“Peter?”

“Noooo?”

“Už nemáme rožky? Ani tresku? Ani mlieko?”

“Nie, nemáme.”

“Joj, nemáme čo jesť!”

“Tak poďme nakúpiť.”

“Dobre, ale poďme do supermarketu.”

“Ale, čo si. To je ďaleko. Zbehneme tu dole do obchodu na rohu.”

“Tam, čo si musíš pýtať? Ti šibe? Ja neviem po slovensky!”

“Ale vieš. Neboj sa, ja budem pýtať.”

🛒 V obchode

Peter took me to one of those small village shops that are the heart of everyday life in Slovakia.

It was nothing like the supermarkets I was used to. The shop was tiny, with shelves full of everyday essentials, but it wasn’t self-service. Behind a long glass counter, fresh bread, rolls and pastries were neatly displayed, and you had to ask the shop assistant for each item one by one.

Every morning, locals stopped by to buy fresh bread and pastries before work. People greeted each other, chatted for a few minutes, exchanged local gossip, and left with a warm loaf under one arm and a bag of fresh rožky in the other.

It felt less like shopping and more like a daily village ritual.

Unfortunately for me, it also meant I couldn’t simply point at what I wanted. I actually had to ask for everything in Slovak.

But Peter always asked, and I was normally the quiet observer. The shop assistant now knew me quite well and even attempted to say hello and thank you in English. So sweet of her.

“Dobré ráno.”

“Dobré ráno. Môžem vám nejako pomôcť?”

“Áno, prosíme si…”

Peter’s phone rang. He quickly looked at the screen and, with concern in his eyes, said, “Volá šéf, musím zdvihnúť.”

He left to go outside, leaving me alone with the shopkeeper.

Of course. The one time I actually needed him.

I felt the sweat wash over me. Should I run after him, or suffer through another public humiliation?

😰 Sama

“Prosím si mlieko.”

Ha. I can do this.

“Ešte niečo?”

“Prosím si rožky.”

“Koľko?”

Oh my God, how do I say five? I don’t remember. I went blank.

“Tri…”

“Tri čo?”

“Tri rožok?”

I hesitated.

“Tri rožky.”

“Tri rožky.”

I repeated, feeling slightly in control again.

“Nech sa páči. Čo ešte?”

“Ešte chlieb.”

“Biely alebo čierny?”

Holy moly, what does this mean? I looked around, trying to see Peter. He was pacing up and down the street, glued to his phone. The shop was slowly filling up. People were looking at me.

Help… I wanted to scream.

The shopkeeper saw my panic and smiled, bringing two loaves of bread for me to choose from.

“Biely chlieb je tento a čierny chlieb je tento.”

“Á, čierny chlieb, prosím.”

“Ešte čo dáme?”

“Jogurt, tri banány, tri jablká, syr…”

I named all the items I could think of, whether we needed them or not.

What I could not remember was the thing we had actually come for.

🤔 Dedinský kvíz

“Potrebujem ešte… to… tá… neviem, ako sa to volá…”

“Šunka?”

“Nie.”

“Maslo? Káva? Čaj? Voda? Čokoláda? Saláma?”

The next thing I knew, the whole shop had gathered around me, naming items I might need.

“Je to biele.”

“Biele… hmm…”

Chlapec: “Vajcia?”

Suseda: “Múka?”

Sused: “Smotana?”

“Je to ako jogurt.”

Predavačka: “Tvaroh? Bryndza?”

“Nie, nie. Ako jogurt a ryba.”

“Jogurt a ryba? Také nemáme.”

“Tr…”

Všetci: “TRESKA!”

“ÁNO, TRESKA! Prosím si… tri!”

People started laughing and cheering me on at the same time.

💳 Zaplatím, prosím

“Ešte niečo?”

“Nie, to je všetko.”

“Platíte kartou alebo v hotovosti?”

“Kartou, prosím.”

“Potrebujete tašku?”

“Áno, prosím si.”

“Tak nech sa páči a pekný deň.”

“Aj vám. Dovidenia.”

I quickly grabbed the plastic bag and ran out of the shop as fast as I could. Despite turning my shopping trip into a village quiz, I couldn’t stop smiling.

For the first time since arriving in Slovakia, I had survived a real conversation completely on my own.

As I walked out, I met Peter heading towards me.

He took the bag from my hand and peeked inside.

“Všetko v poriadku?”

“Samozrejme.”

“Prečo máme tri jogurty, tri jablká, tri banány a tri tresky?”

“Lebo jediné čísla, ktoré si pamätám, sú tri a tridsať.”

“Dobrá voľba, tridsať by bolo veľa.”

At that moment, we burst out laughing uncontrollably, causing another scene.

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POĎME NA TO!

❓Quiz Time

📘Slovník (Phrase Glossary)

Slovak Phrase	English Meaning	Explanation
Dáš si…?	Would you like…?	Offering food or drink
Prosím si.	I would like…	Polite way to ask for something
Nie, ďakujem.	No, thank you.	Polite refusal
Máš rada…?	Do you like…?	Asking a woman if she likes something
Ja ju nemám rada.	I don’t like it.	Expressing dislike
Kto si prosí…?	Who would like…?	Offering food to a group
Chutilo ti?	Did you enjoy it?	Asking if someone liked the food
Na zdravie!	Cheers!	Toasting
A do dna!	Bottoms up!	Finish your drink
Poď sem.	Come here.	Calling someone over

📖 Slovník (Phrase Glossary)

Slovak	English
Môžem vám nejako pomôcť?	Can I help you?
Prosím si…	I’d like…
Koľko?	How many?
Ešte niečo?	Anything else?
To je všetko.	That’s all.
Platíte kartou alebo v hotovosti?	Are you paying by card or cash?
Kartou, prosím.	By card, please.
Potrebujete tašku?	Do you need a bag?
Nech sa páči.	Here you are.
Pekný deň.	Have a nice day.
Dovidenia.	Goodbye.

📚 Slovíčka (Vocabulary List)

🛒 Shop

• obchod — shop
• predavačka — shop assistant
• zákazník — customer
• taška — bag
• hotovosť — cash
• karta / kartou — card / by card

🥖 Food

• rožok — bread roll
• chlieb — bread
• mlieko — milk
• treska — traditional Slovak fish salad
• jogurt — yoghurt
• banán — banana
• jablko — apple
• syr — cheese
• šunka — ham
• maslo — butter
• saláma — salami
• vajcia — eggs
• múka — flour
• smotana — cream
• tvaroh — quark
• bryndza — traditional Slovak sheep’s cheese

🥖 Language & Culture Note: Village shops

In many Slovak villages, small local shops are still part of everyday life.

Unlike large supermarkets, many bakery products, cheeses and cold meats are kept behind the counter. Instead of taking them yourself, you simply ask the shop assistant for what you need.

It also means you need to know a few Slovak words… or hope the whole village helps you, just like Sarah!

🧠 Grammar explained – Potrebovať

You’ve already learned the verb mať (to have).

Now let’s learn another very useful verb:

potrebovať = to need

English	Slovak
I need	potrebujem
You need	potrebuješ
He / She / It needs	potrebuje
We need	potrebujeme
You (plural/formal) need	potrebujete
They need	potrebujú

Examples

• Potrebujem mlieko.
• Potrebuješ tašku?
• Potrebujú pomoc.

Negative

Simply add ne-.

• Nepotrebujem tašku.
• Nepotrebuješ tresku.
• Nepotrebujeme mlieko.

💡 Bacha na to!
In shops you’ll often hear:
„Potrebujete tašku?“
This literally means:
“Do you need a bag?”

🤓 Now you try it!

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