Which came first?

The national produce in Rio seems to be havaianas. An abundance of shops within a small radius are dedicated to this humble footwear. You can also purchase these gems from beach hawkers; They walk the shores carrying umbrellas with havaianas hanging off it. Thirsty work!  You can own a pair of these designer toe rubbers for around 50 rs compared to $35 aud for a basic pair in Aus.
This brings up the question of which came first;  the Havaiana or the humble, Aussie thong?
Neither actually.  The protype originates back to 4000 bc. Those clever Egyptians not only made the pryamids! Modern flipflops descended from the Japanese in ww2;  where the Westerners adopted this idea. The Aussie thong first appeared in the 1950s . Much engineering expertise went into the design of these humble pluggers. By the 1960s they became a national Aussie icon. These durable shoes could be bought at variety stores at a cheap price. One international traveler who indulged claims his purchase lasted 10 years. He then repaired them with some wire and gained another two years wear! Brasil marketed their first Havaianas in 1962.... Bang; evolvution begins.

That all being said we actually prefer crocs!