Grocery shopping is an essential part of my daily routine. I go to the grocery store every day to buy the things I need for breakfast. Going shopping at a supermarket is convenient and easy. I just take the shopping trolley and then choose the products that I want from the shelves. Every morning, I buy milk and freshly baked goods from our bakery, such as bread rolls, bagels, croissants, and whole grain rolls. Sometimes, I also need butter, salami, cottage cheese, and cream cheese or different flavoured spreads. In addition, I often buy yoghurt with fruit or muesli and other milk products, such as cream, cheese, butter, milk, and sour cream.

My mother goes on a big grocery-shopping trip once a week I usually help her. We buy flour, sugar, macaroni and other forms of pasta, which is a favourite in our family. 0ur local grocery store has a rich variety of processed and precooked food that makes cooking easier. You can choose between different kinds of soups, sauces, cakes, and powdered dumplings. We also buy drinks, such as fruit juice, lemonade, mineral water, and tomato juice.

When we prepare for a celebration, we always buy beer, wine, champagne, cognac, or plumb brandy for our guests. We order desserts with fruit and whipped cream or a big chocolate layer cake at the nearby bakery. For the children, we buy ice cream, or more often, popsicles.

I am fond of sweets, so I never forget to stop by the candy shop. I am picky, but I always like to buy candies, cookies, chocolate, or some potato chips.

At the greengrocer's we buy tropical fruits, such as bananas, oranges, lemons, kiwis, grapefruits, pineapples, and dates. During the summer, the variety of fruits can be found at the store, such as watermelons, blackberries, currants, gooseberries, and raspberries. However, we like to have fresh fruit and berries from our garden. Throughout the summer we always have a good supply of home-grown apples, cherries, pears, strawberries, and plums.

Vegetables are an important part of our diet. We eat them either fresh or cooked. We usually cook recipes that include potatoes, carrots, celery, parsley, onions, tomatoes, cucumbers, cabbage, dill, cauliflower, sprouts, or spinach. We grow peas, beans, kohlrabi, and radishes in our garden. Our neighbours don't have a garden, so they buy vegetables at the market. They are satisfied with the quality and the wide variety of vegetables that are available at the market. Another advantage is that they buy their products direct from the farmer.

The butcher on the corner of our street has many customers. In his shop you can buy pork, beef, veal, lamb and mutton. These kinds of meat can be bought either pre-packaged or by weight. You can also choose from different kinds of specialities, such as hearts, livers, kidneys, and all kinds of fresh or smoked meats. In addition, the butcher sells pork specialities, such as sausages, and also poultry specialities, such as chicken, hen, goose, turkey, and duck.

My mother buys fish at the delicatessen. She buys mainly carp, trout, and salmon. My brother is very fond of the mixed mayonnaise salads that can also be bought at the delicatessen. When we prepare for a trip, we pack canned meat or dry salami, which keep well even in hot weather.

When I want to do a lot of shopping very quickly, I go to a big shopping centre. They have a large variety of products available in several different stores all under one roof. The shop assistants serve us, give us professional advice, demonstrate the products, and wrap them up after we have bought them. The shopping centre has a multitude of different shops, for example, clothing stores for men, women, and children, sports shops, appliance stores, glass and pottery stores, photo shops, stationary stores, toy stores, shoe stores, furniture stores, fabric stores, and hardware stores. We can purchase or rent products with home delivery service. The shopping centre is open every day from 8:00 am until 10:00pm.

In the city, we also have additional stores, such as flower shops, bookshops, newsagents, and drugstores. The Italian restaurant, with its nice and quiet atmosphere, is popular among young people because the meals are served quickly, the food tastes really good, and the prices are reasonable. I regularly buy books at the bookstore in the main square. I also go to the music store to listen to the latest music. This is where I buy cassettes and CDs.

Many people who feel that they do not have time to go shopping choose products from catalogues. They just fill out the order form, specify the type, colour, and size, and then mail their order. In just a few days or weeks, the new products arrive in the mail. It is possible to buy washing machines, dishwashers, radios, CD players, and all kinds of other things through mail order.

Sometimes, salespeople selling cosmetics come to our door, offering to demonstrate their products. This gives an opportunity to decide if we want to buy something or not. These new sales methods save time and are convenient for busy people.

The availability of services makes people's lives easier. In fact most people can no longer imagine life without mechanics, hairstylists, chemists, manicurists, and dry-cleaners.

During the last few years, the quality of services has greatly improved. In cities and villages, you can find all sorts of services and craftsmen such as woodworkers, carpenters, shoemakers, painters, wall paper hangers, tailors, upholsters, window cleaners, mechanics, optometrists and photographers.

Laundry/dry cleaning facilities are also significant help. It doesn't take long to have e.g. a coat, a dress, a pair of trousers, a jacket, a blanket, or anything else that you can't wash in a washing machine, cleaned.

You can leave your bed sheets, shirts, towels, and tablecloths at the laundry, and they will wash, dry, and iron them, if you can afford it.

Shoemakers will mend or resole your worn out shoes, just as you can have your watch or electrical appliances fixed somewhere else. The duration of the repair depends on the amount of damage to your shoe/watch/appliance. Sometimes, it is enough just to change a heel of the shoe or a broken piece. These kinds of repairs take only a few minutes, while others take longer.

If any of our larger appliances break down we often have to call for a repairman to come to our home. This is often the case if it is the washing machine, the TV set, the radio, the freezer, the fridge, or the stove.

At the optometrist's, you can have your broken glasses fixed, or you can buy new ones. They can also clean your spectacles, or you may buy a new frame, case, or a pair of sunglasses. At the photo shop, you can have your film developed or your portrait taken. You can also buy a new film, (either in colour or black and white), cameras or accessories for your camera. Maybe you like to develop your own films. In that case, you can buy the necessary equipment like photo paper, chemicals, etc.

When our family needs medicinal drugs, bandages or herbal teas we go to the small chemist's on the corner. They are open twenty-four hours a day.

If your car breaks down you usually have to go to a mechanic. A mechanic will do any kind of basic maintenance such as changing your tyre, charging your batteries or checking the tyre pressure. Mechanics also repair your car when something is wrong. Maybe it means changing the clutch, adjusting the brakes, or fixing the carburettor.

When our car has been fixed, we like to have it washed and the easiest way is to drive it through the carwash at a petrol station.

The hairdresser's and beauty shops are very busy. They often have many customers, mostly women and girls. You might go there to have your hair cut, trimmed, coloured, bleached, washed, dried and styled. You can also get a perm. At the beauty shop you can get a facial massage, pedicure or manicure, or you can have your skin cleaned with natural cosmetic products. In addition, many women go to the gym to exercise, stretch, and keep fit.

When you are building a new house or maintaining your present one, you often need the help of construction companies. Last year, we decided to paint all the rooms in our house. Some painters from a small company did the work and it was done quickly and professionally. After they finished with the interior, they painted the window frames, and to finish the job, we had a window cleaner and carpet cleaners come and make everything nice and clean. My mother was really happy, and she said it was like getting a new house.

We also used this occasion to take all of our recyclables, such as the old newspapers, clothes, plastic and glass to the recycle station.

The city's technical department takes care of the city. They keep the pavements and streets clean, cut the grass, prune the trees in the parks, and dispose of the rubbish. During the summer, they make sure that the plants, trees, and flowers are watered.