down shirt and tie at work especially in the heat of the summer when I’d be sweaty by the time I arrived to the office. For the most part, I think I can wear jeans or even shorts and sandals to work most days.

But to me, at least, meetings with people outside the company are different. Even though I haven’t really started working regularly yet, I’ve attended a few meetings in the last few weeks. All of them have been with foreigners–Russians and Americans–so I dressed a little nicer (short sleeve cotton knit shirt and khakis–hey, this is the tropics so no suit and tie here, thank God). But today’s meeting is with a Filipino group so I’m not sure if I can get away with jeans and sandals. Or do I have to wear shoes and socks? Certainly shorts are out. My brother-in-law is always pretty casual almost always dressed in jeans and an untucked t-shirt and sandals, but I’m not sure if I want to follow his lead on this. I like to be comfortable but don’t want to look like a slob in a business setting.